by Elizabeth M. Lennon
The announcement of new products and services in this column should not be considered an endorsement of those products and services by the American Council of the Blind, its staff or elected officials. Products and services are listed free of charge for the benefit of our readers. “The Braille Forum” cannot be responsible for the reliability of products or services mentioned.
New Teen E-Zine
Disability Central is launching a new disabled teen e-zine, and seeks teens with disabilities who are looking for jobs as writers, editors, marketing and advertising staff. Jobs available are: science and technology writer; art director; deputy editor; disability news writer; marketing and public relations; adaptive equipment writer department; advice columnist/relationship author; entertainment writer; e-zine editor; Internet writer and columnist; recreation writer/columnist; young men’s interests writer; young women’s interests writer; advertising sales specialist; and education and career columnist/writer. For more information, visit http://www.disabilitycentral.com. If you are interested in applying for any of the positions, e-mail drstein@disabilitycentral.com.
Stand Up!
It’s time for the United States Census 2000. The census is a questionnaire that is sent to every residence in the United States. By completing it, you help insure that your community and your needs are not forgotten. The information collected in the census is used to distribute millions of dollars for schools, hospitals, community centers, health care, child care, and facilities for sick or disabled people. It probably arrived at your home during March.
The Census Bureau uses two different forms: the D-1 short form, that comes in an envelope about the size of a half sheet of paper, and contains a cover letter, a return envelope and a large piece of paper folded in thirds; and the D-2 long form, which comes in a larger envelope, with a questionnaire booklet and a large return envelope. If you need help completing it, either have a relative, friend or neighbor assist you or call toll-free (800) 471-9424. To use the web to complete the questionnaire, go to http://www.2000.census.gov and be sure to have your ID code from the census form label available.
Scholarships
The President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities is offering scholarships. Two competitions are open to candidates with disabilities seeking financial aid for undergraduate study at a four-year college or university. Nike will sponsor one $2,500 scholarship for an individual majoring in sports or recreation management, sports marketing, sports medicine or sports/recreation retail. Nordstrom, Inc. will sponsor five $2,000 scholarships for individuals majoring in business. The application deadline for these competitions is May 11.
The third competition is open to women with disabilities seeking financial assistance for graduate study. The ELA Foundation will sponsor one or two $2,000 scholarships for individuals who seek to change the face of disability on the planet in their life work. The deadline for this competition is May 25.
To be eligible for these scholarships, applicants must be United States citizens. Awards are contingent upon acceptance to, or continuation in, accredited colleges and universities in the United States. For more information, visit the web site, http://www.pcepd.gov and select the scholarships link.
Scholars Program
The Fulbright Scholars Program’s annual competition opened March 1 for lecturing and research grants in 130 countries. There are opportunities for college and university faculty and administrators, professionals from the business community and government, artists, journalists, lawyers, independent scholars and many others. Grants are available to faculty and administrators from two-year, four-year and graduate institutions. Fulbright awards vary from two months to an academic year or longer. Some 80 percent of the awards are for lecturing.
Application deadlines for 2001-2002 grants are: May 1, 2000, for Fulbright distinguished chair awards in Europe, Canada and Russia; August 1, 2000, for Fulbright lecturing and research grants worldwide; and November 1, 2000, for spring/summer seminars in Germany, Korea and Japan for international education and academic administrators as well as for the summer German studies seminar.
For more information, contact the Council for International Exchange of Scholars, 3007 Tilden St. NW, Suite 5L, Washington, DC 20008-3009; phone (202) 686-7877; e-mail apprequest@cies.iie.org. Or you may check the web site, http://www.cies.org.
Events
Independent Recreation for the Disabled holds events monthly for people in the New York City area. The organization is also looking for volunteers to do fund-raising and typing. If you have questions, or would like more information, call (718) 545-1529, e-mail alice.crespo@mail-call.net or write on tape, in braille or large print to Alice Crespo, IRD, 28-53 45th St., first floor, Astoria, NY 11103.
Yankees
Attention all Connecticut parents! The Connecticut General Assembly will vote on a braille literacy and education act in the spring. The more parent support it gets, the more likely the bill is to pass. Call Chris Kuell at (203) 730-8884, or e-mail ckuell@mindspring.com for more information and to learn how you can help.
Pfanstiehl Honored
Margaret R. Pfanstiehl was honored by the New Jersey Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired in February for being “a trailblazer in the inception of audio description.” She is the founder and president of the Metropolitan Washington Ear. Pfanstiehl and her husband Cody developed the technique of audio description for stage productions at Arena Stage. In 1988 the Pfanstiehls trained describers at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Milburn, N.J. Those describers trained more people to describe plays at the George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, N.J. The two theaters were also honored at the ceremony for their contributions “to the evolution and enhancement of the quality of life for people with vision loss,” according to Jamie Hilton, the commission’s executive director.
Freedom Vision
Freedom Vision has a new, portable CCTV camera available. It’s called Prisma, and it costs $895. It weighs two pounds and is able to collapse itself to two inches high. It has discrete white LED lighting, so there is no glare or blinding reflections, and connects to any standard TV monitor via the RCA video-in connection. For more information about this or other Freedom Vision products, call (800) 961-1334, or visit the web site, http://www.freedomvision.net.
Large Time
“Time” magazine recently began publishing a large print edition. It features 16-point type, and a minimum of 80 percent of the regular content. The paper is matte finished, not glossy, for less glare. A subscription to the large print edition costs $79.97 a year. Write to Time Magazine, Large Edition, PO Box 64436, Tampa, FL 33664-4436, or call (800) 552-3773.
Note Teller
Do you have an old Note Teller, or one that needs upgrading? Brytech Inc. has the newest Note Teller available. It reads both old and new currency from $1 to $100. If your Note Teller already recognizes the new $50 and $100, the upgrade for it to read the $5, $10 and $20 is a quick procedure. Return it to Brytech with $75; the company will perform the upgrade and send it back to you the same day. An older Note Teller will not recognize any of the new bank notes, and needs to be replaced. The replacement costs $300 with the return of your old Note Teller. To return your Note Teller, place it in the original shipping container or other secure packaging with your name, address and telephone number. Enclose a check, money order, or Visa card details for $75 for the upgrade, or $300 for the replacement. (Newer versions can be identified by a serial number starting with 15 or higher.) Add $10 for shipping and handling. Mark the package as follows: Product for the blind returned to manufacturer, Customs #9992.00.00, GST #66. Mail it by U.S. mail to Brytech Inc., 600 Peter Morand Crescent, Ottawa, Ontario K1G 5Z3, Canada. If you have further questions, call (800) 263-4095, or visit the web site, http://www.brytech.com.
Spanish Tape
El Club Latino Internacional is a new bimonthly interactive cassette magazine in Spanish. Its purpose is to establish a network of friends within the blind Hispanic community, as well as to offer an outlet for those who have an interest in and knowledge of Spanish. If you have musical talent, want to discuss technology, problems of blindness, or if you are searching for love or friendship, send your recorded message to Elena Taylor, 111 Belle Vista Ct., Winston-Salem, NC 27106. Please try to keep your message under 10 minutes. Braille letters in Spanish or English are acceptable; however, recorded messages are preferred.
Megilas Esther
The Jewish Heritage for the Blind now has the large print “Megilas Esther” available, as well as the braille edition of “Rabbi Shrage Feivel Mendlowitz, zt’l” free of charge for visually impaired people. Mail or fax your request to: Jewish Heritage for the Blind, 1655 E. 24th St., Brooklyn, NY 11229; fax (718) 338- 0653. Supply is limited to one per family.
Dolphin 4
Dolphin’s version 4 software is now available. This upgrade is available across the product line, including Supernova, Hal, LunarPlus and Lunar for Windows 95/98 and Windows NT/2000. It includes a great number of new features, including a new control panel of two Windows property sheets that allows you to select your preferences; context-sensitive help; line view mode; panning; multilingual speech software; choice of braille grade; network access; and much more. If you have purchased version 3.03 software since June 1999, you are eligible for a free upgrade to version 4. Write or e-mail the company, stating when and where you purchased the software, including your mailing address and the software serial number. For purchases made earlier in the year, check out upgrade pricing at http://www.dolphinusa.com/demos/index. For more information, call (650) 348-7401 and ask for Helen or Jane, or e-mail sales@dolphinusa.com. Or you may write to Dolphin Computer Access LLC, 100 S. Ellsworth Ave., Fourth Floor, San Mateo, CA 94401.
Top Dot
Top Dot Enterprises has available several up-to-date interactive tutorials, including Windows 98 basics, Top Eudora 4.2 (and earlier), and Top Real Internet Explorer 5.0. These and other tutorials are available in two- and four-track tape formats; four-track tapes cost $19.50 each, two-track tapes cost $27, plus a per-order shipping charge of $5. To order, send a check or money order to Top Dot Enterprises, 8930 11th Pl. SE, Everett, WA 98205. If you wish to order by credit card, call (425) 335-4894.
Top Dot also publishes “Sound Computing,” a bimonthly magazine for any blind computer user. It is available on tape and in RealAudio. Subscriptions to the cassette edition also give subscribers access to the RealAudio edition; they cost $24 in North America. RealAudio only subscriptions cost $19. Contact Top Dot at the number or address above.
Davidow Games
The Pennsylvania Association for Blind Athletes is hosting the 13th Northeast “Davidow” Games for blind and visually impaired youth and adults June 2-4, 2000 at Cabrini College in Radnor. Along with the games, it will hold a 25th anniversary athlete and volunteer reunion. There will be competitions in swimming, track and field, and goalball, and clinics in judo, wrestling, golf, tandem cycling, soccer and powerlifting. Games are open to all blind and visually impaired people ages 7 to 97 who can function independently or come with a guide (running guides can be provided). Age groups are youth (ages 7 to 14) and adults. Vision classifications are totally blind and partially sighted. All athletes, parents, coaches and volunteers, past and present, are invited to come and celebrate. To request a registration packet, or get more information, call (301) 987-8233, or e-mail sandyw1994@aol.com.
Voice Mate
Voice Mate is the third generation of Parrot’s voice organizer. It uses digital storage and speech recognition technologies to provide a talking organizer with a wide range of features, including phone book, voice note pad, appointment book, talking alarm clock and calculator. The Voice Mate offers 40 minutes of recording time; high voice recognition quality; an earphone; eight levels of volume control; PC link for storing data and updating software via the Internet; a personal identification code to limit access; 10 languages (English, Chinese, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Swedish); reminders; talking calculator with foreign currencies; and much more. It currently retails for $249. The leather case costs $26. For more information, contact Parrot via e-mail at sales@parrot.fr; visit the web site, http://www.voice-assistance.com; or call toll-free (888) 936-0001.
BANA News
The Braille Authority of North America met in late October in Annapolis, Md. New board officers are: Phyllis Campana, chairperson; Eileen Curran, vice chairperson; Frances Mary D’Andrea, secretary; and Susan Reilly, treasurer. BANA accepted the Braille Institute of Los Angeles as a member organization. And, thanks to the generosity of the American Printing House for the Blind, BANA has permanent office space. BANA’s new mailing address is P.O. Box 6085, Louisville, KY 40206.
At the November meeting of the International Council on English Braille, the following BANA officers were elected: Betty Niceley, president; Darleen Bogart, vice president; Raeleen Smith, secretary; Kim Charlson, treasurer; Reinette Popplestone, public relations; William Poole, member at large; Jean Obi, member at large; and Bruce Maguire, member at large.
Editor’s Note: As this issue went to press, we were saddened to learn of the death of Betty Niceley.
ADA Consulting
ADA Consulting Inc. specializes in the sale of information that is specially written for blind and visually impaired people who are new to computing. The first title, “Family Fun with Computing,” came out in July 1999. It was written for families who have just purchased computers but don’t have the extra funds to add a speech package for their visually impaired family member. Included with this book is “Touch Typing the Silent Way.”
The second title, “Competitive Computing for the Print Disabled,” came out in August. It presents accommodations the print-disabled person might consider as a way of using Windows 95 so they can be competitive in life and employment situations.
“MAP” came out in September. It is a book meant to help you master other application programs that are speech-friendly, including Notepad, calculator, Solitaire, and the Internet. “Tools for Considerable Independence with Computing” came out in October. It starts with tips for reading manuals and help screens, and encourages the use of shortcut keys; it instructs you on how to explore what programs are on your hard drive, CD-ROM, or floppy, and how to figure out what they're supposed to do, and how to make them do it.
All four titles are available as a set, which costs $39.95. Books are available in print, large print, grade two braille, 3.5-inch IBM-compatible floppy disk, or two-track cassette. Single books cost $12.95. Write to: ADA Consulting Inc., P.O. Box 3126, Carson City, NV 89701.
Dancing Dots
Dancing Dots has moved! The new address is 1754 Quarry Lane, P.O. Box 927, Valley Forge, PA 19482-0927; phone (610) 783-6692, fax (610) 783-6732; e-mail info@dancingdots.com; web site http://www.dancingdots.com. One of its products, Goodfeel, automates transcription of braille music. It now supports lyrics. Scanning is optional. There is no page limit. It is compatible with MIDI sequencers, has context-sensitive help, and a free demo. For more information, contact the company at the address, phone number or e-mail address above.