https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?term=retinitis+pigmen...
i hope the link can help you trials of new medications
Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
41–50 of 497 posts
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#42I would recommend trying to study up on Section 508 compliance https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/index.html . It's a set of rules that all government orgs in the US must follow for making sure their content is accessible. If you do end up becoming visually impaired you'll end up with a unique perspective on building accessible websites.
Are there consulting firms that specialize in 508 audits? Seems like a potentially lucrative field given the activist lawsuits that happen in this area.
https://www.natlawreview.com/article/ada-website-litigation-...
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#43Good luck man. I'm mildly visually impaired myself and the average person gives it no consideration whatsoever.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#44I agree with those that reference the govt policies that all orgs are suppose to follow. This could really turn into your career. I went to school with a blind network engineer and he was top of the class. Stay strong brother.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#45I’m really sorry that you have to face that and wish I had better advice.
My employer is the U.S. federal government and I would highly recommend considering looking at government (or contractor) jobs: we take very seriously the need to serve ALL of the public and front-end engineers who deeply understand and value accessibility are extremely valuable contributors since they can provide the subjective guidance which no level of automated tool or guideline can provide.
The GSA’s 18F has a great guide to building accessible websites:
https://accessibility.18f.gov/
(The BBC guide is also good: http://www.bbc.co.uk/guidelines/futuremedia/accessibility/)
I’d treat that as both an area to learn the tools for personal reasons - e.g. get comfortable with the accessibility tools in your favorite operating system - and as an area to learn more. There’s a pretty good story for web accessibility these days but a lot of people do not make much use of it and someone who can make an entire team more efficient has a somewhat uncommon selling point.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#46I would recommend trying to study up on Section 508 compliance https://www.hhs.gov/web/section-508/index.html . It's a set of rules that all government orgs in the US must follow for making sure their content is accessible. If you do end up becoming visually impaired you'll end up with a unique perspective on building accessible websites.
Most US universities need to comply too
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#47You can definitely continue as a software engineer. I'm living proof. It won't be easy, especially at first. For a while it will feel like you're working twice as hard just to keep up with your sighted peers. But eventually, the better you get with your tools, you'll find you have some superpowers over your sighted peers. For example, as you get better with a screen reader, you'll be bumping the speech rate up to 1.75-2X normal speech. You'll be the only one who can understand your screen reader. You'll become the fastest and most proficient proof reader on your team. Typos will be easily spotted as they just won't "sound right". It will be like listening to a familiar song and then hitting an off note in the melody. And this includes code. Also, because code is no longer represented visually as blocks, you'll find you're building an increasingly detailed memory model of your code. Sighted people do this, too, but they tend to visualize in their mind. When you abandon this two dimensional representation, your non-visual mental map suffers no spatial limits. You'll be amazed how good your memory will get without the crutch of sight. Good luck. If you're a Mac user you can hit me up for tool recommendations. My email is my username at gmail dot com.
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#48I just want to throw this out there, just in case you haven't deeply considered it. I'm sure others will answer your question more properly. Have you considered that maybe you don't want to be doing software engineering and with this precious remaining time would rather prepare for something entirely different? Not sure what your financial situation will be or if you live somewhere with sufficient social support, but…
I am failing to see where are you coming from with this. If anything, changing careers to software development made me live a more fulfilling life in the last 3 years.
What would be your suggestion for the best way to live a full and fulfilling life?
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#49So sorry to hear this! I have no expert advice to offer, but have you thought about developing a very high level of expertise in some area (preferably in some areas of back end architecture) which allows you to consult without having to write code (unless that is what you truly want to do).
Best of luck!
Re: Ask HN: I'm a software engineer going blind, how should I prepare?
#50In a similar situation though as not as bad as what you have and have thought I should prepare for the worst. I have CSR(Central Serous Retinopathy) for the last 3 years. It come and goes but my eyesight gets worse every time it comes back. Stay strong.