My Soap Box


National Library Service will allow their books to be played on smart phones, tablets and computers. Finally the announcement which most NLS patrons have been waiting for. We haven’t seen it yet, and who knows how long it will take to become something more than “vaporware”, but they did say in print that soon the NLS books will be able to be read on mobile devices. As the iphone has become so much more than a phone to people with vision loss, this is a very welcome announcement, indeed.

read more . Call the Center for Independent Living and ask for the Technology Manager-me-to have your books made into accessible DAISY books.
615-292-5803


DAISY books are... I don’t know what superlative to use. DAISY (digital accessible information system) lets people with a print disability read just like everyone else does; turn the pages, go to a specific sentence, move to the next paragraph, spell aloud a given word.
I’m exasperated by the high price of specialized technology for people with disabilities, and I’m frustrated because government agencies, at least the ones I know about, frequently recommend the most expensive of all the available options. The people making the recommendations seem to have a one track mind, or possibly an agenda, never looking for free or low cost alternatives, and they are rarely knowledgeable about more recent products and software. Watch a New York Times video to understand what I mean about lower cost options.

My specialty is teaching adults with disabilities how to use computers and other technology devices to better their lives and give them a chance of getting a job or going to school. I’ve been in my present position, as Technology Manager at The Center for Independent Living of Middle Tennessee, for the past six years. During that time I’ve had plenty of opportunity to explore various specialized devices and software for people with disabilities. While much of this software and hardware is very good, the cost is so expensive as to put it out of reach for the people who really need it. This brings me to the point of my site; a place to explain how mainstream software and devices can be used for those with disabilities without paying the exorbitant prices for specialty products.

Most of my students are blind or have low vision. Some have no speech, some have little or no use of their hands, while others have intellectual challenges. The thing that all these people have in common is that using a computer can help them communicate and learn in a way that was only a dream 10 or 15 years ago.

How this site is organized

Most pages are on the main navigation, but some are sub menus and will only be seen once you go to the main category page. An example is the cell phone page; once there you will find a sub menu with pages about iphone, android, video options, and like information. I’ll be adding info and suggestions from technology users as fast as I can, so check back from time to time. If you have a suggestion and want me to post it, please use the “contact me” link at the end of the page.

If you would like to help me buy a few technology items to use in my research, please use the “Donate” button.

This site was created with RapidWeaver, which is inflexible for certain things, I’m sorry that I can’t put a skip to main content link at the beginning of the pages. Maybe i’ll figure it out, but right now one must go through the navigation links. Screen reader users can use a list of headings and skip over the navigation.