Direct Touch (Car Mode): + A short sound now plays in Car Mode when looping from the end of a feed back to the beginning, or vice versa. This indicates when the feed has restarted and works when navigating forwards, backwards, or while listening to all answers on a question. This feature uses the same sounds as the original Vorail app and can be disabled in Settings under Feeds or by using the voice command "loop sound off." + The two-finger tap gesture in Car Mode for increased playback speed is now customizable. The default double speed can be changed in Settings under Feeds. Car Mode's on-screen gesture list and spoken help dynamically update to state the chosen speed. Subscribed Questions in Car Mode: + A New Fourth Feed: Your subscribed questions are now in Car Mode. Previously, Car Mode could browse Questions, Answers, and your Inbox. The questions you've subscribed to are now a fourth feed alongside them, so you can catch up on the conversations you're following without looking at the screen. + Accessing the Feed: Reach it with a three-finger swipe, by choosing "Go to Subscribed questions" from the car mode action menu, or by saying "subscribed questions." Additionally, the Subscribed questions screen now has a car button that opens Car Mode right on that feed. + Audio Indicators: As each question is announced, you also hear how many unplayed answers it has had in the past 24 hours—the same count that the screen shows—so you know which conversations have moved. Subscribed Questions + Subscribed questions now remain in sync across multiple devices and platforms, including iOS and Android. The app quietly checks for subscription changes in the background each time it is opened, updating the status of subscribed or unsubscribed questions without requiring a full app restart.Here is the updated release notes document with the new section seamlessly integrated and formatted for readability:

VoiceOver: + Added an option in Settings to record via the device microphone while directing VoiceOver announcements and stereo audio to a connected Bluetooth device + Opening "Listen to all answers" now moves focus to the oldest unheard answer and keeps the focus on the active item during playback instead of returning to the tab bar + Simplified the listening screens by removing the redundant "Play or pause" option from the actions menu, which prevents VoiceOver from reading the title over the first seconds of audio. Double-tapping performs the same action without interrupting + Fixed an issue in the Time Capsule feed where VoiceOver focus would unexpectedly jump to the top of the page after playback started Car Mode (Direct Touch Area): + Swiping left while listening to a conversation plays the original question, and swiping left again jumps directly to the most recent answer. Swiping past either end of the list now wraps around instead of exiting the conversation + Added a three-finger swipe up gesture to navigate back from a question's answers directly to the previous feed Inbox: + Clearing a large Inbox now displays the maximum number of items it can show, along with a progress bar and a Stop button + Upon finishing a batch, the app automatically checks the server and offers to dissolve any remaining items waiting behind the first batch + Resolved a server syncing issue that could previously cause dissolved items to reappear in the Inbox Time Capsules: + Cursor focus now remains on the active capsule during playback and advances when the story ends + Swiping to another capsule pauses the current story rather than stopping it, allowing playback to resume from the exact stopping point with a double tap Playback and History: + The "Hide played items" feature retains history much longer by tracking questions and answers separately, preventing long conversations from crowding out previously heard questions + Items played in the Inbox are now marked as played globally and will not appear as unplayed in other feeds + Added a Catch up section in Settings to mark all items currently in the Questions or Answers feed as played + Added a Played history screen in The Lab to view tracked playback data and diagnostic information, for troubleshooting purposes

Car Mode (DirectTouch) improvements: + Car Mode is now accessible with one tap from the More menu in Questions, Answers, and the Inbox, opening directly to the feed currently being viewed. + Swiping up or down to choose an action now automatically pauses the active clip so the action name does not talk over the audio. Tapping resumes playback. + Selecting "Listen to all answers" now skips the replay of the original question and immediately begins playing the answers. Playback and Settings updates: + A new "Startup tab" picker in Settings allows selection of a default launch screen. Choosing Car Mode opens the app ready for gestures, and exiting drops you onto your next tab. + The Questions feed Play All feature has been updated to play each question followed directly by its associated answers. + The device screen now stays awake during long clips, Play All sequences, and while Car Mode is active, preventing the phone from locking and hiding playback controls. This feature can be toggled in Settings under Feeds. + A Play All button is now available on user profiles and in private message histories, allowing hands-free listening of all asked questions, answered questions, or message threads. Other VoiceOver & DirectTouch improvements: + Car Mode (DirectTouch) now retains full control of screen gestures. Brushing the top of the screen will no longer accidentally trigger the Exit button and hand control back to VoiceOver. Exiting can be done via the swipe-up menu, a two-finger scrub, or a voice command. + Actions menus for Subscribed questions, Blocked questions, and Blocked titles have been cleaned up to remove duplicate entries. The action that removes an item is now placed at the bottom of the list to prevent accidental selections. + Starting Play All anywhere in the app now places the VoiceOver cursor directly on the playing item instead of dropping focus elsewhere. Playback also begins instantly without the first item being read twice. + Playing a clip in a message history now keeps the VoiceOver cursor anchored to the active message instead of jumping to the top of the list. Swiping to a different message now stops the current audio.

VoiceOver improvements: + Focus remains on the current item after a clip finishes playing rather than sometimes returning to the top of the screen + Rotor actions apply to the currently playing clip during auto-play instead of the initial cursor position + The reply screen announces the specific question or name being replied to, which can help posting an answer in the wrong conversation + Sign in with Apple provides spoken feedback if a sign-in attempt is cancelled + Sign in with Apple includes a spoken cue while verifying the device + Sign in with Apple provides actionable spoken guidance when notifications need to be enabled Direct touch (car mode): + Inbox is available alongside the Questions and Answers feeds + Three finger swipe left or right changes feeds and tabs + Three finger swipe down refreshes the current feed + Navigate to the Inbox directly using the voice command go to inbox + Inbox items including messages, incoming questions, and new answers are read aloud and play automatically + Reply action operates eyes-free by recording after an audio cue and swiping to finish + Voice or touch actions include Reply, Dissolve, Listen to all answers, View all messages, Mute, Block, and open a profile + Auto-play next setting allows consecutive clips to be announced and played automatically until the feed ends + Review menu offers say a title for hands-free entry or type a title via the keyboard when finishing a new ask-all Time capsules: + Create an ask-all based on the time capsule by recording your own introduction to it, that is combined with the capsule into a single recording for the Questions feed + Answer a capsule to join the original conversation + Listen to all answers to hear the full conversation including new responses + Access time capsules in The Lab under Explore or by using the voice command: "time capsules" Account access: + Sign in with Apple now checks for the required notification permissions upfront + Prompting provides a direct shortcut to Settings if notifications are disabled

This update includes important security enhancements around creating new ask-alls.

Important security & privacy update: * Sign in with Apple added for stronger, more private protection of your messages. Sign in with Apple so that only you can read your conversations or send messages from your account. VoiceOver improvements: * The overflow button at the top right of the screen is now consistently labeled as 'more' on all pages. * In Settings, Tab Order, the Reset button is now announced as Reset to original tab order. A hint explains it restores the tabs to their original order, and resetting is confirmed out loud. * The Me tab now announces as Me instead of you. * Following a user can now be accessed directly in the actions menu on their name. New features and updates: * The Follow feature has been restored. Notifications are sent whenever a followed person asks a new question. * Users can be followed directly from their profile, and the list of followed people can be managed under the Me tab in the People you follow section. * New voice commands are supported. Saying 'open me' or 'open me tab' navigates to the Me tab. Saying 'follow them' while browsing a feed follows that person, and saying 'people I follow' opens the list of followed people. * Closing the recorder with an unposted recording now prompts a Discard recording confirmation with Yes and No choices on every device. * Name search in Connections and People you follow has been refined. Typing a single letter shows only names starting with that letter, while longer searches match anywhere in the name.

VoiceOver: .. The Share option for public questions and answers is now available directly in the actions rotor. Sharing Recordings: - Public questions and answers can now be shared as links that play in any web browser. The Share option is located in a recording's actions menu or can be accessed by saying "share this." Sharing Controls: - A new setting, Let people share my recordings, is located under Settings. This setting is on by default and controls whether posts can be shared. Sharing can also be allowed or stopped for any single recording under Your questions and Your answers in the Me tab. When sharing is stopped for a recording, its links stop working immediately. Muting Updates: - Users you have muted, and users who have muted you, no longer appear in your connections or member search.

Playback Improvements: + Play-all functionality in the full thread view updated to resume playback more accurately and consistantly bypass previously played items. Recording Updates: + Better handling of the 20-minute limit on recordings. Once reached, the recording stops automatically with options to play, send, or discard the file.

Direct Touch Interface: - Resolved an issue in the direct touch interface where exiting an empty feed was unclear. Exit and help actions are now consistently available, spoken guidance is included, and a new exit voice command is available. Stereo Recording: - Audio is now captured and played back in stereo when the recording quality is set to stereo and the iOS device is connected to an audio mixer.

Direct Touch Enhancements: - Record directly without leaving Car Mode. Questions can now be answered and asked directly from this interface. - Use the voice command 'answer' to record a response to the current question, or 'add an ask-all' to initiate a new question. Both options are also available in the swipe up and down action menu. - Recording begins immediately following the beep. Tap to pause and resume. Swipe in any direction when finished. Completed recordings play back immediately. Swipe up or down to select post, keep recording, play again, or discard, then double tap to execute. - Answering is now the first item in the action menu. One swipe down and one double tap initiates recording. - For assistance, use the voice command 'help with recording'. Recording Enhancements: - Spatial Audio recording and posting are now supported. Enable this feature under Settings, then Recording quality, or use the voice command record in spatial audio on a compatible iPhone. Recordings capture immersive 3D sound with head tracking on supported AirPods. Listeners on older devices automatically receive the standard audio version. Community Pass: - A Community Pass option is now available. Individuals who cannot afford a membership can record a short introduction when applying for sponsorship. - Purchased memberships now include the ability to sponsor a Community Pass user. Introductions from users requesting sponsorship can be reviewed and selected in the Me (You) tab.

VoiceOver Improvements: Fixed an issue where starting a clip in the Questions or Answers feed intermittently moved focus to the top of the screen. Focus now stays on the active clip. Fixed an issue in the Inbox where on occasion a clip would stop playing moments after it was started. Focus now stays on the message. Fixed an issue where the inbox count failed to update. Audio and Playback: Audio now streams instead of downloading first, allowing long recordings to start immediately. Recently played clips replay instantly. The spoken recording countdown, Play All intros, and Car Mode announcements can now use any voice installed on the device, including enhanced and premium options. Voices are selected in Settings, Feeds, Announcement voice, and a sample plays upon selection. Stereo audio can now be heard when previewing a recording before posting. The index of available stereo clips updates more frequently, refreshing when the app enters the foreground or a feed is updated. Fixed a bug in the lab's spatial audio section where the stereo fallback track could play over the spatial track. Inbox Updates A play all function is now available in the inbox. This includes the ability to play all public answers received to ask-alls. Fixed a rare issue where dissolved inbox items failed to resolve.

VOICEOVER & ACCESSIBILITY • Recording Focus: Focus remains securely on the Record button when initiating a reply or a new question. VoiceOver no longer speaks over the beginning of a recording. Focus stability is maintained across actions including listening to the original audio, pausing, resuming, using "record more," and dictating titles. • Headset Routing: Audio can now remain in a connected headset during recording. Enable "Record through your headset" in Settings ▸ Recording to keep VoiceOver announcements in the headset rather than switching to the device speaker. Supported voice commands: "record through my headset" and "use the built-in microphone." Reminder, the device's built-in microphone provides higher recording quality than Bluetooth headsets. • Inbox Multi-Select: Added a VoiceOver-friendly multi-select mode with checkboxes and bulk dissolve confirmation for the Inbox. AUDIO & RECORDING • Stereo Recording: Available in Settings ▸ Recording quality, or via the voice command "record in stereo." Output remains in a standard format compatible with all standard players. • Spatial Audio: Immersive, head-tracked spatial audio recording and playback is available in "The Lab" tab for iPhone 16 and later users to experience on their devices. PLAYBACK & SYNCHRONIZATION • Background Playback: The "play-all" function now operates with the screen locked. Supported voice commands: "keep playing in the background," "play while locked," and "background audio on." • Device Synchronization: Played history synchronizes automatically across devices. Hiding a question on one device applies to all connected devices. A manual "Back up now" option is available in Settings. • Feed Sorting: Feeds can be sorted newest-first or oldest-first, with each feed retaining its specific order setting. Adjust via the feed toolbar, Settings, or voice commands. INBOX & INTERFACE ADJUSTMENTS • Inbox Views: The Inbox UI is updated to provide three distinct views: All, Private, and Ask-alls. • Badge Clearing: Resolved an issue with the application badge. The unread count now resets reliably upon opening the application or interacting with a notification. VOICE COMMANDS • Added support for the following commands: * "Create an ask-all" * "Show all" / "Show everything" / "All items" (routes to All view) * "Show messages only"

This update focuses on improving the playback experience, enhancing VoiceOver accessibility, and adding a few highly requested features to make navigation even smoother. VoiceOver & Accessibility Enhancements * Customizable Rotor Actions: The default rotor actions menu items in the Questions feed can now be edited, reordered, shown, or hidden. Depending on feedback, this customization may be extended to other feeds in the future. * Restart from the Beginning: A new VoiceOver action is available on every audio clip — whether in feeds, inbox, threads, profiles, messages, or the post-record preview. Open the Actions rotor and flick to "Restart from the beginning." Playback is seamless: it keeps playing if it was already active or picks back up immediately if it was paused. Direct Touch Improvements & Fixes * New Restart Gesture: A two-finger swipe up now restarts the current clip from the beginning. * Updated Gesture Guides: The on-screen gesture guide and spoken Help have been updated. * Audio Overlap Fix: An issue where the spoken name and question could sometimes talk over the start of a recording has been fixed. The clip will now wait for the announcement to finish before it starts playing. Profile & UI Updates * Quick Subscriptions: When viewing another user's profile, each question row (in both the Asked and Answered halves) now includes a subscribe (bell) toggle right after the suggest-followup (sparkles) button. * Rate Vorail AI: There is a new "Rate the app" button in the Me tab to share thoughts and help others discover Vorail AI. Going hands-free? Just say "rate the app" to open a review automatically.

DirectTouch improvements Car Mode Listening: Ask-all and all corresponding answers can now be played back-to-back. Car Mode Gestures: The swipe-up-and-down menu includes a comprehensive action set: Like, Subscribe, Answer, Message, Suggest a follow-up, Open profile, Mute, Block, and direct navigation to Questions or Answers. Car Mode Playback Controls: A two-finger tap toggles double playback speed, and a two-finger swipe skips forward or back. Car Mode Learning and Help: The initial spoken introduction is shortened, and a new Help item reads out all available gestures on demand. Car Mode Voice Navigation: Activating the magic tap followed by voice commands such as "open inbox" or "open settings" navigates directly to those respective screens. Car Mode Audio Announcements: The system announces the speaker identity and the respective question before playing each clip. Reminder, the volume and speed of the car mode announcements (and the "1, 2, 3" before recording an AskAll can be adjusted in settings). Audio and Voice Settings Softer Volume Option: A new whisper volume setting is available for spoken announcements, Car Mode, and the countdown announcement heard before recording begins. This setting allows the synthesized voice to be configured softer than before. Subscribed Questions Updates Unplayed Answer Counts: The Subscribed Questions view displays the total number of unplayed answers received within the last 24 hours, both as an overall summary and broken down per individual question. Ask-All Flow Updates Smoother Question Creation: Adding a title to a new Ask-All via onscreen keyboard is streamlined into a single-line field, where selecting Done transitions directly to the recording screen.

VoiceOver and Accessibility New Rotors: Three additive options are now available in the VoiceOver two-finger dial: Playback Speed, Skip, and Pause/Resume. The per-row Actions rotor remains untouched. Menu Navigation: A "Private Message" option is now available directly in the Actions menu and VoiceOver rotor within the questions and answers feed. Private Messaging Open Messaging: Private messaging is now available to all users. The connection requirement that was present in earlier versions of this app has been removed. Buttons to "Send a message" and "View all messages" are now visible on all profiles. Listening and Q&A Threads Thread View Updates: The answer-thread view has been updated to include a "show-all/show-new" toggle, automatic focus that jumps to the oldest unplayed answer, a tunable "Play-all" question preview, and a reorganized toolbar overflow menu. Inbox Enhancements: When receiving a new answer to an "Ask-All" prompt, there is now an option to listen to all answers in a full thread view. Navigation and Tabs Custom Tab Bar: The 5-tab bar is now a fully customizable picker. Any top 5 destinations (such as The Journey, The Daily, or Subscribed Questions) can be promoted to the five main tabs. Voice Access: Saying the voice command "change tabs" directly opens the tab settings. Car Mode Updates Magic Tap: Magic Tap is now enabled to activate voice commands while in Car Mode. Volume Control: Additional Car Mode voice commands have been added to increase and decrease the volume.

VoiceOver and Accessibility Enhancements Unified Playback Controls: Playback speed and position controls have been updated to be consistently available and functional across all screens. Customizable Skip Intervals: A new setting allows customization of the forward and backward skip amounts within the VoiceOver actions menu. Name and Title Truncation: Added a new setting to truncate long names and titles for cleaner navigation (enabled by default, can be disabled). Streamlined Ask-All Creation: Improved the title dictation process when creating an ask-all. Focus Correction: Resolved a VoiceOver focus alignment issue that occurred after selecting the re-record option. Quick Message History: Added a new VoiceOver action in the mutual likes feed. Simply flick up to instantly view message history. Audio and Recording Upgrades Seamless Multi-Part Recording: Take control of audio creation by pausing playback to record, resuming playback, and recording more. Upon pressing stop, all recorded segments are automatically stitched into a single message for sending. Autolock Prevention: The device screen is now prevented from autolocking while an audio recording is actively in progress. Inbox Durations: Message durations are now clearly displayed directly within the inbox. New Voice Commands and Search Send message to [Name]: Initiate direct messages hands-free with this new voice command. Find people: Use this new voice command to quickly search for users by name. The manual search tool can also be found on the Me screen. Feed and Playback Improvements Smart Playback Resume: Leaving an item mid-playback will no longer lose the spot. Playback now automatically resumes at the last played position upon return. Enhanced Play All for Subscribed Questions: When configured to skip already-played items, the player will now cycle through only new answers, introducing each with a 5-second preview of the original question. Contextual Inspiration: Daily feed items now include an "Inspired by" line, making the original ask-all that prompted the post clearly visible. Daily feed is located in "The Lab" tab. Profile Timestamps: Relative timestamps have been added to all items listed on the profile screen. Direct Feedback Channel: Tom R is now listed in everyone's contact list under "likes you" or "mutuals" to make sharing feedback faster and easier.

VoiceOver Enhancements - Focus Management: Fixed an issue where VoiceOver focus would get lost after an inbox item was dissolved. Focus now automatically advances to the next chronological item. Introducing Car Mode, a specialized, self-voicing screen designed to operate independently of VoiceOver, and implement hands-free usage via direct touch: - Swipe left or right to traverse the feed. - Swipe up or down to cycle through action menu items. - Single-finger single-tap to pause or resume audio playback. - Single-finger double-tap to select an audio item. Feature Additions - Follow-Up Suggestions: Tap the new follow-up suggestions button associated with each item on the feed to generate five new "ask-alls." The suggested ask-alls are designed to deepen the conversation or explore surfaced topics from entirely new angles. - The Daily Feed: A dedicated daily space highlighting thought-provoking "ask-alls" inspired by the community, shining a spotlight on hidden gems from the main feeds. - The Journey Feed: A new space showcasing the personal stories of members who choose to share. This serves as a vital peer resource for new members experiencing vision loss or navigating blindness to connect with those who have walked the path before.

Accessibility & VoiceOver Enhancements: .. Unified Recording Experience: The VoiceOver approach for the recording screens has been streamlined. Based on user feedback, creating a new ask-all, adding an answer, and replying to an inbox message now all utilize a single, consistent approach. .. Intelligent Audio Focus: After "play all" finishes, VoiceOver focus now automatically shifts to the most recently played audio to make resuming navigation smoother. Playback & Interaction: .. Auto-Play: Auto-play next is now available and enabled by default. .. Expanded Reply Options: Replies and other actions can now be initiated directly from the full thread view and the subscribed questions view. .. Seamless Answering: Answers can now be added directly while scrolling through ask-alls in the profile and subscribed questions screens. Control & Customization: .. Customizable Tabs: The order of the tabs can now be rearranged, and the application will automatically open to the first tab in the sequence. .. Mutuals as Contacts: Mutual likes are now organized and displayed like a standard contacts list for easier access. .. Custom Voice Commands: A new "help" voice command lists available actions. Custom phrases can now be assigned to trigger these commands. .. Advanced Question Filtering: Questions can now be blocked by title, starting phrase, or specific contained phrases. Blocked questions can be managed in the 'Me' screen. The Lab: .. "The Journey": A new area within "The Lab" tab designed to connect newer folks with community members who have shared or are sharing similar experiences.

VoiceOver Enhancements: Author Announcements: Fixed an issue where post authors were not announced by VoiceOver. Recording Labels: Improved accessibility labeling throughout the recording workflow. Magic Tap Gesture: Updated the "magic tap" functionality inside of recording workflow to stop recording. A single-finger double-tap on the microphone button records, pauses, and resumes, while "magic tap" starts and stops recording. Re-Record Navigation: VoiceOver now explicitly announces the "re-record" option when swiping left or right after a recording has stopped. Feed & Playback Updates Feed Sorting: Order of items in the main feeds can be changed in settings screen or by voice command for "Newest First" (newest on top) or "Oldest First" (oldest on top). Hide Played Content: Option to automatically hide items that have already been played. System Improvements Update Alerts: Introduced a startup notification that alerts when a newer app version is available, providing a direct link to the App Store.

1. The "Me" Tab & Navigation: The "Me" tab has been updated to organize more of what relates to you in one place. You can now access your likes and connections, subscribed questions, mute bin, profile, name editing, and all general and display settings. Additionally, the order of action items has been changed to make navigation smoother. 2. Subscriptions & Muting It is now possible to subscribe to ask-alls. To follow along automatically, a new setting can auto-subscribe you to every question you answer (this is turned off by default). There is also more control over the feed: you can now mute a specific question or add a person directly to your mute bin. 3. Messaging Connecting is easier. All messages with mutual likes can now be viewed together in a single place. 4. Enhanced Voice Commands Voice commands have been upgraded to bypass the extra swipes and jump straight to the features you need. Save time by trying commands like: ... "Edit my name." ... "Questions I've asked." ... "Larger text."

VoiceOver implemenation improved: .. VoiceOver announcement strategy updated to not appear in recordings. .. Double tap an item to initiate playback. .. Rows are now one VoiceOver stop each (item 1). In the Questions, Answers, and Inbox rows, the combined text element carries every action via the actions rotor — Play/Pause audio, Listen to all answers, Answer/Reply, Report, and Dissolve (kept last since it's destructive). The visible buttons remain for touch but are hidden from VoiceOver, so each action exists exactly once. .. "Play all" now speaks intros. .. Magic Tap is context-aware and captured everywhere. .. New failures spoken: "Couldn't send/post: …", mic-permission denial, and recording failure. .. VoiceOver focus moves into status cards that need a decision (confirm, disambiguate, answer, unsupported, degraded) after a short render delay; auto-dismissing command confirmations only announce, so focus is never yanked to a vanishing card.