Stream Newswire - New Download Resource Page

I will be adding these links to the VR Stream Users site in a couple of days:

Dear Victor Reader Stream Friends:

The Victor Reader Stream, the world acclaimed accessible audio player, welcomes 2009 with a new download resource page and new software releases.

The first month of 2009 is almost complete and we want to bring you the latest news regarding Victor Reader Stream.

Firstly, a new resource page for finding download content for your Stream is now available on the Stream product and support pages.
Many of you have told us that the Internet is so vast it is difficult to know where to begin looking for content that you can download and enjoy on your Stream. To help you get started we have compiled a web page of sample Internet sources for digital books, music, podcasts as well as information about DAISY libraries. The new download resource page can be found at:
http://www.humanware.com/en-canada/support/find_content_for_stream

Here you will find sections for English, French, and German download sources as well as links to DAISY libraries.

We are also pleased to inform you that we are busy working on new software releases for both the Stream and Stream Companion. As we near the completion of these projects we will be able to confirm the new features and release date for these free software upgrades.

So stay tuned to this Stream Newswire as we will soon be able to tell you about new and fun ways to use your Stream.

Thank you ,
The HumanWare Team

Serotek to Launch Online Radio Station

Looks like ACB Radio will have some competition. There's nothing wrong with that; I wish Serotek the best

 

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From: Serotek Announcements [mailto:noreply@serotek.com]
Sent: Tuesday, January 27, 2009 12:15 PM
To: jamiepauls@sbcglobal.net
Subject: Serotek to Launch Online Radio Station

Please do not reply to this message. If you don't wish to receive any more Serotek announcements, activate the link at the end of this message.

For Immediate Release

Media Contact:
pr@serotek.com
612.720.1068

Technical Contact :
info@serotek.com

Serotek to Launch Online Radio Station

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn - January 27, 2009 - Serotek Corporation, the leading provider of internet and digital information accessibility software and services, will launch a new online radio station this week. The station is called SAMNet Radio and can be heard from http://radio.samobile.net. The name of the station is derived from Serotek's online community, the System Access Mobile Network, or SAMNet. SAMNet Radio will air the best music of the last 40 years, the latest technology news, live and interactive voice chats, and a portal for all to know what is happening in the SAMNet community. Directed at an audience who is blind or has low vision, SAMNet Radio's slogan is "Your station, your community." The station's manager is Michael Lauf, former creator, host and producer of HandiTalk, the first interactive internet radio program to discuss the needs of the blind and visually impaired. "I'm excited to oversee a radio station that specializes in the needs and interests of the visually impaired community," said Michael Lauf, SAMNet Radio station manager, "The combination of music, home-grown podcasts, access technology news and interviews, and interactive talk shows, all on one radio station, will make us like no other entity in the world." The inaugural broadcast will stream live on Wednesday, January 28, from the Internet Café of the Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) annual conference in Orlando, Florida. Those unable to attend ATIA can hear what is happening at the event and stay abreast of news announced at the show. Reactions to the first broadcast will also be discussed during the next installment of Serotalk, Serotek's podcast and interactive blog. For more information about Serotalk, visit http://www.serotalk.com. To add the RSS feed for Serotalk to your web browser, news reader or podcatcher, visit http://serotalk.c! om/feed< /a>.

Serotek Corporation
Serotek Corporation is a leading technology company that develops software and manufactures accessibility solutions under the System Access brand. Committed to the mission of providing accessibility anywhere, Serotek began with the launch of the first online community specifically designed to meet the needs of people with visual impairment. Since then, Serotek has introduced several powerful, affordable solutions that require minimal training and investment. For more information, visit www.serotek.com.

 

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Giving Twitter A Chance!

I signed up with a Twitter account about a year ago and used it briefly, but just couldn't get into the swing of using it. Thanks to the Serotalk podcast discussed in my previous post, I decided to give it another go. After just one day, I think it is safe to say that I am hooked. I have a good friend who can't understand why anyone would text a person via cell phone when they could simply call them. As addictive as texting is, it does sound completely crazy when you try to explain it! I don't think I will even talk to my friend about Twitter!

A New Podcast In Town!

It has been a long time since I've been excited about a podcast. While I still enjoy Blind Cool Tech, it isn't the podcast it used to be. Don't take me wrong; I'm not criticizing anyone for not podcasting anymore. The AccessWatch podcast went by the wayside a long time ago. Nevertheless, it is a good feeling to be excited about a new podcast the way I was when I first discovered the medium eons ago.

 

The podcast that is causing me to check my RSS feeds anxiously these days is the Serotalk podcast. Unlike FSCast from Freedom Scientific which I also enjoy listening to, the Serotalk podcast does not focus exclusively on one company or one screen reader. While Serotek's System Access products are understandably front and center, much of the discussion translates to whatever your screen reader of choice might happen to be at the moment.

 

If you haven't checked it out lately, I strongly urge you to do so.

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Minor But Needed Updates To AccessWatch

I have just updated the AccessWatch web site to reflect the latest versions of screen readers and have added a bit of content as well. Not much new will be evident, but that will change soon.

IBM and GW Micro Join Steering Committee for Accessibility Interoperability Alliance Expanded Committee Drives Associations Strategic Mission

Way to go GW. Great news!

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WAKEFIELD, Mass. — August 4, 2008 — The Accessibility Interoperability Alliance (AIA), a coalition of leading information and assistive technology companies dedicated to enabling developers to more easily create accessible software, hardware and Web products, welcomes the addition of two new steering committee members: Doug Geoffray of GW Micro and Richard Schwerdtfeger of IBM.

The five-member Steering Committee guides the AIA in its mission to improve the lives of people who can benefit from accessibility technologies. The AIA accomplishes this by encouraging the enhancement of current technologies, creating new technologies, and promoting the implementation of APIs and specifications across platforms and the accessibility industry.

"We are very pleased to have Doug and Rich join the AIA leadership team. They both have a pragmatic understanding of the technical and business challenges facing the accessibility industry today, and have a long history of working across boundaries to advance the state of the art in accessibility," said Rob Sinclair, Chair of the Steering Committee and director of the Accessibility Business Unit at Microsoft. "Their technical expertise and long-standing relationships with members of the AIA make them highly valued additions to our Steering Committee. We look forward to working with them in this new capacity."

Richard Schwerdtfeger is a Distinguished Engineer, the IBM Software Group Accessibility Strategist and Architect, Chair of the IBM Accessibility Architecture Review Board, and a Master Inventor. His responsibilities include guiding the overall accessibility architecture and strategy for IBM Software Group and he participates in numerous W3C standards efforts including HTML, WAI Protocols and Formats, and Ubiquitous Web Applications. He chairs the W3C WAI-ARIA subcommittee accessibility effort for Web 2.0 applications as well as OASIS and IMS GLC Access for All accessibility standards efforts.

Doug Geoffray is co-owner of GW Micro, Inc. and leads the software development and product support groups. Geoffray has been developing assistive technology for more than 25 years. He currently oversees a team at GW Micro that focuses mainly on Window-Eyes, a leader in Windows screen readers.

About the Accessibility Interoperability Alliance (AIA)

Initiated by the accessibility industry, the AIA is a group of leading Information Technology (IT) and Assistive Technology (AT) companies, content providers, and other key engineering organizations, working to collaborate on the creation of solutions to long-standing compatibility problems that hinder the development of solutions for people with disabilities. Since its founding in 2007, AIA members have worked together to develop accessible technology for customers with disabilities. Founding members of AIA include Adobe Systems, BayFirst Solutions LLC, Microsoft, Novell Inc., Claro Software Ltd., Dolphin Computer Access, GW Micro, Inc., HiSoftware Inc., Madentec Inc., Texthelp Systems Inc. and QualiLife. More information about the AIA can be found at http://www.AccessInteropAlliance.org.  

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Of Lawsuits and Press Releases

Over the past several weeks, I have been trying to sort out my feelings concerning the lawsuit Freedom Scientific has filed against GW Micro over placemarkers on the Internet. The foremost emotion I have experienced is sadness. It is not often that a press release from a screen reader developer makes me sad. Usually, I smile when a new release of a screen reader comes out. I eagerly await the myriad of demonstrations and interviews touting new features. Occasionally I smile when a screen reader developer sponsors audio description of a TV show or participates in an episode of Home Makeover. Sadness is an emotion I experience less frequently. I dread the day that Fox News does a short piece on two screen reader developers suing one another over a feature that makes using the Internet easier for blind people. Another emotion I have been experiencing is anger—anger that we even have to talk about this at all; anger that I even care about patent infringement and HTML tags; anger that support lists are spending more time belittling the competition than dealing with real questions concerning how to use their favorite screen reader.
The last emotion I have been experiencing lately is fear. The stakes are really high for all of us—the developers and the users alike. This is no game and it’s not a TV show where everything will turn out right in the end; it’s reality in the most brutal sense of the word.
Everyone reading this probably has an opinion regarding who should or who will win this lawsuit if it ever goes to court. I am no different. I would submit for your consideration, however, the possibility that, in the end, nobody will win. That, my friends, is a truly sobering thought.