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So here's what I sent to Amazon's Kindle 2 feedback email box:
I applauded the inclusion of text-to-speech for all titles on the new Kindle 2 and now read with frustration that you are now in essence removing the feature (what publisher is going to not opt-out???)
I'm writing to request an opt-out for disabled users so their Kindle 2's can ignore the opt-out from the publishers. I believe this feature would best be implemented as a simple on/off option in the settings page: Disabled Access Mode On/Off.
This simple switch could then be used to enable other disability access features in addition to opting out of the text-to-speech publisher opt-out. For example: the six font sizes offered could be re-based to start with the current font size 5 and work up to add four new ludicrously large fonts. An inverted mode in which the page is drawn black and the text in white could be offered in settings. As well as the ability to scale the fonts for the UI itself to larger fonts. And even better; text-to-speech for the UI itself including a talking dictionary.
The re-setting of the offered font sizes would I believe offset any fears the publishers would have that the non-disabled would exploit the text-to-speech opt-out in addition to providing access to more legally blind individuals than the platform currently supports.
Countless lives would be positively affected by these changes.
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