-----Forwarded Message-----
From: [log in to unmask]
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Neil 
Barnfather -
eHosting Limited
Sent: Tuesday, April 13, 2010 1:25 PM
To: 'Talks Mailing List'; [log in to unmask]; 'The Accessible 
Phones
Discussion List'
Subject: Officially from Nuance

Dear All,

It is with regrettable sadness that I am having to write to you 
to confirm that
Marcus Groeber has confirmed to me the sad news to which we've 
been discussing.

Aged 47 years, Torsten Brand sadly passed away during a routine 
operation
yesterday.

At this stage very little else is known other than to say the 
obvious; Torsten
alongside Marcus were true pioneers in the world of accessible 
technology for
the blind community.  Much is owed to their efforts and 
activities spanning the
past decade and we all have much by way of appreciation owing to 
them both.

Torsten was a genuine and inspirational individual who will be 
missed by us
all.

If further information is forth coming I will pass this on to 
you.

Regards.

Neil Barnfather
TalkNav



-----Forwarded Message-----
From: [log in to unmask]
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of 
Jonathan Mosen

Less than a decade ago, the only way a blind person could send a 
text message
was through a website, or by connecting some models of phone to a 
computer.
Less than a decade ago, the only way a blind person could 
navigate the menus
and change settings on their phone was to memorise the sequences 
of key presses
required, or carry around a Braille cheat sheet.  And then, two 
brilliant people
began collaborating.  Marcus Groeber and Torsten Brand formed 
Brand and Groeber
communications, and they got our phones talking.

The original Talx, yes it was spelled with an X in those days, 
worked on the
Nokia communicator, a PDA device with a qwerty keyboard.  Later 
however, Talks
was released for S60 phones.  In 2003, I purchased a Nokia 6600, 
and I'll never
forget the phone starting up after I'd installed Talks.  It was 
almost unreal.
After 13 years of not being able to use all the features of my 
phone and really
set it up the way I wanted, my phone was truly accessible.  He 
made this dream a
reality for blind people all over the world, in numerous 
languages.

Those very early versions of Talks were somewhat sluggish, and 
had numerous
issues.  But we stuck with it because we knew it was ground 
breaking technology.
Over the years, Marcus and tenacious Torsten kept at it, to the 
point that
Talks is now a very robust, reliable, speedy solution.

Talks became so successful that eventually it was acquired by 
Nuance
Communications, who thankfully kept Torsten and Marcus on to 
manage and develop
the product.

In looking back at the email correspondence I've had with Torsten 
over the
years, and the times we've met up to chat or have dinner, a few 
words come to
mind.  Thoughtful, intelligent, committed, good fun, and great 
company with that
distinctive German accent of his, when we'd catch up at CSUN or 
some other
conference.

As a blind guy himself, Torsten used the product he managed every 
day.  I have
always believed this makes a big difference.  It is reflected in 
the power, and
elegant user interface of Talks.  Talks gets an awful lot done, 
very simply,
with in many cases only a number pad and a few other keys to work 
with.  He took
user interface and efficiency extremely seriously, sometimes 
considering
esoteric issues like how many syllables a prompt contained, 
because as a speech
user himself, he knew all of that stuff mattered.  Most recently, 
he and Marcus
worked together on a very elegant implementation of an accessible 
interface for
the S60 Fifth Edition touch phones.

Torsten was in his prime, with many more great ideas on which he 
and Marcus
would have collaborated.  His passing is a tragedy for the blind 
community.

Let's not also forget, Torsten was a husband, and a dad.  There 
are two things I
send to Torsten's family.  Firstly my sincere condolences.  But 
secondly, I send
my deep appreciation.  The work Torsten did changed lives for the 
better.  If you
can leave this world a better place than you found it, in 
whatever endeavour
you pursue, your life has been worthwhile.  Torsten led a most 
worthwhile, and
worthy life.  He has earned his place in the history of assistive 
technology.

Ever since I heard the news of Torsten's death, every time I pick 
up my Nokia
handset, so much more powerful than the first one Torsten helped 
to make
accessible, I pause, and say a little thank you to him.

You will be missed Torsten.
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