HumanWare's DeafBlind Communicator on Tek Talk

Taken from the Accessible World News Wire email that I received:

Greg Stillson Highlights HumanWare's DeafBlind Communicator on Tek Talk Monday, February 2, 2009

The Accessible World News Wire

Greg Stillson Highlights HumanWare's DeafBlind Communicator That Opens
Communication Lines for Deaf-Blind on Tek Talk Monday, February 2, 2009

Most agree that every person should have the opportunity to fully access the
world around them and have the freedom to build lasting friendships and a
happy and productive life regardless of physical disabiliy. Making it happen
for the deaf-blind has been a long and frustrating journey. However, those
attending this week's Tek Talk online event will learn from highly qualified
presenter and trainer Greg Stilson, Humanware Product and Support
Specialist, how his company has used its technological expertise to design a
product that significantly opens their lines of communication.

The DeafBlind Communicator (DBC) offers the deaf-blind population a truly
portible multifunctioning communication device. Consisting of a standard
Humanware Braille Note with specific software installed, and a cell phone
for a face to face companion, the communicator provides several ways for a
deaf-blind user to communicate. Using the DB companion, the user can easily
communicate in virtually any face to face environment with a sighted peer.
The built in modem enables the DBC to operate as a standard Braille TTY, and
by using the DB companion's cell phone capability with a SIM card, the
deaf-blind population can now utilize Short Message Service (SMS)
technology.

For the more advanced user, with the use of a high speed internet
connection, the DBC software incorporates an XMPP messaging client, which
allows anyone with a Google Mail (gmail), account, to engage in an instant
messaging conversation with other gmail users. Gmail is quickly becoming one
of the largest web based e-mail providers and with its Google Talk PC client
that is available to everyone, DBC users can carry on conversations with
both people using a PC for messaging, or with other users of the DBC.

(Contact: Greg Stilson
Humanware Product and Support Specialist
Phone; 800.722.3393
Greg.stilson@humanware.com )

Date: Monday, February 2, 2009

Time: 5:00 p.m. Pacific, 6:00 p.m. Mountain, 7:00 p.m. Central,
8:00 p.m. Eastern and elsewhere in the world Tuesday 1:00 GMT.

Where: Tek Talk Conference Room at:

http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rsc9613dc89eb2

Or, alternatively,

http://www.accessibleworld.org. Select the Tek Talk Room, enter your first
and last names on the sign-in screen.

All Tek Talk training events are recorded so if you are unable to
participate live at the above times then you may download the presentation
or podcast from the Tek Talk archives on our website at
http://www.accessibleworld.org.

American Foundation for the Blind's Survey on Small Screen Visual Displays

Check out American Foundation for the Blind's Survey on Small Screen Visual Displays
at http://www.afb.org/Section.asp?Mode=Survey&SurveyID=101

Taken from the website:

AFB TECH, the technology arm of the American Foundation for the Blind, is currently working to establish standards to improve the readability of small screen visual displays, and we want input from AccessWorld readers.

Specifically, we are referring to small visual electronic displays found in products like cell phones, blood glucose meters, blood pressure monitors, alarm clocks, calculators, home appliances, and office equipment. We would like to ask our AccessWorld readers with low vision the following questions, to find out about your experiences using products with small screen displays.

So please help out AFB and give your input today!

Free book download from Audible.com - Beauty and the Beast = free!

Free book from Audible.com - Beauty and the Beast = free!

You can get Beauty and the Beast as a free audiobook download from Audible.com!

But hurry, because they haven't said how long this free download will last! Enjoy!

Go here to download the free audio book!

Is your username available? Find out where your username is already registered!

Is your username available? Find out where your username is already registered!

I learned about a cool site called "User Name Check" at http://www.usernamecheck.com/

It searches 70 sites, such as Gmail, Blogger, Twitter, Ebay, Etsy, LinkedIn, StumbleUpon, and Yahoo (just to name a few) and tells you whether your username is available on those sites. If you use the same username on most sites, this is also a good way to help you remember all the sites you signed up with. :) The best way to understand this site and how it works is simply to visit it.... so give it a try.

http://www.usernamecheck.com/

Article: Guided by love - A reporter recalls life with Bates, a Seeing Eye dog

Have you seen the article Guided by love - A reporter recalls life with Bates, a Seeing Eye dog?

You can read the entire article at http://www.star-telegram.com/living/v-print/story/1118953.html

Taken from the article:

"On Aug. 29, my dog Bates came to work with me for the last time. For nine years, my golden retriever Seeing Eye dog had faithfully accompanied me on countless assignments for the Star-Telegram, where I am a government affairs reporter.

But Bates was almost 11, and the Texas heat was becoming too much for him.

I tried to keep a normal routine that day — doing errands before work and walking to a restaurant for lunch. But my day was filled with tears. It was especially hard when friends came to my desk to tell Bates goodbye.

It was also, though, a day full of anticipation. I was getting a new dog soon. In fact, the next day, I was leaving for the Seeing Eye training facility, in Morristown, N.J."

Article: Testing when eyes become vulnerable to cataracts

I recently came across an interesting article titled, Testing when eyes become vulnerable to cataracts.

You can read the article online at http://bulletin.aarp.org/states/ma/articles/testing_when_eyes_become_vulnerable_to_cataracts.html

Taken from the article:

"Space shuttle science may soon come to an eye doctor near you: Researchers are using a NASA gadget to finally tell if a cataract is brewing before someone's vision clouds over."

Blind Bargains: 2008 Access Awards Nominations

Blind Bargains is accepting nominations for their 2008 Access Awards. They have categories for everything from "Best Blindness Related Blog" to "Best Software Product." There are 11 blindness related categories in all!

Check it out, and submit your nominations today at http://www.blindbargains.com/award08.php

Blog post: Seniors get no break on 2008 required retirement distributions

The Consumer Reports blog has an interesting post about older adults and retirement distributions titled

Seniors get no break on 2008 required retirement distributions

Taken from the blog post:

"Seniors won't get a tax break they'd hoped for this year. In spite of punishing stock-market losses, the Treasury Department determined recently that folks over 70 1/2 still must take taxable, required minimum distributions (RMDs) from their traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, and 403(b)s by year-end based on the value of those holdings on Dec. 31, 2007.

Of course, on that date many people's holdings were valued much higher, so the distributions--and the taxes--are likely to be greater than they would be if based on their current value. If you fall into the eligible category and don't take out the full RMD for this year, you face a 50 percent penalty on the amount not withdrawn. (Folks who turned 70 1/2 within 2008 don't have to withdraw their RMDs until April 15, 2009, but the amount still must be based on their holdings on Dec. 31, 2007.)

Congress approved a rule that allows folks over 70 1/2 to forgo all or part of their taxable RMDs in 2009 with no penalty, but that helps no one right now."

Read the rest of the article here.

Swag bucks widget / Swidget