Re: Mark on the Walmart App in iOS 18, It Works for Me with Voice Over

[Alan Lemly]

I'll add that I'm able to use the Walmart app successfully but agree that it isn't merely as easy to use with VoiceOver as past iterations of the app have been. But I'll add that most apps I use that their developers seem to think need to be upgraded every couple of days also aren't as easy to use. The plain fact is that graphical images are much more prevalent in newer apps as opposed to text alternatives which were much more prevalent in the earlier days of iOS. Big surprise since we live in a visual world where images reign over words. Just attend an Apple new iPhone event and note how much time is given to the camera enhancements as opposed to other features.  I would recommend that with the Walmart and other apps that are problematic that you keep screen recognition in your rotor and turn it on while exploring those apps to see if you experience any improvements. I would not leave it turned on but try it out. It sometimes results in things not previously spoken by VoiceOver to be spoken. I could not tell that it made much difference with the Walmart app but see if it makes a difference for you. I was able to move among the various My Items headings when I tested it just now with screen recognition turned off. The Walmart app is considerably slower than it used to be but so are all of my apps as they move toward more visual graphical presentation.  Alan Lemly  Sent from my iPhone On Oct 5, 2024, at 8:42 AM, Bill Gallik <wfgal...@gmail.com> wrote: This message is in response to Mark's and Michael’s posts per this thread. First, allow me to divulge that I spent 20 years at AT&T Bell Labs as a professional software engineer.  Given that background, I can honestly say that I’ve been able to use the Walmart iOS app to get my orders in successfully. BUT, I’m not going to suggest that doing this was efficient nor convenient.  I’ve developed "work arounds" to surmount several of the software issues I (and obviously a number of others) have experienced.  I’m not about to suggest that, just because I can accurately use the app, that most of those having difficulty ought to be able to overcome same.  On the contrary, I completely agree with Michael (DISCLAIMER, Michael is a long time friend from a chat line) and those misfortunate folks having problems with the app are completely justified in their angst. Especially when one considers that the app was so much more usable just a few versions ago.  It’s truly a shame when software people are hired by major corporations without thorough knowledge of what is expected of them.  In this case, I firmly suspect that the app itself is not the culprit, but rather some very misguided web programming.  For example, the issue that one cannot peruse the “My Items” page using the header search; there at least a dozen headings to categorize past purchased items, but only the second heading (Dairy and Eggs) can be readily located via the heading search feature.  It did work a short while back! So, my question is this, what in the world did the web programmers change to cause pursuant headings to become invisible?  Changes of that sort are simply unacceptable and negligent.  I recall one of the golden rules of software development and maintenance is, “Never break something that has been working.” And stark criticism of that sort of error is thoroughly justifiable. ************ - Bill from Bayfield County, Wisconsin - “More business is lost every year through” - “neglect than through any other cause.” - Rose Kennedy On Oct 4, 2024, at 11:15 AM, VIPhone <viphone@googlegroups.com> wrote: Hello Everyone, I’ve been reading all of the extremely negative messages regarding the latest version of the Walmart app and I just want to say that I think the app has a great deal to offer VoiceOver users. I use the Walmart app several times, per week, at home and in-store, and it continues to impress me with how easy it makes my shopping and purchasing experience. The reason I am posting this is because Walmart was one of the first organizations to include screen reader users in its development process and I think it is unfair to state that they do not care about us. While I rarely have items delivered to my house, I regularly use the Walmart app to browse items before entering the store and to look up item info while in the store.   When in the store, I, more often than not, use the iOS Walmart app to self check-out and to review my receipts for accuracy. I am not saying that the app is VoiceOver bug free, but I am saying that in my opinion, this avalanche of negativity is approaching something that is beyond my experience, real or imagined. I’ll say this:  I find the Walmart app much easier to use than the Amazon app when it comes to browsing for items.  One is not inundated with nearly as much screen clutter as Amazon insists on displaying at every opportunity. I urge anyone, especially new VoiceOver users, to download the app, give it a try, and form your own opinion as to its usability. Finally, as I stated in a previous post, I cannot reproduce the issues described on this list on my 14.  Earlier today, I used a 15 and could not get the issues to occur, either I can honestly say that both the Walmart and Sam’s club apps are among my favorite in iOS. Again, this is just my opinion. Mark -- The following information is important for all members of the V iPhone list.   If you have any questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if you feel that a member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or moderators directly rather than posting on the list itself.   Your V iPhone list moderator is Mark Taylor. Mark can be reached at: mk...@ucla.edu. 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Your list owner is Cara Quinn - you can reach Cara at caraqu...@caraquinn.com   The archives for this list can be searched at: http://www.mail-archive.com/viphone@googlegroups.com/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "VIPhone" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to viphone+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/viphone/A4D0728C-4853-42B5-9B65-5D2CDFC2D3FE%40gmail.com. -- The following information is important for all members of the V iPhone list.   If you have any questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if you feel that a member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or moderators directly rather than posting on the list itself.   Your V iPhone list moderator is Mark Taylor. Mark can be reached at: mk...@ucla.edu. 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