| AccessWorld (R) Extra
| A bi-monthly e-mail newsletter of additional AccessWorld content
| Volume 4, Number 4
| August 2004
|
| "Remove" instructions at bottom
|
| Contents
|
| 1. From the Editor
|
| 2. Cell Phone Features Survey
|
| 3. Readers' Corner
|
| 4. Coming Soon in AccessWorld (R)
|
| 5. Shopping Online at Lands' End and L. L. Bean
|
| 6. What's New
|
| 7. Contact Us
|
| Note: This material is copyright 2004 American Foundation for the
| Blind and may not be reprinted or reproduced electronically without
| permission. AccessWorld (R) is a trademark of the American
| Foundation for the Blind.
|
| =================
| 1. From the Editor
| =================
|
| Dear AccessWorld Reader: Welcome to the August 2004 edition of
| AccessWorld Extra, the e-mail newsletter produced by AccessWorld
| staff in each of the six months when AccessWorld is not published.
|
| This month's Readers' Corner includes answers from June's question
| about web sites that you have difficulty using. This issue also
| includes a review by Koert Wehberg, summer intern extraordinaire,
| of Landsend.com and LLBean.com, two of the sites a reader mentioned
| in response to that question. Neither site is easy to use for the
| average screen-reader user.
|
| In lieu of our usual survey question, this month we ask for your
| help in updating the criteria we use to evaluate various cell phones. As
| regular readers know, the staff of AFB TECH in Huntington, West
| Virginia, evaluate each cell phone using a list developed two years
| ago of 16 features (affectionately known as the "Sweet 16") that
| would be most helpful to visually impaired users. New cell phone
| features keep appearing, so please take a few minutes and fill out
| the survey in section 2 so that we can examine features you think
| are important in future evaluations.
|
| AccessWorld Extra is designed to be easy to read for everyone.
| Items are numbered, and you can search for the beginning of the
| next item, since each item is preceded by a line of equal signs.
| Send your comments to <[log in to unmask]>. This e-mail
| newsletter is meant to provide, in each of the six months when
| the regular AccessWorld is not published, more of what you have
| told us you want--more of AccessWorld. We hope you will love it,
| but if you decide that you want to be taken off the distribution list,
| please e-mail us at <[log in to unmask]> and let us know. If
| your e-mail address changes, please also contact us at that
| address and we will add your new address to the distribution list.
|
| We strongly encourage you to forward AccessWorld Extra to a
| friend, relative, teacher, or someone else who is not an
| AccessWorld reader. Please help us spread the news that
| AccessWorld is now free for all to read.
|
| Just be sure to forward the entire issue, including the copyright
| notice.
|
| Jay Leventhal
| Editor in Chief
|
| =================
| 2. Cell Phone Features Survey
| =================
| Darren Burton
|
| As frequent readers of AccessWorld know, we have published several
| articles on cell phone accessibility over the last couple of years.
| Interest from our readers, as well as our desire to influence the
| design processes of manufacturers, has driven our work in this
| area, and we will continue evaluating phones as more new
| models begin to show signs of accessibility. Our six articles
| evaluating the accessibility of several phones on the market
| benefited greatly from input from people who are blind or visually
| impaired, and we are once again asking for your help. In early
| 2003, we surveyed 40 cell phone users who are blind or visually
| impaired to determine which features were the most important for
| accessibility. This resulted in the creation of a list of features
| that we have called the "Sweet 16," which we have used as the
| standard to judge the phones we evaluate.
|
| These 16 features are
| Keys that are easily identifiable by touch
| Voice output
| Accessible documentation
| Battery level indicator
| Roaming indicator
| Message indicator
| Phone book
| Phone lock mode
| Keypad lock mode
| Power indicator
| Ringing or vibrating mode indicator
| GPS (global positioning system) feature
| Signal strength indicator
| Ringer volume control
| Caller identification
| Speed dialing
|
| To stay current, and to find out your opinions as the cell phone
| world has evolved over the last 15 months, we now offer another
| survey. We are asking you to rate the importance of new features
| that are not included in the Sweet 16 list, such as video cameras
| and multimedia messaging. If you have an interest in the issue of
| cell phone accessibility and are willing to spend a few minutes
| filling out the questionnaire below, we would greatly appreciate
| your input. We will publish the results in a future issue of
| AccessWorld. We will also use the results in our future cell phone
| evaluation articles and in our advocacy efforts with
| manufacturers. Thank you for your help.
|
| Personal information will be kept confidential. Your name will not
| be published without your permission.
|
| Cell Phone Questionnaire
|
| To respond, you can copy and paste the survey into a new e-mail
| message, list the appropriate choices in a separate e-mail, or hit
| reply and place your answers next to the choices right in this
| message.
| 1. Vision Status: Please place an X before the statement that best
| applies to you.
| __ I am blind, and I use nonvisual means to read.
| __ I am visually impaired, but I use nonvisual means to read.
| __ I am visually impaired, and I use my vision with or without
| magnification devices to read.
|
| 2. What cell phone do you currently use?
|  Manufacturer:
|  Model number:
|
| 3. Typically, how often do you use your cell phone?
| __ Daily.
| __ A few times a week.
| __ Less than once a week.
| __ Less than once a month.
|
| 4. What do you like most about your current cell phone? Please list
| items and put an X before the most important one.
|
| 5. What do you dislike most about your current cell phone? Please
| list items and put an X before the most important one.
|
| Features Rating Section
|
| This section has 3 parts, each containing various cell phone
| features that we would like you to rate on a scale from 1 to 3.
| Place a 1 in front of an item that holds little or no importance to
| you; place a 3 in front of an item that is extremely important to
| you.
|
| 6. Status Indicators
| Please rate the importance of making the following status
| indicators accessible.
| __ Volume indicator
| __ Speaker-phone-in-use indicator
| __ Mute indicator
| __ Digital vs. analog mode indicator
| __ Time/date indicator
| __ Missed calls indicator
| __ Indicator of the service provider to which you are connected
|
| 7. Accessibility of general cell phone features
| Using the same scale of 1-3, please rate the importance of making
| the following general features accessible.
| __ Voice-activated dialing
| __ Ringer type selection
| __ Talk timer, which times your calls so you don't spend too much
| money
| __ Call waiting
| __ Redial
| __ Web access
| __ Three-way calling
| __ Text messaging
| __ Backspace (to backspace over misdialed numbers instead of
| clearing the entire phone number)
| __ Two-way calling (a "walkie-talkie" feature)
| __ Call forwarding
| __ Wireless connectivity to other devices
| __ Synchronization with PC applications such as Microsoft Outlook
| __ Still camera
| __ Video camera
| __ Games
| __ FM radio
| __ Onboard help system
| __ Access to call logs
| __ Media player for songs and video
| __ Multimedia messaging (sending and receiving text, sounds,
| images, and video)
| __ E-mail
| __ Instant messaging
| __ Calendar
| __ Notetaking functions
| __ File manager
| __ Calculator
| __ Currency converter
| __ Alarm clock
| __ Customizable ring tones
| __ Voice recorder
| __ Large control keys
| __ Keys grouped by function
| __ AC adaptor that is easy to connect
| __ Hands-free headset
|
| 8. Vision-oriented features. (For respondents with some vision.)
| Please rate the importance of having the following features on a
| cell phone.
| __ Large control keys
| __ High-contrast, color-coded control keys
| __ Keys grouped by function
| __ Illuminated keys
| __ Large display with large characters
| __ Color display
| __ High-contrast display
| __ Ability to adjust display contrast
| __ Back-lit or illuminated display
| __ Zoom capability for display
|
| 9. Please add any additional comments you may have.
|
| =================
| 3. Readers' Corner
| =================
|
| Here's your forum for talking to us and to each other.
|
| In June, we asked about web sites that you have difficulty using.
|
| We asked:
|
| Name a web site, or a category of web sites, that you have trouble
| accessing. Or, if you are an expert web surfer, name a web site
| that you recommend to other people who are blind or visually
| impaired.
|
| Bill McCann
| "Earlier this week I needed to fly out of the Baltimore-Washington
| International Airport. In haste, I tried to find some driving
| directions at <http://www.bwiairport.com> and quickly discovered
| that this web site was one of the most speech-unfriendly sites I
| have ever visited! Now that I have returned from my travels, I went
| back to the site and listened to JAWS reading the entire home page
| just to be sure I had not missed something in my original rush to
| find the information I wanted. Sure enough, if you spend what seems
| an eternity listening to JAWS read all kinds of useless nonsense to
| you, you will at last hear a reference to a "Text Site" link! Once
| one clicks on that link a much more accessible page comes up.
|
| "Even on that page, I cannot find an e-mail address for their
| webmaster. I did find [a postal address] but no voice or fax
| number. I am not willing to take the time to send a letter to these
| people, but of course they should make their links readable and,
| at the minimum, put the text-only link at the beginning of their
| home page.
|
| "Thanks for launching this effort and for any follow up support AFB
| can provide."
|
| Mark McDevitt
| "I have always had difficulty in viewing the Lands' End and the L.
| L. Bean web sites. If I ordered merchandise from either company, it
| was by talking to the customer service representatives by phone.
|
| "Thank you for this chance to express my opinion. Keep up the good
| work."
|
| Doug Rose
| "To answer the question you proposed about web site access, I find
| that the sites where you can look up business names or personal
| names (such as Switchboard.com, YellowPages.com, etc.) to not be
| user-friendly. Also sites like Dell.com and other computer
| companies have very involved sites that are difficult to navigate
| and to search. For example, on Dell you are suppose to be able to
| customize a system. I didn't find it that easy, nor did an
| experienced sighted computer user.
|
| "Locally, we have a resource for finding service from
| organizations, and I find their site simple to use. They are at
| <http://www.theswitchboard.org>. Unfortunately their resources
| only cover our small geographic area and is mostly limited to social
| service-type agencies. I wish other sites were this easy to use."
|
| Your Comments on AccessWorld Articles:
|
| Morgan Jones
| "Joe Lazzaro's article, "An Introduction to Web Design," in the May
| issue of AccessWorld, was simply fantastic. Joe demystified web
| design for me. He is a marvelous teacher.
|
| "In AccessWorld Extra for June, Mike Cole leveled trenchant
| criticism on our current screen readers. Those who produce such
| assistive devices may shrug off most of his allegations or even
| castigate Mr. Cole for his remarks. Nevertheless, what he says has
| a great deal of truth in it.
|
| "I agree that there is a growing gap between me and the expert
| users of my brand of screen reader. I just struggle to keep my head
| above water. How many hot keys and combinations are there?
| Honestly, I've never counted, but I'll bet there are a thousand.
| The producers will ask, 'What else do you expect us to do?' I don't
| know the answer and I have no suggestions. But this I do know: I
| spend an inordinate amount of time trying to learn how to use my
| screen reader--looking up forgotten commands, using mistaken
| commands, and pulling my hair out, while taking time away from my
| real, productive work.
|
| "I remember when [the graphical user interface] first came out--I
| think it was with the Macintosh or Apple about 1984. I thought,
| 'WOW! That is WONDERFUL! It is totally intuitive! Just wish I could
| handle it.' And when PC's got Windows, screen readers tried to
| replicate the ease with which sighted people were able to navigate.
| That was [in 1992.] Since then, Windows has gotten easier, but
| screen readers have become more and more complicated. As Mike
| Cole says, 'Many of us just want the stuff to work better. . . . All
| screen reading is way too complex, dealing with seemingly infinite
| configurations.'
|
| "In sum, I like the editor's response to Mr. Cole's diatribe: 'If
| the companies keep hearing this from their users, perhaps they will
| focus more of their efforts on usability and training.' I do hope
| they will read our complaints and make a real effort to address our
| concerns."
|
| Kolby Garrison
| "I am a totally blind high school student, and I read AccessWorld
| regularly. I must say that it is one of the best technology
| magazines that I have come across so far! Keep up the extremely
| good work!
|
| "I love reading all of the different articles about cell phones,
| the PAC Mate, BrailleNote, etc. I think that you should do a
| comparrison of the new BX and QX models of the PAC Mates, and the
| current BrailleNotes. I think that this would be very interesting
| for current PAC Mate users, BrailleNote users, and of course
| potential buyers! Is AccessWorld available for download to a PAC
| Mate or other braille notetaking devices?
|
| "Keep up the extraordinarily good work! I hope to keep reading
| AccessWorld forever! You don't know how helpful it is to the blind
| consumers, and technology buffs/geeks like myself!"
|
| Editor's response:
| It is great to know that high school students are reading
| AccessWorld and that one of them considers herself a "technology
| buff/geek." We will evaluate the newest models of the PAC Mate,
| BrailleNote and other personal digital assistants (PDAs) in
| upcoming issues of AccessWorld.
|
| At the end of each AccessWorld article is a "braille-ready" link.
| If you select this link, you can download the article in
| translated, formatted braille, ready to be sent to a braille
| printer or loaded into a PDA with a braille display.
|
| Here is how to download a complete issue of AccessWorld. On the
| table of contents page, there is a link called "Entire Issue." It's
| right after the links for the individual articles. Select that
| link. That puts you on a page that has all of the articles, one
| after another. Go to the File menu, select Save As, Tab to the
| "Save As Type" combo box, down arrow to Text File and hit Enter.
| This will save the whole issue to your computer. Then transfer it
| to your PAC Mate. Or, if you are on the Web reading AccessWorld
| using your PAC Mate, do the same things to save the entire issue to
| your PAC Mate.
|
| Beth from Virginia
| "I just wanted to say thanks for the Web-based AccessWorld. What
| an easy, convenient way to read this great magazine!
|
| "In the July, 2004 issue, I especially enjoyed the articles "A
| Library in Your Hand: A Review of the Book Port and the
| BookCourier" and "How Do I Read Thee: Let Me Count the Ways?"
| and I would also enjoy an article on the Bookworm, a small braille-
| reading device.
|
| "Thanks and keep up the good work!"
|
| =================
| 4. Coming Soon in AccessWorld (R)
| =================
|
| We hope you are enjoying the July 2004 AccessWorld, featuring
| evaluations of Telesensory's Pico and Olympia and Pulse Data's
| Traveller CCTVs; three cell phones: the Owasys 22C, developed in
| Spain, and the Nokia 3650 and 3660 phones, using TALKS software,
| from Brand & Grober Communications; Dolphin's Hal screen reader,
| the Book Port and the BookCourier; an article on the usability of
| accessible voting machines; a report on Digital Talking Book
| projects at the Illinois Library for the Blind; and more.
|
| You can read the issue for free or download "printer-ready" or
| "braille embosser-ready" files at:
| <http://www.afb.org/accessworld>.
|
| Don't miss the September 2004 issue, coming soon. This issue will
| bring you:
|
| Diabetes and Visual Impairment: Are Home Blood Pressure Monitors
| Accessible? Steven Taylor, Darren Burton, and Mark Uslan
|
| We evaluate the accessibility of home blood pressure monitors. The
| authors state that in managing diabetes, maintaining proper blood
| pressure is as important as maintaining proper blood glucose
| levels. Studies have shown that people with diabetes are twice as
| likely to develop high blood pressure (also called hypertension)
| and that more than 50% of people with diabetes actually do have
| high blood pressure. Despite the fact that nearly one-third of the
| 17 million Americans with diabetes have a visual impairment, this
| article shows, as did our previous articles on insulin pumps and
| blood glucose monitors, that there is an extreme shortage of
| accessible medical devices to help these people monitor their
| health.
|
| Recognizing and Rewarding: A Review of OPENBook and Kurzweil 1000
| Koert Wehberg, Deborah Kendrick, and Jay Leventhal
|
| We evaluate the two leading optical character recognition (OCR)
| packages. OCR technology continues to improve, and both companies
| keep adding other features, such as the ability to search the Web
| for e-books, create MP3s, read PDF files, recognize currency, and
| more. As a result, people have begun using both of these products
| for more and more tasks at work and at home. Find out how they
| compare with one another.
|
| The Man and the Machine: An Interview with Ray Kurzweil
| Jay Leventhal
|
| Kurzweil, renowned inventor and futurist, was the principal
| developer of the first omni-font optical character recognition
| program, the first CCD (charge coupled device) flat-bed scanner,
| the first text-to-speech synthesizer, the first music synthesizer
| capable of recreating the grand piano and other orchestral
| instruments, the first commercially marketed large-vocabulary
| speech recognition software and, of course, the first text-to-
| speech reading machine for people who are blind. He has
| successfully founded nine businesses in OCR, music synthesis,
| speech recognition, reading technology, virtual reality, financial
| investment, medical simulation and cybernetic art. It was
| fascinating to hear firsthand his account of events from back in
| the mid-1970s, as well as some amazing developments he predicts as
| computers continue to grow smaller and more powerful in the twenty-
| first century. I am sure you will find both his story and his
| predictions riveting.
|
| You Can Take It With You II: A Review of Two More Portable CCTVs
| Carol Farrenkopf
|
| This article evaluates two portable CCTVs, the QuickLook from Ash
| Technologies and the Assist Vision Slider AV-300 from TIMES
| Corporation. The Slider is a lightweight, compact CCTV, while the
| QuickLook is a handheld device that can fit in a pocket or purse.
| The two devices were used by students and adults in a variety of
| locations. Ratings and features charts compare these two products
| with products in the same categories that Dr. Farrenkopf reviewed
| in our July 2004 issue.
|
| Out of the Blue: Usability Testing at IBM
| Joseph Sacco, Guido Corona, and Leila Johannesen
|
| Three IBM staff members describe IBM usability testing conducted at
| the company's Silicon Valley Laboratory in San Jose, California.
| People who are blind or visually impaired tested the usability of
| online documentation for IBM products. They were questioned about
| descriptions of figures in documentation, where figures should be
| placed, whether praises such as "begin figure description" are
| useful and how complicated descriptions of figures could be made
| more useful. The results will be incorporated into future IBM
| products. IBM has been a leader in accessibility for decades. We
| hope other mainstream companies will follow IBM's lead in including
| people who are blind or visually impaired in usability testing.
|
| A Virtual Virtuoso: CathyAnne Murtha
| Deborah Kendrick
|
| We interview CathyAnne Murtha, founder of Access Technology
| Institute. Murtha does her part to fill the gap of qualified
| trainers in the field by teaching beginners to use assistive
| technology, writing textbooks, and conducting online training via
| voice chat. Sit in on a class with Kendrick and learn about this
| excellent source for increasing your knowledge from the comfort of
| your own home.
|
| Not Just Playing Around: A Review of Accessible Windows-Based
| Games
| Jim Denham and Heather McComas
|
| We review accessible games from AllinPlay, BSC Games, and GMA
| Games. Whether you want to drive a tank through enemy territory or
| simply play a good game of cards, the authors find there is
| something for you. In the past, AccessWorld readers have told us
| that playing games is at the bottom of the list when it comes to
| how they spend their time online. Perhaps this article will change
| some minds.
|
| =================
| 5. Shopping Online at Lands' End and L. L. Bean
| =================
| Koert Wehberg
|
| Each site was evaluated using both Window-Eyes and JAWS for
| Windows.
|
| The Lands' End web site <http://www.landsend.com> uses both an
| online catalog format (where you enter numbers for items directly
| from the printed catalog into edit boxes) and an e-commerce format
| (in which you find the product online using a mouse or the Enter key)
| to sell its products. The home page is laid out in several large, unwieldy
| tables with links and graphics, which are primarily accessible only to
| skilled screen-reader users. The tables used to list different products
| are problematic due to their disorganized column layout.
|
| Some images do not have accompanying alt-text to describe their
| function. There are no "Skip navigation" links to let you jump to
| the text of the page. Since Lands' End requires you to input
| product numbers from the print catalog into edit fields in order to
| make an online purchase when using the catalog format, shoppers
| who are blind or visually impaired should avoid this section of the
| site. Edit boxes in the catalog quick-order form were not read
| properly, because the fields are unlabeled and the form is poorly
| laid out.
|
| The e-commerce portion of the site worked well. Once we added
| specific items to our "Shopping bag" it was easy to create an
| account and purchase the selected products. You must add an
| item by selecting a particular size shirt or pair of shoes, because
| there are no "Add to cart" or "Buy now" buttons. Unfortunately, it
| is easy to miss the instructions to "click on a size to select an
| item." So you can tab along and hear "small, medium, large, small,
| medium, large" over and over.
|
| Headings were read when tabbing through forms, and choosing our
| home state was made painless with friendly combo boxes.
|
| Like Lands' End, the L. L. Bean web site <http://www.llbean.com>
| offers you the ability to shop via an online catalog or using an e-
| commerce format. L. L. Bean's home page is easy to navigate,
| containing clearly labeled links and graphics as well as only one
| table. There are no "Skip navigation" links on the site. We also
| found examining product lists difficult, due to inaccessible tables
| with poorly coded columns. Be aware that if you attempt to take
| advantage of certain options, like the "Build Your Own Backpack"
| option, using Flash is required to complete the task.
|
| L. L. Bean allows you to browse their print catalogs online.
| Unfortunately, the pages contain unlabeled graphics, which make it
| very difficult to select and view a specific product. The e-
| commerce section of the web site again proved easier to use.
|
| After selecting "Men's" from the home page, and "Oxford shirts," a
| window opened asking for permission to install Macromedia's Flash
| player. Choosing "Close this window" closed Internet Explorer.
| Repeating the above steps and choosing "View this feature now"
| allowed us to continue shopping without Flash.
|
| After creating a user name and password, you can purchase items
| by selecting the "Add to shopping bag" button. The occasional
| unlabeled form heading did not prevent us from buying the shirts we
| wanted in a timely manner.
|
| Lands' End and L. L. Bean are both usable sites for online
| shopping. Overall, L. L. Bean is easier to use with a screen
| reader. As usual, it is necessary to spend some time examining
| the site's layout. After repeated visits, you will find browsing and
| purchasing products easier and less frustrating.
|
| =================
| 6. What's New
| =================
|
| New Products Unveiled at Summer Conventions
|
| Pulse Data HumanWare announced the BrailleNote PK, a new, smaller
| and more powerful PDA. The BrailleNote PK weighs less than a pound
| and measures 6.8 inches by 3.6 inches by 1.3 inches. New features
| include: BlueTooth and wireless capabilities, a USB port, Windows
| Media Player, compatibility with all braille formats and Microsoft
| Word and An address list that can be synchronized with other
| BlueTooth-enabled devices. The product will ship later this year.
| The company also announced the release of two new braille displays.
| Weighing only 1.23 pounds and 0.86 pounds respectively, the new 40-
| cell and 24-cell Brailliant refreshable braille displays are among
| the smallest, lightest and most compact displays on the market
| today. The Brailliant 24 and Brailliant 40 are designed for use
| with a laptop or desktop computer, and offer both BlueTooth and USB
| connectivity. For more information, contact: Pulse Data HumanWare;
| e-mail: <[log in to unmask]>; web site: <http://www.pulsedata.com>.
|
| Freedom Scientific demonstrated some new applications for its PAC
| Mate personal digital assistant. StreetTalk is a GPS program that
| uses Destinator, an off-the-shelf database of points of interest.
| You can now plot and follow routes using the PAC Mate and this
| software. FS Reader is a DAISY book reader. It can handle both text
| and audio books. Both products sell for $79.95 each. More PAC Mate
| software is available at <http://www.pacmategear.com>.
|
| Kurzweil Educational Systems demonstrated Version 9, an upgrade for
| Kurzweil 1000 to be released in September. Building on the
| program's diverse range of features enhancing reading productivity,
| the new version includes additional online search capabilities
| (AccessWorld is one addition, as are two online encyclopedias),
| improved scanning accuracy, the ability to navigate links in
| documents, a talking business calculator, and expanded study tools.
| Ray Kurzweil, renowned inventor of the first reading machine 30
| years ago which has led to the Kurzweil 1000 software of today,
| presented 30 scholarship winners with a copy of the software at the
| National Federation of the Blind convention in Atlanta, Georgia on
| July 4. At the same event, Kurzweil, now Chairman Emeritus of the
| Bedford, Mass., company bearing his name, delivered an enlightened
| and amusing speech predicting the technology of the year 2020. One
| prediction, which is currently well on its way to being reality in
| the next year or two, is a portable scan-and-read device, a
| handheld unit for voicing such environmental items as signage,
| product labels, or restaurant menus for people who are blind. For
| more information, contact: Kurzweil Educational systems, inc.:
| phone: 800-894-5374 or 781-276-0600; e-mail:
| <[log in to unmask]>; web site: <http://www.kurzweiledu.com>.
|
| Bookshare and NFB Offer Newsline Online
|
| Bookshare has partnered with the National Federation of the Blind
| (NFB) to make newspapers and magazines from NFB's Newsline
| telephone service available to Bookshare members. The New Yorker,
| The New York Times, and many more publications will be provided in
| both DAISY and braille formats for download. For more information,
| contact: Bookshare; web site: <http://www.bookshare.org>.
|
| 2005 AFB Access Awards Call For Nominations
|
| The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) seeks nominations for
| the 2005 Access Awards, which honor individuals, corporations, and
| organizations that are eliminating or substantially reducing inequities
| faced by people who are blind or visually impaired. Letters of
| nomination should be sent by e-mail to James Denham at
| <[log in to unmask]> and must be received no later
| than September 13, 2004. Detailed nomination selection guidelines
| and a listing of past honorees can be found on AFB's web site,
| <http://www.afb.org/accessawards.asp>.
|
| Access To Printed Prescription Drug Information Needed
|
| Responding to a request for information from the Food and Drug
| Administration for input to a study on accessibility of
| prescription medication for older individuals who are blind or
| visually impaired, AFB pointed out that lack of access to printed
| prescription drug information creates the potential for serious
| error in medication management. This may be especially true for
| individuals who live alone and/or lack the resources to pay for
| high-cost technology that can provide access to the full range of
| information needed to effectively manage medications. Outside of
| the programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, there is no
| reliable third-party reimbursement for the purchase of such
| technology. Low-tech "talking" prescription bottles, available at
| little or no cost, do provide access but only to the information on
| the prescription container. The detailed response is available at
| <http://www.afb.org/section.asp?SectionID=3&TopicID=135&DocumentI
| D=2454>.
|
| =================
| 7. Contact Us
| =================
|
| Editor in Chief
| Jay Leventhal: <[log in to unmask]>
|
| Contributing Editors
| Founding Editor: Paul Schroeder: <[log in to unmask]>
| Senior Features Editor: Deborah Kendrick: <[log in to unmask]>
| Crista L. Earl: <[log in to unmask]>
| Mark M. Uslan: <[log in to unmask]>
|
| Managing Editor
| Ellen Bilofsky: <[log in to unmask]>
|
| Associate Editor
| Rebecca Burrichter: <[log in to unmask]>
|
| Marketing Manager
| Sharon Baker-Harris: <[log in to unmask]>
|
| Web site: <http://www.afb.org/accessworld>
|
| General e-mail: <[log in to unmask]>
|
| AccessWorld, AFB's premier technology publication is a free, web-
| based magazine. It offers multiple options for reading and sharing
| content, including a braille embosser-ready file, a printer-
| friendly version, and an "e-mail this article to a friend" option.
|
| The new format also offers:
| More timely access to cutting edge product evaluations
| Sophisticated search capabilities
| Access to all back issues of AccessWorld.
|
| To advertise, contact the AFB Press Advertising Department; phone:
| 212-502-7652; e-mail: <[log in to unmask]>.
|
| To submit an article, question for the Questions and Answers
| column, or Letter to the Editor, contact: Jay Leventhal; phone:
| 212-502-7639; e-mail: <[log in to unmask]>.
|
| AccessWorld Extra is published bi-monthly by AFB Press, American
| Foundation for the Blind, 11 Penn Plaza, Suite 300, New York, NY
| 10001. Products included in AccessWorld Extra are not necessarily
| endorsed by AccessWorld (R) or AFB staff. All rights reserved.
| Copyright 2004 American Foundation for the Blind.
|
| AccessWorld is a trademark of the American Foundation for the
| Blind.
|
| =================
|
| "Remove" instructions
| You are receiving this message because you are an AccessWorld
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| message with the word "remove" in the subject line, and we will
| remove you at once. (If you do not wish to read AccessWorld you
| have received this e-mail in error, and we sincerely apologize).
|
|
|
| You can unsubscribe at any time. To remove your name from this mailing
| list, or to find out what other newsletters are available from AFB, visit
| http://www.afb.org/myAFBNewsletter.asp.
|
|
|


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