THE Braille Forum Vol. XXXIV February 1996 No. 7 Published By The American Council of the Blind THE AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND STRIVES TO INCREASE THE INDEPENDENCE, SECURITY, EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY, AND QUALITY OF LIFE FOR ALL BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED PEOPLE. Paul Edwards, President Oral O. Miller, J.D., Executive Director Nolan Crabb, Editor Sharon Lovering, Editorial Assistant National Office: 1155 15th St. N.W. Suite 720 Washington, DC 20005 (202) 467-5081 Fax: (202) 467-5085 Electronic bulletin board: (202) 331-1058 THE BRAILLE FORUM is available in braille, large print, half- speed four-track cassette tape and MS-DOS computer disk. Subscription requests, address changes, and items intended for publication should be sent to: Nolan Crabb, THE BRAILLE FORUM, 1155 15th St. N.W., Suite 720, Washington, DC 20005. Those much-needed contributions, which are tax-deductible, can be sent to Patricia Beattie, treasurer, at the above address. If you wish to remember a relative or friend by sharing in the council's continuing work, the national office has printed cards available to acknowledge contributions made by loved ones in memory of deceased people. Anyone wishing to remember the American Council of the Blind in his/her Last Will and Testament may do so by including a special paragraph for that purpose. If your wishes are complex, you may contact the ACB National Office. For the latest in legislative and governmental news, call the "Washington Connection" toll-free at (800) 424-8666, 6 p.m. to midnight eastern time Monday through Friday. Washington, D.C., residents only call 331-2876. Copyright 1996 American Council of the Blind TABLE OF CONTENTS President's Message: Counting The Costs, by Paul Edwards Report of the Executive Director, by Oral O. Miller Increased Prospects For Success At The 1996 Convention, by John A. Horst First-Timers Contest Sponsored With McDaniel Fund Legal Access: The Play's The Thing, But Will It Continue To Be?, by Charles D. Goldman Book Review: If Your Child Has A Visual Impairment, Get This Book, by Sharon Lovering Flying High, by Cheryl Fogle Tasmania To Tarzana: Accessing The State, Nation, And World Through The Global Blind Exchange, by Kenneth Frasse His Software Gave Her Job Prospect Wings, by Nolan Crabb Here And There, by Elizabeth M. Lennon Letters To The Editor Affiliate News Graphical User Interfaces And The Visually Impaired, Part Two, by Charles Lott High Tech Swap Shop CORRECTION The price for Kraft's "Holiday Homecoming" cookbook was incorrectly listed in "Here and There," November 1995. The correct price is $12.95. Also, Braille International's address was incorrectly listed. The correct address is 3290 SE Slater St., Stuart, FL 34997; the toll-free number is (800) 336-3142. PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE: COUNTING THE COSTS by Paul Edwards As I write this message in mid-January, federal employees are back at work, but there is still no real sign that agreement on a federal budget is imminent. While I have seen plenty of indignation expressed in the media about the posturings of both sides, there have not been many accounts that focus on the direct and indirect effects of the events of the last few weeks on people who are blind and disabled. I have seen no mention of the vendors who operate facilities in federal buildings who suddenly found themselves without income. I have seen few accounts of the federal employees who are blind who found themselves having to call creditors and ask for extensions until they could return to work or receive paychecks. I have seen no accounts of people waiting desperately for Social Security whose claims could not be processed. In Florida, disabled people served by the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation have seen services suspended because not enough federal dollars were available to allow case services to be provided. (I must emphasize that the Division of Blind Services continued to provide services here.) The impact of this was felt in a whole range of different ways. Students at college might have had their classes paid for but could not get books or supplies. People placed in supported employment suddenly found themselves without job coaches and unable to go to work any more. With the cancellation of almost all VR contracts, services in a huge range of agencies dependent on VR for support simply stopped. All of these examples are only the tip of the iceberg. You have probably heard your own horror stories about the impact of the budget crisis. If we go beyond immediate impact to look at the longer term, there are other consequences for disabled people. Efforts to enforce the ADA have been slowed. Grants that support teacher preparation programs or provide financial aid are slowed down. Perhaps, too, there is a demoralization effect as well. As the work piles up and there is still no final federal budget, might federal employees lack much motivation to get down to business and work extra hard? I am concerned that we all recognize that the effects of the budget crisis go far beyond a mere political or philosophical difference of opinion. There appears to be a cavalier disregard for who gets hurt and a resort to moral posturing by those involved that betokens indifference to the effects that this crisis has had and will continue to have on ordinary people throughout our country. I have spent a lot of time thinking about the political and moral climate in which the ACB must now operate. What is happening at the federal level is mirrored in individual states. Last fall the California vocational rehabilitation agency decided it would place a moratorium on accepting new cases until it could catch up on the backlog of old ones. In many other states, budgets are being balanced by cutting social services to the bone. These times make the ACB and every one of its state and local chapters vital. We must speak for ourselves and make our needs known. We are our own best advocates. We can neither afford despair nor apathy. One way or another, we must find an effective way to deliver our message to those who must listen and we must also tell our stories to the media so that the impact of such events as the budget crisis on blind people is known and understood. Perhaps, too, we need to be aware of just how many little people are affected by decisions that, at first glance, have no effect on them. A disproportionately large number of our members were affected in some way by the budget crisis and we need to be sure that this is understood. There are also some hard questions we must ask. Have we reached a point in our history when society is truly changing the way it chooses to deal with people who are disabled? Are we at a place where we have to take a hard look at very different models of service delivery to people who are blind? What might these new models look like? I don't know the answers to any of these questions, but it may well be time for us to look at them very carefully. REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR by Oral O. Miller, Executive Director World Blind Union Regional Update Although some of the representatives present at the recent meeting of the North America/Caribbean Regional Committee of the World Blind Union (WBU) were different from those who were present at the last such meeting I attended a few years earlier, the meeting, which was hosted by the American Foundation for the Blind in New York, dealt with a number of important regional and global issues impacting on blind people. Considerable attention was focused on the upcoming quadrennial international assembly of the WBU and the International Forum on the Concerns of Blind Women, both of which are scheduled to take place in Toronto in late August, 1996. The committee voted to encourage the nations of the Caribbean to seek individual national membership rather than remaining as affiliates of a group member, the Caribbean Council of the Blind. This change in status would increase the impact which each nation could have in the deliberations of the WBU and at the same time it would help balance the substantial voting imbalance now resulting from the fact that the nations of North America and the Caribbean region have 10 votes in the WBU assembly compared with approximately 110 votes controlled by European nations. The committee meeting also highlighted a survey recently completed by the Regional Committee on the Status of Blind Women in the Caribbean Nations and discussed the importance of an upcoming international conference in Montevideo, Uruguay, regarding braille and braille literacy. It is hoped that ACB will be able to send a representative to the Montevideo conference as well as several delegates and/or observers to the forum and assembly in Toronto. Since the WBU is, generally speaking, a deliberative body that is well-recognized by other international organizations, it is very important to participate in its deliberations. ACB first vice president Brian Charlson attended the regional WBU meeting as an observer. Congressional Testimony ACB Director of Governmental Affairs Julie Carroll recently presented strong testimony at an important public forum conducted by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) for the purpose of obtaining input regarding research needs. In her testimony, Carroll focused on the need for meaningful research into the factors that result in the shamefully high unemployment or underemployment rate of blind people þ such factors as the lack of information about job openings, lack of access to necessary information on the job (the problem created by graphical user interfaces on computers) and the lack of affordable transportation to many places of employment. Since the employment rate of disabled people has not improved meaningfully, if at all, since adoption of the Americans with Disabilities Act, according to a recent Harris survey, it is essential for knowledgeable blind people to take advantage of every possible opportunity to recommend ways of solving the unique problems they face. Board Appointment The fact that meaningful assistance and support can be given by a voluntary, non-governmental organization to people in other nations and especially in developing nations was underscored a number of years ago by the establishment of the People to People Committee by the President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities (PCEPD, formerly named the President's Committee on Employment of the Handicapped). I served on the board of directors of that organization a number of years ago and recently I agreed to rejoin that board to assist the People to People Committee, assess its future role and viability. What a pleasure it was to see again some of the long-term, faithful, indefatigable, dedicated workers to the cause such as David Brigham and Bill McCahill, among many others! It was agreed by most people present at the most recent board meeting that there is definitely a place and need for non-governmental assistance, but even the coordination of volunteer services or the collection and distribution of donated items require funding and staffing. International Visitors The ACB national office is frequently visited by overseas visitors who are interested in learning more about the American Council of the Blind and the status of blind people in this country. Recently we were pleased to greet Ms. Betty Leotsakos of Athens, Greece, during her information-gathering tour of the USA. She was accompanied by Mr. Lawrence Campbell, director of the International Studies Program of the Holbrook School for the Blind. Ms. Leotsakos was doubly interested in both ACB and the role of blind people because her father is a longtime member and official of the leading organization of blind people in Greece. Our meeting with Ms. Leotsakos and Mr. Campbell gave us an opportunity also to learn more about the status of blind people in Greece. Accessible Information From the Department of Education Periodically throughout the year representatives of blindness organizations in the Washington area are invited to meet with Assistant Secretary for Education and Rehabilitative Services Judith Heumann and the staff of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) to receive briefings regarding pertinent matters and to provide input regarding timely topics. One of the real highlights of the most recent meeting with the assistant secretary was the announcement of a policy directive implementing further the Department of Education's responsibility for furnishing auxiliary aids if necessary to afford an individual with a disability an equal opportunity to participate in and enjoy the benefits of a program or activity conducted by the department. As pointed out by the policy, such aids may include materials in braille or large print, audio cassette recordings and material on electronic disk, among many others. Materials that will be available by request (but not kept in inventory) will include, among others, the policy directive itself, relevant statutes, regulations, notices of proposed rule making, draft and approved policies. Copies of the aforementioned policy directive and other Department of Education materials may be obtained in accessible medium by contacting Eunice Fiorito, Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Education, 330 C St. SW, Room 3316, Washington, D.C. 20202; telephone (202) 205-8355. We commend the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services for taking this giant step forward in making available to blind people many of the regulations and other documents that impact on programs affecting their lives and careers. We urge readers to take advantage of this service, especially during coming months as consideration is given to possible amendments to rehabilitation act regulations, reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and possible amendments to the Randolph-Sheppard Act or other pertinent statutes. Although the "Washington Connection" will carry many announcements concerning the publication of proposed regulations and other actions by the Department of Education that are important to blind people, readers should make an effort to obtain as much information as possible directly from the department in accessible and usable media. Personnel Change I am pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Jessica L. Beach of Rockville, Md., to the position of Coordinator of Affiliate and Membership Services. Ms. Beach, who has been a member of the ACB national office staff for approximately three and a half years, is very familiar with ACB policies and procedures and we are confident that ACB members and non-members alike will enjoy dealing with her in her new position. CAPTION Jim Olsen and Jessica Beach pause for a moment in the 1995 convention registration office to smile for the camera. All photos copyright 1995 by Ken Nichols. INCREASED PROSPECTS FOR SUCCESS AT THE 1996 CONVENTION by John A. Horst, Convention Coordinator Dry oil wells proved to be a costly thorn in the side of early Oklahoma prospectors seeking the precious black liquid. Too many dry wells exhausted financial resources and many prospectors returned home with no success and funds depleted. Others, however, like Frank Phillips (Phillips Petroleum) became very rich. They were rewarded handsomely for the resources, energy and effort they put into Oklahoma oil exploration. ACB is expending much in terms of energy, effort and time resources during these snowbound days of winter that we'll need to ensure a most successful 1996 convention. The program committee is meeting, special-interest groups are planning their functions, potential exhibitors have been informed and the convention committee, assisted by the Oklahoma Council of the Blind host committee, is hard at work designing and preparing for a fabulous convention. The 1996 convention will occur Saturday, June 29 to Saturday, July 6 in Tulsa, Okla. All activities except for tours will take place at the Tulsa Convention Center and the Doubletree Hotel. The Adams-Mark hotel, a first-class downtown hotel located about six blocks from the convention center, is the overflow hotel. Rates at both hotels are $47 per night plus tax for single through quad. Both hotels provide transportation from the airport at no cost. Please call the Doubletree at (918) 587-8000 or the Adams-Mark at (918) 582-9000 to make your reservations. There's no time like the present to complete your convention attendance plans. Air travel is often less costly if reservations are made early. Remember to use International Tours of Muskogee, Okla., ACB's designated travel agency. Call (800) 259-9299. If you, your chapter, state or special-interest affiliate wishes to have a display table to use as a fund-raiser or to provide information in the exhibit hall, please contact the ACB national office to receive the necessary forms. The room for exhibits and boutiques will be located adjacent to the room for general sessions at the convention center. Instructions on how to plan for an exhibit or boutique have been mailed to all potential exhibitors. Special-interest groups have received information packets with reply forms to assist them in planning their activities. Responses to this information should be prompt, complying with due dates indicated. Planned meals or receptions can take place at the convention center or the Doubletree hotel. Menu prices are about the same; however, a location at the convention center will be more convenient for those attending since most of the events of the convention will occur there. We are currently looking at possible convention sites for 1998 and 1999. If any affiliate is interested in hosting our national convention in their state or region, and appropriate facilities are available, please be in contact with us so that a bid can be developed to be presented at the convention this year. Overnight tour This year the overnight tour before the convention June 28-29 will be to America's live entertainment capitol, fabulous Branson, Mo. Branson has more live shows than anywhere else in the United States and its Ozark Mountains location also enjoys a rich history and culture. This tour offers you a unique opportunity to visit Branson, see several shows, learn some of its history and do some shopping at a very reasonable cost. The trip has been planned carefully so you will not be unduly hurried but yet will be able to experience as much of Branson as possible. The tour will depart the Tulsa Doubletree hotel promptly at 7:15 a.m. on Friday, June 28. There will be some entertainment on the way and a rest stop, arriving in Branson in time for lunch. Lunch and overnight lodging will be at the Branson Grand Ramada Hotel. After lunch it's on to "The Country Tonight Show," a variety show featuring country comedy and patriotism. This show, as all shows in Branson, provides good clean entertainment the whole family can enjoy. After the show it's on to the Dinner Bell restaurant for a delicious evening meal. Then the group will move on to the highlight of this tour at the Glen Campbell Theater. This will be a feature performance by Barbara Mandrell, "a woman for all seasons," the Barbara Mandrell Dancers and the Do-Rights, presenting the best in music and comedy. Saturday begins with a breakfast cruise on beautiful Table Rock Lake aboard Kenny Rogers' showboat, the Branson Bell, for a delicious meal and a wonderful music and comedy show from the riverboat era. After the cruise it's on to the I-Max theater and mall where you will view an outstanding film, "The Legacy and Legend of the Ozarks," presented on a six-story-high screen with digital stereo surround sound, have lunch and spend some time browsing at some of the 16 shops. Be certain to taste the homemade fudge made on site. Then it will be time to board the motor coaches for the return trip to Tulsa, arriving at approximately 6:30 p.m. This tour will include transportation by comfortable motor coach, some entertainment on the way, admission to all shows, one night's lodging double occupancy (if a single room is desired, there will be a $28 extra charge), lunch both days, dinner Friday evening, and breakfast Saturday morning. The cost for all these features will be only $189, $209 if you sign up when the buses are loading and there is room. Reservations are required for this tour. Please contact ACB's Minneapolis office at 120 S. 6th St., Suite 1005, Minneapolis, MN 55402-1839; phone (612) 332-3242. Reservations will be accepted after April 1 and will only be confirmed when full payment is provided by Visa or MasterCard number, check or money order made payable to ACB Convention 1996. Each motor coach will include several volunteers and there will be an ACB person in charge, but individual guide service will not be available. Additional tour information in and around the Tulsa area will be offered during the convention on a daily basis. Watch further issues of "The Braille Forum" for further details. CAPTIONS John Horst uses his walkie-talkie to communicate with other convention offices. Elaine Vining and Doug Psick (ACB Minneapolis Office) share a joke and a smile with the photographer. FIRST-TIMERS CONTEST SPONSORED WITH MCDANIEL FUND In September 1994 the American Council of the Blind board of directors established the Durward McDaniel Membership Development and Retention Fund. This fund was created in honor of ACB's first national representative and key leader. At its meeting in September 1995 the board authorized the first expenditure from the fund in the form of grants to sponsor two first-time attendees to the 1996 ACB national convention in Tulsa, Okla. If you have never attended a national ACB convention in the past and want to make a difference in your state, special-interest and/or national organization, now is a wonderful opportunity to do so! For the first year of this contest a winner will be chosen from each side of the Mississippi River. As the fund grows through gifts (as well as accrual of interest) it is hoped that more people can be chosen as well as other programs sponsored. In order to apply for this contest you must do three things. First, submit a letter of application to the American Council of the Blind national office stating the major reasons for which you would like to be considered. The length and format of your letter has not been prescribed but is left to your good judgment. Second, a letter on your behalf must be submitted by the president or president's designated representative for your state or special-interest affiliate. This letter should give the selection committee some additional sense of your accomplishments and involvement in activities related to the work of ACB and its affiliate members. Finally, you must be sure that all materials sent on your behalf and by you are submitted no later than April 30, 1996. A postmark of April 30 will be accepted; however, you are strongly encouraged to have your materials to the office by that date. National conventions represent wonderful opportunities for learning, networking and new comradeship. Don't miss this chance to find out firsthand what a convention is really like! It can be the opportunity of a lifetime and the McDaniel Fund can provide it to you simply because of your best efforts and contributions to this movement. The committee looks forward with anticipation to receiving, reviewing and selecting your application for the 1996 national convention in Tulsa, Okla. Send contest entry material to ACB First Timers Contest, 1155 15th St. NW, Suite 720, Washington, D.C. 20005. LEGAL ACCESS: THE PLAY'S THE THING, BUT WILL IT CONTINUE TO BE? by Charles D. Goldman (Reprinted with permission from "Horizons," February 1996.) Washington, D.C. is more than the center of the federal government. It is a city with culture, including great theaters: Arena Stage, the Kennedy Center, and Shakespeare Theater. Arena Stage is a quality operation which, most importantly for persons with disabilities, even before there was an Americans with Disabilities Act, invariably said "yes" when asked to make accommodations. Thanks to some forward-thinking people, such as Martha Ingel (and her predecessor, Betty Siegel), the Arena Stage has been doing the right things for years. This means having accessible seating, audio description for visually impaired patrons, assistive listening devices, and sign-interpreted performances. It also means adapting backstage tours and providing accessible parking. Arena's program (which is full, not playbill- sized) devotes about one-sixth of a page to describing these services. The full program is also available in braille. Arena Stage got "The Washington Post" to put accessibility symbols in its Guide to the Lively Arts. The Kennedy Center also is sensitive to persons with disabilities. It has a full-time Office for Accessibility, led by Kelsey Marshall, which is even listed in the telephone book, as are several TDD numbers for hearing-impaired persons to call for information about such things as group sales, mail order and membership. There are accessible bathrooms, parking and seating. The Shakespeare Theatre was the first theater to do a sign- interpreted performance. Led by Rita St. John-Gunter, this group did stellar work at the outdoor productions at the Carter Barron Amphitheater last summer. The pro-active approach has avoided some of the problems other entertainment forms have experienced. For example, the local movies had to be sued under the ADA to provide dispersed accessible seating and listening devices. In several opinions responding to various inquiries, the U.S. Department of Justice has made clear that Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to theaters, movies, museums, and other places of entertainment that are public accommodations. This means that theaters must remove architectural barriers where that is readily achievable, make new construction and alterations accessible, provide auxiliary aids and change their policies, practices and procedures to avoid discriminating. The Arena Stage's adapting its backstage tours and providing auxiliary listening devices and the Kennedy Center's multiple listings for hearing-impaired persons are classic examples of complying with the ADA and state/local laws, such as the District of Columbia Human Rights Act, which also apply and prohibit discrimination in places of public accommodation. Bear in mind that complaints against theaters can but need not be filed with the Department of Justice. A person who feels discriminated against may file directly in court. While the U.S. Department of Justice, if it files in court, can recover civil penalties up to $50,000, private litigants may be able to recover damages under state/local laws, such as the District of Columbia Human Rights Act. Under both the ADA and many state/local civil rights laws, the party prevailing in court will be able to recoup legal fees and expenses. But now the arts in general, including theaters, are in a less than healthy financial state. The National Endowment for the Arts is under heavy congressional attack. The arts are competing for foundation and sponsor dollars with such other good causes as AIDS research and organizations that serve homeless persons. The business climate, with jobs being eliminated left and right, is to take a closer look at all expenses and see what is producing revenue. But the business perspective is only part of the picture. Consumers, especially those who work for the federal government and have been furloughed once or twice, understandably are looking closely at discretionary expenditures, such as entertainment. The real clout of the Americans with Disabilities Act is not found in the courtrooms or the halls of Congress or the corridors of the Department of Justice. The real clout of the ADA is the spending power of millions of persons with disabilities and their friends and families. It is important that persons with disabilities patronize the theaters that do it right. If you are going to complain when something is wrong, it is important to applaud with your pocketbook (and letters to management) when things are done correctly. The danger to ADA is the financial managers, the "bean counters," prevailing on operations and cutting the budget so that the "extras" þ the items thought of as non-revenue-producing, such as accommodations persons with disabilities need þ get eliminated. It may not be done happily but it will get done. If persons with disabilities do not attend and accommodations are not used, it is inevitable that someone will start thinking about reducing, if not cutting them out entirely, or shifting to a more stringent criteria, such as needed when requested so many (translate: too many) days in advance. Face the facts. The bean counters have control of Capitol Hill. The financial penny pinchers have control of businesses. Witness AT&T letting go 40,000 people and the stock market soaring in a positive response. Can the arts be far behind? It is important to demonstrate a continuing value and commitment to the ADA by frequenting facilities, such as the Arena Stage, Kennedy Center, and Shakespeare Theatre, which in Spike Lee's vernacular "do the right thing." While Shakespeare wrote "The play's the thing" many years ago, the question is for how long will the play be accessible to persons with disabilities. If they do not utilize the accommodations they fought for, then they may find themselves on the outside looking in again. And that would be a tragedy of Shakespearean magnitude. BOOK REVIEW: IF YOUR CHILD HAS A VISUAL IMPAIRMENT, GET THIS BOOK by Sharon Lovering Every parent dreams of the day the new baby comes home: 10 fingers, 10 toes, two eyes, two ears, all picture-perfect. But no parent dreams of the day the doctor says, "Your child is blind." What's a parent to do? Fortunately, there are answers. "Children with Visual Impairments" is a new book from Woodbine House that takes parents through the basic questions such as "what is a vision impairment?" to questions about dating, make-up and the transitions to college and independence. Though much of the information in it pertains to children from birth to age five, this book is a must-have for any parent of a blind or visually impaired child. It deals candidly with issues every parent might encounter from diagnosis and treatment to the years ahead. The book begins with an introduction and lists the topics each chapter covers, which is helpful for readers searching for specific information. It also includes a few notes about word usage: the pronouns "he" and "she" alternate from chapter to chapter, for instance, and the term "visual impairment" substitutes for "visual disabilities" because it's widely used and accepted as referring to all degrees of vision loss. Chapter titles and subheadings are useful, helping the reader find the information fast. Under Chapter Three, "Adjusting to Your Child's Visual Impairment," you will find such subsections as "Getting the News," "Your Emotions," "How to Adjust," "Reaching Out to Your Family," and "Your Friends." The book's 13 chapters cover 10 topics: diagnosis and treatment; family life and adjustment; your child's development; daily life skills; early intervention and special education; legal issues; literacy; orientation and mobility; multiple and visual disabilities, and the years ahead. You'll find a glossary, a reading list and a lengthy resource guide at the back of the book. This book's worth owning for the resource list alone. One of its best features is its logical progression, step by step, from the beginning þ "what is visual impairment?" þ and doesn't assume anything. There is no condescending language here; the book's language is easy to understand, and makes you feel as if you're getting advice from a parent who's been through it all before. And in some chapters, that's exactly what you're getting. The introduction states which chapters were written by parents. Chapter Six, "Family Life," is one of the chapters written by parents. It explores parents' roles in raising a child, stressing that all parents have the same responsibilities: providing food, shelter, health care, clothing, education and love. It states that managing the daily tasks is not going to be easy; time and money may be in short supply. These parents suggest finding other parents who have had similar experiences to be a source of information and support. Parents shouldn't be afraid to seek help, they say; "Good parents know it isn't a sign of weakness to accept help; it's just common sense." The chapter also delves into the marriage relationship. "The stress of coping with the diagnosis and the challenges that come with it can leave you little time for one another," it states. "Believe it or not, your child is not in control of your relationship. You are! ... Having a child with a visual impairment may change the nature of your relationship somewhat, but it doesn't have to damage its foundation." This subsection reminds parents to share their emotions, learn about their child together, divide responsibilities fairly, and take time to be a couple. "You shouldn't make your child the center of every activity you do alone and as a couple," it admonishes. Chapter Nine, "Legal Issues," reviews the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the rights parents and children have under the act, as well as anti-discrimination laws, individualized education plans, safeguards under IDEA, dispute resolution, government benefits, and free matter for the blind. This chapter is one of the most important ones in terms of information for all parents, especially if the parents are getting ready to send their child to school. It is a treasure trove of legal information, including a list of major procedural safeguards under IDEA: notice; consent; confidentiality of records, and protection in evaluation procedures, among others. Chapter Ten, "Literacy," explores options for reading and writing in depth, including print, braille, listening, and computers and other technology. The subsection titled "Making Decisions about Print or Braille" suggests that parents observe their child to determine which medium would be best. It also has a list of questions to help parents make that determination, including: When people enter the room, does your child recognize them by listening to them talk, touching them, or seeing them? When reaching for a toy, is your child attracted to it visually, or does she use other clues such as bumping into it or hearing a sound from it? When reading from a print book, does your child show interest in the pictures or does she prefer to examine some real object that is associated with the story? If your child is recognizing her name or other simple words, is she doing this in print or in braille? And so on. This chapter also offers suggestions for reading to your child, including "start reading to your child as soon as possible. It is never too early." And it states that any decision on reading medium can be changed according to the child's needs. In addition to good easy-to-read factual information, this book is chock full of excellent suggestions and tips like the ones listed above. There are a few typographical errors, but overall the book is neat and well-presented. The only thing this book lacks is a chapter on older visually impaired children and teens. Nevertheless, if someday a doctor tells you that your child has a visual impairment, ask him your questions, then pick up this book. "Children with Visual Impairments" is available at bookstores, or it can be ordered in regular print for $16.95 plus $4 shipping and handling from Woodbine House, 6510 Bells Mill Rd., Bethesda, MD 20817; phone (800) 843-7323. FLYING HIGH by Cheryl Fogle I pulled the Cessna into a steep climb at 170 miles per hour. Two g's of gravity forced me back hard against my seat. My head almost exploded under the increased pressure. "Okay, now push the control yoke forward really fast," Maj. Robin Stoddard said. My feet left the pedals and I flew off my seat. Only my seat belt kept me from crashing through the windshield and falling through several thousand feat of clear blue sky onto the rocky desert floor below. I laughed for pure joy. My mother in the back seat screamed in terror and tried not to be airsick. Maj. Stoddard yelled over the engine noise, "Do you want to do it again?" I did, and the plane became an airborne roller coaster once again. I was an 18-year-old blind girl operating a gas-powered vehicle for the first time. I had never dreamed that I would drive a car, let alone fly a plane. I flew as a part of the Right Flight program that rewards students for passing an aviation history class and achieving their goals like getting good grades. I earned my flight with an A in chemistry. I felt an incredible sense of freedom making the aircraft obey my will. The Cessna and I were one. Its engine vibrations coursing through my body were our combined heartbeat. The plane became an extension of my hands and will. Pulling the control bar towards me lowered the elevator flap in the tail of the plane and made the aircraft climb. Pushing the bar away from me sent the nose into a dive. The machine banked and turned as I moved my hands left and right. With each new maneuver I learned my excitement increased. It was liberating to feel the adrenaline coursing through my body when I realized that I owned the skies. There was no air traffic where I was flying, southeast of Tucson, Ariz. Having my mother as a passenger in the back seat was an exhilarating role reversal. For the first and last time, I was driving, and it was wonderful! My mother was the passenger stuck in the back seat not knowing our direction or when we would reach our destination. For once she was powerless, unable to control the vehicle's movements. She had to trust me to get her home safely instead of using the aircraft to excavate a tunnel through a mountain. The aircraft was a twin-engine Cessna that Stoddard called a "push and pull" because it had one propeller in the nose and another one in the tail. The plane's fuselage was as large as a medium-sized car, and each wing was 15 feet long. There were four seats in the cockpit, and the front two were for the pilot and co- pilot. In front of each of these seats was a control bar positioned like a steering wheel and two pedals used to maneuver the plane on a runway. Since the control bars were both connected through the transmission, they moved together, so both the pilot and co-pilot could fly the plane. An instrument panel crammed with lighted dials that measured everything from aircraft speed to fuel level was between the control bars and the windshield. The throttle, between Stoddard and I, was placed like a car's gear shift. Stoddard founded Right Flight in 1985 when he was a fighter pilot stationed at Tucson's Davis Monthen Air Force Base. He is a tall, energetic man with a real enthusiasm for flying. During the flight he laughed almost as much as I did. He enjoyed my excitement for flying. Stoddard started the Right Flight program because he was concerned about declining educational standards. "God bonked me on the head and said, 'Why don't you use your piloting skills to improve education?'" he explained. Right Flight includes students from about 42 schools in grades three through 12. He said that the flight gives students an incentive to reach their academic goals. For example, Renals Elementary School had a 60 percent increase of students on the honor role as a result of participating in Right Flight. This idea of motivation is summed up by a quote from the Right Flight course: "In order to change your altitude, you must first change your attitude." This is true in a literal sense because attitude refers to the pitch of the aircraft nose, whether it points up or down. When the plane climbs or dives, it changes altitude. The saying is also true in a figurative sense because students must be motivated and think positively to accomplish their goals. Through Right Flight, Stoddard was the first person to encourage my interest in aviation. I had never dreamed I would be able to pilot an aircraft. It was liberating. I achieved my goal, and changed my altitude. Literally. TASMANIA TO TARZANA: ACCESSING THE STATE, NATION, AND WORLD THROUGH THE GLOBAL BLIND EXCHANGE by Kenneth Frasse, GBX Administrative Coordinator As 6:00 p.m. approached on June 21, 1995, the excitement rose as final preparations were put in place establishing the California Council of the Blind as the first service organization of the blind to place a fully accessible electronic information bulletin board system on the internet. The GBX team had researched for over a year and had worked feverishly to anticipate all the potential needs of users, as well as predict all the compatibility issues and software/hardware bugs that it might encounter with the new system. In spite of all this work and preparation, most of these issues were still intensely present in our minds when the final connection was ready to be made. In most major electronic endeavors, it is highly unlikely that implementations and operations occur as desired the first time, and we were reasonably sure that we were not exempt from this phenomenon. To our astonishment and glee, however, the bits and bytes did their work, and the connection was established without incident! Blind and visually impaired individuals in the state, the nation, and the world were immediately able to communicate through the system at no charge. The user-friendly, speech synthesis and electronic braille compatible menus, as well as extensive file libraries, numerous public message forums, and live teleconferencing are attracting blind people from everywhere. At the time of this writing, GBX has 14 countries and 48 states communicating with the system, and approximately 60 to 100 new users subscribe each week. In addition to our recognition as a premiere international service, the GBX staff has been working diligently at developing and enhancing the services that it provides to ACB affiliates. Dedicated areas for each affiliate will be made available soon, and this means that any individual can write or talk through the keyboard to another person for free, whether they are 10 miles or 10,000 miles apart! Legislative documents, magazines, agency documents, utilities, and general interest files are all available now in the GBX file libraries. There are many more features available, and the GBX staff is anxious to launch into more on-line activities, but let's take a brief peek at this thing called the Global Blind Exchange. We know that electronic media systems can be a little intimidating, and so we wish to explain some of the basic features. GBX is extensive, so for now we will restrict our discussion to how to connect to GBX and the major features within the main menu. First of all, you need to connect to GBX. This requires that you have either a computer or some other electronic device with an RS232 serial port such as a Braille 'n Speak, Keynote Companion, Braille Mate, Versa Braille, etc; you will also need a modem and some connectivity software such as Procomm or Commo. There are two ways through which you can connect to GBX: either you can dial the system directly over the telephone line, or you can dial through a local internet carrier. When you dial directly, you will pay for the long-distance telephone charges, even though GBX is free. But when you dial through a local internet carrier, you will not pay for any actual phone charges. We will describe the two scenarios separately here. Dialing directly: If you are dialing directly, all you need to do is execute your telecommunications software and dial the GBX direct line, (916) 568-6359. After the system connects, just answer the prompts and questions, and you will have full and free access to the system. Dialing through an internet carrier: If you are using an internet carrier, type one of the following commands at the internet prompt: TELNET GBX.ORG or RLOGIN -8 GBX.ORG (The dash eight ensures proper file transfers). You will then follow the prompts and questions as you would if you had dialed in directly. Let's take a look at a little less technical, but more interesting, aspect of GBX þ the GBX Main Menu. Once connected, and after you have registered with the system, this is what you will eventually see: GBX MAIN MENU A for Account services and customization E for Private e-mail F for File libraries G for GBX staff support H for Help and global commands L for Linking to other internet sites and services M for Message forums N for Newspapers O for Off-line mail reader S for ACB State affiliates T for Teleconferencing V for Vendors and retailers W for Who's on line X for exiting GBX MAIN MENU Please select: Now let's review what these features actually mean. "A," for account services, is the option that you would choose to specifically configure how the various GBX features work for you, whether it be how you review your electronic mail, or whether it is how you read messages and download important files. "E" is for sending and receiving private electronic mail through GBX, or over the internet to anyone who has an e-mail address. An example of an internet e-mail address is: KENNETH@GBX.ORG. Anyone who has internet, or who dials in directly to GBX can send this individual mail by addressing a mail message to this address. "F" is the option that you would choose to enter the many file libraries of GBX. Within this option, you will find libraries containing files on the Americans with Disabilities Act, the most recent demos of speech synthesis and large print programs, American Council of the Blind files, utilities, and much, much more. If you choose "G," you will find a message forum for reading information and writing questions directly to the GBX support staff. Here, your questions will be addressed by one of the several folks who are assisting with the GBX operations. You can pose questions about the proper procedure for downloading and uploading files through the internet and have them answered here. Choosing "H" will give you a selection of help alternatives. From here, you can download the help manual on GBX, or you can browse specific sections of the help manual on line. Also, here you can learn the fast-key, global commands for getting around GBX quickly. "L" is a very powerful and interesting option. Choosing this option will give you choices that allow you to go to other internet sites. Some of these sites are the National Library Service, the American Council of the Blind, CD Connection (where you can search for and order music compact disks), the Disability Shopping Mall, and many other places around the world! Choosing "M" enters you into the numerous message forums of GBX. Here, you can read and write messages on topics from guide dog concerns and blind vendor policies to international subjects and MIDI music interests. This is a particularly popular area for GBX members throughout the state, nation, and world; it really brings people together who might never have talked to each other! "N" is a temporarily inactive section. As most of you know, many individuals have been trying fervently to make newspapers accessible, but these efforts have been hampered by disagreements on the standard for this electronic text. Most likely, newspapers will be a fee-for-service within GBX and accessible through HGML web pages. If you choose the "O" option off the main menu, you can download all your designated messages via a packet, and answer them off-line at a later date. In this scenario, you would upload the packet after you had read what you wanted to, and after you had responded to your messages and mail. "S" is an option that was recently incorporated into the GBX main menu. Here, individual state affiliates of the American Council of the Blind can, for a very nominal fee, set up their own message forums, file libraries, and live teleconferencing to use within their own state since no long-distance charges are associated with the use of GBX. This means that any ACB affiliate can set up its own area on GBX where it can keep files and discussions pertinent to its state, as well as disperse important information to its local chapters via the folks who have modems within those chapters. Up-to-the-minute information can be received from Washington on active legislation that can affect each state, and you will know as fast as it is published! For more information regarding state affiliate areas on GBX, please call Kenneth Frasse at (415) 941-2421; e-mail: kenneth@gbx.org or Dan Kysor at (916) 638-2147; e-mail: dkysor@gbx.org. Choosing "T" will enter you into the live teleconferencing option of GBX. This is an area where you can type live to any other individual who has also chosen teleconferencing, and that person can type messages back to you. You can even leave a message for a friend somewhere in the state, nation, or world telling them when you will be on GBX in the teleconferencing area, and they can join you at that time! You can see that this feature can be set up for scheduled meetings regarding various topics such as the ADA or the RSA's order of selection. Soon, we will have private rooms for these sorts of discussion so that not everyone who is in teleconferencing will have to participate þ in each discussion, only those who wish. Incidentally, the teleconference feature within state affiliate areas is private in the sense that it is separate from the general teleconferencing. The option "V" is for vendors and retailers of products and services. This area allows you to shop, as well as directly ask vendors about products or services. Any vendor can establish its own area here for this purpose, but GBX requires sponsorship for this area. Comparisons of access technology and services to the blind are kept in the main file library under technical comparisons. "W" is simply a feature that allows you to see who is on line at the same time you are. Just enter "W" at the main menu, and the system will tell you who is with you; who knows, it might even be someone you know! Choosing "X" will exit GBX. In fact, choosing "X" at any menu will generally exit you from that menu to your previous menu. So now you have had a brief tour of the main section of GBX. We hope that everyone who can access GBX will, and that they will give us input on how well it suits their needs and interests. So far, we have had excellent reviews, and we plan on moving ahead. GBX's next move is to seek independent funding via vendor and sponsor support through access to GBX file and message features, and we will be actively seeking grants in 1996. Should you wish to support this endeavor, please contact Kenneth Frasse, GBX administrative coordinator or Dan Kysor, system operator, at the telephone numbers or addresses above. As far as the next technical steps for GBX, we plan on establishing a T1 or T2 link and a link to world-wide web pages. This technology would allow GBX to connect to ACB's informational pages, as well as newspapers and much more around the world. HIS SOFTWARE GAVE HER JOB PROSPECT WINGS by Nolan Crabb Ken Robson wasn't watching TV the day Southwest Airlines ran its commercial in Little Rock seeking reservations agents there; Belinda Turner was watching that day and saw the commercial. It's a well-established fact that the decisions of one individual can have a significant effect on the activities of another, and so it was in Little Rock. Belinda Turner, a blind 46-year-old Missouri native and former student at Lions World Services for the Blind in Little Rock, decided to apply for one of those reservations agent jobs. She reasoned that her 16 years as a PBX and long-distance operator would more than qualify her for the position. She applied and was hired, but she wouldn't begin work for a year after she got the nod from Southwest Airlines. Turner and officials at Southwest realized early on that the company's reservations system was not accessible via synthetic speech output. That's when Ken Robson's life began to be affected by Turner's decision. A former student at Lions World Services for the Blind, Robson is now a computer instructor there. Turner turned to Robson and LWSB for help in making the formidably silent Southwest reservations system speech friendly. For the next year, Ken Robson would learn virtually everything he could about being a reservations sales agent. He would spend countless days and weeks in Dallas working with Southwest software developers to create a final product that would give Turner the exact amount of spoken information she needed when she needed it. Those who have written configuration software to make programs more speech friendly doubtless wonder why it took Robson a year to do what he ultimately did for Turner. That's due in part to the fact that he had to juggle his time between developing the speech access code and his other duties at LWSB. In fact, he demonstrated a working model of his software within three programming weeks of the beginning of the project, but it was by no means ready for the kind of rapid-fire information processing Turner would have to do while working with people on the phone. Robson characterized Southwest's reservations system known as Qikres, as "quite an animal." While it is text-based and runs on computers which use the Microsoft Disk Operating System or DOS, it is unlike most other DOS programs in commercial use. It uses 43 lines per screen, and is 132 columns wide. The average DOS program generally uses 25 lines per screen and 80 column width text. In addition, the reservations agent has four screens or windows that can be available at any time. The screen is divided into four quadrants. "One of those four quadrants is governed by a keypad," Robson explained, "which has 16 cells on it. Those cells can either be used for entry or menu selections. The information in those cells can't be read in line because the information in a cell is usually stacked one word on top of another." Making the program talk was further complicated by the fact that special boxes of information known as dialogue boxes can appear at any time on the screen. "They can be any size," Robson explained. "They can be any color, and they can be either informational in nature or have entry points in them." Then there was the problem of the information presentation. Robson says the information available to an airline reservationist is staggering. It can be pulled up on request and is generally abbreviated. "You don't want the speech shooting a whole bunch of stuff at you," he explains. "You need only what you need, and you need access to what you need. You don't really have the time to be doing a lot of serious reading." Robson ultimately chose the IBM Screen Reader/2 as the speech interface for the reservation program. It was chosen primarily because it could handle the screen size and it offered a sophisticated internal programming language that gave Robson the flexibility he needed. Despite its sophistication, Robson asserts the programming language was stretched to its limits. "I was unable to use any of the pre-written configuration files," he explains. "Even simple things like lines were different enough to require a bottom-up design. I want to say that I don't view this product as the end-all speech application," Robson adds. "It worked well for this particular application, however." Asked whether there was ever a time when he wondered whether he could bring his assignment to a successful conclusion, Robson replied with an unhesitating "yes! I wondered whether it could be done and whether I was the one to do it. I knew within the first three programming weeks that it could be done; I always believed it could be done; that was my gut feeling. Still, it seemed pretty overwhelming. Frankly, during that second week of programming, I was scared." Robson credits Southwest Airlines and Lions World Services for the Blind for providing a supportive environment that helped bring the project to a successful conclusion. "Southwest had no real way of knowing whether it could be done," he recalls. "But as far as not showing doubt and being very supportive, they were phenomenal to work with. They were always there to help out. They really pulled for our success. They're a cutting edge company which believes in their people and their willingness to do something." Robson also worked with Qikres developers in addition to his efforts with Southwest software developers. "The programmer from Qikres was also very helpful. She knew the reservations job and naturally understood what we needed from the beginning." He says having a blind person write the access software helped by boosting the confidence of Southwest officials in the viability of the project. Robson's previous experience in telephone work and computer programming proved a good combination for the year-long Southwest project. He says other airlines use varying versions of Qikres, and his speech product is written with enough flexibility to allow for changes within the Qikres system imposed by other airlines who may use it. Robson says he's gratified that his efforts and those of others working on the project could be used to assist other blind people interested in becoming reservations agents. Of course, all the time spent and all the lines of code written don't count if the end result isn't fast enough or good enough. Fortunately, in the case of Robson's efforts, it is. Supervisors at Southwest Airlines say Turner's productivity is right on the mark. Statistically, Turner's work is commensurate with or better than that of sighted co-workers with the same level of experience. She listens to the speech synthesizer in one ear and to the customer on the phone in her other ear. "I admire her for that," Robson says. "I don't have to sit there every day like she does and use that system. I admire her for being able to do it as quickly and as well as the others." He says while he still considers the system to be in a testing or evaluation phase, "it hasn't failed. We've had no problems in the day-to-day running of the program." For additional information about the project, contact Lions World Services for the Blind, 2811 Fair Park Blvd., P.O. Box 4055, Little Rock, AR 72214. Call (501) 664-7100. HERE & THERE 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. LARGE PRINT 1996 Visually Unique has 1996 large print daily appointment calendars for only $30 plus $4 postage. A three-ring binder is not included. Send your check or money order payable to Visually Unique, P.O. Box 2841, Dallas, TX 75221-2841. If you have questions, call (214) 416-5568. AFB SCHOLARSHIPS The American Foundation for the Blind has several scholarships available. The Delta Gamma Foundation Memorial Scholarship is a $1,000 award to a junior, senior or graduate student who is legally blind, of good character, has proven academic excellence, and is studying in the field of rehabilitation and/or education of the visually impaired. The Ferdinand Torres AFB Scholarship is a $1,000 grant to a full-time post-secondary student who is legally blind and presents evidence of economic need. The Frederick A. Downes Scholarship offers two $2,500 scholarships to legally blind students 22 or younger who are enrolled in a program leading to credentials in a profession or vocation. The Gladys C. Anderson Memorial Scholarship provides one $1,000 scholarship to a woman who is legally blind and studying religious or classical music at the college level. The Karen D. Carsel Memorial Scholarship provides a grant of $500 to a full-time graduate student who is legally blind and presents evidence of economic need. The R.L. Gillette Scholarship offers two $1,000 scholarships to women who are legally blind and enrolled in a four-year undergraduate degree program in literature or music. The Rudolph Dillman Memorial Scholarship provides three grants of $2,500 to graduate and undergraduate students who are legally blind and studying in the field of rehabilitation and/or education of the visually impaired. This is a one-time award; previous recipients may not apply. A fourth grant of $2,500 is available to an applicant who meets all requirements and who can submit evidence of economic need. The TeleSensory Scholarship is a $1,000 grant to a full-time undergraduate student who is legally blind and who does not meet the criteria for any other AFB scholarships. For an application, contact AFB at (212) 502-7600. The deadline for applications is April 1. RECENT DEATH William "Bill" Tomlin, a long-time leader in the Arkansas Council of the Blind, passed away December 13, 1995 after a brief illness. Bill served as president of the Arkansas Council of the Blind for three terms, 1979 to 1985. He served on ACB's constitution and bylaws committee, as well as Arkansas's board of directors, and was the chairman of the employer/employee of the year awards committee. He was a supervisor with the Arkansas Division of Services for the Blind at the time of his death, but had served as a rehabilitation counselor for more than 25 years. He was always willing to share his time with other blind people and will be remembered for his ability to assure that blind people were well-prepared for employment and to persuade employers to employ these people in new and innovative jobs. NIB HAS JOBS National Industries for the Blind has two jobs available. One is a regional service contract specialist. The job requires a bachelor's degree in business administration or computer sciences. Qualifications include: ability to communicate effectively with all levels of employees, NIB associated agencies and customers; the ability to motivate, and the capability to identify problems and recommend original and creative solutions. It requires a minimum of two years in business, project or contract planning development, negotiating terms of sale to customers. The second job is for a senior service development specialist. This job requires a bachelor's degree in business administration or equivalent with specialization in marketing preferred. Qualifications are the same as for the above job; however, this job requires a minimum of four years of work experience in the procurement of services by the government, including experience as a program/project manager of services procured by the government. A working knowledge of government service contracting is preferred. To apply for either of these jobs, send your resume and cover letter to the attention of Mr. Ed Gagne, Manager þ Service Development, National Industries for the Blind, 1901 N. Beauregard St., Suite 200, Alexandria, VA 22311-1727. NEW BOOKS ABROAD "Orientation and Navigation Systems for Blind Persons," edited by John Gill and Helen Petrie, is available free of charge in print or on diskette from the Mobility of Blind and Elderly People Interacting with Computers. Send your requests to MoBIC Project, Sensory Disabilities Research Unit, Psychology Division, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10 9AB, UK. "Telecommunications for All," a publication produced by the European Cooperation in the field of Science and Technology's future telecommunications group, is available free of charge in print or on disk from COST 219 (STAKES), P.O. Box 220, Siltasaarenkatu 18C, FIN-00531 Helsinki, Finland. Also available is "Smart Cards and Disability," edited by John Gill. Copies of this 164-page publication are available free of charge in print or on computer diskette from Dr. J. Ekberg, STAKES, Siltasaarenkatu 18C, P.O. Box 220, SF-00531 Helsinki, Finland. BUSH & NOD Former president George Bush recently accepted the honorary chairmanship of the National Organization on Disability. NOD Chairman Michael R. Deland said it was "most appropriate" that Bush continue his leadership in the disability movement; Bush has long supported full participation of disabled Americans in American life. INTERNATIONAL BOOKS The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped recently added braille and recorded books from New Zealand to its "Union Catalog." The Royal New Zealand Foundation for the Blind's 1,217 entries bring the total number of records in the catalog to 242,219 titles representing more than 17 million volumes. There are 756 entries available on four-track cassette, and 461 in braille, covering all aspects of New Zealand from history to politics and social customs and legends of the indigenous Maori people. Registered patrons can contact their nearest cooperating library to arrange an interlibrary loan. Records in the catalog represent holdings in libraries in the United States, Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. Currently, records for books from the South African Library for the Blind are being converted to be used in the catalog, and including books from the Swedish Library for the Blind is under consideration. MEDAL WINNER Eighteen-year-old Christy McDaniel, a student at the Maryland School for the Blind, recently won six medals at the Eastern Athletic Association for the Blind's 1995 Swim Tournament. Four states' schools for the blind competed in the tournament, held at Goucher College. This was McDaniel's first year swimming; she took second in the Division II 25-yard freestyle and 50-yard freestyle. MISSISSIPPI COOKIN' The Mississippi Council of the Blind is selling "Tasty Treasures Cookbook" in large print, braille and cassette. The large print and tape editions cost $12, and the braille edition costs $15. The recorded edition is regular speed; two 90-minute tapes and one 30-minute tape. If you would like to buy any of these, send your name, address, phone number, type of cookbook, and a check or money order for the total amount, payable to Mississippi Council of the Blind, and send it to: Mississippi Council of the Blind, P.O. Box 31112, Jackson, MS 39286-1112. Books will be mailed upon receipt of payment and order. BUMPY NEWS "The Bumpy Gazette" is a new newsletter created to discuss all aspects of tactile graphics. It is designed to be informative but casual. Send your ideas, questions and suggestions to The Bumpy Gazette, c/o Repro-Tronics, Inc., 75 Carver Ave., Westwood, N.J. 07675; phone (800) 948-8453 or (201) 722-1880. DVS VIDEOS IN STORES Blockbuster Video is conducting a test program to rent feature films and other programs with narration for the blind. DVS cassettes are available in: Charlotte, N.C., phone (704) 521-8020; Morganton, N.C., phone (704) 437-1199; two stores in Austin, Texas, phones (512) 477-3396 and (512) 302-3434; two stores in Denver, Colo., phones (303) 691-9811 and (303) 320-1290; Chicago, phone (312) 880-5688; New York City, phone (212) 686-0022; Woodland Hills, Calif., phone (818) 713-9990; and St. Louis, Mo., phone (314) 535-5656. Sixteen titles are available: "Aladdin," "Beauty and the Beast," "Dead Poets Society," "Father of the Bride," "Forrest Gump," "The Godfather," "Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey," "Hunt for Red October," "Joy Luck Club," "The Lion King," "Patriot Games," "Pretty Woman," "Schindler's List," "Sister Act," "The Sound of Music" and "Star Wars." If you want described videos in your local store, call, fax or write to H. Scott Barrett, President, Blockbuster Domestic Video Division, One Blockbuster Plaza, 200 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301-1860; phone (305) 832-3000, fax (305) 832-4086. EXCHANGE PROGRAMS Would you like to go to Mexico or Russia this summer? Mobility International USA has international educational exchange programs available there; programs focus on cross-cultural understanding, leadership development, disability rights, language training, minority issues and adaptive recreation. Interested individuals with and without disabilities ages 15 to 34 should apply immediately. The three-week Mexico Leadership, Minority and Disability Rights Exchange, tentatively scheduled for June 25 to July 16, will examine minority issues, strengthen cultural ties, explore disability rights and expand leadership skills; activities will include attending Mexican cultural events, visiting historical sites, meeting with disability activists and learning about culture by living with local families. This program is for young adults ages 16 to 24. The three-week Russia Culture, Leadership, Language and Disability Rights exchange, tentatively scheduled for June 25 to July 16, is open to U.S. citizens ages 15 to 18. Activities include visiting cultural and historic points of interest in Moscow and the surrounding areas, attending Russian language classes, meeting with Russian disability organizations, and outdoor activities. Or if you'd like to see another part of the United States, there are two Young Adult Leadership and Disability Rights Exchanges, one for adults ages 21 to 34, and one for youth ages 15 to 20. The one for adults ages 21 to 34 is tentatively scheduled for July 1 through 27; the one for youth ages 15 to 20 is tentatively scheduled for August 13 through 27. Activities will include disability and leadership seminars, recreational and sports activities, team building skills and community service projects. For more information, contact Mobility International at (541) 343-1284. VIS-AIDS SELLS OUT Vis-Aids recently sold its business to The Lighthouse, Inc. If you wish to order something from a Vis-Aids catalog, you now order it from The Lighthouse, Inc., Consumer Products Division, 3602 Northern Blvd., Long Island City, N.Y. 11101; phone (800) 829-0500. NEW STORIES FROM APH The American Printing House for the Blind's On the Way to Literacy II series is a set of three new storybooks providing exposure to braille, with print and visual images for the sighted reader. Tactile illustrations add information to the story. The first two books, "That's Not My Bear" and "Geraldine's Blanket," feature real objects and are good for babies and toddlers getting their first exposure to books. The third book, "The Blue Balloon," has more difficult raised images for preschoolers. This set is recommended for ages two to five. The entire set costs $113; books may be purchased separately. "That's Not My Bear," catalog no. 6- 77501-01, costs $42; "Geraldine's Blanket," catalog no. 6-77501-02, costs $42; "The Blue Balloon," catalog no. 6-77501-03, costs $30. To order these items, contact the American Printing House at (800) 572-0844. NEW MAGAZINES ON TAPE Recorded Periodicals, a subscription service of Associated Services for the Blind, has added five new recorded magazines to its magazine list available for yearly subscriptions: "Civil War Times Illustrated," "Harvard Women's Health Watch," "Organic Gardening," "Pennsylvania Magazine," and "Taste of Home Cooking Magazine." Contact the service at Recorded Periodicals, Associated Services for the Blind, 919 Walnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19107; phone (215) 627-0600, extension 3208, to request a new magazine list in large print or on tape. CHURCH DELEGATE Donna Weiss-Hill of Glenside, Pa., was recently elected as a "differently abled" delegate to the Triennial Convention of the Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The convention will be held in July 1996 in Minnesota. NYNEX YELLOW PAGES NYNEX has made the Yellow Pages available to Internet users with vision loss. It offers convenient access to business listings and web sites in the northeast United States. To learn more about NYNEX's Interactive Yellow Pages, swing on the web to http://www.vtcom.fr/nynex, or call (800) 356-9639. DOT WAR "The War of the Dots" by Robert B. Irwin is now available in braille. It's a book about the establishment of standard English braille in 1932 as a uniform raised-dot method of reading and writing for English-speaking countries. The book is 82 pages and costs $10. There are other books available, including a growing collection of Helen Keller's books and essays. For a free 1996 catalog, contact the Louis Braille Center, 11050 5th Ave. NE #204, Seattle, WA 98125-6151; phone (206) 368-8288. SINGING CARDS Call Art Greetings is a new company that sends special telephone greetings. It can let you send a birthday call to someone whose birthday you remembered just a few minutes before, send party invitations, specify what day and/or time you want your call to go, confirms the right person gets the greeting, allow the recipient to leave a message for the sender, or set up calling lists. Five percent of the company's gross earnings goes to charitable organizations. To place an order, call (800) 932-2252. Or for more information, call (310) 568-9548. You may wish to mention that you heard about the company in "The Braille Forum." CAPTIONS Steve Clark, Renee Clark and Mike Hage take a break to show TeleSensory's team spirit at the 1995 ACB convention. Mary Ann Pack and Windy Lisebrough show some of the described videos that can be found in the Blockbuster stores listed. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Dear Mr. Crabb: I enjoyed the article, "This is the Way We Wash Our Clothes ... Or Is It?", in the August issue of "The Braille Forum." I had a similar, equally frustrating experience last month with a VCR. Along with this note, I am sending a copy of a letter I wrote to Panasonic Consumer Electronics regarding my dissatisfaction with one of their videocassette recorders. I had written to Panasonic last August in response to an item in the summer "DVS Guide" stating that remote controls for their new VCRs would be equipped with a tactile mark on the SAP channel button. When I inquired at a local Panasonic dealer about VCRs whose remotes had this feature, the sales staff had no idea what I was talking about. I wrote to Panasonic to let them know about this problem and to ask for names of other dealers in Austin. In addition, I pointed out that a tactually identifiable SAP channel button was a good beginning, but it is only a small part of what needs to be done to make a VCR accessible to and usable by people who are blind or visually impaired. Unfortunately, I did not receive an answer to my letter until last week. Mr. William L. Mannion, the gentleman to whom I wrote, had mislaid my letter. His response to me answered only my question about Panasonic dealers in Austin and did not address my access concerns at all. By the time I received his letter, I had purchased a Panasonic videocassette recorder, model number PV-S4566, tried it for nearly a month, and then returned it to the store for a refund. The remote control did indeed have the tactually marked SAP channel button, but access to the SAP channel is possible only after setup using the on-screen menus, which are, of course, inaccessible to people without vision. There were other problems as well, which I have detailed in my most recent letter to Mr. Mannion. Sincerely, Kathy Blackburn (Editor's note: The letter below is the one Kathy Blackburn mentions above.) Mr. William L. Mannion, Assistant General Manager Matsushita Consumer Electronics Division of Matsushita Electric Corporation of America One Panasonic Way Secaucus, N.J. 07094 Dear Mr. Mannion: Thank you for your letter of November 6, 1995. On September 30, 1995, I purchased a Panasonic video cassette recorder, model number PV-S4566. I returned it to Best Buy, the store where I bought it, on October 26. I had chosen this particular unit because I had read information indicating that remote controls for your new VCRs were equipped with a SAP button that could be easily found by touch. As I mentioned in my previous letter, my husband and I are both blind, and we enjoy television programs with audio description on the SAP channel, as well as the videos described by Descriptive Video Service. While we found that we could indeed locate the SAP button by touch, I must point out to you that this button will not access the SAP channel until the proper audio mode is programmed into the VCR. The only means of programming the VCR is through on-screen menus, which are accessible only with sighted assistance. I was further dismayed to find that rather than by using the keypad buttons, much of the work with the menus is done by rotating a wheel and pushing it in to make a selection, much like clicking a computer's mouse. When I telephoned the customer support number to inquire whether Panasonic makes any VCRs that accept input from the keypad only, I was told that the company does not make such a unit. While I had the VCR, a friend studied the manual for an hour and, we thought, programmed the VCR to record two PBS programs þ one on the same day, the other on the next day. We returned from an errand during the time that the first program was airing, and the machine appeared to be recording. After the ending time of the second broadcast, however, I checked the tape, only to find that there was nothing on it. The tape had advanced some distance, but there was no recording. My friend is able to program her own VCR; she is computer literate, and she is not afraid to try new things. On two more occasions, with the help of two different people, I attempted to get the unit to record. Only once was I able to record something while I was watching it. Not only am I frustrated that I could find no way to make video recordings independently, I am deeply disappointed that the machine could not be made to work reliably when I had competent sighted help. Although I had no trouble playing a prerecorded video, I also wanted to record television programs for viewing at a more convenient time. Like any other person with more interests than time to pursue them all, I can't always watch a television program at the time it airs. I estimate that I would record three or more programs per week, if I had a machine that were accessible or that could at least be adapted. Lacking true access þ spoken menu choices and audible confirmation of programming commands þ a keyboard-only interface might make it possible for a visually impaired person to program the VCR after memorizing the necessary sequence of steps. I have done this successfully with a National bread machine, also a Panasonic product. Another alternative might be to write a routine into the set-up menu program that would allow the user to choose to input information using the buttons on the keypad rather than using the on-screen numbers and the menu wheel. I wonder if there might also be a way to save the setup configuration somewhere for retrieval later by the push of a button, in case of a power loss or other unexpected occurrence. I urge your designers to learn more about the principles of universal design and develop products that will be more useful þ and usable þ by people with disabilities and changing needs. The Trace Research and Development Center at the University of Wisconsin at Madison may be a source of further information on universal design. People with disabilities prefer as much independence as possible. People whose abilities are changing due to age or health problems want to remain independent for as long as possible. Accessible consumer products can help make that independence a reality. Sincerely, Kathy Blackburn AFFILIATE NEWS ARKANSAS WANTS YOU The Arkansas Council of the Blind warmly welcomes all who would like to attend the state convention April 19 and 20 at the Holiday Inn Airport in Little Rock. For reservations, contact the hotel at (501) 490-1000. Room rates are $49 plus tax at the main hotel and $39 plus tax at the Express hotel across the parking lot. Contact Imogene Johnson at (501) 663-7171 for the preregistration form. RSVA AUCTION The Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America is currently collecting auction items for the memorabilia auction to take place in Tulsa. So far, RSVA has a set of old-fashioned Coca-Cola glasses, half-pint Heineken glasses, a Dallas Cowboys baseball cap and color photo signed by Hall of Famer #88 Drew Pearson, two 100th anniversary Babe Ruth signed baseballs and certificates of authenticity, and a San Antonio Hard Rock Cafe T-shirt and baseball cap. If you're interested in getting the winning bid in, make sure to buy a ticket to the auction when your pre-registration packet arrives. COME TO TEXAS The ACB of Texas convention will occur August 23-25 at the Hilton Airport Hotel in San Antonio. CAPTION LeRoy Saunders and Adeline Holden share a hug at the 1995 ACB convention. GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACES AND THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED PART TWO by Charles Lott (Editor's note: Part one of this review, which looks at two computer operating systems þ Windows 95 and OS/2, appeared in the January 1996 issue of "The Braille Forum." While we recognize that Windows 95 is not adapted for speech at this writing, we felt some of our low-vision readers might benefit from this comparison.) Technical considerations There are some technical matters that need attention here because they might, to a greater or lesser extent, pose problems for blind and visually impaired users. Among these are installation, startup, utilities, and documentation. Installation OS/2 Warp is an excellent operating system, but it can be a headache to install if you are using diskettes. On my Packard Bell 486DX, I was never able to successfully install Warp from diskettes because of file allocation table lazywrite errors and system hangups. Once I got almost 90 percent through disk 15, only to have the system lock up. I had to start over. IBM also supplied me with a CD version, however, and after running checkdisk once, I never had any problems with either easy install or advanced install. Therefore, because it is so fast and easy, I strongly recommend CD installation of OS/2 or any other software. This is especially true when it comes to operating systems and applications that come on many diskettes. Further, I recommend advanced installation for Warp, because this creates a boot manager, which lets you choose between operating systems at startup time. You might, for instance, be running MS-DOS and Windows on one partition and OS/2 on another. The boot manager lets you choose between DOS and OS/2 every time you start your computer. With easy install you automatically get whichever system you were using when you shut your computer down. This could be quite inconvenient. Besides, advanced install is really no more complicated than easy install. When it comes to Windows 95, I cannot say much about installing from diskettes, since the only copy I got was an upgrade on CD. Unfortunately, if you do not already own Windows 3.x, you can obtain Windows 95 only on diskettes. Microsoft's reasoning is that if you do not already use Windows, you probably do not have a CD- ROM. To that I simply answer that then you probably do not have a machine capable of running Windows 95. Therefore, Microsoft's argument is moot. If you do install Windows 95 from diskettes, you should remember one major caveat: write-protect your diskettes. You should apply this rule to all diskettes containing program files. However, it becomes especially important here because a dormant virus on your system could corrupt install diskette number two, making the set unusable. If possible, however, you should use the Windows 95 CD upgrade, because it contains all the accessibility features. These are not in diskette packages. If you use diskettes, you must download accessibility files from Microsoft's BBS or purchase them for a shipping and handling fee from Microsoft. Further, remember that the typical installation mode does not automatically install the large mouse pointers supplied with Windows 95. You must retrieve the pointers by extracting them from cabinet (.cab) files on the CD. Incidentally, if you install Windows 95 on a machine where you're using OS/2, the boot manager will be disabled. Therefore, you must use your two OS/2 install diskettes and CD to access OS/2's version of fdisk and reactivate the boot manager. This is not complex, but it does take a few minutes to accomplish. Startup There are no fatal problems with startup in either OS/2 or Windows 95. You will note, of course, that Windows 95 is self- starting. You access its emulation of DOS by two different routes from the start menu. On the other hand, OS/2 Warp is very slow in booting up. Depending on your hardware and its configuration, it could take as much as three minutes to boot up. There is very little you can do about this problem in Warp 3.0. However, you can probably help yourself a great deal by upgrading your computer's memory. Both systems specify a minimum of four megabytes, and recommend eight. I find these recommendations quite skimpy. You can use up eight megabytes rather quickly, especially if you have complex or high-powered applications on your system. Incidentally, both systems provide means of using virtual memory, and assigning it to your applications. Be sure, however, that your hard drive is not overcrowded, since virtual memory uses hard drive space to emulate RAM. Utilities Many DOS utilities, e.g. "undelete," will not work under Windows 95, even in DOS mode. This is because Windows 95 uses a file system that permits long file names (names with more than eight characters). Thus the system will shut down to protect those file names if you attempt to use utilities such as "undelete" and "recover." Many other familiar utilities have been replaced with new versions that will work with Windows 95. These are in the \Windows\Command directory. One such utility is scandisk, which, in the older DOS version, would detect "illegal" long file names. If you told that version of scandisk to correct these, it would wreak havoc with 95's file system and leave you with a most undesirable mess. Windows' replacement for this utility works admirably. Other 95 utility replacements are "more," "subst," "share," "xcopy," and "xcopy 32." Bear in mind also that several Norton Utilities do not run well, if at all, in a multitasking environment. The only fix for that is to get Norton Utilities 9.0, which is designed to work with Windows 95. On the other hand, OS/2 provides the utilities that will work in its emulation of DOS. Therefore, there should be no difficulties with incompatible utilities in the \OS2\MDOS directory. However, OS/2, like Windows 95, has its own file recovery system. You should study and learn how to recover files under that system; however, it is well-documented. Documentation Both operating systems have excellent documentation. However, most of it (especially in Windows 95) is online material. Windows 95's manual is only 95 pages long, and it provides you with only a cursory overview of the system. Thus if you need printed material, you must obtain a comprehensive book on the subject from Microsoft Press or another computer book publisher. Recordings for the Blind has such a book on order, and this should be ready for distribution sometime in 1996. OS/2 Warp provides a far more comprehensive printed manual with 396 pages. This goes much more into detail about such things as installation, using the system, and troubleshooting. In addition, as with Windows 95, Warp provides extensive online documentation. Currently, Recordings for the Blind lists only a book on version 2.1 of OS/2. However, there are several comprehensive books in print covering version 3.0. Final Thoughts By now it should be clear that both Windows 95 and OS/2 Warp provide excellent accessibility features, but both have their shortcomings. Your choice of system will obviously depend on which features are most important to you. It will also depend on your perception of the system's user friendliness. Further, totally blind users must decide between a system you can access right now and one for which the access tools are not yet on the market. If right now is your concern, OS/2 is your choice. However, if you can afford to wait, Windows will be a viable option when JAWS is released. Both Microsoft and IBM should, in future upgrades, make their accessibility features more immediately accessible. For instance, Windows 95 could ask during a typical installation, "Do you wish to install additional cursors?" It would also be helpful if the mouse were a bit less hair-triggered, especially in the task bar and its associated start menus. Microsoft should also add scroll bars to all menus that could overflow. IBM could improve OS/2 by including a few ready-made large- print schemes for the benefit of inexperienced users who may not wish to attempt creating custom schemes. In addition, OS/2 could be much less trying to one's patience if it could cut its boot-up time in half. In the end, however, no one can make your choice for you. Based on general features, my personal choice is OS/2 Warp; however, many knowledgeable users prefer Windows 95. Bearing in mind the material on accessibility contained herein, you would do well to obtain literature from Microsoft and IBM. With this you can compare the general attributes of 95 and Warp before making your final choice. You can reach Microsoft at (800) 426-9400. You can contact IBM at (800) 426-3333. HIGH TECH SWAP SHOP FOR SALE: VersaBraille II+. Includes internal disk drive, all manuals in braille and print, and a carrying case. Asking $2,000. For more information call (303) 388-4023. FOR SALE: Macintosh speech and large print computer. SE/30 HD, 40 CPU, 5 megabytes RAM, 40 megabyte hard drive. Comes with Radius 21-inch monochrome monitor. System is set up for OutSpoken screen reader and CloseView large print software. New keyboard, mouse, all disks and manuals. Great starter system! $700 or best offer. Contact Laura Oftedahl at (617) 923-7768 or (617) 492-2777 extension 3432. FOR SALE: Technasonic Weight Talker with memory keys, in good condition. Uses seven AA batteries, not included. Asking $50. Contact Merten Wagner at (612) 781-8442. FOR SALE: Brand-new Type 'n Speak. Includes manual. Interested callers only. (918) 273-0409 after 6 p.m. FOR SALE: Blazer braille embosser. Brand-new; still in the box. Asking $1,000. Call Jeff Jackson at (800) 330-1019. FOR SALE: Colorado Trakker Jumbo-350 external tape backup system. Connects to your computer through the parallel port. Capacity is 350 megabytes per tape. Software works well with speech programs. Comes with power adapter, connection cable and tape cartridges. Asking $350. I'm willing to trade for Perkins brailler in fine condition. Also available, DOS version 6.3 with manuals. Still in the box. Asking $25. If you're interested in either of these items, contact Nino Pacini evenings and weekends only at (313) 885-7330. FOR SALE: Software and hardware for IBM and compatible computers. MoneyCounts 7.0 business edition, manuals in print and ASCII format; 3.5-inch disks labeled in print and braille, $35. MoneyCounts 7.5 personal edition, manuals in print and ASCII format; 3.5-inch disks labeled in print and braille, $35. Bluemax 7.0 memory manager, manuals in print and ASCII formats; 3.5-inch disks, labeled in print and braille, $45. WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS, manuals in print and ASCII formats; 3.5-inch disks, labeled in print and braille; also, other books on WordPerfect 5.1 in electronic text and tape, $95. Learning WordPerfect 5.1 braille edition with 3.5-inch learning disks labeled in braille from National Braille Press, never used, $15. WordPerfect 6.0 for DOS, manuals in print and ASCII formats; 3.5-inch disks labeled in print and braille, $175. Vocal-Eyes version 2.2, screen access program for DOS, manuals in print, ASCII and tape; 3.5-inch disks labeled in print and braille, $150. Microsoft Windows version 3.1, manuals in print and ASCII; 3.5-inch disks labeled in print and braille, $50. Open Windows tutorial on three tapes and one 3.5-inch disk; send either two C-60 tapes or one C-90 tape for him to copy the information on. Intel Satisfaction fax-modem board, 2400 baud, DOS software with manuals in print and ASCII formats; 3.5-inch disks labeled in print and braille, $20. Contact Roger Behm at 1611 Clover Lane, Janesville, WI 53545; phone (608) 754-0658. FOR SALE: VTek Excel CCTV. 19-inch monitor and stand. All new electronic parts. Asking $1,600. Call Sam Huhn at (215) 379-2548 or (215) 951-5530. WANTED: Your unwanted Perkins braillers, in working or non- working condition. Contact Nino Pacini evenings and weekends only at (313) 885-7330. ACB BOARD OF DIRECTORS Sue Ammeter, Seattle, WA Ardis Bazyn, Cedar Rapids, IA Christopher Gray, San Jose, CA Charles Hodge,Arlington, VA John Horst, Wilkes-Barre, PA Jean Mann, Guilderland, NY Kristal Platt, Omaha, NE M.J. Schmitt, Forest Park, IL Pamela Shaw, Philadelphia, PA Richard Villa, Bedford, TX LeRoy Saunders, Immediate Past President, Oklahoma City, OK BOARD OF PUBLICATIONS Carol McCarl, Chairperson, Salem, OR Kim Charlson, Watertown, MA Thomas Mitchell, North Salt Lake City, UT Mitch Pomerantz, Los Angeles, CA Jay Doudna, Lancaster, PA Ex Officio: Laura Oftedahl, Watertown, MA ACB OFFICERS PRESIDENT PAUL EDWARDS 20330 NE 20TH CT.. MIAMI, FL 33179 FIRST VICE PRESIDENT BRIAN CHARLSON 57 GRANDVIEW AVE. WATERTOWN, MA 02172 SECOND VICE PRESIDENT STEPHEN SPEICHER 825 M ST., SUITE 216 LINCOLN, NE 68508 SECRETARY CYNTHIA TOWERS 556 N. 80TH ST. SEATTLE, WA 98103 TREASURER PATRICIA BEATTIE CRYSTAL TOWERS #206 NORTH 1600 S. EADS ST. ARLINGTON, VA 22202 CONTRIBUTING EDITOR ELIZABETH M. LENNON, Kalamazoo, MI