----- Original Message -----
From: "Marie Roy" <[log in to unmask]>
To: "Larry Lewis" <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2004 11:06 AM
Subject: Optelec - InTouch Newsletter, September 2004
InTouch
The E-Newsletter from Optelec USA Blindness Products Division
Volume 1, Number 1
SEPTEMBER 2004
Editor: Deborah Kendrick
====================
If you happen to be blind and have used technology in the last 20 years,
there are a few companies whose names immediately come to mind. It's a
short list. You thought you knew them all but, as the Eagles' old hit
proclaimed: "There's a new kid in town!" With this inaugural issue of
InTouch, we plan to acquaint you with that "new kid" and tell you about
some of the exciting products already here or soon to be unveiled by
Optelec USA Blindness Products Division.
Read on to learn more. And let us know what you think.
====================
IN THIS ISSUE:
* WHO'S ON FIRST? - An Optelec Introduction
* A PANOPLY OF PRODUCTS
* BEAM IT OVER: Technology that Connects
* MOBILE SPEAK
* CUSTOMER ACCOUNT: BACK TO SCHOOL WITH GINGER BARNES
* OPTELEC CALENDAR
* REACHING InTouch
====================
WHO'S ON FIRST? - An Optelec Introduction
Nothing like a challenge to get a high-achiever breaking his own track
record for success! And a challenge is what was handed Larry L. Lewis,
Jr., when he joined Optelec USA Inc. earlier this year as vice president
of its new Blindness Products Division.
The Chelmsford, Mass. Company has been a recognized leader in the U.S.
for distribution of products for people with low vision, and its
Holland-based parent company, Tieman, decided it was time to provide the
same level of innovative quality products to consumers who are blind.
Lewis, whose name will be recognized by many in the assistive technology
field, has a reputation for commitment to excellence and was the obvious
best leader to spearhead the new effort.
"Products, people, and passion," Lewis explains, are the keystones on
which the new division will be built and which will keep it thriving.
In only eight months, evidence of all three is sparkling. An exciting
smorgasbord of products is being assembled and behind them Lewis has
gathered a team of creative, enthusiastic and, yes, passionate people.
====================
A PANOPLY OF PRODUCTS
Products both already existing and on the drawing board have two common
themes: First, a strong commitment to Braille literacy among children
and adults who are blind or visually impaired; and, second, a line of
products reflecting the trend toward mobility and connectivity seen in
the technological mainstream.
The initial flagship product is Tieman's own Braille Voyager Braille
displays. The 44-cell Voyager folds to fit into a laptop pocket, is
powered by your computer's USB port, and has a unique ergonomic design
that allows the Braille user to navigate the screen directly from the
Braille display. The 70-cell model is a powerful larger version for
users who prefer a larger desktop unit.
Optelec has partnered with Australia's Quantum Technology to make more
prevalent the company's fine products for the production of braille and
tactile images. The Mountbatten Brailler and Pictures in a Flash
(PIAF) are tools every teacher of visually impaired children will want
to have on hand. And for explaining the structure and significance of
braille to the rest of the faculty, parents, or any other interested
"civilian", Quantum's Switched On Braille is an amazing multimedia
presentation.
(Much more about all of these products in upcoming issues.)
====================
BEAM IT OVER: Technology that Connects
Some of you may remember some of the earlier braille-based pieces of
technology that began this march toward information equality for those
of us who are blind. The tape-based VersaBraille, for example, was a
device that stored data on cassettes. It was truly extraordinary for
its time (1984) in offering blind people the ability to compose, edit,
revise, and store documents and other information. It was also,
however, completely exclusive, proprietary, unique to blindness. With
only a brailler-style keyboard and refreshable braille display, it was
sometimes mistaken for a toy. It didn't look like the other computers
at the office and it had difficulty interfacing with them.
How many times have you found yourself struggling to explain to a
coworker what some piece of "special" technology can do for you -- in
terms that make sense to sighted technology users? Certainly, blind
people have some technological needs that are unique: We need our
information to be presented to us as braille or speech, for one obvious
example. But just as blind and sighted co-workers are able to use the
same word processing or email programs, Optelec believes that the more
connectivity our products have to those in the mainstream, the more
independent, educated and employed blind consumers will be.
In the months ahead, Optelec will be introducing a variety of products
with the common denominators of mobility and connectivity. Imagine
using a handheld device for storing phone numbers and appointments that
your sighted boss or secretary or spouse could read just as easily as
you, a blind or visually impaired individual. Imagine using a cell
phone the way your sighted friends do -- reading your phone directory,
checking your battery power, sending and receiving text messages. And
imagine using technology that can slip into your pocket and that can,
without wires, connect you to your own information or enable you to
"beam it" easily to a sighted friend. Those are the kinds of products
which will be coming your way from Optelec USA's Blindness Products
Division.
====================
MOBILE SPEAK
Blind and visually impaired people were among the first to use mobile
phones and yet, somehow, they've been left behind as these devices have
become more and more complex -- and fun. Without seeing the screen, you
don't know when you've missed a call. Without seeing the screen, you
have no idea how much battery power you have left. Without seeing the
screen, you can't check the number of the person who called a while ago.
And, without seeing that silly little screen, the contacts directory and
calendar are useless to you. Until now!
With Mobile Speak loaded on your wireless phone, all of the above
features will "speak" directly into your ear. And it will speak to you
in the familiar, high quality Eloquence speech already familiar to many
screen reader users.
Mobile Speak is compatible with several Nokia model phones, with the
Nokia 6600 being the most recommended. T-Mobile and Cingular are the
services currently supporting the Nokia phones. Optelec is not in the
business of selling phones -- only the software that makes them
accessible to blind people. For more information about Mobile Speak,
contact Larry Lewis, at [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> .
====================
CUSTOMER ACCOUNT:
BACK TO SCHOOL WITH GINGER BARNES
When a fourth grader new to braille was added to her list of students
last year, Ginger Barnes knew she needed to find creative ways to make
this new form of literacy fun. Her best stroke of creativity, says the
Hardin County, Kentucky vision teacher, was in her choice of writing
tools.
With the Mountbatten Pro in the classroom, the child who is blind is
able to produce all of her work on a machine that is not only
state-of-the-art technology, but also passes the rigorous tests of kid
approval. "She likes it because it looks cool," Barnes says of her
student. "It's brightly colored, and she has just enough vision to
appreciate that. And it looks trendy and technical." Add to those
advantages that the classroom teacher -- who has never learned braille
-- can just plug a keyboard into the Mountbatten and type all handouts
and blackboard information for instant braille hardcopy, and that the
student can connect a printer and produce print hardcopy of her brailled
assignments, and you have an absolutely winning situation. Barnes says
she thinks every braille reading student should have a Mountbatten Pro
in the classroom.
====================
OPTELEC CALENDAR
Optelec staff can be found at a variety of conferences, schools,
consumer group gatherings, and other venues in the weeks ahead. Dates
may be added or changed, but the following reflects dates scheduled at
press time.
Sept. 14 - New York, NY: American Foundation for the Blind
Sept. 14 - New York, NY: Adaptive Technology Computer Users Group
Sept. 17 - Montreal, Quebec: TechnoVision 2004
Sept. 24 - Columbia, SC: South Carolina Commission for the Blind and
Sept. 24 - Columbia, SC: South Carolina NFB Spaghetti Dinner Fund Raiser
Sept. 28 - Austin, TX: Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Sept. 29 - Houston, TX: Region 4 Center (Mountbatten Workshop)
Sept 30 - San Antonio, TX: Christal Vision
Oct. 1 - Tulsa, OK: NANOPAC
Oct. 6 - New York, NY: New York City Schools (Mountbatten Workshop)
Oct 7 - Baltimore, MD: National Federation of the Blind; Maryland State
School for the Blind
Oct. 15-17 - Columbus, OH: ACB Ohio Conference
Oct. 18-19 - Syracuse, NY: AER New York Conference
Oct 20 - Phoenix, AZ: Arizona State University (Mountbatten Workshop)
Oct. 20-23 - Minneapolis, MN: Closing the Gap Conference
Oct. 21-22 - Prescott, AZ: AER Arizona Conference
Nov. 4-7 - Columbus, OH: NFB Ohio Conference
Nov. 8 - 10 - Rhode Island: AER Northeast Region Conference
Nov. 9 - Columbia MO: (Mountbatten Workshop)
====================
REACHING INTOUCH
The purpose of InTouch is to share information on a regular basis with
people who might be interested in Optelec products or the consumers who
are using them. The newsletter is free for the asking. If you or
someone you know would like to be added to the mailing list, send a
message with the subject line "Subscribe" to [log in to unmask] We
hope you enjoy the newsletter, but if you don't want to receive it any
more, please send a message with the subject line "Remove" to
[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> .
Questions or suggestions for the next newsletter? Please send feedback
or suggestions for editorial content to Deborah Kendrick at
[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> .
For questions or suggestions regarding products, contact:
Larry Lewis [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
JoAnn Becker [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Jim Sullivan [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Just want to see what we're doing and read about products, go to:
HTTP://WWW.OPTELEC.com <HTTP://WWW.OPTELEC.com> .
====================
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