THE Braille Forum Vol. XXXIII June 1995 No. 12 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. LeRoy F. Saunders, President Oral O. Miller, J.D., National Representative 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. Submission deadlines are the first of each month. Those much-needed contributions, which are tax-deductible, can be sent to Brian Charlson at the same 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 weekdays and all day on weekends. Washington, D.C., residents only call 331-2876. Copyright 1995 American Council of the Blind TABLE OF CONTENTS President's Message, by LeRoy F. Saunders ACB President Becomes Newest Member Of Committee For Purchase, by Sharon Lovering News Briefs From The ACB National Office, by Oral O. Miller Legal Access: Mickey Mouse, by Charles D. Goldman Last-Minute Convention Information, by John A. Horst Telecommunications: Accessing A Revolution, by Julie Carroll Kurzweil Predicts Pocket-Sized Reading Machines And More, by Nolan Crabb FCC Chairman Announces Formation of Disability Task Force, by Nolan Crabb ACB Position Available AFB Today, by Carl R. Augusto Editorial: We'll Lose It If We Don't Use It, by Nolan Crabb From Your Perspective Affiliate News Here And There High Tech Swap Shop Acknowledgements CORRECTION The February "From Your Perspective" column included information about the reversal of a guide dog access policy at the Buffalo Guild for the Blind. That column referred specifically and only to the Buffalo guild. The Chicago Guild for the Blind, from which many "Braille Forum" readers purchase mail order products, has never had, and currently does not have, policies that prohibit or restrict the use of guide dogs at its functions or in its facilities. PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE by LeRoy F. Saunders Wednesday, April 19, 1995 is a day that people in Oklahoma City will never forget. It is a day that most Americans and others throughout the world will also remember for a long time. At 9:02 a.m. on that awful Wednesday, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was bombed. As of this writing, 169 people were known dead, and many were injured. This was a nightmarish day when no one in Oklahoma City could believe what they were hearing on the radio and seeing on television. What they heard and saw was the kind of thing that happened in some other place, but not in Oklahoma. My wife Pat and I had returned home from Virginia late on Tuesday night and since Pat didn't work on Wednesday we slept in late. I was sitting at our table reading the paper and drinking coffee when I heard and felt the blast. I told Pat this was not a gas leak explosion; it had to be something much larger. We turned both the radio and television on and learned very quickly what had happened. I saw the first pictures of the building available to television and couldn't believe my eyes. The devastation of the building was horrendous. This is what I had seen in other countries, but not in the United States. Rescue people were on the scene very quickly helping the victims get to safety and to medical stations for help. People from all over the country have come to Oklahoma City to help with the rescue effort. The explosion has shown the dark side of the nation, but it has also unified us in some very real and meaningful ways. People from around the country have sent money, equipment, support services, and other items to assist the victims of the great tragedy. Two blind people worked in the building; both were present on the day of the bombing. One ran the snack bar and the other was an information specialist with the Social Security Administration. It was late Wednesday afternoon before we were able to confirm that neither of them had sustained serious physical injuries and both had managed to get out of the building. Many people in this city don't want to have the building rebuilt in the same location. They would like to have this plot of ground be turned into a park as a memorial to the people who lost their lives in the building. I personally favor this idea. As I write this, the rescue people are leaving. It is thought that all the dead have been removed from the building. Maybe the tragedy can be brought to a close by the end of the week and this city can begin the process of returning to normal and gradually rebuild and heal itself. At press time, city fire and law enforcement officials have announced they will give up their next salary increase, which was due July 1, to help offset the additional cost the city has incurred because of the bombing of the federal building. This is a substantial sacrifice on their part, amounting to about $4,000,000. Just as the nation came together to lend a hand to the victims, many ACB members sent cards and made phone calls to express their concern for my safety and that of my family as well as for the status of those blind and partially sighted people who had been in the building. I'm grateful for your concern, as I'm sure they are. In a few weeks we will be attending our convention in Greensboro, N.C. This will be a busy time for all of us. At this writing our program is pretty much settled. There are always things to do just before the convention but things usually fall into place. I have sent out a copy of our Long-Range Plan, which has been adopted by the board of directors, to our state and special interest affiliate leaders. There will be a few items in this plan that will necessitate changes to our constitution and bylaws. The changes will have to be presented before the convention for adoption. The chair of the Constitution and Bylaws Committee will present these changes early in the convention week for your consideration. Copies of the Long-Range Plan are available from the national office in large print, cassette, and braille. If you're a computer user with a modem, you can download a copy of the Long-Range Plan from ACB ON-LINE, (202) 331-1058. Set your communications parameters to no parity, eight data bits, and one stop bit. Modem speeds ranging from 300 to 14,400 bits per second are acceptable. Download the file named LRP1995.ZIP or LRP1995.TXT. Upper or lower case letters are unimportant in the file name. Please remember that while ACB does not charge for any time spent on the electronic bulletin board, you are responsible for any long-distance toll charges. A limited number of copies will also be available at the convention. When ACB was first formed it operated very well under the conditions of its day and time. However, things have changed greatly since then, due in part to ACB's increased size and increased activity levels of its state and special interest affiliates. In addition, things have changed significantly in recent years where Congress is concerned. In short, it is mandatory that we operate more efficiently and more quickly as an organization than we've ever had to before; it's time for a change. I believe that this Long-Range Plan keeps the principles under which this organization was formed intact while granting us superior flexibility and greater tools to increase our effectiveness as a group. Therefore, I urge you to carefully review the Long-Range Plan and then help bring ACB into a better position to be of greater service to its members, as well as to cope more efficiently with all the changes on both the state and national levels. I believe the implementation of this plan will help prepare us to enter the 21st century. I hope the next president will appoint a Long-Range Planning Committee. Planning is a never-ending process. Before this is fully implemented, it may need to be updated in order to meet ACB's ever-changing needs. ACB PRESIDENT BECOMES NEWEST MEMBER OF COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE by Sharon Lovering An audience of more than 30 people packed the conference room at the Committee for Purchase from People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled on April 13. Many called out greetings across the room. In a chair on the left side of the table sat LeRoy Saunders, ACB president, who was sworn in after acceptance of the minutes from the previous meeting. Ira Kemp, chairman of the committee, stated the oath. "I, LeRoy Saunders, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, that I take this obligation seriously, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter, so help me God." "Now I can vote," he said afterward. This statement was greeted with much laughter. "You will also have to decide whether this is a marriage made in heaven or somewhere else," someone stated. Saunders received a framed certificate signed by President Bill Clinton. Saunders began as a direct labor worker in manufacturing at Virginia Industries for the Blind in Charlottesville in the 1950s. He worked at all levels þ from production to rehabilitation training to superintendent þ of the Javits-Wagner- O'Day system over the next 22 years. He left Virginia in 1973 and moved to Oklahoma to become the executive director of the Oklahoma League for the Blind in Oklahoma City, which also participated in the JWOD program. Saunders is also a past president of the General Council of Workshops for the Blind, and the first former direct labor employee/former director of a JWOD- participating non-profit agency to become a member of the committee, which administers the program. "LeRoy Saunders is uniquely qualified to serve on the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled as a rehabilitation professional and as a national advocate for the rights of people who are blind," said Sen. Don Nickles (R-Okla.) in a press release from the committee. "His work has significantly contributed to the quality of life of people who are blind in the State of Oklahoma and in the country as a whole." Saunders will serve as a private citizen advising the committee on the employment concerns of people who are blind. The committee also presented its Valuable Contributions Award to Edward Stolark, the director of the contracts division of the U.S. Marine Corps Systems Command and dealt with old and new business. CAPTIONS "I, LeRoy Saunders, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic ..." LeRoy Saunders takes the oath of office from Ira Kemp, chairperson of the Committee for Purchase from People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled. LeRoy Saunders holds up the framed certificate he received at the ceremony. The certificate is signed by President Bill Clinton. NEWS BRIEFS FROM THE ACB NATIONAL OFFICE by Oral O. Miller, National Representative Every time we as blind people try to use an appliance or instrument which can only be operated visually, we lament the fact that adequate consideration was not given to the needs of blind people when that item was designed, and so it is also with services intended for blind and visually impaired people. For these reasons it was especially gratifying to have an opportunity to take part recently in a national forum called by the Mississippi State University Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Blindness for the purpose of obtaining considered in put from dozens of blind consumers and professional workers in the field of blindness concerning suitable topics for research and training activity. The forum, which preceded the meeting of the center's National Advisory Council in Nashville, was divided into advisory panels according to preferred topics and each participant took part in the deliberations of at least two such panels. I, for example, served on the panels dealing with rehabilitation counseling and business enterprise programs while Glenn Plunkett of the ACB staff served on the panels considering rehabilitation teaching and services to elderly blind people. The center's staff will consider the dozens of recommendations made, including any recommendations regarding priority ordering, in submitting research and training proposals to the federal government and other funding sources. While in Nashville, Glenn Plunkett consulted also with orientation and mobility professionals as well as vision specialists and legislators regarding ongoing interest in the subject of licensure and the appropriate role for each profession in providing services to blind people. It will not surprise some to learn that the optometrists in that state object to the type of visual evaluations routinely made by orientation and mobility specialists. The meetings of the board of directors of the separate corporation which oversees the operation of ACB's thrift stores always involve very practical business decisions made in short, efficient meetings or by teleconference. However, the most recent meeting of that board included something different þ an opportunity for some of the newer members to observe operations of the thrift stores in Lubbock and Amarillo, Texas. ACB national staff members frequently attend the formal installations of public officials into new positions, but those of us who attended one recent installation were there with more interest than usual þ to observe the swearing in of ACB President LeRoy Saunders as an official member of the Committee for Purchase from People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled. Because of his many years of experience in that area, he will undoubtedly be an extremely valuable member of that committee. Affiliate conventions which staff members have attended recently include those of the Virginia Association of the Blind, the ACB of Colorado and the Wyoming Council of the Blind. The Virginia meeting in Williamsburg was the first opportunity for Julie Carroll, ACB's new director of governmental affairs, to take part in a state convention and the conventions in Fort Collins, Colo., and Casper, Wyo., served as a first of sorts for Nolan Crabb, editor of "The Braille Forum," in that both took place the same weekend and it was necessary for him to rush from Fort Collins to Casper in order to cover both. Lest there be any doubt, the planners of the two western conventions made their plans with the fast trip in mind. ACB board member Kristal Platt also took part in the Colorado convention. During a typical month, ACB staff members routinely take part in a tremendous variety of meetings and other functions that are designed to obtain considered input about services and programs for blind and visually impaired people. Last month was no exception in that some of the important meetings attended included that of Jennifer Sutton with the Smithsonian Institution regarding accessibility of exhibits and displays, that of this writer with the United States Information Agency regarding assistance for the 1996 Paralympics, that of Jennifer Sutton with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority regarding the updating of system maps, that of Julie Carroll with the Federal Communications Commission regarding telecommunications legislation and the establishment of a disability concerns task force, that of Nolan Crabb with disabled students at American University regarding career selection and job-seeking strategies, that of Jennifer Sutton with Recording for the Blind regarding formatting and other matters, and that of this writer with various fundraising authorities. I am pleased that Julie Carroll was able to stand in for me at the last minute (due to a schedule change) to speak to the judges of the District of Columbia Superior Court System during a judicial education retreat focusing on, among other things, disabled people as they come into contact with the court system and court-related services. These meetings were only the "tip of the iceberg" during a very busy month. As reported via the "Washington Connection," recently the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) "caved in" to the enormous pressure brought on it by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) when the FTA director announced that he was not requiring WMATA to place detectable warnings along its platform edges but was accepting its present system and commitments for the future as "equivalent facilitation." The pertinent sentences of his decision said: "The Access Board's recent interpretation of the equivalent facilitation mechanism permits me to focus on the underlying purpose being served by the ADAAG standards, instead of just one particular technology adopted in the standards to serve that purpose. The purpose in this case, of course, is to facilitate the access of persons with disabilities to the nation's transit systems. In considering your request, I acknowledge WMATA's commitment to a consistent platform edge safety system that extends throughout its rail system, not just to its key stations as required by the Department's regulation. In this light, it is my judgment that WMATA has demonstrated that its current platform edge safety system, comprised of red paver tiles and a contrasting granite edge with embedded flashing lights, as supplemented by its study and installation of new technologies, provides equivalent facilitation to the visually impaired. Accordingly, I grant WMATA's request for a determination of equivalent facilitation consistent with our understanding that: ... WMATA will, working in consultation with the visually impaired community, promptly complete its development, demonstration, and implementation of a system of transmitters throughout its rail system that will signal to visually impaired patrons the location of such features as the platform edge, open train doors, and elevators. WMATA will install this system in at least 10 rail stations no later than April 30, 1996, and in the balance of its stations no later than May 31, 1997. ... WMATA will report to me in writing quarterly on its progress in meeting these requirements." The technological considerations referred to by the FTA director relate to wristwatch-type detectors which supposedly are being developed somewhere that would miraculously tell blind people when they are near the platform edge, train car door or empty space between cars. This technology does not exist at this time and has been described by various advocates as the "Mickey Mouse watch" system or the "electronic fence solution." Since this decision obviously ignores the safety of blind and visually impaired people, among others, stay tuned for further word on actions that may be taken by ACB and other advocacy organizations. I regret to announce that as of June 30, 1995, Jennifer Sutton, ACB's coordinator of affiliate and membership services, will leave ACB employment to enter the Ph.D. program in English at the University of Oregon. We have enjoyed having Jennifer as a member of our staff and we all wish her the best of good fortune as she further pursues her career. LEGAL ACCESS: MICKEY MOUSE by Charles D. Goldman (Reprinted with permission from "Horizons," June 1995.) It's June and the kids get out of school this month. Time to think of summer vacation. Maybe a trip, possibly even to Disney World. If you do go, you won't be alone. You'll encounter the people from the Clinton administration, particularly the Federal Transit Administration. Judging from its decision on the issue of whether the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) needs to install tactile warning stripping, it appears the Department of Transportation is quite familiar with Mickey Mouse and his cohorts. In fact, they probably have the watches to prove it. As noted in this space previously, Metro was seeking an equivalent facilitation waiver which would allow it not to put down warning strips along its subway platforms. The disability community was not united on the issue, breaching the 11th commandment of politics by engaging in a very public disagreement. Now, the feds and Metro have reached an agreement, one which could and should ultimately please no one. In the short run Metro is pleased that it does not have to put in the tactile warning strips that advocates sought as required under the Americans with Disabilities Act. But Metro's current system was not blessed as being what the law calls "equivalent facilitation" so Metro will have to do things which in the long run could be problems. While it is clear that Metro did not get the federal seal of approval on the current system, both exactly what Metro must do and the cost of those efforts remain unknown, making the longer-term future potentially quite difficult. Metro must increase the lighting intensity of the platform edges. This should help persons who are partially sighted but significantly impaired. In addition Metro must continue to make audible announcements of stops and destinations. But those are the clear parts (along with required reports). There's more. Metro will, working in consultation with the visually impaired community, promptly complete its development, demonstration and implementation of a system of transmitters throughout the rail system that will signal to visually impaired patrons the locations of such features as the platform edges, open train doors, and elevators. WMATA must have this installed in 10 stations by April 30, 1996, and in all remaining stations by May 31, 1997. This seemingly satisfactory solution is fraught with peril when it is examined closely. Here's why. No one knows the cost of this system or exactly what the system must do. The price could exceed the lower estimates for installing tactile stripping ($4 million). Metro may have gone from the cost frying pan into the cost fryer. What will Metro and the feds do if the cost gets to be $4 or $5 million? Also unknown is what information will be transmitted. Will the system tell the vision-impaired person the individual is so many feet from the platform? The platform is at a right angle as they are walking? What happens in an electric failure? Will there be a backup system? Which 10 stations must Metro do first? Even more basic is the question of whether the Metro transmitter system is mandatory or voluntary for the user. (If it's voluntary þ and the agreement between Metro and DOT does not say that þ then DOT did not require much of Metro in terms of ensuring safety of vision-impaired riders.) What about vision-impaired users of Metro from out of town? How are they to know about this system? At least with tactile warning stripping, once it is installed, it's there and the cane or guide dog user can sort it out without worrying about a shock or power failure. Far worse, the transmitters smack of what one of the vision- impaired advocacy groups calls an "electric fence." This is a dangerous precedent, contrary to the basic concept of an accessible environment which is premised on adapting/modifying the structure or facility, not the person. We do not carry people who are mobility impaired up or down stairs. We build elevators and ramps. It may be that the systems of transmitters may be invisible, added on to farecards that vision-impaired persons purchase. Several years ago a major defense contractor was contemplating adding a microchip to all employee badges so it could know where in their facility the employee was at all times. If the Metro transmitter system works like that, then it would have some plausibility. But suppose the transmitter system is not invisible. What if it is a piece of equipment that a vision-impaired person must wear on the wrist when using Metro? Then it would be the feared and obnoxious "electric fence," telling vision-impaired persons not to go in certain places. Just down the street from the Federal Transit Administration in southwest Washington, D.C., is a structure to which someone should send the DOT and Metro powers that be. It's a museum which commemorates a time when another minority group had to wear something to distinguish them in their community. It was a yellow star on their clothing which transmitted their identity and told them to be only in certain places and that others were to be avoided. Is the DOT transmitter the sign of another Holocaust? Hardly. Thankfully, there was only one such disaster. But what DOT did do was sanction a stigmatizing identification. That is fundamentally wrong. Here the Clinton administration has backed away from a full commitment to the ADA and in a time of cost consciousness imposed a solution that looks good on paper but in reality no one knows what is required, let alone the price, and which could be quite demeaning to people with disabilities. It may be one hell of a way to run a railroad. But it is also a Mickey Mouse approach to ADA and civil rights. LAST-MINUTE CONVENTION INFORMATION by John A. Horst By this time all ACB members should have their plans completed to attend the 1995 convention. If you have not completed your pre- registration form and mailed it to the ACB Minneapolis office, you should do so immediately. Forms received after June 19, 1995 may not be approved for pre-registration discounted rates. Also, you should sign up for tours early since space on buses is limited. If your hotel reservation is at the Holiday Inn Four Seasons or the Park Lane Hotel, you should call the hotel at (800) 242-6556 or (910) 292-9161 to advise them of the time of your arrival at the airport. These hotels will provide you with van transportation at no cost. Attendees whose reservations are at the Fairfield Inn, the Comfort Inn or the Howard Johnson Coliseum will need to arrange for their own transportation from the airport. There is a transportation desk in the airport baggage area and there will be volunteers at the airport to assist you. If you will need assistance, be certain to notify the airline you are using so they will have help available when you arrive. The convention program is available in large print, braille, cassette tape, and on 3.5-inch computer disk. Request your program in the medium you desire. If you request the program on tape, please bring your tape recorder. The preliminary information in the program will answer many of your questions. Several people have asked about refrigerator rental. They are available for $30 for the convention week. Please call the hotel at (800) 242-6556 to reserve one. There will be a volunteer desk in the north and south lobbies of the hotel. The registration office, which is the Oak Room, will be located on the second floor. It can be reached from all elevators or from steps from the south lobby. The exhibit hall will open at 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 1. It will be in the Guilford Ballroom off the south lobby, first floor. Your convention committee, assisted by the North Carolina Council of the Blind Host Committee and the Greensboro chapter, is doing its best to accommodate you. The 34th annual convention of the American Council of the Blind will be a great success. TELECOMMUNICATIONS: ACCESSING A REVOLUTION by Julie Carroll, Director of Governmental Affairs Congress has been considering legislation that would substantially alter this country's telecommunications industry. In the name of deregulation and competition, legislators seek to eliminate many of the borders that now define the segments of the industry by permitting telephone companies to offer video programming, cable companies to offer telephone service, long- distance carriers to enter the local telephone service business, and permitting all to offer on-line information services. Critics say the legislation will result in stronger monopolies and higher prices for consumers. Those in favor of Congress' approach say deregulation is needed to foster competition that will result in lower prices and better quality services. It appears that even the experts disagree on how to manage the telecommunications revolution about to take place. Whatever form they take, advancements in communications technology, networks, and services have the potential to dramatically improve opportunities for independence, productivity and integration for people with disabilities. The convergence of telecommunications technology and high-speed networks could lead to enormous new opportunities for full and equal participation by citizens with disabilities in employment, commerce, education, health care, entertainment and democratic government. Access to telecommunications services is critical for individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Individuals who have full access to telecommunications services will be able to shop, conduct research, take courses, access libraries, file taxes, transact personal banking, and send and receive electronic correspondence from their homes or offices without the need for sighted assistance. No doubt, blind and visually impaired individuals will be very active consumers in this new market if it is accessible. Perhaps even more important is the demand for access to telecommunications services in the workplace. Interacting with telecommunication services and products has become an essential job function in many jobs. If blind and visually impaired individuals have access to those services, employment opportunities will be enhanced. If not, jobs and opportunities will be lost. Market forces and expanding technological capability have traditionally failed to ensure the design and manufacture of products and services which are fully accessible to and usable by blind and visually impaired people. For far too long, access to information for individuals who are blind or visually impaired has depended largely upon the availability of expensive adaptive equipment. For example, many with visual impairments use speech synthesis hardware and software interfaces necessary to operate visual display computers. However, the ever-expanding use of graphical user interfaces and image-based information storage are taking the power of electronic information networks out of the hands of people who are blind or visually impaired. Adaptive devices or software have generally been developed by small entrepreneurs working feverishly to catch up with developments in the technology. There is significant lag time between when technology is available to the public and when such adaptive devices make the technology available to persons who are blind or visually impaired. In this rapidly changing industry, adaptations may come after the service or product being adapted becomes obsolete. This cat-and-mouse approach to adapting important technology and services for people with disabilities is inefficient and costly. It would be much more cost-effective to design access at the inception of a product or service than to add access on later through retrofits and redesigns. ACB has asked Congress to ensure that the telecommunications industry addresses the access needs of individuals who are blind or visually impaired when it develops, designs or fabricates telecommunications equipment and services. The Senate put forth a bill in March, S. 652, which contains the requirement that all telecommunications service providers and manufacturers make their services and products accessible to persons with disabilities if readily achievable. In early May, the House of Representatives introduced a bill, H.R. 1555, with similar requirements, but applicable only to local exchange providers, i.e. providers of local telephone service. We have received assurances from the House staff that the language of H.R. 1555 will be revised to apply disability access requirements to all common carriers and to all telecommunications product manufacturers. Both the Senate bill and the House bill are on fast tracks and may even be passed by the time you read this article. Even so, there will likely be some time spent reconciling the Senate and House bills. You are encouraged to stay tuned to the Washington Connection at (800) 424- 8666 for the latest developments and any "calls to action." This is extremely important legislation for the blind and visually impaired community and we hope a version containing comprehensive access requirements becomes law this year. KURZWEIL PREDICTS POCKET-SIZED READING MACHINES AND MORE by Nolan Crabb Before the end of this decade, pocket-sized print-to-speech reading machines will be available for blind and partially sighted people interested in reading print. That's the prediction of renowned scientist and inventor Dr. Raymond Kurzweil, founder and chairman of Kurzweil Applied Intelligence, and developer of the Kurzweil Reading Machine. Speaking to attendees of the Josephine L. Taylor Leadership Institute held in suburban Washington, D.C., in March, Kurzweil said new technology already available will make pocket-sized readers a reality. He said new scanner technology will soon bring about pocket- sized reading machines with a small camera. "You can simply hold it over a page, and snap a shot of the page instantly. Before the end of the decade, a full print-to-speech reading machine will fit in your pocket, and all the electronics will fit in a small camera- sized device. It should be relatively inexpensive, within say hundreds of dollars." He said while today's scanners are two-dimensional in nature, requiring the scanner to move down the page, scanners in the not- too-distant future will be able to instantly snap a shot of an entire page. There will be no moving parts. "You'll be able to snap a picture and read a poster on a wall, a street sign, a soup can, someone's identification badge, and an appliance LCD display." According to Kurzweil, early in the 21st century, reading machine technology will fit into eyeglasses, allowing the user to control the direction of the scan through the motion of the head as does a sighted person. "Once these devices can provide reasonably intelligent descriptions of real-world scenes, they'll abolish the navigation aids." He and others are focusing on print access as a higher priority than the replacement of guide dogs and canes with electronic scanning equipment. He referenced Moore's law, which states that computing speeds and density double every 18 months. "In other words," he said, "every 18 months you can buy a computer that's twice as fast and has twice as much memory for the same cost. Remarkably, this law has held true since the beginning of this century. ... Computer memory, for example, is about 16,000 times more powerful for the same unit cost that it was 20 years ago. Computer memory is 150 million times more powerful for the same unit cost than it was in 1948, the year I was born. If the automobile industry had made as much progress in the past 47 years, a car today would cost about a hundredth of a cent and go faster than the speed of light." Kurzweil told his listeners the development of better semiconductor materials and circuits that don't generate heat will enable the development of cubes with thousands of layers of circuitry. That combined with smaller chip sizes will mean computing power increases by a factor of many millions. One of his companies deals with speech recognition. "We expect to see accurate large-vocabulary continuous speech recognizers emerge in the next two to three years," he predicted. In the early 21st century, continuous speech recognition software will be combined with language translation software and speech synthesis to create multi-lingual telephone and translation services. He is convinced that speech recognition software will help solve problems for blind computer users who can't currently adequately use a mouse to move or delete files on a screen. New versions of that technology, he said, will allow users to speak in regular English. Instead of saying "edit menu, insert lines, three," the user might say "insert three lines at this point." Kurzweil believes the blind community is more computer literate than the rest of the population. He expressed the confidence that many of today's computing difficulties where blind and low-vision users are concerned will be conquered. "We will, in my view, have the technology within a decade to overcome the handicaps that are associated with visual, auditory, and other disabilities." He said Moore's Law applies where reading machines for the blind are concerned. "The current Reading Edge has eight times the speed and 128 times the memory as compared to the original model of the Kurzweil Reading Machine. In terms of dollars, it costs one- 26th the price of the original model or an overall improvement in terms of price/performance of about 2,000 to one." Kurzweil said those futurists who predicted what the 20th century would hold at the end of the nineteenth century had no clue as to the importance of electronics, radio or television. Their predictions were based on technology as it existed in their time. He cautioned his audience against writing off his projections of the future as fanciful wishful thinking. He says the projections he makes do not count on breakthroughs in addition to those technologies already known. "It's a modest extrapolation of current trends," he says. "It's based on technologies and capabilities that we can feel today. We can't do it yet, but we can describe right now how these capabilities will be achieved." Kurzweil's Kurzweil Reading Machine, initially developed and marketed in 1976, is considered to be the first consumer product to incorporate artificial intelligence technology. He is also the developer of the first commercially marketed large-vocabulary speech recognition technology. Kurzweil chairs the Strategy and Technology Committee of the board of directors of Wang Laboratories. He is the recipient of the Dickens Prize, Carnegie-Mellon University's top science prize awarded to one individual each year. Since its inception in 1970, only one other person has received the Dickens Prize in the field of computer science. In 1988, he was named Inventor of the Year by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Kurzweil is the recipient of nine honorary doctorate degrees in science, engineering, music, and human letters. FCC CHAIRMAN ANNOUNCES FORMATION OF DISABILITY TASK FORCE by Nolan Crabb The Federal Communications Commission has formed a task force to deal with disability issues including information access, according to Commission Chairman Reed Hundt, who will also chair the task force. Hundt made the initial announcement during an address he delivered to attendees of the opening session of the Josephine L. Taylor Leadership Institute conference held in suburban Washington, D.C., and hosted by the American Foundation for the Blind in March. "After listening to Mr. Kurzweil's remarks," Hundt quipped, "and recognizing his wonderful career as an inventor, I feel like explaining that you've all been kicked out of the advanced degree course you're in, and for the next 20 minutes, you're in eighth grade. Everybody tells me that the information superhighway's about to converge from analog to digital; I'm sure that's true, I think that digital communication is the Morse code of the 21st century, and that's all I know about it. As a lawyer, I'm prepared to talk about it anyhow." Hundt suggested that he and the commission had much to learn from his audience. "I want you to know that we have created at the FCC, just now, (maybe we should have done it before), but we've created just now in the last month a disabilities task force where we draw someone from every one of the bureaus in the agency and they report to one of the five commissioners of the FCC who is the disabilities issues commissioner. I want you to know that I picked myself of the five commissioners to be that, because I want this to be something that I know about and that I'm able to use the full powers of the chairmanship to do something about." Hundt said he recognized there are at least two ways to think about a disability issues task force. "You can think 'it should have happened much earlier than this' or you can think 'I'm glad it happened at all.'" He said as FCC chairman, he's always asked many of the same questions. "I thought I'd tell you those questions, I'll give you the answers, then during the question-and-answer session, you could ask me the questions again; then I would know you were members of the media. But the good news is you wouldn't have remembered my answers." He said he's always asked how he got his job, what he wants to be remembered for, what does he do in the job, and what the most surprising thing that has happened to him since becoming chairman. "A lot of people think I got the job because I went to high school with the vice president," Hundt explained. "This is a coincidence. Other people think I got the job because I went to law school with the president and the first lady and the secretary of commerce and the comptroller of the currency, one federal judge, the U.S. attorney for the southern district of California, and these are all coincidences. I got this job for the following reason: I had the same birthday as Alexander Graham Bell." He said on his first day at work, someone asked what he wanted to be remembered for. "This taught me an important lesson about government versus business. In business, if you're a success, everybody assumes you're going to live forever, and so they ask you what the future will be. If you get a job in government, they assume you'll be gone soon, so they ask you about your past. "I want to be remembered for doing whatever I can to make sure the communications revolution helps everybody in this country." As for the "What do you do?" question, he simply said, "It's the best job I've ever had." He said the commission is a small agency filled with highly skilled dedicated people. As for what was the most surprising experience of the job, he referred to an incident where he had gone to Brussels for an information summit that occurred earlier this year. During the summit, he and other Americans in the delegation received large amounts of attention and had the opportunity to be major participants. "When I came back and went to the parking lot at the FCC, I was told my car had been stolen. That's the most surprising thing that has happened on the job." (He indicated he ultimately got the car back.) He said he recently read a poll in which more than half of those polled favored the information highway, but some two-thirds weren't sure what it is. "It is a problem that we don't know what it is; it is also an opportunity that we don't know what it is," Hundt said. "The information highway is going to be what we want it to be." He said a literal definition might be that it has five lanes þ broadcast, cable, satellite, wireless, and wire. "The reality is that all five lanes of the information highway are capable of competing with each other. ... Our hope is that that competition will create new technologies, much lower prices, and will advantage all Americans." He said one all-important question that must be answered is "How do we make sure that the competitive communications economy, with prices going down and quality going up and innovations occurring every day, driven by market forces, nevertheless reaches all parts of the country?" He went on to describe an agency that, at the beginning of his term as chairman, had no computers on the desks of employees. "In the first nine months, we got PC's for every one of the 2,000 employees of the FCC," he said. He asserted that newly installed computer networks changed the organization for the better. He described the experiences of a visually impaired FCC employee who had been forced to take a multitude of extra steps to get her job done prior to the installation of a computer at her desk. "She said she'd worked for the agency for 15 years," he recalled. "She has very, very poor vision þ some vision, but very poor. She works as a lawyer. She used to write every single thing in longhand in big print so she could get the general shape of her own letters. She would then give the drafts to her secretary for typing. That would take some time. Then she'd get it back and have to take a magnifying glass to read it, make the corrections, and give it back to the secretary. It would take her, she told me, sometimes days to create a document that the person at the next desk would create in a couple of hours." Hundt said while she was very proud of her abilities, she knew every year that she was not as productive as she could be. "So we get these computers," he continued, "and to be honest with you, we weren't even thinking about her, because I didn't even know her. As it turns out, she was able to order a certain kind of computer with a certain kind of screen. Now she views the documents on her computer screen while she's creating it herself þ doesn't go through that cycle þ and she does her work just as fast as the person at the next desk, and if you want to know the truth, probably a little faster." He said the successful end to that story should be repeated in every workplace in the country. Such success stories, he said, ought to be told in America's schools þ something that currently happens in relatively few cases. He detailed the advantages of having schools connected to the information superhighway. He described Harlem's Ralph Bunch School þ a school with bars on the windows and doors to protect students from shootings or other hazards outside. He depicted two rooms in the school in which students worked alongside students from classes in Hawaii and Nova Scotia. "This is starting to happen all over the country," he affirmed. "I know that the '80s was a hugely important era for people who are visually impaired. ... I also know that the graphical user interface is the explosion in the computer software of this particular decade. I've talked to Bill Gates about this; he's shown me all the new icons, the new ways to use images to make computers more friendly. He's aware ... that they're only making it more friendly for people who can actually see them." Hundt said while blind computer users should be concerned about increasing numbers of graphical programs, "I believe in my conversations [with Microsoft CEO Bill Gates] that we can make progress there. One of the reasons we can make progress is I believe Americans do believe that we're all in this together. I think Americans don't think America is a life raft with only nine seats in a stormy sea and the 10th person shows up [and is told] 'tough luck.' I don't think Americans think of our country that way. ... But that doesn't mean it's easy for people to understand what needs to be done." He concluded his remarks by sounding what has for him become an oft-repeated theme þ that every classroom in America should be connected to the information highway. "I'm not talking about a single room in a school building where those people who need to go to a computer will have to go. ... I'm talking about every classroom being its own access to the information highway; I'm talking about every single teacher having the same communications tools that are available to a shipping clerk in Wal-Mart." He said shipping clerks at Wal-Mart are first trained to use the computer to track incoming and outgoing items long before they learn to use a dolly. "Now you tell me why we have to live in a country where every shipping clerk at Wal-Mart has the tools to be productive, but where we tell every teacher 'you have to stay in the 19th century.'" He said between five and 10 billion dollars would be expended to outfit every school and library in America with the tools necessary to connect to the highway. "Is that a lot of money? That happens to be the same amount of money that we recovered in the auction of the spectrum, which concluded yesterday." Hundt was referring to an auction held by the FCC in which it sold licenses for certain radio frequencies to the highest bidder in cities and regions throughout the nation. He said the communications sector of the economy currently represents about $700 billion annually. "I'm talking about less money to connect these schools and libraries than the telephone company will make in a month, and I'm talking about a one-time investment." ACB POSITION AVAILABLE The American Council of the Blind is now accepting applications for the position of Coordinator of Affiliate and Membership Services. Approximately 50 percent of the work will deal with affiliate and membership relations in cooperation with the membership development, scholarship, and other committees; approximately 35 percent will deal with assisting the national convention committee, and the remaining 15 percent will deal with other duties as assigned. Samples of work to be performed will include, but will not be limited to, the preparation of a handbook for the assistance of affiliate secretaries and treasurers; the preparation, updating or obtaining of appropriate resource materials; the provision of assistance to the National Alliance of Blind Students and other specialized affiliates; the provision of assistance to the ACB national convention coordinator and the preparation of a convention planning manual; and the preparation of appropriate membership development materials. Required qualifications include knowledge of blindness services and issues of importance to blind and visually impaired people; PC computer literacy; excellent organizational and communication skills; an associate's degree or higher level in education, and two years work experience. Additional desirable qualifications include two years work experience in an association or similar office, experience in abstracting and organizing information, and knowledge of braille. Salary range mid- to upper twenties based on qualifications. Applications consisting of a letter, a resume (including references) and a writing sample should be submitted to: Mr. Oral O. Miller, National Representative, American Council of the Blind, 1155 15th St. NW, Suite 720, Washington, D.C. 20005. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. AFB TODAY by Carl R. Augusto The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) will be celebrating its 75th anniversary this coming year. Since its inception, AFB has been instrumental in disseminating information on the non-medical aspects of blindness, conducting social research, and improving and expanding services to blind or visually impaired people. We started the Talking Book program in the 1930s, and were a major participant in the development of new technologies for blind people. Most "Braille Forum" readers are familiar with AFB because it was the first organization to sell aids and appliances to blind people. That has been a small part of our overall array of services, and since we have divested ourselves of that service, I thought you might be interested in a brief summary of what we are up to now. AFB's mission is to enable people who are blind or visually impaired to achieve equality of access and opportunity that will ensure freedom of choice in their lives. We accomplish this mission through four primary functions: disseminating information about services to blind or visually impaired people and issues confronting them; addressing critical issues of the day; educating the public and policymakers about the capabilities and needs of blind or visually impaired people; and producing Talking Books, most notably for the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. Our information function encompasses the publishing of textbooks, pamphlets, videos, and the "Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness" and "JVIB News Service" þ which are primarily for professionals in the blindness field, but are relevant for parents and consumers as well. We remain the largest publisher of such materials. Another significant part of our information function is the provision of information on demand to approximately 100,000 people yearly who request it by letter, by telephone, or through our toll-free access line (1-800-AFB-5463) þ typical requests come from adult children of visually impaired parents or parents of a blind child seeking information about available services, and people requesting locations in their state where they can receive low-vision aids. We house the Helen Keller archives (Miss Keller worked for AFB for the last 40 years of her life), and the M.C. Migel Library, the largest reference collection on blindness in the world. We have also developed the Careers and Technology Information Bank, a network of blind or visually impaired people who use adaptive technology and are willing to speak to other visually impaired people about how they accomplish the tasks of their jobs or educational programs. To make information even more accessible, AFB now has an Internet e-mail address, afbinfo@afb.org, and an Internet gopher address, gopher.afb.org 5005. Through your computer you can access fact sheets and other information, or send questions and comments. Among AFB's other priorities are: Tackling the appalling unemployment rates among blind and visually impaired people in this country. We have recently launched an employment summit to bring the field together on this issue so we can most efficiently develop strategies to solve the problem. The successful implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We work with government, business, and industry on transportation and communication barriers; for example, ensuring that the detectable warnings provisions of the ADA regulations will be fully implemented. The expansion of braille literacy. We administer a number of projects to increase braille literacy among teachers of blind or visually impaired children and adults. The development of in-service materials for teachers of deaf- blind children. We have just published the results of the four-year "Hand in Hand" project, which address this issue. Advocating for specialized services for blind or visually impaired people when they are needed. This has been the primary topic of our Josephine L. Taylor Leadership Institute, which we hold annually in the Washington, D.C. area. Advocating for third-party payment of rehabilitation services. As you know, Medicare/Medicaid and private health insurance plans do not cover vision-related services designed for blind or visually impaired people. Removing barriers in the way of full access to information through technology. Our new telecommunications initiative goal is to get blind people on the information superhighway at the same time as sighted people. Educating the public and policymakers about the capabilities and needs of people who are blind or visually impaired. We do this through our governmental relations office in Washington, D.C., and through public service announcement campaigns to the general public þ our most recent campaign, "We help those who cannot see live like those who do," emphasized the viability of visually impaired people in the workplace. Supplying Talking Books to the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. Of course, we are not alone in our involvement in these initiatives. The most successful way of addressing the critical issues of blind or visually impaired people is through collaboration. AFB and the American Council of the Blind have been partners in this effort for years, and we look forward to a continuing and strengthened partnership in the future. We must reach out to other organizations of and for the blind in order to maximize our chances of removing barriers in the way of blind or visually impaired people. You may contact AFB at any of its offices þ our New York City headquarters, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, or San Francisco. With the recent relocation of AFB's headquarters, our phone number in New York City has changed to (212) 502-7600; the new address is 11 Penn Plaza, New York, N.Y. 10001. EDITORIAL: WE'LL LOSE IT IF WE DON'T USE IT by Nolan Crabb I daresay that most of us can think of a toy or something we wanted as children. We became convinced that having that one thing could turn ordinary days into unmitigated magical ones. For me, the Christmas of 1965 represented such a time, and I was certain that a wonderful battery-operated toy train would surely turn my average kid's life into a time of unspeakable joy. I'd seen the train in a Woolworth's toy department just after Thanksgiving, and it was all I could talk about. At night, I dreamed of the train's sleek, metal body, its authentic-sounding steam whistle and bell, and its magical ability to turn when it struck a wall or other object rather than merely grind its gears to powder trying to go when it was trapped. Needless to say, I wanted that train more than badly. I don't know what it would cost in 1995 dollars; I'm not sure what dear old Mr. and Mrs. Claus paid for it that Christmas. I've since come to believe that its purchase represented a significant burden to beleaguered parents struggling with a seemingly insurmountable farm debt. The little train lived up to every expectation. I now understand that it did so because I used it extensively; I played with it every opportunity I had for several years. In fact, I still own it, and it still works. Things really haven't changed much since those days for any of us. Undoubtedly, the things we want now are different, but we still incessantly talk about getting those things and about how possession of them will alter our lives significantly for the better. Access to information and technology is one of those things that would almost certainly be at the top of the want list for many of us. In the 1980s, the computer was a techno-savior of sorts. It provided new information gateways that meant jobs. We were almost at the stage where we could take such technology for granted. Then came the graphical user interface with its accompanying silent speech synthesizers and blank braille displays. When the synthesizers began to go silent and the braille displays revealed only blank lines, the job opportunities began decreasing. While Microsoft is making some noises about helping solve some of the graphical computer problems, and while IBM has done an excellent job making its screen reader program accessible in its OS/2 operating system, we're still losing more ground than we're gaining in terms of our ability to access information. For example, "USA Today," once available in an electronic text format, has gone to a completely graphical interface. The paper's parent company isn't concerned about your ability to access it. You can access the paper via telephone; and while that's certainly OK, it lacks the portability and convenience of text files which can be copied to portable machines like the Braille 'N Speak or transferred to another computer via disk. CompuServe has long been a place where many blind and low vision computer users could connect with one another and with the world. It, too, seems headed for graphics land. Delphi, another on-line service popular with blind computer users, will apparently retain its text-based system for a while, but it seems to be placing greater emphasis on graphics. What's wrong with these trends? Actually, nothing. The graphical computer interface is an appropriate evolution in which blind and partially sighted people will undoubtedly participate to whatever degree possible. The temptation is to curl up in some kind of fetal-position paralysis and assume nothing can be done to stop the slide toward graphics. Rather, we ought to assume that nothing should be done to stop the slide, but that we can do things to slow it down somewhat while we work at getting more involved in the graphical dimension. I'm most worried, frankly, about our approach. Don't misunderstand. We must keep educating legislators and conversing with industry representatives to ensure our position on the info superhighway. My fear is that in the effort to do all that educating and conversing, we won't take full advantage of the programs that are available for our use, and we won't remember to lend positive vocal and monetary support to those companies who provide text-based information until we can handle the graphical scene more proficiently. For several years now, the ACB national office has assisted a local theater in the braille production of programs for audio- described plays. On one occasion, our printer malfunctioned briefly, and we were able to deliver only a limited number of braille programs to the theater. I wondered in subsequent days why the theater never called to ask for additional programs. I later learned that none of them had been used throughout the show's run. There may be dozens of reasons why that was the case. Perhaps the play was bad; perhaps the weather was bad; perhaps those who attended the audio-described play simply didn't read braille or didn't want a program. This is not a personal attack on Washington-area braille-reading theater patrons. The point is, regardless of the reasons, the braille apparently went unused. There will be a conference in Washington in June regarding audio description. Can we genuinely hope to expand this service if we fail to utilize it where it already exists? I'm not suggesting that those with limited incomes or limited desire to use computers rush into debt to purchase something so we can connect to the text-based computer services that are left just because they're there. I'm not advocating that we go to plays, even if we don't like them, just because they're audio-described. But all of us, regardless of income or technical ability, can and must do something. We have to change our mind set from one of merely educating, conversing, and sometimes demanding to one that mandates use of whatever services are accessible to us. There are a lot of mean-spirited comments about the outrageousness of federal regulations circulating both inside and outside the beltway where braille on drive-up automatic teller machines is concerned. Those comments, which in their most insidious form, undermine the spirit of the ADA, will fade into embarrassed silence only when people see you and me using those very machines. If you aren't a braille reader or don't have any desire to use an ATM, perhaps you could at least use the computerized telephone service offered by many banks that lets you get a verbal peek at your accounts. Part of using current technology to our benefit is telling those who operate it that it's valuable to us. Sometimes, that's actually the hardest part þ finding the right name to whom we can send those positive comments. Complimenting those who provide services that make our lives better is as important as conversing with industry leaders and educating legislators about our accessibility needs. Some would argue that because we are such a small subset of the population, it doesn't matter whether we speak up in support of quality services. My response to that is, "That's true only if we collectively throw up our hands and do nothing." As always, doing nothing is the easiest and most costly course. That's the course I almost took in March when I received Steve Bauer's story entitled "Are You A News Hound?" As I read his story in preparation for including it in this magazine, I thought, "It can't be as good as he says. That's impossible." I called him back to make sure the $4.95 per month price was accurate; it was. Even then, I almost decided not to sign up. Finally, I reasoned that signing up with NewsHound, a product of the San Jose Mercury- News, which sends stories into your computer mailbox based on profiles you create, would be beneficial to me personally and professionally. I signed up. My only regret now is that I didn't do it earlier in 1995 when I first heard of it. I did nothing in those first couple of months, and paid a real price in terms of information access þ a much more expensive one than the one I now pay the Mercury-News people for their service. We must do what we can within budget and reason to support organizations that provide accessible information. For some of us, it will mean something as simple as buying a Tupperware bowl as opposed to a Rubbermaid product that doesn't have braille on it. Perhaps in a decade when we've made the transition to a more graphical world we will look back on the tools we use today with a fondness similar to that I still feel for a now-battered little train. I brought that train out one day to show my daughters. "This is really old," my 11-year-old said dubiously. "When did you get this?" When I told them, my five- year-old's voice filled with amazement as she said, "1965! Was that before or after Jesus was born?" "Way before!" my 13-year-old answered resoundingly, seeing an opportunity to get a good age dig in on dear old Dad. I set my five-year-old straight concerning my age relative to that of Jesus and turned the train on. They were moderately impressed, but clearly the magic wasn't there for them. "Did they even have plastic in those days?" my seven-year-old wondered. With resignation, I turned it off, removed the batteries, and put it away. The magic just isn't there for them the way it was for me, and I understand why. They never made it part of their lives as I did. They didn't use it þ harness its power þ learn its characteristics and quirks. It is so with us and the technology and products we need now and in the future. The so-called magic of tomorrow's socioeconomic successes for blind and visually impaired people depends largely on our willingness to positively and vocally support today's companies who provide accessible products and services while we simultaneously work toward our future. Our only hope for a smooth and successful transition or lane change on the info superhighway is to use what we have while we advocate for what we need. FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE For the first time in my life I am able to walk over to my branch library of the Salt Lake Public Library, three blocks away from my home, and borrow books that I can read. The other day I walked over and picked up two books I had requested through inter- library loan: "Elk Below!" by Olsen and "The History of the Utah Idaho Sugar Company" by Arrington, and I took them home and read them on my reading machine. Later I visited Sam Weller's Book Store, the best little book store in Utah, and bought Arrington's new two-volume history of Idaho, "Law and Life" by Maule, which had been published in 1909, a book on Joe Hill, and one titled "The Proper Edge of the Sky." I read these volumes with my reading machine. I did not check with the Utah Library for the Blind or Recording for the Blind in New Jersey because they would never have such books. These obscure books are of personal interest to me, and for the first time in my life I can independently satisfy my personal reading interests by visiting my branch library. The mail arrives. I can go over it, read what interests me and discard the rest in the circular file. There are magazines to read, "The Historical Quarterly" and "AFSCME." People send me typewritten reports. After they are scanned, they are incorporated into reports that I am writing. The latest version of the income tax software arrives. I scan it and study it closely. It has been some time since I have visited the Block brothers. The reading machine contains other computer manuals, and in their ascii format I can search them for particular strings of text. When I asked the computer to search the Spanish translation program for the word "automatic" it brought me right to the command I was looking for. My home has two book cases full of books which might be called a very narrow selection of Western Americana. I have suffered someone to read them aloud to me. Some I even tape recorded. Now I can reread them, or read the unread ones. I notice in publications of the blindness community that laws requiring the teaching of braille to blind adults and school students are advocated. With these advocates, the learning of braille has been elevated almost to a religious tenet. I know braille. I learned it 66 years ago at the Utah School for the Blind. The slate and stylus can be found in three different places in my house. The Perkins brailler frequently gets lost, and I have to go "looking" for it. I use braille for personal note taking: phone numbers, account numbers and so forth. But braille has its problems, which all of us know, and each problem limits its usefulness. Braille, originally devised as "night writing" for troops engaged in trench warfare during the Napoleonic Wars, was a duo-decimal (12-bit) binary code. Louis Braille got hold of it and cut it in half, creating a six-bit binary code, and called it braille. The braille bit (braille binary integer) exists as a punched dot on paper, or no punched dot on paper, thus achieving its binary designation. As they exist today, the six braille dots are arranged two dots wide and three dots high. A six-bit (nothing to do with the price of a haircut) binary system permits 64 distinct combinations, which could represent 64 symbols, including the blank space. That was enough for 26 letters of the alphabet, 10 numbers and some punctuation marks. Wasn't that enough distinct symbols for what blind people needed to know 150 years ago? Braille has suffered ever since because of its ability to represent only 64 distinct symbols. The problem was further compounded when persons came along and took this too-few-symbols system and invented braille shorthand, and called it grade one and a half, grade two, and heaven forbid grade three. As computers came along an octal (eight-bit) binary code was adopted. The octal binary code permits 256 distinct symbols. Braille has suffered ever since from this dysfunction. Probably the best chance that braille might have had to conform to the computer age would have been to adopt the New York Point system of braille. In New York Point, which was abandoned 100 years ago, the braille symbol is two dots high and of variable width. A New York Point slate had two rows of continuous dots extending from one side of the slate to the other. Thus a symbol might be one dot wide, two dots wide, three dots wide or four dots wide. It could have conformed to an eight-bit system with 256 symbols. Arnold Sadler of Seattle had a rather complete collection of braille slates, and his New York Point slate was the only one I ever observed. I understand that there is a version or versions of eight-dot braille, but I have never "seen" a sample of it. It would, at this late date, only add to the storage problems of braille and cause learning problems for those who have learned six-dot braille. The dysfunction between the six-bit braille code and the eight-bit print code has caused compromises (attempts to represent more than 64 symbols with a six-bit code), which has made the braille code a complex reading media. Thus, do dots two, five and six mean the punctuation mark "period," or the number four, or the dollar sign, or the letters "dis"? Is the period mark dots two, five and six, or is it dots four and six? Is the dollar sign dots two, five and six, or is it dots one, two, four and six? Do the dots two, three and six mean the opening quotation mark, or the number eight, or the question mark, or the word "his?" Do dots two, three and six mean the question mark, or is the question mark dots one, four, five and six? And on and on! You have to read braille in context. More than 150 years after the adoption of braille technology the blind community is still meeting, attempting to devise a satisfactory braille code. The braille code is a complex code and most people do not learn it. Only a small portion of the patrons of libraries for the blind use braille. Another problem with braille is its bulk. The devisers of braille shorthand attempted to solve this problem by creating grades one and a half, two and three, (Alice Olson may you rest in peace) but failed. In the future I will not curl up with a good braille book before a crackling fire in the fireplace, because there are no braille books in my home, except a few braille chess books, one of which was printed in London in 1898. I have received a computer magazine in braille. The multi-volume monthly magazine occupies 966 cubic inches or .56 cubic feet. I would like to save the magazine; some of the articles are pertinent to my computing set-up. It, without any ads, occupies at least 60 times as much space as its ink-print version. It occupies thousands of times more space than would its computer version. I would need a shelf- lined room to retain the copies, so I cut the pertinent articles from the magazine, but there is no standard filing cabinet for this saved material. Eventually all go into the recycle bin. I phone the library for the blind and ask them to stop sending the magazine. The supermarket has computer magazines now available to me. Oh yes, has anybody ever measured the energy required in reading ink-print material as compared to the energy required in reading braille? I suppose not. The eye movements and the hand motion to turn pages required in ink-print reading are modest in energy consumption. However, a person's arms weigh several pounds and they both go through a range of motion for each line of braille read. In addition to the horizontal motion of the arms and hands, I suspect there is also a vertical motion of the fingers in reading braille. I suspect the energy consumption is greater than for ink- print reading. I have always regarded a library for the blind as a temporary collection of a small portion of the reading material one would find in the public library. Today I called the Utah Library for the Blind and asked them if they had the book "Wolf Willow" by Wallace Stegner. I received a negative answer. My branch library has the book. So did the library for the blind at one time, and when I listened to it I made a tape recording which I still have. In the 1940s I used to visit the Salt Lake City Library for the Blind when it was at the Salt Lake City Public Library in the middle of town, in the building that is now known as the Hansen Planetarium; Doris Whittier was the librarian. I used to go through the braille material in the stacks. There were no other blind people in the stacks, only sighted people searching through the printed books that occupied the same section of the stacks. Now the same library is well out of town, in an industrial area near a major highway without stop lights or a sidewalk, and two blocks from a bus stop. Not so user-friendly, I would say. There are probably few blind visitors to the location. I have always felt the library wanted to determine your reading interest and then send you through the mail as many books as might conceivably fit your reading interest. I have always told the library, "Don't send books until I request them." Robert Irwin was the first executive director of the American Foundation for the Blind in New York City. The foundation may have had something to do with the development of the "talking book machine" and recorded many of the "talking book records." Each time the foundation would record a book they would present a set of the records to Mr. Irwin. When Robert Irwin retired to Port Orchard, Wash., he presented this collection to the Washington School for the Blind at Vancouver. One day I called at the Vancouver school and visited the library. The librarian explained the collection, and we tried a couple of the titles on the talking book machine. The recordings were almost impossible to understand. Obviously the records had deteriorated since they were manufactured. The collection seemed only temporary. Arnold Sadler and I used to have what could be called audio versus braille arguments. In his law office in Seattle he had a computer, and connected it to a braille printer. Arnold believed in braille, and the braille printer printed whatever was on the screen as well as the files he wished to print in braille. I had a computer with a speech synthesizer attached to it. It spoke what was on the computer screen, computer commands or files. When I wanted a file printed, I printed it on a dot matrix printer. I did not want a hard copy of the computer command on the screen any more than a sighted person would want a hard copy of it. When it was spoken, or when it was seen, it had served its purpose. Well, Arnold used a lot of braille paper. I used to carry some of it away and use the unused side for note taking. I still have some of it, though Arnold has been dead for several years. And so I use braille as a method of personal note taking. There will be, or perhaps there is already, electronic personal note taking systems that may be as good as or better than braille. When the electronic method of personal note taking comes, it will have provisions for files and a system for searching, which will eliminate my vain efforts to find that telephone number I recently wrote in braille and now cannot find. The blind community should adopt the rapid advances in communication technology and use the technology to its advantage. If the blindness community insists on the use of a technology more than 150 years old, the rapidly advancing communications technology may bypass the blindness community, and there is already some evidence that that is already happening. However, advances in information technology will begin to question the bureaucracy and cost of the Library of Congress Division for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, 50 or more different state libraries for the blind, regional libraries for the blind, private libraries for the blind such as the one in New Jersey, printing houses for the blind such as those in Louisville, Cincinnati and Boston, studios where they read books on audio tape for blind people, makers of braille writers and braille printers, contractors who manufacture slow-playing phonographs or clunky tape playback machines for the government, the need for religious organizations to publish special items for the blind, the need for the state and local governments to publish voters' pamphlets in a special form for blind people, or, the unthinkable, even the need for hundreds of teachers who teach braille. That is a sizable bureaucracy and a sizable cost. Perhaps the sizable cost could be saved and diverted to providing the right technology for blind people. In the meantime I will visit my branch library of the public library, which is nearby, and borrow those print books that interest me. Don Crawford, Salt Lake City, Utah AFFILIATE NEWS OHIO GUIDE DOGS An Ohio chapter of Guide Dog Users Inc. is now forming. An organizational meeting will be held Friday, November 3 during the ACB of Ohio state convention for those interested. To help build awareness for this new group, a quarterly newsletter called "Harness in Hand" began this spring. If you would like more information, contact Jenine McKeown Guide Dog Users Inc., 1815 Gardenstone Dr., Columbus, OH 43235; phone (614) 766-5524. 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. 10,000TH BRAILLE BOOK "Brother Eagle, Sister Sky: A Message from Chief Seattle" has become the 10,000th mass-produced braille book to be published by the National Library Service for the Blind, according to its newsletter. The book, published in print/braille format, rolled off the presses of National Braille Press in Boston. The story was drawn from a powerful speech delivered by Chief Seattle, leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes of the Pacific Northwest in the 1850s. NEW YORK REUNION The Alumni Association of the New York State School for the Blind is holding its annual reunion at the Sheraton in Batavia June 23-25, 1995. Anyone who went to Batavia is invited. If you can't come, we invite you to send in $5 dues, become a member and get a bulletin. Contact Pat Rescorl, 268 Meigs St., Rochester, NY 14607; phone (716) 244-9433. GW MICRO CARD GW Micro now has a PCMCIA voice synthesizer. This high-quality type II PCMCIA speech synthesizer is manufactured by PalseData of New Zealand. This synthesizer is a great solution for people with laptop systems who want complete portability. We will be selling this synthesizer for $1,075. In addition, through May 31, 1995, we will be offering this synthesizer for $999. For information please feel free to write or call Michael D. Lawler, Internet mdlawler@gwmicro.com (219) 483-3625; fax (219) 482-2492; BBS (219) 484-0210. NEW BOOKS FROM NBP Several books are now available in braille from National Braille Press. "In the Kitchen with Rosie" þ Rosie Daley, Oprah Winfrey's cook - contains 50 recipes for dishes Oprah enjoys because they have helped her lose weight and feel good. This book is two volumes in braille, and costs $14.95. "Windows from the Keyboard" shows readers how to navigate through Microsoft Windows without a mouse. It includes Quick Reference Keystroke Command Charts for Windows 3.1 and Word for Windows, Ami Pro for Windows, WordPerfect for Windows, Quattro Pro for Windows, Excel for Windows and Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows. When necessary, screens are described in detail. This book is four volumes in braille, and costs $16.95. To order either of these books, contact National Braille Press, 88 St. Stephen St., Boston, MA 02115; phone (617) 266-6160 to charge it with MasterCard or Visa. TOY RESOURCE The National Lekotek Center now has a toll-free toy resource help line. The phone number is (800) 366-PLAY (800-366-7529); TDD (708) 328-0001. Using it, parents, family members and friends of children with disabilities who are not within reach of a Lekotek center can receive individual consultation on toys and play over the phone. The help line is available Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Central time. This resource line was made possible by a three-year grant from Toy Manufacturers of America. FINANCIAL AID INFO The HEATH Resource Center of the American Council on Education has a paper available to help students with disabilities untangle the complex process of obtaining financial aid. "1995 Financial Aid for Students with Disabilities" describes the process and the roles played by agencies with a major part in providing aid to students with disabilities. The paper also lists resources for those seeking financial aid. Single copies are available free of charge from HEATH, One Dupont Circle, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20036-1193; phone (800) 544-3284 or (202) 939-9320. RFB WINNERS Recording for the Blind has selected its 1995 Mary P. Oenslager Scholastic Achievement Awards winners. The $5,000 award winners are: Richard Chen, a Harvard University senior; Don Hunter, a senior at the University of California-Berkeley; and Shawn Mayo, a student at Bradley University. Special Honors winners, who receive $2,000 each, are: John M. Allen, a student at Valdosta State University; Charles Piscitello, a student at Empire State College; and Bradley J. Strause, a student at Western Michigan University. Honors winners, who receive $1,000 each, are: SaVannah M. Roberson, a student at the University of Southwestern Louisiana; Kathryn A. Keenan, a student at the University of Minnesota; and Amanda Marie Durik, a student at Centre College. TALKING PRODUCTS The new "Speak to Me" catalog specializes in products that can talk or let you record your own voice. Some new products are personal recorders ranging from 10 to 120 seconds of recording time; novelty clocks; talking caller ID phones, and a talking bread machine. There are many fun novelty items as well, such as talking salt and pepper shakers, spatulas, toothbrushes, forks and spoons, birthday candles and a singing happy birthday bear. To receive your free spring '95 catalog, call (800) 248-9965 and request a print, cassette or IBM floppy disk copy. Or send e-mail to sethr@netcom.com to receive an ASCII text version at your e-mail address. PERFECT SCRIBE ARTS Computer Products has recently released "Perfect Scribe" for WordPerfect version 6.0. The tutorial contains 11 short, simple lessons. All displays are given careful, complete verbal descriptions. It is available in braille, print, disk and large print. For more information, call (617) 547-5320. ATTORNEYS WANTED Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America is looking for attorneys interested in Randolph-Sheppard laws. Currently, Robert Humphreys is the legal counsel on a national basis. But many cases come up in individual states that are impossible for him to handle. He is available for consultation by any other attorney with legal questions. If you are interested or wish to have a packet explaining the Randolph-Sheppard laws, contact Ardis Bazyn, 2816 Glen Elm Dr. NE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52402; phone (319) 378-1759. CATALOG WINS AWARD The Arkenstone 1994 catalog "Shared Visions þ Information Access for Everyone from Arkenstone," has won the Award of Merit for excellence in writing and design from the Society for Technical Communication. Society judges stated that the catalog combined the arts and humanities with sales, which made it a very unusual sales brochure. For a copy, call Arkenstone at (800) 444-4443. NORTHEAST FEAST The Connecticut Council of the Blind now has "Home Cookin' þ The Northeast Feast" available on three two-track cassettes. CCB members have shared 185 of their favorite recipes, from appetizers to desserts. To order your copy, send a $13 check payable to the Connecticut Council of the Blind, 20 Towne House Rd., Hamden, CT 06514. 15TH EDITION Vision Foundation, Inc. has recently published the 15th edition of its resource list. More than 100 items are listed; 23 items have been added since the list's last edition. Items are available in a range of formats including print, large print, braille, cassette and disk. Not every item is available in all formats. For a copy of the list, contact the Vision Foundation at 818 Mt. Auburn St., Watertown, MA 02172; phone (617) 926-4232. ACCESSIBLE MAGAZINE "Disability Benefits in Brief," a magazine published by the Disability Benefits Association, is now available in print, cassette, diskette (IBM or Macintosh) or by modem. It gives the layperson's definitions of jargon from the Social Security Administration, reports on pending changes in Social Security regulations being discussed in Congress, and much more. To get a free sample copy, write to Rehab Info/DBA, 495 E. Ellefson St., Iola, WI 54945 or phone (715) 445-4755. A year's subscription costs $35 for people with disabilities or their parents, and $75 for professionals, agencies, institutions, etc. MAB CATALOG The Massachusetts Association for the Blind has a 1995 store catalog available that's chock full of low-tech aids and items for the blind and visually impaired, including large print address books, talking clocks and watches, jumbo cards and games for all ages. The catalog is available in large print, cassette or braille. And if you would like it on disk, send a disk to the store at 200 Ivy St., Brookline, MA 02146. To receive a copy, call (617) 732-0246. TEXAS LIONS CAMP The Texas Lions Camp provides opportunities for children with various disabilities ages 9 to 16 to have the same camping experiences þ swimming, horseback riding, crafts, etc. Kids learn to take care of themselves and share common problems in a safe setting, and their experience widens as they help other children whose disabilities differ from their own. The camp is funded by Lions Clubs throughout the state, who also pay all campers' expenses. If you wish to contribute to the fund, write to the Texas Lions Camp, P.O. Box 247, Kerrville, TX 78029-0247. If you're interested in the alumni association, call the camp at (210) 896-8500. ARKENSTONE GROWING Arkenstone Inc. recently hired Cathy Mack as its field sales manager, according to its recent press release. Mack has more than 16 years of experience in the blindness field. She has been a product manager and key accounts manager for TeleSensory, and was an itinerant teacher of the visually impaired for five years. NEW GLASSES Systems of Sight has developed new glasses to help people who have macular degeneration. The glasses are designed for patients with central vision loss who can benefit from an advanced visual aid. They use a set of prism lenses in combination with corrective lenses to direct and intensify focused light on healthy areas of the retina. These glasses are the result of more than 20 years of research, development and testing. For more information, contact Systems of Sight at 29 W. Milwaukee St., Janesville, WI 53545; phone (800) 957-8400. NEW AT ARTIC Artic Technologies recently released WinVision 2, a major upgrade to the WinVision package that has provided speech access to Microsoft Windows for nearly two years. New features include Doc- u-pilot, which allows review of the entire document, spreadsheet mode, reading Borland-style dialogue boxes, and many more. For more information, contact your local representative, or call Artic Technologies at (810) 588-7370; write the company at 55 Park St., Troy, MI 48083. Artic has also released TransType, a personal talking notetaker. It's small enough to hold in one hand, lightweight, and includes a slide-out battery. It has a custom-designed qwerty keyboard, and can store thousands of memos, names, phone numbers, etc. For more information on TransType, call Artic at the number above. MAKE NEW FRIENDS Out of Sight Friends is a support group on cassette tape where blind and visually impaired people share their successes and failures at coping with blindness in daily living. Information on products, resources and services for the blind are also shared. Write for information in braille, cassette or typewritten to Out of Sight Friends, 610 B Ave., Vinton, IA 52349; phone (319) 472-2393 after noon. CRAFT POTPOURRI Horizons for the Blind has a craft book collection titled "Craft Potpourri." The collection includes afghans, sweaters, slippers, toys, seasonal and household items and much more. Each book is spiral bound and labeled in large print or braille on the cover for easy reference. To order, send a check or money order for $11.95 for your first book, "Seasonal Items," to Horizons for the Blind, 16A Meadowdale Center, Carpentersville, IL 60110. Please specify braille or large print. Along with your book, you will receive an order form for the next book, "Slippers." All issues are $11.95. If you have any questions, contact Horizons at (708) 836-1400. HUMAN ANATOMY "Basic Human Anatomy" is an 18-drawing, 31-page supplement of tactile drawings that show cross-sectional views of the head and brain, nose-mouth-throat, tooth, respiratory tract, heart, digestive system, villus, urinary tract, kidney, nephron, nerve, eye, ear, skin, male and female reproductive systems, and fetus in the womb. Drawings are labelled with keys that give the technical term and familiar name. These drawings are useful for health, general science, biology courses, or general knowledge. It costs $15, which includes shipping and handling. Send your name and address along with your check made out to The Princeton Braillists, 28-B Portsmouth St., Whiting, NJ 08759. For more information, contact Ruth Bogia at (908) 350-3708 or Nancy Amick at (609) 924- 5207. BRAILLE PAMPHLETS The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children now has two new publications in braille: "My 8 Rules for Safety" and "Tips to Help Prevent the Abduction and Sexual Exploitation of Your Children." The rules pamphlet has safety tips for kids; the second booklet is a summary of the center's general safety tips for parents. Single copies of these booklets are available free by calling (800) 843-5678 or by writing to NCMEC at 2101 Wilson Blvd., Suite 550, Arlington, VA 22201-3052. NEW AIDS The Central Illinois Sight Center has two newly available aids. One, a reading stand, has five different angles of adjustment. It costs $94.50. The talking analog/digital watch has a gold face, chrome case and adjustable bracelet band. The quartz timepiece gives an hourly announcement, plus alarm announcement with a rooster sound. A long-life lithium and button battery included; it also comes with a one-year warranty. For more information, contact the center at (309) 698-4001, or write to the Central Illinois Sight Center, 117 E. Washington St., East Peoria, IL 61611-2527. WINDOW SHOPPER Independent Living Aids introduced a product called Window Shopper at the Food Marketing Institute Convention in early May. Window Shopper is a portable CCTV that has been mounted into a standard supermarket cart, enabling the user to read price stickers and label ingredients on a 12-inch monitor, giving 10x magnification. ILA encourages readers to tell their local supermarkets about it. For more information, call (800) 537-2118. NEW PRESIDENT Linda K. Merrill, president of Wichita Industries and Services for the Blind, was recently elected to a two-year term as president of the General Council of Workshops for the Blind, according to a publication of the National Industries for the Blind. VOLUNTEER SERVICES Volunteer Services for the Visually Handicapped, Inc., is a nonprofit organization which tapes and brailles on an as-needed basis. For more information, contact them at 803 W. Wells St., Milwaukee, WI 53233-1436; phone (414) 286-3039. SCHOOL NEEDS HELP R.N. Special School for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind in India needs help. It needs braille writing materials, eating utensils, and other equipment as well as financial assistance. It also needs hearing aids, educational tapes, braille books, braille dictionaries and cassette dictionaries. If you have any of these you can spare, send them to R.N. Special School for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind, c/o Mr. S. Behera, Organizing Secretary, At Gopalpur, P.O. Ganijang, Bhadrak District, Orissa-9, 756114 India. BOOKS AVAILABLE Several books are available from Demos Publications. "Tax Options and Strategies for People with Disabilities," by Steven Mendelsohn, explains some little-understood provisions of tax law and how it affects disabled people. It's available in softcover book, cassette and disk (upon request), and costs $19.95. Also available is "A Guide to Independence for the Visually Impaired and Their Families" by Vivian Younger and Jill Sardegna. It deals with problems of the newly blind and gives numerous contacts. It's available in softcover book and on disk for $19.95. To order, send your name, address, payment (including $4 per order for postage) and request to Demos Publications, 386 Park Ave. S, Suite 201, New York, NY 10016. For fast ordering, call (800) 532-8663. INDIA'S SCHOOL NEEDS HELP The Bengali, India Boys' School for the Blind needs Perkins braillers. If you can help, send your donated brailler to Jackie Allen at 22828 Alice St., Hayward, CA 94541. AUDIO BOOK CLUB The Audio Book Club is a membership-based, negative option club that offers thousands of audio book titles in various categories to its members. Books aren't limited to cassettes; the club has already begun offering books in CD format in the classics category and plans to expand its CD offerings into additional categories. For more information, contact the club at 2295 Corporate Blvd. NW, Suite 222, Boca Raton, FL 33431-0810; phone (407) 241-1426. BLAZE, CALL HOME According to a recent press release, BellSouth Corp. recently gave Blaze, the mascot for the 1996 Atlanta Paralympic Games, a birthday gift worth calling home about þ the corporation signed on as a sponsor of the games. Through its sponsorship, BellSouth will provide the Atlanta Paralympic Organizing Committee with local telecommunications, mobile data, cellular and paging services valued at $4 million. BellSouth will also provide employees to implement and monitor the systems. The 1996 games will be held August 16-27. VIDEO PACKET "Accommodations and Modifications," the widely acclaimed satellite teleconference, is now available for $29.95. Written materials are available in alternative media. To order, contact the Learning Disabilities Research and Training Center, UGA, 534 Aderhold Hall, Athens, GA 30602; phone (706) 542-1300. The additional charge for a typed transcript in regular format is $9. POSS-ABILITIES PLUS Are you disabled? Do you receive disability benefits? Poss- Abilities Plus can help you save between $4,000 and $10,000 to use to start a business or go to college. Call Karen or Jerry at (800) 353-2320. BLUE RIDGE PLAYERS The Blue Ridge Radio Players is a non-profit, tax-exempt corporation of volunteers who make half-hour audio dramas of famous stories for the visually impaired. There are 13 dramas available, and more in production. They are: "Afterward" by Edith Wharton; "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" by Ambrose Bierce; "The Brightest and the Best" by Phil Johnson; "The Celebrated Jumping Frog" by Mark Twain; "The Dreadful Dragon of Oz" by Hendrik Booraem; "Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry; "How Santa Claus Came to Simpson's Bar" by Bret Harte; "Jeff Peters as a Personal Magnet" by O. Henry; "Jury of Her Peers" by Susan Glaspell; "Molly O' þ A Love Story" by Hendrik Booraem; "The Monkey's Paw" by W.W. Jacobs; "The Necklace" by Guy DeMaupassant; "The Phantom of the Opera" by Gaston Lereaux; "The Red-Headed League" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; "The Sign of 4" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; "The Spectre Bridegroom" by Washington Irving, and "The Wizard of Oz" by L. Frank Baum. Cassettes are loaned to the legally blind at no cost. For more information, write to the Blue Ridge Radio Players at P.O. Box 933, Hendersonville, N.C. 28793, or phone (704) 692-0621. CLOTHING BOOK "Dressing Tips and Clothing Resources for Making Life Easier" by Shelley Peterman Schwarz is a reference guide for people with special dressing needs. It's a spiral-bound, large print book that offers hundreds of tips and techniques to make dressing easier. It also lists more than 100 resources offering specially designed or adapted clothing. The book is also available on cassette or computer disk. It costs $18.95 plus $3 shipping. Quantity discounts are available. For more information, contact Shelley Peterman Schwarz, 933 Chapel Hill Rd., Madison, WI 53711; phone (608) 274-4380. HIGH TECH SWAP SHOP FOR SALE: Navigator 40-cell braille display with software and cables. Print and braille manuals included. Asking $2,000 or best offer. Contact Kim Lingo at (619) 696-6878 (work), or (619) 222- 1477 (home). FOR SALE: Braille 'n' Speak 640, 1992 revision. All manuals and cables. Asking $950. Call Susan at (617) 437-9238. WANTED TO BUY: Used Perkins Brailler, contact Margaret Siems, (814) 342-4353. WANTED TO BUY: Braille 'n' Speak 640K in good condition with manuals, etc. Write Michael Pennington, Box 423, Kurtistown, HI 96760; phone (808) 966-7545. WANTED: Used braille writers in good condition. Urgently needed for blind students in Sri Lanka. Will be hand-carried to the school for the blind. Any items, including slate and stylus, braille watches, etc., will be greatly appreciated. Contact Dr. Paula deSilva at (203) 249-8525 extension 2260. WANTED TO BUY: Disk drive for a Versabraille II+. Call Leonard Suchanek at (703) 237-7934. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ACB wishes to thank its many members and friends who gave so generously in response to our fall 1995 letter requesting support for ACB's ongoing programs and services. This partial list of donors reflects only those people who gave us their approval to acknowledge their gifts publicly, and whose names did not make it into the March 1995 issue. Denyse Eddy, Winter Park, FL; Glenn Wiemer, Glenview, IL; Ken Morlock, Columbus, OH; Sue Ammeter, Seattle, WA; Mucie M. Allred, Weirton, WV; Mary Mahoney, Silver Spring, MD; James Kracht, Miami, FL; Kevin Berkery, Burbank, CA; Caroline Martin, San Clemente, CA; Michael Glanovsky, Bristol, CT; Members of the Dunes Park Chapter of OCB, Gardiner, OR. ACB BOARD OF DIRECTORS Sue Ammeter, Seattle, WA Ardis Bazyn, Cedar Rapids, IA Patricia Beattie, Arlington, VA Christopher Gray, San Jose, CA John Horst, Wilkes-Barre, PA Jean Mann, Guilderland, NY Kristal Platt, Omaha, NE M.J. Schmitt, Berwyn, IL Pamela Shaw, Silver Spring, MD Otis Stephens, Ph.D., Knoxville, TN Richard Villa, Bedford, TX BOARD OF PUBLICATIONS Billie Jean Hill, Chairperson, Alexandria, VA Kim Charlson, Watertown, MA Thomas Mitchell, North Salt Lake City, UT Mitch Pomerantz, Los Angeles, CA Edward Potter, Goldsboro, NC Ex Officio: Laura Oftedahl, Watertown, MA ACB OFFICERS PRESIDENT LEROY SAUNDERS 2118 N.W. 21st ST. OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 73107 FIRST VICE PRESIDENT CHARLES S.P. HODGE 1131 S. FOREST DR. ARLINGTON, VA 22204 SECOND VICE PRESIDENT STEPHEN SPEICHER 825 M ST., SUITE 216 LINCOLN, NE 68508 SECRETARY PATRICIA PRICE 5707 BROCKTON DRIVE #302 INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46220 TREASURER BRIAN CHARLSON 57 GRANDVIEW AVENUE WATERTOWN, MA 02172 CONTRIBUTING EDITOR ELIZABETH M. LENNON