<p>
Back in the summer of 2014 I started going to the Surrey Linux User Group.
</p>
<p>
I was asked to give a short presentation about Linux accessibility and how,
although I am totally blind, I still write code and muck about with Linux.
</p>
<p>
I was then asked to give the same presentation at the Portsmouth LUG.
</p>
<p>
This time I made it more comprehensive and took more kit.
</p>
<p>
So I take this opportunity to give my version of the "What's in my bag"
shows that some folks have been doing.  As I am unemployed, like a lot of blind
folks, I have been unable to justify this before now because I don't lug
an interesting collection of stuff to and from work.
</p>
<p>
Here's a simple bullet list about the crate and it's contents:
</p>

<ul>
<li>The crate is a 35 litre capacity 'Really Useful Box'
</li>
<li>First in were 2 Dell Latitude D630 (64-bit) laptops
</li>
<li>Next in was a Dell Inspiron (32-bit) laptop, clunky and slow
</li>
<li>The three laptops were sandwhiched between 3-ply layers of bubble-wrap
</li>
<li>Next in was a Seika 40-cell refreshable Braille display
</li>
<li>Next was a clear polycarbonate, zip-up pencil case stuffed with audio leads
</li>
<li>Then a 'Mesh' Bluetooth and line-in external speaker
</li>
<li>And a Braun external speaker/FM radio/micro-SD boom-box
</li>
<li>A four-way mains power splitter
</li>
<li>The three AC adaptors for the laptops
</li>
<li>On the top of the box, because it was too wide to go in, was a USB keyboard
</li>
<li>Mobile phone charging battery 'brick', for the Raspberry Pi
</li>
<li>A Raspberry Pi, a Banana Pi and some Arduino bits and pieces
</li>
</ul>

<p>
Here's what I demonstrated with two of the laptops:
</p>

<ul>
<li>Trisquel Linux and accessibility in the Gnome desktop with Orca
</li>
<li>Accessibility in the console with Debian and the Braille display on the Inspiron
</li>
</ul>

<p>
The second Latitude was with me so I could get some sighted help with
BIOS settings.
</p>
<p>
My thanks have to go to Tony Wood for the lift to and from both of these
accessibility presentations.  I could not have done either, especially the Portsmouth one without his help.
</p>
<p>
Thanks also to Lisi, the coordinator of the Portsmouth LUG and to the folks of that LUG for their enthusiasm.
</p>
<p>
Here's the link to the HPR show about my Raspberry Pi tts code fix:
</p>
<p>
<a href="https://hackerpublicradio.org/eps.php?id=1649">https://hackerpublicradio.org/eps.php?id=1649</a>
</p>