Trade in or trade up, you decide

Greetings. Freedom Scientific has announced a new competitive trade-in program for the PAC Mate that has to be the most competitive yet. If you own a BrailleNote model, of any sort, in good working condition, you can trade it in for a PAC Mate, with or without a Braille display. Read the details of this trade-in program here. Pay special attention to the pricing. Even if you trade in your mPower or PK for a PAC Mate QX400 with 40 cell Braille display, the resulting cost will still be slightly less than a brand new speech only PAC Mate. Prices range from roughly $795 to $2295 for this trade-in program. Don't quote me exactly, but rather read all the details for yourself.

What's almost as notable as the trade-in program to me, is the length of time its being made available for: till the end of the year. I can't think of a better Christmas present for someone than a new PAC Mate. Throw in a new wireless card, a custom carrying case from Executive Products, and some other accessories, and you've got quite a package.

If you've been wondering about how to use your mPower or PK in this constantly changing world of ours, especially when it seems to be falling further and further behind; or, if you have been thinking about getting a PAC Mate but have wondered how you would manage it; or, if you have even been considering whether it really is worth staying in a closed system like HumanWare has; than this trade-in program could be the answer for you. With Jonathan Mosen on the FS crew now, there's no telling what will come of the PAC Mate family of products in the upcoming year. Besides, do you really want to be left behind again?

Marlaina talks about guide dogs

Greetings. The following message regards a show on ACB Radio that Marlaina Lieberg hosts. Tonight's topic is on gide dogs. Read more for the details. I figure that, not only is a dedication for her to her newly retired dog guide, but one for me as well to Tony. After the show runs for 24 hours, it will be replayed next weekend on Sunday, and then go into Marlaina's Shows On Demand section of the ACB Radio site. Enjoy.

Hello friends. This is an announcement I'm sending far and wide and if you
are interested, I encourage you to do the same.

As many of you know, I have officially retired my guide of over 9 years,
Madeline. We've had a wonderful party aboard the Vision of the Seas, Royal
Caribbean's number one member of the voyager class ships, and yesterday we
had a grand party for her here at our home.

On the next Marlaina, we'll take a look at the concept of guide dogs. Our
first guests will be two puppy raisers who will tell us why they got into
this, the requirements and expectations placed on raisers, what it's like to
get and give back that first dog, and more.

We'll follow that up with a visit from a trainer from Guide Dogs for the
Blind, who'll tell us about the training experience, working the dog,
teaching the dog commands like left and right, and a bit about the class
experience.

Finally, we'll talk about retirement issues. How does one know when it's
time, how does one prepare for such a transition. We have a guest
tentatively lined up for this segment, but if it doesn't work out, we'll all
discuss the topic together.

It is my hope that this show will honor the concept of the human/dog
relationship, and I dedicate it to madeline, with appreciation for the
partnership we've had. Madeline is guide number seven; I've worked with
guide dogs since 1964; she'll always be very special and very dear to me.

Come join my guests and me, and help make this marlaina a very special show.

While I'm away, Jeff Bishop will be hosting the Marlaina program, and I know
he's got lots lined up for you!

All this and more is up for grabs on the next Marlaina, heard on ACB Radio
Mainstream.
It all starts on Sunday night at 9 PM Eastern, 6 Pacific, which is Monday
morning at 1 Universal. The program will replay for 24 hours, and of
course, is available via podcast from the ACB Radio replay page. As always,
we'll take your calls at our toll-free number, 866 666 7926.

Please save this message and click the link below on Sunday at 9 PM Eastern,
6 Pacific or Monday at 1 Universal to listen. I can't wait to spend time
with you there! Feel free to distribute this message to others whom you
think may be interested.

As always, thank you so much for your continued support of my ACB Radio
work!


Marlaina Lieberg

Click here to listen to the show, or visit the ACB Radio Mainstream Channel Page and click on the appropriate link to listen with your media player of choice.

GPS and the blind

Greetings. Here's an article about GPS and the blind from USA Today. It specifically focuses on people who use guide dogs, and who are or may be trained to use GPS with their dogs by the guide dog schools. Interesting.

Thoughts on "comforting" words

Greetings. Its interesting the kinds of things people say to you after you’ve lost someone close to you, whether it be a friend, family member, person, or animal. Things such as, “I’m sorry for your loss.” The first time I heard this phrase was when my grandmother on my Dad’s side died back in 1995. I had not heard that for someone really, or even somewhat, close to me, and frankly, I didn’t know how to respond. Why were they apologizing to me? When Tony died, I began to understand it though.

Then there are the phrases that really don’t mean much, might even sound cheesy, but are supposed to sound good. Some examples of these are things like, “They’ve crossed the rainbow bridge and are in a better place.” Where is this rainbow bridge? And, is it the rainbow bridge that’s at the end of the alleged pot of gold?

Then there are the phrases that sound good but don’t offer much in the way of comfort, or at least not beneath the surface, such as, “They’re in a better place.” A better place? Ok, I know that Tony’s in Heaven, but how is him being in that better place supposed to make me feel better now when he’s not with me? Granted, picturing him in Heaven brings slight comfort, but here again, not as much when you consider that he died suddenly. If he had had a long drawn out illness and was sick over many months, then perhaps that might bring some comfort. But that wasn’t the case; he died about 80 minutes after I received the call from Geoff that he wasn’t doing so good.

Then there’s the ever popular, “He’s in no more pain.” This brings some degree of comfort, but there’s a certain part of it that still doesn’t seem to acknowledge the loss.

I’m not opposed to acknowledging the loss, but I’d rather do it in an appropriate, and not a cheesy, manner.

I haven’t had occasion to think a lot about these phrases, which is good. However, I have thought about them from time to time over the past week and a half or so. I’ve even told a close friend, something along the lines of, “Don’t even tell me ‘he’s in a better place’, since that doesn’t really offer any comfort to me.” To which my friend said, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell you that. I’ve been through that before, and it sucks.” Those words acknowledged the issue, but didn’t try to sugar coat it to make it sound good. He couldn’t have said it any better.

Songs and Links

Gretings. This semed like a fitting post after my letter to Tony.

Those who know me well, know that I love Petra, the long time Christian rock group. Two of their songs really helped me get through last weekend, and continue to help me. I got the lyrics for these songs from Petra Rocks My World.

Graverobber

There's a step that we all take alone
An appointment we have with the great unknown
Like a vapor this life is just waiting to pass
Like the flowers that fade, like the withering grass
But life seems so long and death so complete
And the grave an impossible potion to cheat
But there's One who has been there and still lives to tell
There is One who has been through both heaven and hell
And the grave will come up empty-handed the day
Jesus will come and steal us away

(Chorus)
Where is the sting, tell me where is the bite
When the grave robber comes like a thief in the night
Where is the victory, where is the prize
When the grave robber comes
And death finally dies

Many still mourn and many still weep
For those that the love who have fallen asleep
But we have this hope though our hearts may still ache
Just one shout from above and they all will awake
And in the reunion of joy we will see
Death will be swallowed in sweet victory

When the last enemy is done from the dust will come a song
Those asleep will be awakened - not a one will be forsakened
He shall wipe away our tears - He will steal away our fears
There will be no sad tomorrow - there will be no pain and sorrow

The next one is called “More Power to ya,” and this one more than the last, has really uplifted me in those quiet moments, like when I’m getting ready for bed. Here’s the song.

You say you've been feeling weaker, weaker by the day
You say you can't make the joy of your salvation stay
But good things come to them that wait
Not to those who hesitate
So hurry up and wait upon the Lord

(Chorus)
More power to ya
When you're standing on His word
When you're trusting with your whole heart in the message you have heard
More power to ya
When we're all in one accord
They that wait upon the Lord, they shall renew, they shall renew their strength

Jesus promised His disciples He'd give strength to them
Jesus told them all to tarry in Jerusalem
When they were all in one accord
The power of His Spirit poured
And they began to turn the world around

So be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might
Put on all His armor and fight the good fight
In all of our weakness, He becomes so strong
When He gives us the power and the strength to carry on

There were several times when I played these two songs over and over, especially in the time before my parents arrived last weekend.

For those that are wondering, here’s the link to the Sunrise Exotic Ranch and The Seeing Eye. If you would like to remember Tony, then please donate to one or both of these groups. Thanks.

Tony's Letter

Greetings. The following is dedicated and written to Tony, my former guide dog that just passed away.

Dear Tony,

This is a hard letter for me to write, since you’re not with me anymore. I know you are with God in Heaven though. Which probably means that you’re reading this from somewhere in cyberspace. I don’t know how advanced the technology is in Heaven. I trust that you are doing well regardless. If you get the chance, send word to me of what things look like up there.

Anyway, I wanted to write you this note and to tell you how much I appreciated you an your service as a guide dog. You guided me for 4 years. You were a wonderful guide dog. Even though retirement came earlier for you than for other guide dogs, you still put everything into your work, and later into your play as a retired dog guide.

What can I say to express my appreciation and love for you? How can I summarize the 11 years that we spent together? I’m not sure there is a way. However, hopefully the following paragraphs will scratch that surface to some degree.

I remember when I first arrived at The seeing Eye on May 27, 1995, climbing out of the Lincoln Town car and not really knowing what to expect. Everyone was so friendly when I walked through the Seeing Eye’s front door for the first time. I felt like I had known them all my life, even though we had just met. I then met you the next day, a Sunday. I remember that you were a little sad from being separated from your trainer, Peggy, since you were running back and forth for the door to me. Each time you came back to me though, I had a hug for you. And, eventually, I guess you decided that life was better with me than over by the door. That time was a whirlwind of activity as I tried to understand how to use you properly and all the commands. I’m sure that there were times you must have thought, “Come on, do this, this, this,” as I was struggling. But, as it would happen many times after that, you were patient with me.

Then we came back to Dallas 27 days later, and that presented another set of challenges for you, since you were then getting used to my environment, not the other way around.

We had many a happy time and some sad ones during the working part of your life. Such as, when you peed on the Richland Community College bridge during class changing on a weekday. I feel bad that I didn’t pick up on your signals to me, but I was young. After all, it only happened in the first few months that we were working together. Or, the time I took you to Six Flags Over Texas. I’m sure you were confused by the roller coaster cars moving overhead, thinking that they should be on the ground like other cars. Or, the time we went to Colorado to go skiing. That was a fun trip.

In 1997, we moved from Dallas to Denton so I could transfer to the University of North Texas. Those were fun times as well. I remember getting lost on the first day of classes, thinking that I could find my way on my own and could take a shortcut. My shortcut, or perhaps you’re thinking, somehow got us to Pizza Hut on the edge of campus, instead of to the Student Union building. Looking back, I wonder if you had planned things to happen that way. Or, all those looks you gave to Heather. She was doing her best to guide me while you were trotting along on leash. When thinking of Heather’s guiding, I can’t forget when she accidentally walked me into the back of the stairs. I told her it was ok, even though it wasn’t, and then you must have given her a dirty doggie look, because the next thing I hear from her is, “Shut up.”

Yeah, we had some good times. I don’t have the space to recall all of them. You were there with me in the happy times; in the sad times; when my dad’s mom and grandmother died; when at the Colorado Center when I tried to use my cane and came back from the library feeling down about my abilities, you comforted me. When I got the news that I was able to go to the Colorado Center from my state rehab counselor, you wagged your tail in anticipation, even though you might not have known what all the excitement was about. In 2003, when I graduated from college, I know you were with me there, even though I used my cane to walk across the stage. So many memories.

About a week ago, on September 1, when Geoff, Larry and Jesse came over to move and hook up the new washer and dryer, you went out to greet them, even though you weren’t feeling well. I’m grateful that they were there, since it was Geoff that called me at work to tell me that you weren’t feeling great. On the bus ride home, I didn’t know what to expect, but I knew things weren’t good. I remember calling my dad and telling him of the situation, and then calling Jack, who said that either he or his wife would meet me at the apartment to help take you to the vet. I remember getting home, meeting Jack at the door, throwing my stuff down, and going to the bedroom to check on you. You were lying on the mat you used in the bedroom and obviously weren’t doing real well. It broke my heart that you weren’t able to get up and walk out like you had done so many times before. Jack carried you to the car, put you in your usual spot in the floor below the dashboard, and I got in, and we rushed off to the vet. It was kind of fitting that you were below the dash, since that’s where you always sat when you were guiding.

When I heard from the vet that you were on oxygen, but that you were not in the best shape, I then had to make some decisions. That was one of the hardest times of my life so far. I had to decide if we were going to try to bring you back to some semblance of health, or put you down. After some thought, I decided to put you down. I’m sorry for not asking you at the time what you wanted to do.

I remember going into that room and putting my hands on your rump. You wagged your tail, which I appreciated. You knew I was there. You were glad for my touch. I couldn’t say anything meaningful to you, but you understood and were fine with simply my touch. Jack told me when they gave you the shot and when you stopped breathing. I felt it all though. I know when you stopped. In fact, I remember pleading with you not to fight what was happening when your breath quickened ever so slightly. After you left this world and went into Heaven, Jack and I said our prayers for you. I remember praying a simple prayer to God, saying just, “Thanks for Jack, and thank you for Tony.” That was all I could say, but that’s all I needed to say. We stood there a few minutes. Another hard thing was leaving your body lying there. Thankfully though, one of the nurses offered to take you to her ranch of exotic animals, the Sunrise Exotic Ranch, and burry you there. I gratefully took her offer and thanked her. I plan to come out and see your graveside soon, and to see what animals your lying near.

It was hard for me to leave that room, but I knew that I had to. I got the call from Geoff at about 12:05, and you officially died at 1:25. This brief amount of time would come to mind later when I started dealing with the fact that you were no longer with me. Officially, the doctor said that you had congestive heart failure. I don’t know what all that means, except that you were not doing good when I came home and when Jack and I took you to the vet.

Another hard thing was calling Mom to tell her of your passing a little after 2. I don’t get real emotional, as far as sadness anyway, so recalling for others your passing, and beginning to deal with it over the following 3 days, had me crying and my throat closing from the emotion of things. My parents came down for the weekend, which helped a lot.

Tony, I thank God often that I had someone wit me most of that day, and that there were people here to tell me that you weren’t feeling great. From Geoff and Larry, to Jack, to talking with my parents and friends on the phone; there weren’t many times when I was by myself. Actually, in those quiet times when I wasn’t talking to anyone or with anyone, God was with me, so I’m quite sure that I was never alone that day.

I want you to know that I’m in the process of giving away some of your things, such as your bowls, dog food, medicines, spare leash, and other things. But I’ve decided to give them to people that have or are going to get guide dogs. That’s one thing I’m doing to remember your service. I’ve also called the Seeing Eye to inform them of your death, which they were grateful for. I don’t know that I’m going to get another guide dog. At least not right away. Whether I do or not, I’ve heard it said that people always remember their first dogs, and I’ll definitely always remember and treasure my time with you. No matter if I get several more guide dogs, or some pet dogs, you’ll always have a special place in my heart.

Being at work helps me stay occupied and busy. When I come home though, there have been times when I’ve missed seeing you, or have expected to see you. Such as your normal feeding times, when I enter or leave the apartment, and others. I’ve left your main leash and collar on the inside doorknob to remind myself of you. I always touch them when I leave the apartment. I’m also keeping your mat in the bedroom. I had to clean it since it was still dirty from the day you left. That was hard in a way too. Part of me wanted to keep it just like it was so that I could remember, but then again, my company probably would not have liked that too much. After it was cleaned though, I placed it in its usual spot, right my the desk. I remember being in the efficiency in Dallas and you and I having those disagreements of where the mat should go. That was a small efficiency to begin with. You would move it close to the bed, since you wanted to be near me. After tripping over it several times and you, I would move it to the other side of the room, and you would gradually move it back again. It seems we had the same disagreements over the mat in the bedroom.

I wasn’t the only person that cried over your passing. Aside from me, here’s a brief list of the other people that have cried tears for you, in no particular order: Jack, Mom and Dad, grandmother on my Mom’s side, Janie, and others. Many people have offered their condolences, to numerous to list. Tony, a lot of people miss you down here. However, I know that I’ll see you again, whenever my time is up. You lived a long 13 years, which is great for a lab. So, I’ll see you soon, and I mean really see you, not just through my fingers.

Love,
Wayne

Personal update

Greetings. Well, the week has been fast and busy. Monday went well, especially after the Time Warner repair man left and I had my Cable TV and Internet connections back. The past three days have been filled with things at work, from reviewing with my Windows students for their final test tomorrow, to doing evaluations, to doing some miscellaneous things like cleaning up floppy disks, and much more. If I ever thought I wouldn’t have enough to do as a teacher back when I started, like in April and May, I was wrong. I’m managing to stay caught up, somehow, but I can see now how the 2 hour planning period often is not enough. Of course, we’re near the end of one cycle and moving into another one. Which will, among other things, bring me a new set of students to teach. I’ve been given one of the 3 different Windows classes to teach, at the same time as the one I’m teaching now oddly enough.

On another note, doing the computer evaluations on the new keyboarding students, which for me was 9, and going straight to another class has been kind of rough. My colleagues warned me that this would happen, that I would get run dry from getting the new people started, doing evaluations, and meeting all the other requirements of the first few weeks of training. However, for whatever reason, I just filed what they said away in the, “Yeah, right,” category. I’d like to go back now and acknowledge their comments,  Of course, this is all taking place during the largest group of new students ever at the Center. Normal conditions would be no more than 3 new people at once, if that much, per class. Oh well. And, just when I got a handle on things, there’s another new group coming in October. It apparently never ends.

However, getting new people in keyboarding only means that others move onto Windows, and getting new people in Windows means that others move onto their next class, and so forth. I’m quite pleased with my current batch of Windows students. Sure there were rough spots, but those are the things I can note and hopefully improve upon in the next cycle.

On the topic of Tony, that’s gone relatively well too. I’ve gotten lots of condolences from people at work, and even a few from people in other places. I’ve come to terms with Tony’s death mostly. I will still think and mourn for him every so often of course, but I’m better able to cope and handle things now that there’s more time between now and when It happened. Although, tomorrow around the times that things were happening last Friday, I’ll probably remember and be sad all over again. Hopefully not as much though. I think the hardest time was last weekend, in the first few days. Having my parents here really did help. If I needed to cry, then I did. And it was good to have a shoulder to cry on, and to talk and laugh about things that happened with Tony in years past. I don’t cry often, so last weekend made up for the past few years or more. Now though, I’m in the process of giving many of Tony’s things away. I will keep his mat in my bedroom, and his main leash and collar. But most other things I’m giving to people who have guide dogs or are getting them. I figure that guide dog users would be a good group to give his things to, since there are times when its hard to get out and get supplies for one’s dog. Plus, its kind of a memoriam for Tony to pass his things onto another guide dog. I’ve also contacted the school I got him from, The Seeing eye, and let them know of his passing. Before anyone asks, I might get another dog, but not right now. I’m living in an apartment. Since Tony has lived with me for a number of months, I can appreciate how interesting it can get to have a dog in a place like this. Not to say that I won’t ever get one again. Truthfully, I haven’t decided. I like being able to feel everything in my environment with my cane, instead of giving directions to someone else, such as with a dog. Besides, there’s also the issue of the daily responsibility, like taking the dog out every morning at 5:30 or 6, no matter what. So, we’ll see.

Even though this has been a short week, I’m going to be just as glad when my planning time comes around tomorrow at 3, and even more when 5:00 comes. Aside from all that, football starts big time this weekend, with the Cowboys starting their season and Texas playing Ohio State. It has been fun to watch all the activity surrounding a big game in a top 25 college town. Coming from a smaller lower ranked school like North Texas, that was nothing like this. Anyway, I plan on putting up those tributes this weekend or early next week. Until then.

A breakthrough in accessible websites

Greetings. I received the following news story on an email list and thought it worthy of posting here. Let those who doubt know that the web is a place of public accommodation and must be made accessible to blind computer users. Note, this is as easy as putting alt tags on images, and/or descriptions below them. It need not require a total rewrite of a website, or a "text only" portion of the site to meet accessibility standards. Hopefully others will learn what it took a lawsuit for Target to learn, and make their sites accessible from the start. And, if you don't know how to do this, then you can find various websites that explain how, both in simple and technical language. One resource is the Computers page of my site, especially under the heading "Web Development Resources." Enjoy.

KARE11 TV, Minnesota USA
Thursday, September 07, 2006

Court rules Target must make website accessible to the blind

A federal district court judge ruled Wednesday that a retailer may be sued if its website is inaccessible to the blind. The ruling was issued in a case
brought by the National Federation of the Blind against Target Corp.
The suit charges that Target's website (
http://www.target.com is inaccessible to the blind, and therefore violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the California Unruh Civil Rights Act, and the California
Disabled Persons Act. Target asked the court to dismiss the action by arguing that no law requires Target to make its website accessible. The Court denied
Target's motion to dismiss and held that the federal and state civil rights laws do apply to a website such as target.com.
The suit, NFB v. Target, was filed as a class action on behalf of all blind Americans who are being denied access to target.com. The named plaintiffs are
the NFB, the NFB of California, and a blind college student, Bruce "BJ" Sexton.
The plaintiffs are represented by Disability Rights Advocates, a Berkeley-based non-profit law firm that specializes in high-impact cases on behalf of people
with disabilities;
The court held: "the 'ordinary meaning' of the ADA's prohibition against discrimination in the enjoyment of goods, services, facilities or privileges, is
that whatever goods or services the place provides, it cannot discriminate on the basis of disability in providing enjoyment of those goods and services."
The court thus rejected Target's argument that only its physical store locations were covered by the civil rights laws, ruling instead that all services
provided by Target, including its Web site, must be accessible to persons with disabilities.
"This ruling is a great victory for blind people throughout the country," said NFB President Dr. Marc Maurer. "We are pleased that the court recognized
that the blind are entitled to equal access to retail websites."
Dr. Maurer explained that blind persons access websites by using keyboards in conjunction with screen-reading software, which vocalizes visual information
on a computer screen.
Target's website contains significant access barriers that prevent blind customers from browsing among and purchasing products online, as well as from finding
important corporate information such as employment opportunities, investor news, and company policies.
The plaintiffs charge that target.com fails to meet the minimum standard of web accessibility. It lacks compliant alt-text, an invisible code embedded beneath
graphic images that allows screen readers to detect and vocalize a description of the image to a blind computer user. It also contains inaccessible image
maps and other graphical features, preventing blind users from navigating and making use of all of the functions of the website. And because the website
requires the use of a mouse to complete a transaction, blind Target customers are unable to make purchases on target.com independently.
Explaining the ramification of the ruling, Mazen M. Basrawi, Equal Justice Works Fellow at Disability Rights Advocates, noted that: "the court clarified
that the law requires that any place of public accommodation is required to ensure that it does not discriminate when it uses the internet as a means to
enhance the services it offers at a physical location."
"I hope that I can soon shop online at Target.com just like anyone else," said UC Berkeley student BJ Sexton, who is a named plaintiff in the lawsuit. "I
believe that millions of blind people like me can use the Internet just as easily as do the sighted, if websites are accessible."

The best of times, and the worst of times

Greetings. I'm writing this post with mixed emotions. Last Friday, Sept. 1, was a very good day and a very bad day for me. The good, I finally got a washer and dryer from a coworker and even had it setup while I was at work. The not so good, said coworker had his last work day before he moves to New York for a new job, and my former guide dog died. I plan to write tributes to both these people when the time comes. My parents came down to Austin for the weekend which was very good as well. They helped me work through some things, talk and make some decisions, such as what to do with some things my dog used. That was helpful for me and them. On more recent news, today the Time Warner repair man came and fixed my Cable and Internet connections, which have been out since last Wednesday. That was another reason why I was glad my parents came down. Otherwise, I'd be sitting in an apartment that would have been too quiet.

So, this is the somewhat good feeling Wayne signing off for now.

Announcement from HumanWare

Greetings. I received the following announcement from an email list. Well, it was only a matter of time before this kind of announcement came from them. No matter how much a company may want to have more than one version of their product out on the market, sooner or later, they will yield to the more recent version and drop support/development for the older one. Granted, HumanWare's still going to support the Classic models of BrailleNote and VoiceNotes, but how long will that last? There may come a time when that is dropped too. Anyway, enjoy the following. And, if you still own one of the classic models, its probably about time you upgrade to the newer mPower, or even better, a PAC Mate, :) As always, please excuse any formatting errors.

SUPPORT FOR BRAILLENOTE AND VOICENOTE CLASSIC

In June 2005, HumanWare released the next generation of information
management systems for the blind, BrailleNote and VoiceNote mPower. To thank
our loyal customer base for their support, we made two commitments.

Firstly, because we appreciate that funding for assistive technology may
only be available to an individual once every few years, we undertook to
release new versions of Key Soft for the BrailleNote and VoiceNote Classic
for as long as possible.

Secondly, we introduced our extremely popular transplant programme, allowing
BrailleNote Classic customers the chance to have our latest technology for
around a third of the cost of a new unit in the case of those owning 32-cell
models.

The transplant programme will continue into the foreseeable future , giving
customers access to the many benefits available exclusively on BrailleNote
and VoiceNote mPower. However, as we start to plan for exciting future
enhancements to KeySoft, it is becoming clear that many of the features we
wish to add are not technically possible on the Classic platform. On that
basis, HumanWare is giving notice that KeySoft 7.2 will be the second to
last upgrade available for the Classic family. There will be a final update
for BrailleNote classic released next year. For this reason, once KeySoft
7.2 is released, software maintenance agreements will no longer be available
for the BrailleNote and VoiceNote Classic.

We wish to stress that technical support and servicing will still be
available for BrailleNote Classic, which continues to be a powerful
information management tool.

Please also note that should you take advantage of the transplant programme,
any counts remaining on your Software maintenance Agreement will be
transferred to your BrailleNote mPower.

Should you have any queries, as always, please don't hesitate to contact
your nearest HumanWare office.

Jonathan Mosen
BrailleNote Product Marketing Manager
HumanWare
Christchurch New Zealand

For Those That Download Music

Greetings. I came across this in my daily blog reading. The following is submitted for all those that either downloaded or thought about downloading music from artists. This is the contribution by Weird Al on his mySpace page. Enjoy.

http://www.myspace.com/weirdal

Feeling Sick and Working

Greetings. Well, it turned out that my sickness lasted into yesterday. I had a soar throat and congestion, which is not a pleasant combination for a teacher to have. I decided Sunday evening to stay home yesterday, just to make sure I was over the illness. I’ve been taking various medications and drinking fluids, the usual stuff, for the past several days, and I think that really made a big difference. What also helped was a hint a good friend from Dallas gave me to get rid of the congestion: to stand in a steamy shower for 15-20 minutes, or more, and take deep breaths. I had never heard of that before, but figured, “Why not?” So I tried it and the next day the congestion started loosening up.

By yesterday afternoon, I felt 100 percent better and was able to get up and around my apartment and do some things. It was a good decision to stay home that day.

However, staying home presented me with another set of emotions—how to fill the time away from work. I’m the kind of person that doesn’t get sick very often. Usually, when I do get sick, I’m really sick. Thankfully that wasn’t the case this time around. In other words, I rarely take sick days. So, while I was taking my meds and sleeping off the stuff yesterday, part of me kept wondering if I should be somewhere and doing something besides sleeping. I also worried a lot about how the other teachers were going to cover my classes, in addition to any other absences, of which I know at least one other guy was out due to sickness. I’m usually one of the people that covers other people’s keyboarding class when they get sick or are out for whatever reason. But, at least until now, I’ve never been the one that’s been out and needed people to cover for me.

Yesterday and today were complete opposites in the feelings of the day. Yesterday I was wondering how they would get along at work and what I should do. Today, I was so grateful to be back at work and doing things I enjoy, seeing students and coworkers, and accomplishing things, teaching people, etc. It would be a stretch to say that I know everything about my job at this point. But I was certainly glad to be back in an environment where I could contribute to my job and grow, verses sick at home. That will likely be my only absence from sickness this year, or I hope so anyway. Interesting how yesterday and today were complete opposites though.

First Test Results

Note: I wrote this post yesterday, but haven't been able to publish it until now.

Greetings. Well, I can happily report that all of my students got A's on the first test this past Friday! Considering that I was told that, at least in the past, students haven't done as well on the first test and have had to do a retake, I'm quite pleased and proud of them.

For the first time since I've been working in Austin, I had to go home Friday afternoon due to a failing voice and otherwise not feeling like myself. I felt like quite the teacher when I put my students' floppy disks in my backpack to take home to grade. That was a weird but cool feeling.

Now on to the next batch of Windows material: dialog boxes. This is arguably the hardest part of the course for students. Try explaining the different controls of a dialog box, much less what a dialog box is, to someone who has never used them before. But, all that's tomorrow. For now, I'm enjoying the moment, and patting myself on the back for a job well done.

PAC Mate 4.1 Released

Greetings. If you have a PAC Mate with version 4.0, the free PAC Mate 4.1 Update came out yesterday. This update was mainly put out to fix some reported problems with FS Edit in terms of saving files. Its good to see FS fix problems like this right away, instead of pushing the fixes back to the next update or upgrade. Version 4.1 also introduces some new minor features, such as giving the PAC Mate Help the appearance of big JAWS help. In other words, you can use JAWS Key+W for Windows related help, and JAWS Key+H for PM specific hotkey help. Read more about the update on the page above. Note that if you don't have a compact flash card, you can get the update from Freedom Scientific for a slight fee. So, if you don't have one yet for some reason, I'd advise getting a compact flash card for updating your unit, as well as for storing files and other things on. A card between 16-512 megabytes is recommended. I've heard of problems where people with a 1 gig card or larger were not able to update their units, for whatever reason. Enjoy.

Can You Feel It?

Greetings. Can you feel it? Can you smell the the astroturf, the freshly mowed grass? Can you hear it, the clatter of helmets and pads as they collide?

Yes, its almost that time of year; football season. Or, just time for football in general. Can you feel the anticipation of Sunday night football on NBC? I can. Sure, it will be different having Sunday night football on NBC, verses Monday night football on ABC. However, all things must change, hopefully for the better. It was cool though to hear Madden and Michaels talk about the game in particular and various teams and the upcoming season in general.

As I was watching the opening moments on NBC tonight, and as I've been going back there from time to time, I can feel the anticipation of another great season. And why not? Its pre-season for goodness sake, when everything looks bright and promising; when all teams (except the Raiders and Eagles, since they're playing tonight) are undefeated. When hopes and dreams are planted and nurtured, and the goal of getting into the playoffs, and dare I say even the Superbowl, look brighter than ever.

Ok, so you're not a pro-foot ball fan. So you're into college ball. How 'bout them Horns? Defending a national title and starting over with a new promising season and a new quarterback. That's one thing that will be fun to watch this season, to see the Texas Longhorns as they go through their games, from the city of the Horn, Austin, Texas.

Or, perhaps you're into high school football. How about that new series on NBC called Friday Night Lights, which will start on October 3 at 7pm Central time. Just like the book and movie of the same name, this show will follow the season of a Texas high school football team as they try to get the state title.

Any way you slice it, its going to be a great season, for whatever team you like.

Let me ask you one more question: "Are you ready for some football?"

First Week Reflections

Greetings. Well, as the title says, I had my first week of teaching a class. I'm still doing keyboarding--everyone does keyboarding--but, I got another class. This past week marked several significant points for me.

First, last Tuesday, August 1, I officially hit the 6 month mark since being at my new job. Which meant that I moved off the new employee/probation period, to a regular full time employee. That felt pretty good to go to work knowing that. However, as if that weren't enough, a class was starting for me to teach that day. That class was a nice layer of icing on my work status change.

So, the new class is: Windows, tada! The first day had me, oh, slightly nervous, :) But I got through it fine.

I must say though that it felt kind of weird to walk in the room with several disks and hard copy Braille outlines, and then realize that I was the only teacher there. This wasn't another class I would be observing, but rather one where I would be doing the teaching.

It also felt weird, but good, to hand out the disks and outlines to the students. After years and many hours of classes of getting outlines and other papers about those classes, I was the one to hand out the papers and go over the material for them for once. I was still nervous, to be sure, but as I went through the class, reviewing material from the keyboarding class and segwaying into the Windows material, I gradually relaxed and even started enjoying myself. This was what I came to Austin to do: to teach group classes. Even the thought of group classes would, and did, scare me when I started back in February, but I've come a long way since then. And here I was with my own class. Can we say pride?

Thursday and Friday went well and helped make things gradually easier for me. I still get a little nervous the day of a class, but as I said before, that will probably always happen. I would be worried if it didn't happen, especially at this point in my group class teaching. By the end of class on Friday though, I felt pretty good about things. I was able to inform my students, with confidence, that we would shoot for this coming Friday for our first test, which seems to fit with the material we're covering and what's ahead.

So, this is the satisfied and proud Wayne, signing off until next time.

First 6 Months

Greetings. Today is a significant day for me. Six months ago, I started working at my new job here in Austin. In some ways, it doesn't seem like its been 6 months, and in others, it does. Since I see my coworkers and the students on a daily basis, instead of only two or three times a week, it seems like I've been here forever.

Today was a significant day on another front: I tought my first real class. I've been overseeing, some would say "tought" but I see it as more monitoring or overseeing, a keyboarding class for several months now. I say overseeing, since I'm helping students along who are working at their own pace. I'm there to answer questions, troubleshoot computer and equipment problems, and teach them as they get into the latter portion of the class. For the most part though, I'm more of a monitor than a teacher. However, today I was given a Windows class of three students, which is a good number to start out with. Over all, I think I did pretty well. There are things I can improve on, but then again, there likely always will be. In my opinion, even the teacher that's been teaching for many years has things they can work on.

I don't know how long I'll be at this job. I hope for a long time. I've always seen this as a hard thing to answer, when someone asks you, "Where do you see yourself in your career in 5 years, in 10 years, etc?" I'm not sure. There's a large part of me that is still very much grateful to have the job I do and to be where I am. Thinking about where I see myself in 5 years, ..., well, I hope at the same job and doing much the same thing. Time will tell though. I don't have any plans of going anywhere any time soon, if that answers the question.

There's one final significance of today: since I hit the 6 month mark, I'm off the "new hire" probation. In other words, there has to be a good reason to get rid of me, :) That's a good feeling. Then again, its also a good feeling to, when finished with the lesson and getting ready to give out the homework, say, "I want you to go to lab tonight and work on, ..."

One of the neat things about teaching these classes is that very often, you follow the students from when they start keyboarding or Windows to when they graduate. Granted, this is not always how it happens. When the people in my Windows class graduate from the training center, I can take more pride in actually having tought them.

Graduation Thoughts

Greetings. On this eve of graduation for ten or so of the students from the training center I work at, I have some deep thoughts on graduation and what it means.

First off, of the graduations I've attended so far at the training center, I've thoroughly enjoyed myself. It's easy to conclude and accept that the act of graduating from the center is not a big deal, especially if you get in a pattern of teaching the same students for several weeks or months. However, in my humble opinion, once an instructor passes the line of indifference, they lose sight of what graduating from a rehabilitation center really means. For the student, it means saying to the world, "Hey, I did it! I achieved my goals and now I can go back to my normal life and live as a blind person." For the teacher, it gives you a since of pride, to see someone who came into your classroom not knowing how to turn a computer on, and to leave being able to surf the web, write a report with tables in Word, and the other skills that we teach. Sure, some students might not achieve as much as others. When I sit and watch students gratuate though, it reminds me of my duties as a teacher, and of how it felt to graduate from a center; to complete that portion of my life. I've been on both sides of this particular fence and can better appreciate them.

I have a special feeling towards this group graduating, since in this case, graduation not only signals their completion, but it also means I'm moving from observing and co-teaching instructor, to a full instructor. Though I haven't been told this yet, I fully expect to get a "real" class next week when the new cycle of 6 week long tech classes start.

Back in February and March, when I was in immersion, I was a "student" along side several of the students graduating tomorrow. I went to the train station with some of them, to the Irish pub, went through the keyboarding lessons and materials, and other things. After my immersion, I sat in classes with them, observing the way the instructor handled different situations, and practicing my own teaching skills and "instructing" on them. They were partly responsible for helping me get broken into teaching at the Center. Even though my methods won't be perfected an honed into some sort of shape for another cycle or two of classes, it was some of these same students that were tought by me to use tables on the web, use mail merge in Word, and other things. Due to these various experiences, I've felt like I've bonded on a certain level with these students. Perhaps in a different way from a normal student to teacher relationship.

So, congratulations and cheers to those graduating tomorrow, for completing your time in training, and to me for completing my training and moving into a full instructor role!

Let's Try Again

Well, I guess it didn't work. So, you can go to the KXAN home page, and look for the news story with the similar name as the video listed below. If its not on the home page, then look in their video archives. I regret to say that I haven't been around the KXAN site a lot, so I cannot really direct you where to look when the link is taken off the home page. Nothing a little computer savvy searching can't turn up, :)

Listening to that video reminds me of my drop off route, in Denver, Colorado, on the side of a highway in the middle of nowhere. This student from the story this morning had it easy compared to me, grin. Let me tell you, you really don't know where the middle of nowhere is, until you really are out in the middle of nowhere, :) Enjoy.

Video on Future Graduate

Greetings. The story Hundreds of people training to be blind, was first broadcast on a local morning news program on an Austin TV station this morning. Since this is a video, its recommended for people with a fast Net connection. It's good to see positive stories about blind people on the news, instead of the other kind.

Article on a New Free Screen Reader

Greetings. I received the following article from an email list. I'm not sure how good this proposed screen reader is or will be. Especially considering the competition with JAWS, Window Eyes, and Hal, among others. However, it very well might contribute to the over all screen reader market, which can be a good thing. I'm not sure I'll give up JAWS right off, but its good to know that there's an option out there for those that may not be able to afford a program like JAWS. It will be interesting to see how this new screen reader develops, like if it gets more complex and can do more things. Enjoy.

Peterborough Today (UK)
Friday, July 21, 2006

ACCESSIBILITY: Hi-tech aid for blind on a roll
By Sarah Gunthardt

A CITY company has successfully launched the world's first
free-talking
computer software - Thunder - which is likely to be a
storming success for
blind
and partially sighted people worldwide.
Thunder was launched by Screenreader.net, run by blind city
couple Margaret
and Roger Wilson-Hinds, from their home in Orton Wistow,
Peterborough.
The pair, who have been running Choice Technology, which
specialises in
products for blind and partially-sighted people since 1992,
were runners-up
in
Peterborough Enterprise Centre's first-ever competition to
find the region's
Best Business Idea for 2006.
They are delighted to have achieved their ambition to launch
the software,
which will help bring computers and the internet alive for
the blind and
partially-sighted.
The Thunder screenreader turns a normal PC into a talking
computer by
reading out loud what's on screen.
It will enable them to listen to internet sites, shop
on-line, hear their
e-mails and, with the software reading out to them as they
type, they will
be
able to create letters and other documents with ease.
Screenreader.net is a not-for-profit community interest
company, which
developed the software in partnership with Manchester-based
Sensory Software
Ltd.
The software was launched at the Sight Village Exhibition in
Birmingham this
week.
Mr Wilson-Hinds said: "At Screenreader.net, our mission is
to deliver free
talking software worldwide so that blind people everywhere
can benefit from
the computer, the web, and e-mails.
"We see the talking computer as the modern Braille -
providing a gateway to
learning, work opportunities and a measure of financial
freedom and
independence."
Thunder is set to create a real storm as talking computer
software is
currently available, but at a price, with the cheapest
system, Windows Eyes
costing
about £380, and the most widely used system, JAWS, costing
£800.
Thunder is entirely free to individuals, with multi-user
packages available
to organisations for an annual subscription, which also
includes training.
Thunder has already received the backing of a number of
organisations,
including the National Blind Children's Society, the Royal
Blind Society and
New
Zealand Association for the Blind. Chief executive of the
Royal Blind
Society Graham Booth said: "This is a simple, easy-to-use
product that's
going to
bring huge benefits to blind people and greatly enhance
their quality of
life.
"We wish Screenreader.net every success with this exciting
and important
venture."
All that is needed to use the Thunder screenreader is a
computer running
Windows 2000, Windows XP or Vista, plus speakers or
headphones. For more
information
and to download Thunder for free, visit
www.screenreader.net.

Article by Business Editor Sarah Gunthardt.

Oops!

Greetings. I got a call this morning from the person known as Ranger 1138, who has a blog called The Ranger Station, informing me that I was mentioned in the weekly email of Top Tech Tidbits (TTT). Apparently, it was said that I was at the NFB convention in Dallas (which I was), gave a presentation on the upcoming Microsoft Vista operating system, and commented on various vendors in the exhibit hall, which I did not do. Ranger states it on his blog, and I want to repeat here for those that might have seen this reference in the email of the TTT, that Ranger 1138 and Wayne Merritt are most definitely two different people. We lead different lives, though we kind of work in the same industry of sorts, of assistive technology; he does things that I probably couldn't do and vice versa, or at least I'd like to think so, :)

Sure, I talk about technology, adaptive and otherwise, on this blog, but it also has a personal spin and journal aspect to it. Those that have read this blog for any length of time, or if you simply look through the post titles, you'll see that there's a lot here that isn't part of the tech world.

All that said, its kind of cool to be mentioned in a popular and well read outlet like the Top Tech Tidbits weekly email. Ranger said he'd link to my blog here, so who knows. I might get more readers here, which would be cool. I know Ranger personally, and in his words, "No harm, no fowel."

The Barbershop

Greetings. Today I had an experience unlike any other. I went to a barbershop.

I should say right off that my hair grows very slowly. Whereas many people get their hair cut every 3-6 weeks, I get mine cut every 2 and a half to 3 months. Up until now, I've gone to one of those chain hair styling places, like Super Cuts or Pro-Cuts. Since moving to Austin though, I've been looking for a new place to get my hair cut. The couple that usually take me to and from church each week, suggested their place this past Sunday. When they said it was an old fashion barbershop, I agreed but didn't really know what I was getting into.

When I went for the cut, which was at a flat rate of $12, I got great treatment as well as a great cut. The place had the feel of an old timey barbershop, I suppose because it was. There were a few barber chairs, a TV going, and the room had an over all different feel to it than Super Cuts. My $12 also got me an offer for a shoe shine, which I'm not sure if the man who offerred the shine worked there, or just hung out and offerred it to customers. Oddly enough, I probably could use a shine on my older pair of dress shoes that I've had for 3 years. However, today I was wearing a newer pair. Perhaps when I go next time, I'll purposely wear my older pair and cross my fingers for that shoe shine offer. The flat rate also got me a manual shave, some thinning of my hair, and a great cut and personal attention. It made me wish the cut cost more so I could show my appreciation. As if all that weren't enough, my ride had called ahead and asked the barber if they would wait for me before they closed shop, since I was going after work. We got there before they closed, but the cut wasn't actually over and done with for another 5 or 10 minutes after closing. I'm inclined to think that this would not have happened at a franchise like Super Cuts.

They've definitely got me as a returning customer, flat rates, great cuts, and personal treatment and all. In other words, though this was my first barbershop cut, it won't be my last! I don't know if all barbershop cuts are like this one, but if they are, then I'd definitely recommend someone look around for a barbershop. It might be the best cut you've ever had.

Transportation and Accessible Signs

Greetings. The following email was sent by Tommy Craig to some NFB of Texas email lists. Please consider taking the necessary actions. I have. Enjoy.

accessible signage

Hi all,

        The transportation board is awarding nearly two million to a transportation system in order to study the effectiveness of talking signs. Transit
systems must apply for the funds within the next couple of weeks. If you are interested in getting your transit system to apply you can go to the following
link:

http://accessiblesignagenow.org


        When you go to this page you will find more details about the funding and a link to send a letter. If you follow this link you will be asked to
fill out a very short form. Upon doing so a letter to your local transit system asking them to apply for funds will be generated. This is a time sensative
issue so don't put it off.

2006 NFB Convention Summary

Greetings. Well, now that I'm somewhat rested after my whirlwind of activity over the last few weeks, going directly from work to the NFB convention last week in Dallas, staying a weekend with my parents, and then back to Austin and work, I'm ready to offer up a summary of events during convention. I won't say that I'll write more later, since I've said that before, and only a few times have actually done it, :) Hopefully this weekend will find some more posts on the convention though, because it was a great one. By the way, for those hoping for some convention coverage, my apologies. I thought I was going to do some, but then I decided I'd just take some notes and fill in the gaps later. With that, here are but a few highlights or memorable things:

The hotel. As many may know, we stayed at the Hilton Anatole, used to be the Wyndham Anatole. It was definitely nice--and large. It was said that from heel to toe, the distance between the two ends of the hotel measured a quarter mile. That's a lot of walking. Because of this distance, and the wide open feeling of walking across the various portions, with little if any reference points, there were more than a few times when I ended up staying on one side of the property, just because it took too long to navigate back to the other side. Walking was one thing, but navigating was something totally different.

There were two things I quickly learned from that experience though. First, canes, and people, can appear at any time, even if you think you're in the middle of nowhere. For instance, you can be walking along, minding your own business, and suddenly find a cane between your legs and someone running into you, even if you had not heard them approach. The other thing I learned was that even if you're standing against a wall, you will be hit by someone.

The Kurzweil-NFB Reader. This will probably be given a larger area, or even its own post, since it was really neat seeing all the things that surrounded this new device.

Dancing at the night club. This might be given its own area too. Then again, as the saying goes, "what happens in Dallas, stays in Dallas."

Texas registration. Texas registered 400 people at convention. In the annual convention attendance competition, Texas beat out Maryland. This has happened before I believe, but never by such a large margin. I think by the end of the week, Maryland had around 225 registered. That's quite a jump from that to 400. Total convention registration was 2,885, and that's not counting anyone who decided not to register.

Opening general session. The first general session is always very fun and exciting, since its the start of the general session part of the convention, or when everyone gathers in a ballroom and hears from various people on topics of interest to the organized blind. This year was particularly notable and fun. Look for more on that later as well.

Changes in the National Board. After nearly 30 years, both Diane McGeorge and Joyce Scanlyn stepped down from their respective positions on the national board of the NFB. They both got standing ovations, as they should. Diane's move was especially note worthy for me, since it was the Colorado Center for the Blind that I attended for 7 months back in 1999, that Diane started in 1988. It was at the 1998 national convention in Dallas, where I made contact with Diane and she returned a series of calls from me, and invited me up to Denver to visit the CCB. In other words, Diane had a big role in helping me get more from my rehabilitation, practice some much needed skills and confidence, and, not the least of which, kept me going to the NFB conventions. I might have gone to the CCB if I had not met her, but the chances of that happening would have certainly been a lot less if we had not met. I have a running line that I say to her whenever we talk, occasionally at these conventions, partly kidding but always serious: "Thanks for calling me back."

Nana's bar and restaurant. Nana's is a 5-star restaurant at the top of the Anatole, on the 27th floor. Adjacent to the restaurant is a bar with comfortable chairs, a nightly jazz band, and is probably the best kept secret of that hotel. I only went there once, but in talking with a coworker, we both agreed that not many people were there when we went.

Taking pictures. Since I've got the Nokia 6682 cell phone, I've also got a great camera. There were a couple of times when I wanted to take some pictures, once at the Nana's bar and the other when at the Sensory Safari. If I can figure out how to do so, perhaps I'll put them up on my website. For those that don't know, the Sensory Safari is an exhibit put together by Safari Club International, of stuffed and mounted animals that they've collected. I try to go to this every other year to see what they have for that year. This year, they had a lot of animals I've never heard of before, such as a golden takin from China. Another thing they had was the head of a black rhino. That was quite interesting as well. There were also the usual animals, such as an elephant's foot and tusk, a chicken, some bears, and others. The Safari Club always does a good job at the Sensory Safari, in their selection of animals, and in getting plenty of their own volunteers to walk around with you and tell you what the animals were. Or, in my case this year, to help you take some great pictures.

I'm sure there are other highlights, or lowlights, but I'll save them for next time. Until later.

New iPod Might Open Up Opportunities

Greetings. The new iPod model might just open up some new and exciting opportunities for consumer electronics. The following is taken from an email from the Gui-Talk list, from the NFB Net group of lists. What's most interesting about the article is that in no place does it mention the benefits for the blind or low vision population that has struggled to use, and in many cases wanted to use, the iPod. The fact that it doesn't mention us means that the sighted designers of this new model probably weren't thinking of us. That could be good or bad, but I'm hoping its good. Since if they're not thinking of the blind, and they're making a mainstream device audio accessible to sighted users, we very well might benefit too. Consider Tell Me (800-555-8355). That's a totally audio service that was made for the general public but that the blind can benefit from and use just as well. Hopefully, this trend will spread to other products. I'm not saying we shouldn't be apart of the design of products. Rather, if the sighted can design a device that is accessible to us as well as the sighted user, then why not jump on board?

At any rate, here's the article. As always, my apologies for any formatting errors. Enjoy.

This article is taken from
http://news.scotsman.com/scitech.cfm?id=999772006&format=print.

Scotland on Sunday
Sun 9 Jul 2006
Alive and clicking: the latest iPod will talk...

Alive and clicking: the latest iPod will talk the listener through
the songs and
bands on the menu.

Apple pips its rivals with the iPod that talks
RICHARD GRAY SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT (
rgray@scotlandonsunday.com)


FROM Walkman to Talkman. Not content with changing the world's
music-listening habits,
Apple has come up with another innovation: the talking iPod.

A new generation of machines will use sophisticated software to
convert the names
of bands, albums and individual tracks into recognisable speech.

The new iPod will tell you what it is about to play, removing the
need for users
to look at the screen while selecting music, and making the device
safer and easier
to use while driving, cycling or in badly-lit locations.

Crucially, the talking machines could give the iPod a badly-needed
new competitive
edge in the hotly-contested digital music player market.

The iconic machines were last week reported to have lost some of
their sheen, with
consumers following a series of technical problems and controversy
surrounding the
working conditions of those who make them. To make matters worse,
software giant
Microsoft is said to be working on its own iPod-bashing digital music player.

Apple has flatly refused to comment on the design, but a patent
lodged by the company
in the United States makes clear the sixth generation of iPods will
be able to convert
those famous text menus into speech.

The ingenious system will rely on home PC processing power and clever
software. The
computer being used to download tracks will analyse each album title,
song name and
artist and convert them into sound files. These will be loaded into
the iPod, along
with the song files.

Users of the music players will still operate the Clickwheel as
normal, but hear
the names of songs and bands through their headphones.

The patent reveals the idea is driven largely by safety considerations.
It states: "A user will have difficulty navigating the interface in
'eyes-busy' situations.
"Such activities include, for example, driving an automobile,
exercising and crossing
the street."

The patent also makes clear that text-to-speech technology is likely
to spread to
other hand-held electronic devices such as mobile phones and palm-top
computers.

The move is expected to spark a new digital player war as competing
manufacturers
attempt to cram more and more features into their digital music
players in a bid
to keep up.

iPods have recently begun losing favour with consumers, amid claims
of poor working
conditions at a Chinese factory where the devices are made.

Microsoft is reported to be planning a digital music player with
wireless internet
capabilities, removing the need for a PC to download music.

The firm is believed to be keen to break Apple's stranglehold on the
download market
with its iTunes software.

The iPod and iTunes enjoy market share of about 80% in the US and the
UK, as well
as more than half the online music market in Europe as a whole.

Sony is also believed to be working on a wireless product that can
download music
and video broadcasts in venues such as concert halls and even shops.
The firm filed
a patent in 2004 which states that compressed files could be sent to
concert-goers
with footage from the concert they had just seen.

Converting text into speech has been a major goal of the computer
industry for decades,
but early versions of the technology struggled with difficult words and names.
It also requires formidable computer processing power to carry out
the difficult
conversion.

But Apple says its system will break down words in a new way that
makes it possible
to pronounce perfectly even the most obscure song titles and artist names.
It also proposes using "voice talent" - such as famous actors - to
make the speech
more human and add in the celebrity factor.

The patent also proposes using different voice "characteristics",
such as gender,
for different sections of the iPod menus.

Professor Steve Renals, a speech technology expert at Edinburgh
University, said:
"It is possible to create very high quality text-to-voices these days.
"We have seen some already used in mobile phones, but it has
struggled in the past
with difficult words and names. The technology is much better now and
can cope with
most things."

Safety experts have raised concerns over cyclists, pedestrians and
motorists being
involved in accidents when they are distracted by their digital music devices.

Last month, a teenager from Preston was killed while listening to his
iPod on his
bike when he collided with a tractor. Another teenager, Kathryn
Thomas, caused a
fatal road accident last year when she took her eyes off the road to
show a friend
how to use her iPod. Roger Vincent, spokesman for the Royal Society
for the Prevention
of Accidents, said: "If people don't need to take their eyes off the
road and hands
off the wheel then there are clear benefits to that.

"Provided there is a sensible approach and the technology is used in
a way that it
is intended, it could make using such devices far safer.

"There are concerns, though, about the isolation from surroundings
that wearing earphones
creates, and this can cause serious accidents, particularly among cyclists."

Another Article on the Kurzweil-NFB Reader

Greetings. The following article appeared in the Austin American Statesman, from the Associated Press. Enjoy.

Hand-held device helps blind people read

New reader has advantage of portability for restaurants, planes.

By Jamie Stengle
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Monday, June 26, 2006

DALLAS — A whole new world opened up for Tommy Craig in the past few months as he tested a new hand-held device for the blind that converts print to audio.

With its help, Craig was able to "read" everything from menus to cooking directions by positioning the reader over print and taking a picture. In seconds,
the printed message is heard.

"The reader provides access to materials that a lot of times you just didn't read," said Craig, 51, of Austin, who was one of about 500 people with blindness
who tested the device. "It certainly makes you more independent."

Today, the rest of the world will know about the device when it's unveiled by the National Federation of the Blind.

"It's not quite like having a pair of eyes that work, but it's headed in that direction," said James Gashel, executive director for strategic initiatives
at the Maryland-based federation.

Developed by the membership organization of more than 50,000 people with blindness and inventor Ray Kurzweil, the device combines a personal data assistant
and a digital camera.

"This is really the hottest new technology to be developed for blind people in the last 30 years," said Gashel, who calls it "the camera that talks."

About three decades ago, Kurzweil came up with the first invention that converted text into audio. That gave way to software that could be paired with a
computer and scanner and perform the same function. But the latest device has a big advantage: portability.

The federation expects the reader, which costs about $3,500, to be a big hit at the organization's annual meeting, which will begin Saturday in Dallas.

It will be sold though through Kurzweil Education Systems Inc. and will be available via the Internet and in stores.

For now, those who have tested the reader have been able to read items they never have before, such as the magazines in the pockets of airplane seats.

Marc Maurer, president of the National Federation of the Blind, points out another advantage: "Sometimes you get something that you want to read that you
don't want anyone else to read."

Amusing Poem

Greetings. Here's an amusing and thoughtful poem about the wonders of spell checking. Enjoy.

ODE TO THE SPELL CHECKER.

Eye halve a spelling chequer,
It came with my pea sea.
It plainly marques four my revue,
Miss steaks eye kin not sea.

Eye strike a key and type a word,
And weight four it two say,
Weather eye am wrong or write,
It shows me strait a weigh.

As soon as a mist ache is maid,
It nose bee fore two long.
And I can put the error rite,
Its rare lea ever wrong.

I have run this poem threw it,
I am shore your pleased to no.
It's letter perfect awl the weigh,
My chequer tolled me sew.

KeySoft 7.2 Thoughts

Greetings. The following information came into my Inbox today and I thought I'd pass it along, with my thoughts on the content. Here's what HumanWare has to offer in the upcoming KeySoft 7.2 release:

KEYSOFT 7.2 IS COMING! 

HumanWare will be releasing KeySoft 7.2 early in the
4th quarter of 2006, making your BrailleNote or VoiceNote even more useful
and efficient.
Whether you have a BrailleNote or VoiceNote mPower, a BrailleNote PK, or a
BrailleNote or VoiceNote Classic, there is a version of KeySoft 7.2 that
will be available for you.  KeySoft 7.2 takes one count from your Software
Maintenance Agreement (SMA).  An SMA allows you to receive two major
versions of KeySoft for the price of one.  Remember, an SMA can only be used
for a version of KeySoft if it is purchased prior to the release of the
software concerned.  So if you are not yet an SMA holder, ensure you get the
best deal on KeySoft 7.2 by purchasing your SMA now.  Contact HumanWare or
your local dealer for KeySoft 7.2 pricing.   What's in KeySoft 7.2?
Working with Files Is Easier (available on all models)

KeySoft allows extensive manipulation of files from any file list.  Anywhere
you can see a list of files, you can copy, erase, move, protect, unprotect
and rename a file.  Now, it is possible to mark files for action.  Move
through a list of files, mark those files that you need to take action on,
and the file manipulation commands can be applied to the group of files.
Now, when you look through a file list using the Directory option in File
Manager, pressing ENTER on any file will launch its associated application.
Pressing ENTER on an mp3 file for example will immediately cause it to start
playing in the Media Player.  In any file list, it is now easier to get it
sorted.  You can still sort files alphabetically as you have always done,
however you can now also sort by date and by size.  Sorting by size is a
great way of finding those pesky large files that are consuming FLASH Disk
space.  Sorting by date makes it easier to trace the progress of a project
whose files are contained in their own folder.  e-mail Signatures (available
on all models)  KeySoft 7.2 adds the ability to set up two e-mail
signatures.  Configure an e-mail signature for messages you generate, and
another for messages you forward or reply to.  You can see the text of the
signature right in the body of any e-mail message you create.  Statistics
Support in the Calculator (available on all models)  KeySoft 7.2 offers
intuitive, powerful statistical functions in KeyPlus.  Create data sets
within the Calculator using a special data entry mode.  Enter your data into
a KeyWord document, and paste it into data entry mode from the clipboard.
Import data sets from many common applications.  Save data sets for later
use, and export them for use by other applications.  Perform a wide range of
statistical functions on a data set using an intuitive KeySoft menu, or with
hotkeys.  DAISY Support (available on BrailleNote and VoiceNote mPower, and
BrailleNote PK)  Your BrailleNote or VoiceNote is about to become your
digital book player.  HumanWare is the world leader in DAISY playback
technology, through our Victor Reader products.  Now, we have incorporated
Victor Reader technology right into KeySoft.  Listen to DAISY audio books,
with the flexibility to speed up and slow down the narration and change the
tone of the audio.  Set bookmarks, create text notes, and jump to any time
in the book.  Text only DAISY books are instantly translated into your
preferred grade of Braille.  With books that offer both text and audio, you
have the best of both worlds.  Choose to read in Braille for detailed study,
and let the narrator read to you when it suits.  Move through DAISY
elements, or use the familiar KeySoft sentence and paragraph navigation
commands in text DAISY books if you prefer.  Get ready!

Make sure you have a current Software Maintenance Agreement so you can
download your copy of KeySoft 7.2 when it is released.  KeySoft 7.2 from
HumanWare will change the way you work, learn and play.

Now, as promised, my thoughts. First off, after reading over this the first time, I immediately had the thought of, "Well, it looks like they're still playing catch up to the PAC Mate." The PAC Mate has the ability to do all of these things, and more. I'm sure this will be a step up for BrailleNote people though, mainly because they haven't had the ability.

Second, as for the manipulation of files, it's about time they got around to doing that in KeySoft. I was a BrailleNote user for about a year and a half to two years several years ago, so I feel I can comment on this. Even as far back as 2002 or 2003, people were requesting some way of associating files, or having them open in their respective applications. As well as the ability to rename and otherwise manipulate files. That's quite a gap from 2002 to mid 2006.

Finally, from the numbering of the update, you would think it was a minor update. If this is true though, then why are you charged an SMA count for getting the update? And, is it even called an update or an upgrade?

However, this last area can be considered to be peddy speculation. The fact remains that only a few months ago, they were distributing and promoting KeySoft 7. Now they're promoting version 7.2. Its good to see the development cycle and promotion of new versions decreasing from before. After all, it took them a full year to promote, and finally release, version 7.0.

Bottom line though, as a biased PAC Mate user, KeySoft still hasn't done anything that makes me go, "Wow!" Oh well; perhaps in the next update or upgrade.

JAWS 7.1 is Out

Greetings. Just in time for the summer conventions, JAWS 7.1 is out. It is a free update for those with version 7. Read more about this release and download your copy from the JAWS 7.1 page at Freedom Scientific.

After promoting this update for several months and going through 5 different beta cycles, this should be a good release. The next task will be to get JAWS working with Vista. FS will have additional time on that front though since the new Microsoft operating system is not set to be released, in consumer form, until early next year. For now, enjoy the current update of JAWS with lots of bug fixes and enhancements.