The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed 20 years ago today, arguably the last major piece of U.S. civil rights legislation. Since then, millions of Americans with physical, mental, medical and other types of disabilities have experienced better accommodations and access in schools, jobs, and public spaces.

As Lisa Goldstein, a deaf journalist, opines in USA Today, there's still a long way to go before many disabled Americans feel fully mainstreamed and accepted. But there's also much to celebrate, particularly in the wealth of consumer products addressing various disabilities.

In Goldstein's case, technologies such as e-mail, text messaging, Skype, closed captioning, cochlear implants, and nearly invisible hearing aids were in development or just a twinkle in some researcher's eye when she was young. Now, they're making life easier for both the hearing-impaired and the hearing.