Good question, I guess I kind of forgot about the blog for the last few months.  I just don’t know what to post here half of the time.

 

So, what’s been going on?  Well the BGZ website is in the process of moving to a new hosting provider so there haven’t been any postings there for a bit now.  Rest assured audio postings there will start up again really soon, hopefully by mid November.  We’re moving to something called a Linode that a friend of mine is setting up.  It’s going to give me more flexibility to host other customers for less money as well as host the BGZ site.  So keep looking for updates there.

 

BGZ Radio is a new project I haven’t talked a lot about so here it goes.  I purchased a shoutcast stream from ultrahosts a couple of months ago and have been setting it up for use.  I’ve did some music there and on several occasions have streamed Movies described.  On September 23 we did our first BGZ livecast and I think it went pretty well.  I plan to do another here in November so keep check ing the BGZ main page for details of the next livecast.

 

As a result of doing the livecast on BGZ radio, I was convinced to audition and now broadcast on ACB Radio Interactive.  I’m one of their presenters there now.  I broadcast on Friday afternoons at 5pm eastern.  I’m on for 3 hours and play pop and rock from the 1960’s through the 1980’s.  It’s been a lot of fun and I’ve learned a lot about talking live.  It’s a lot harder than doing the blind geek zone podcasts for sure.  So come join me there on Fridays at 5pm Eastern time at:

 

 

It’s easy to listen with your favorite player.  I also take requests for songs during the show.

 

So that’s basically what’s been going on here the last 2 months now.  I will try to post here a bit more regularly.

 

—

Rick

 

Here is a post I received today and thought others might be interested in checking out:

 

Hear and There Audio Picture News,  Oil spill in the Gulf

We  audio describe important news stories from around the world. 

We describe the video you have heard but wondered what was going on in the pictures.

We  use widely distributed video clips of news events and describe the details of the images surrounding the newscasters.

“A picture paints a thousand words.”  we find the words that are the brush. 

In this episode we describe images from the oilspill in the gulf of Mexico. 

This clip is taken from The BBC.  It is entitled, “Deep oil drilling under the safety spotlight”

We chose this video because it shows a variety of images about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  As the reporter is speaking there are images of an oil industry shipping port, The pipe leaking oil on the sea floor, Graphs showing where oil is found and how deep they are drilling.  It also has images of oil rig platforms, pelicans covered in oil,  and deep sea robots at work.  We also describe satelie photos of the spill.

go to this link to listen http://twaud.io/mdD 
 
Thanks for listening,

There has been some talk today on Twitter saying that you and I as individuals don’t count or matter to Freedom Scientific since the bulk of their customer base is from state rehab and government  customers such as SSA and IRS and the VA.  I don’t have numbers but I’d assume 90% of Freedom Scientifics customers are from the above groups.  I originally got my copy of Jaws from state rehab but since that point I’ve paid more for my SMA’s and upgrade to Jaws professional to offset that original purchase from the state.

 

Most people in the blind community don’t really feel that they are customers or matter to Freedom Scientific these days.  Recent events such as the lawsuit against GW Micro and Enhanced Vision along with the new Braille initiative have many saying that Freedom Scientific no longer cares about us, just the dollars it gets from state and government customers.  I’ll go out on a limb here and say that many of the business practices lately have made it appear that Freedom Scientific cares more about dollars than helping blind persons to use their computers more effectively at home or on the job.  But is this really the case?  Freedom Scientific recently lowered the price of it’s most popular Braille display by almost 40%.  Surely this is a positive move?  Well many say if Freedom Scientific can afford to lower the prices of the display by nearly 40% then they are obviously profiting hugely.  I can understand where this would seem to be the case.  Also charging Braille companies $9000 plus $5000 a year for signed Braille drivers when no one else in the industry does this isn’t helping people to feel the love either.  I don’t really understand the reasoning behind Freedom Scientific charging these fees to companies that have a difficult time making money these days.  But I can also see that Freedom Scientific isn’t going to get rich anytime soon by charging these fees either!

 

Another thing that Freedom Scientific does to give themselves a negative image to many in the blind community is that it refuses to have any kind of lease to own program for either Jaws, Open Book or Magic making it nearly impossible for blind persons that can’t work or do not want to work to be able to afford the purchase price of their products.  I have to agree with everyone here and say that Freedom Scientific should offer some kind of purchase over time plan if it truly cares about the blind community.  Every other major competitor out there offers a lease to own plan.  This probably alone is the biggest thing that makes many of us feel Freedom Scientific doesn’t really see individual people as customers or show that it really cares about the blind community.

 

Then there is this business last week where one of the three Canadian distributors of Jaws was suddenly bumped supposedly because it was selling the competitions products along side of Jaws.  The company didn’t come right out and say this and Freedom Scientific apparently didn’t state why they dropped them.  So we all are coming to the conclusion that Freedom Scientific is bullying it’s distributors to only sale Freedom Scientific products.  To me this really doesn’t make a lot of business sense as competition is a good thing for everyone.  But once again the blind community perceives Freedom Scientific as being the big bully on the block. 

 

Sadly Freedom Scientific doesn’t ever try to improve it’s image with us either.  Basically they ignore everything many people are saying and go on with business as usual.  Seems to me that Freedom Scientific would have some kind of a public relations move to promote a more positive image to all of us in the blind community.  So why do they not? 

 

So this is where we come to the subject of my writing here today.  Do you and I still count?  Do you and I matter to Freedom Scientific these days.  I stated on Twitter that I feel I’m a customer of Freedom Scientific and do matter.  Sometimes I’m a happy customer and sometimes I’m not.   Some people on Twitter said that a certain person on Twitter that works for Freedom Scientific has un followed and in some cases blocked them because of comments made against Freedom Scientific.  I don’t know anything about any of this.  The only thing I do know is that I have been negative about Freedom Scientific on Twitter in the past and haven’t been blocked or un followed by this person.  The only thing I can make of this is that I try my best to be respectful when I make criticisms of Freedom Scientific.  I don’t curse them or call them names.  I only state the facts.  So maybe this is why I haven’t been blocked or un followed.  In my opinion, we all should be critical of Freedom Scientific when it’s warranted.  It’s our right to be critical when necessary.  We all do count as customers of Freedom Scientific and we should never feel that we are not.  If we believe we don’t count, then we will not count!

 

So is this perception or fact?  Does Freedom Scientific really not care about us or are we all just making something of nothing?  I personally believe that Freedom Scientific does try to listen to us and make Jaws a better product for all of us to use but I do also agree that Freedom Scientific has appeared over the last couple of years to present an image of not caring about the individual customer as much as they did in the past.  Maybe it’s time for Freedom Scientific to take a look at things and see what it can do to reverse this perceived image.  I’d love to hear from Freedom Scientific here, I’d also love to hear from everyone else here to.  So please flood me with comments here.  Please be respectful though or I’ll have to not post your opinions.

 

—

 

Rick

 

 

Well I hate to do this but due to all the constant spamming here on the blog with comments from anonymous spam bots, anonymous comments will no longer be accepted here.  From now on you will have to register to be able to post comments here on the blog.  I really don’t want to have to do this but with 50 to 100 spams a week now and growing, it’s becoming very time consuming to keep screening out the bots.

 

—

Rick

 

 

I would like to take a moment to wish each and everyone of you a very happy new years from the Blind Geek Zone.  2009 was a very good year for the BGZ and I hope that 2010 brings you lots of good things for all of you out there.

 

—

Rick

 

Here is the information about tonights main menu for anyone that wants to listen:

 

Coming up on Main Menu for the week of January 2, 2010

 

Main Menu begins 2010 with a bang! We first hear a greeting from ACB president Mitch Pomerantz. Next, your host is joined by J.J. Meddaugh of Blind Bargains
and Rick Harmon of The Blind Geek Zone to discuss the top news stories of 2009 as published on Blind Bargains. The number one story of the year will be
posted on the site just hours before the panel discussion airs on Main Menu. Finally, the three of us predict what stories will rank in the top ten list
for 2010. Take notes and see how close we are!

 

Main Menu airs on Saturdays at 1:00 UTC; that’s Fridays at 8:00 Eastern time in the U.S. Subscribe to the Main Menu podcast feed at: http://mainmenu.acbradio.org/rss.php
Call the Main Menu comment line at (206) 338-7823

 

Posted by Jamie Pauls on 2009-12-29 at 04:32:09.

 

Here is the link to the main menu webpage:

 

and here is the link to blind bargains:

 

 

 

I will also post the segment on BGZ after main menu airs for those of you that miss it.

 

—

Rick

 

 

I’d like to take a moment to wish everyone a merry Christmas and a happy new years from the Blind Geek Zone.  2009 has ended with lots of good things happening and  it’s my hope that 2010 brings each and everyone of you out there great joy and happiness.

 

—

Rick

 

Let me start by letting everyone know that this post has very strong adult language and content in it.  So if you are sensitive to such things please read no further.

 

Well folks this isn’t going to be a jolly Christmasy type of post.  Instead, it’s going to be rather sad and pathetic.  Sadly some people in our lovely blind community feel the need to beat others down in order to bring themselves up.  Now before I go on, this hopefully is a very small majority of people out there and this statement isn’t directed at the majority of blind people out there as most of us will go way out of our way to help each other in any way that we can.

 

What I’m about to show you is a number of email postings on the GW Micro Booksense mailing list.  The email addresses will be deleted for privacy concerns and some of the swearing will be *’d out to keep it as clean as possible.  However since this is a public mailing list, I will be more than happy to keep all names intact for your reading pleasure!

 

As many of you know, GW Micro released the 2.0 firmware revision for the booksense yesterday afternoon.  One of the changes made was the adjustment to audio loudness and the internal speakers.  Yes I know, this is bound to cause an instant uproar amongst lots of people due to many having hearing issues of different kinds.  GW Micro stated that the volume levels were brought down a bit due to the levels in the 1.1 firmware causing speaker damage to some units.  I think most people can understand why the change was made.  I’m sure no one out there wants their speakers prematurely damaged due to excessive volume levels.  It’s a tight rope that GW Micro walks on when making these kinds of changes.  The Humanware folks know all about this problem on the Victor Stream player.  It’s hard to please everyone and no matter what a change in volume of speakers is going to ruffle someone’s feathers!

 

This brings me up to the point where I come into all of this.  Below are statements I made on the mailing list and the extremely rude comments I got in return by a few posters on the list.

 

First I will post my message below and then others followed by comments here on the blog that were not posted out to the Booksense mailing list.

 

Rick Harmon wrote:

 

GW Micro stated this causes problems with the internal speakers.  do you
want louder volume at the risk of blowing out your speakers and having to
send the unit back to HMS for repair?

I’d rather not have my speakers prematurely blown out by too loud of volumes
applied to them.  I heard many times on the 1.1 settings where the speakers
rattled a lot.  This isn’t a good thing.

Rick

—– Original Message —–
From: Missy Hoppe
To: GW-Micro booksense mailing list 

Sent: Monday, December 21, 2009 9:17 PM
Subject: Re: [GW-Booksense] Booksense 2.0 changes

Agreed. The maximum volume most definitely needs to be bumped up again. It
still meets my needs, but only just. I have to walk very slow on tredmill to
still hear the built in speaker on max volume. Before, could walk a bit
faster.
There’s got to be a way to get the best of both worlds. Agree about volume’s
1 through 5; are’t even worth mentioning; might as well be muted.
Still, I’m not complaining. I love my booksense as much as ever, and am
extremely happy with all the new features; if only this volume thing could
be resolved to meet everyone’s needs.
With all that being said, though, I completely agree with what Raul said
earlier today. Let’s just all sit back, relax, have a merry Christmas and
enjoy the new firmware for a little while before we really start picking it
apart too much.
Missy

Now let me say here that I wasn’t actually referring to Missys post as her post has valid concerns.  I just decided to reply to this message as it was one of several posted to the list about the volume changes.  Next is a reply that I got back about my comments.

 

From: Keith Gillard

To: GW-Micro booksense mailing list

 

Oh do they now!

I never had that problem.

Perhaps you got ripped off!

I know I sure believe every thing I heard second hand!

Thank you Rick, for your the latest address to be added to my block senders
list!

KG.

and here is my reply back to Keith:

 

-original message-
Subject: Re: [GW-Booksense] BookSense 2.0 changes
From: Rick Harmon
Date: 12/21/2009 10:56 PM

Second hand, I’m sorry but this came direct from GW Micro.  I’m not sure
what I did to deserve blocking but hey knock yourself out.  I guess telling
the truth around here is a bad thing to do?

Rick

Okay, I figure this is the end of all of this and we all could just agree to disagree.  in my opinion Keith is a hot head and is always ranting on the list about how terrible the booksense is before the 2.0 release of the firmware.  Many people on the list share my feeling about Keith so it’s just not me feeling this way about him.  Also  as for the information I provided being second hand, well that’s false.  The statement was made directly by GW-Micro.

 

So the rest of the night goes without any further comments and all is well unttil this morning.  Then the bashing really gets nasty towards me.

 

Here is a post from Brandon Misch in regards to a question asked by Chantel Cuddemi 

 

he’s mad because Rick told him that the reason why the volume had to change was distortion in the speakers if turned up to 21.
On Dec 21, 2009, at 10:43 PM, Chantel Cuddemi wrote:

Keith, what happened? Why are you blocking Rick’s email? I missed something.

 

Next, Chantel thinks she is answering Brandon off list, in reality she’s posting to him and the GW-Micro list as well.

 

Well, Brandon, maybe if he didn’t act like sucha f**king know-it-all, he wouldn’t be bashed like Brandon Hennis is.

 

Next Brandon Armstrong has to comment as well and I am assuming he thinks he’s only writing to me offlist but in reality is writing to the GW-Micro list as well.

 

you know rickey, it’s blindies like you who make me so angry.
I’m so sick of you thinking like your a f**king know it all,and you work for GW micro.
Why must you think and act like you know everything.
You suck as a moderator of any f**king list, and you don’t deserve to own a Mac.

Wow! what can I say here.  two people that aren’t smart enough to reply privately to me.  Not too intelligent if you ask me.  It’s truly sad that people have to treat others this way.  I did nothing to Chantel or Brandon to deserve being treated like trash on this list.  I just don’t know why some people have to knock others down to feel better about themselves.  These messages really hurt me a lot.  I try hard to help others in the community just to get people like Keith, Chantel and Brandon to attempt to destroy my credibility.  Chantel has also did the same thing to me on the Windows 7 mailing list that I co-own.  SO this isn’t the first time I’ve dealt with her.  But be warned, Chantel will talk nice to you until you turn your back on her and then she will go around telling others how stupid you are behind your back

 

Here is a comment she made to me on the Windows 7 mailing list:

 

HI guys, hate to put my two cents in here, but this is coming from Ric, a guy who can’t even stop interacting on the Mac? Come on, man!! I’ve had my Mac for nearly a year, and I know how to stop interacting. 

 

This was in a reply to a message that someone was siding with me about not needing to run the hardware wizard on a windows machine in order to get it to see the RAM you have installed in it.

 

Anyways what her comment had to do with windows 7 is beyond me.  Also just to be fair here, I’ve owned a Mac for a couple of weeks and have used it a few hours and Chantel is slamming mme here?  Why, who knows.  My guess she’s a mean spirited person that wanted to make a funny joke at my expense.  She also wrote Keith Gillard off list or so she thought with  the following message that made it out to the booksense list with a message I sent to her privately.  For some reason she decided everyone needed to see it.

 

Well, Rick, I am sorry for letting fly the cuss words, but Keith Gillard agrees with me.
On Dec 22, 2009, at 12:44 PM, Rick Harmon wrote:

Chantel,

 Well thanks for this very enlightening message.  I do hope you be careful on 
the windows 7 list as I will boot you in a heartbeat now since I see your a 
liar and your apology was a load of crap.  As for my message on the GW Micro  list, I did nothing wrong. I wasn’t mean to anyone and my statement was 
factual.  A lot more people will side with me than with Keith about  attitude.  As for you, You think your really smart don’t you?  Telling others I don’t  know nothing about the Mac and that you know so much.  I’ve seen some of  your messages on other lists and they clearly show you might not be quite as  smart as you tell others that you are. Also you forget to tell anyone that I  have only had a Mac for a couple of weeks and used it for mere hours  compared to you having yours for a year now.  That’s pretty mean of you to  say such things to people but not tell them the entire truth. 

 

Rick

 —– Original Message —– 
From: Chantel Cuddemi 

To: GW-Micro booksense mailing list 

Sent: Tuesday, December 22, 2009 11:39 AM
 Subject: Re: [GW-Booksense] BookSense 2.0 changes 
 
That makes sense. I even slammed him on the windows 7 list. He didn’t like  it because I know more about the Mac and thing,s but, I later apologized to  him for it.

 On Dec 21, 2009, at 10:48 PM, Keith Gillard wrote:
 
Well everytime he post a reply he acts like he is working for GW and that his PooPoo doesn’t stink! He talks down to members and thinks he is always right. Chantel, when a post angers me I have learned that there is likey a good reason for it. I’ve been around on many lists and for a long time and I’ve learned to 
trust
 my tummy! Cheers!
 

 

This is a very interesting post.  I didn’t talk down to anyone with my post.  My poo poo does stink thank you Keith just like yours does.  Also I don’t work for the great folks at GW-Micro but would be honored to be able to do so.  And Chantel, well you just showed your true ignorance there commenting about the Mac again to him.  How many others have you told this load of crap sob story to?

 

Okay, so that is my story.  Pretty sad huh?  As always I’m open to comments good or bad from all of you.

 

—

Rick

 

Here is an audio post where I talk about the cost of blindness and my concerns about it increasing instead of going down.  I’m sure I didn’t touch on everything and one thing I did leave out is the cost of travel.  I hope that you will comment on this post.  I’m looking forward to hearing from a lot of you out there and what you think about the cost of being blind.

 

 

—

Rick

 

Yesterday, November 24th Freedom Scientific filed a lawsuit against Enhanced Vision Systems INC., a maker of low vision magnification products.  You can read the complete details of the suit at:

 

 

One of the alleged activities that Enhanced Vision is accused of is using website search metatag keywords in it’s webpage in order to get people looking for Freedom Scientific to come to their pages as well I’m assuming in order to sell low vision magnifiers in competition with Freedom Scientifics low vision products

 

I thought about this a bit here and came to a frightening realization.  Blind Geek Zone uses both the Jaws and Freedom Scientific keywords in it’s metatag keywords section of the website in order of all things to attract people looking for information on Jaws and Freedom Scientific to my website as well so that I could provide both free and paid training on among other things jaws training.

.

 

My initial knee jerk reaction was to remove the Jaws and Freedom Scientific metatags out of my keywords section and re post my page.

 

Here is a quote from the Lawsuit where Freedom Scientific asks the court to stop Enhanced Systems from:

 

(a)        That this Court grant a preliminary and permanent injunction pursuant to the powers granted it under 15 U.S.C. §1116, enjoining and restraining
the Defendant and its agents, servants, and employees from directly or indirectly using the mark, “Freedom Scientific,” on any marketing materials, websites,
any Internet landing pages, or as a metatag or other keyword to be indexed by an Internet search engine, because such use is likely to cause confusion,
mistake, or to deceive;
 
So basically Freedom Scientific could come to me and say exactly the same thing.  That my websites keyword metatags misleadingly brought customers to my website in order to provide training that legally should have gone to Freedom Scientific.  Okay, I know that is a stretch of my imagination.  BGZ isn’t worth Freedom Scientific’s wasting $100.00 on in order to get me to stop my practices here.  But what about someone a bit bigger than myself.  I’ve managed to make a few thousand dollars here in the last 3 years that I’ve been providing paid training and services.  Clearly this isn’t worth FS wasting 1 lawyer  on me.  But how about some of the bigger trainers out there that use Jaws or Freedom Scientific in their keyword metatags to get customers to come their way?

 

I’m not asking whether or not Freedom Scientific has the right to sue anyone for these practices or not.  For all I know, they do.  But Today it’s Enhanced Vision, tomorrow will it be Blind Geek Zone? or a larger training service provider?  This is the question we all need to ask.  Where does the food chain end for Freedom Scientific’s lawyers?

 

Should I be able to use these keywords on my website in order to draw blind customers searching for information on Jaws or Freedom Scientific here for potential paid training services?  Am I actually hurting Freedom Scientific by doing this?  I really don’t think so but I really don’t want to be sued for doing so unlawfully either.

 

Who is next FS?  Me? Another AT provider?something to think about don’t you all think?

 

—

Rick

 

 

 

 

Accessible World Presents a Special Program Series Event, November 24, 2009

News Wire:

 

Special Program Series

 

Accessible World proudly presents Rick Harmon  who will present us with a tutorial on both the Sendspace Wizard and My Dropbox.

He will take us step by step from the installation of the programs to using them.

 

Many of us use Sendspace as a way to send files to our friends and to mailing lists.  Rick will also introduce us to My Dropbox which is a very efficient way to do the same thing.

 

Presenter: Rick Harmon

Email: rickharmon@sbcglobal.net

 

Date: Tuesday November 24, 2009

 

Time: 6:00 PM PST, 7:00 PM MST, 8:00 PM CST, 9:00 PM EST

         and elsewhere in the world Wednesday 1:00 GMT.

Approximately 15 minutes prior to the event start time; go to the Accessible World Auditorium at:
http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rs5affc3cfa191

 

Or, alternatively,

 

Select the Accessible World Auditorium at: www.accessibleworld.org

Enter your first and last name

 

If you are a first-time user of the Talking Communities online conferencing software, there is a small, safe software program that you need to download and then run. A link to the software is available on every entry screen to the Accessible World rooms.

 

All online interactive programs require no password, are free of charge, and open to anyone worldwide having an Internet connection, a computer, speakers, and a sound card. Those with microphones can interact audibly with the presenters and others in the virtual audience. To speak to us, hold down the control key and let up to listen. If no microphone is available, you may text chat with the attendees.

 

Accessible World uses News Wires, like this one, to inform people of the topic and times for the many Discussion Groups on Accessible World. The lists are announce only to keep the traffic to a minimum. You can join the Accessible World Announce List, the Tek Talk Announce List or the Sports Talk Announce List by completing the form at: www.accessibleworld.org/mailinglists

 

Accessible World Contacts:

 

Robert Acosta, Chair

Accessible World

818-998-0044

Email: boacosta@pacbell.net

Web:   www.helpinghands4theblind.org

 

Joann Becker, Events Coordinator

Accessible World

617-487-8795

Email: joannbecker@pcomcast.net

 

George Buys, CEO.

Talking Communities

Email: buys@talkingcommunities.com

 

The Accessible World, a division of Helping Hands For The Blind, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, seeks to educate the general public, the disabled community and the professionals who serve them by providing highly relevant information about new products, services, and training opportunities designed specifically to eliminate geographic and access barriers that adversely affect them

 

Hi, well it’s been like forever since I last wrote something here on the blog.  I guess sometimes it’s difficult to make time for the blog on top of maintaining the website, recording new content, training new clients and so on. 

 

A tweet from Blind bargains on twitter asked where all the AT blogs have gone, well this reminded me that I have a blog and I’ve not kept up with it for quite awhile here.  I see the last post here was August 11th.

 

I would like to post here more often than I currently do, sometimes I just don’t have anything to comment on.  I’m not a professional in the AT area as so many others are that keep blogs.  The pros go to shows all the time, something I just can’t afford to do at this point in time.  Maybe someday that will change.

 

I will make a renewed attempt to keep my posts here current.  If anyone has any comments on things I could blog on, I’d welcome them.

 

—

Rick

 

 

GW Micro is proud to announce the release of the first-ever public beta for the BookSense!

Since its release just over a month ago, the BookSense has become internationally recognized as the most advanced book reader available. After the release, we found some issues that we believe needed addressed in a very timely manner. We have been specifically focusing on stability fixes, as well as bug fixes. This public beta addresses many of those issues to help ensure another rock-solid product, which GW Micro has become known for in the industry. We have done extensive testing with our private beta testers, and although this is a public beta, we believe it to be very stable, and address many of the issues that have been presented to us.

This software will be in public beta for a period of time, and once we feel that it is ready, we will release it as a final version.

As we indicated during our initial product release, we still intend to have a firmware version that supports RFB&D, protected WMA files, and we will also be adding other features that have been requested. This support will be forthcoming in another firmware release.

You can download the firmware from http://www.gwmicro.com/Support/Downloads/?category=BookSense+Support+Files. When you download the firmware, it will contain a text file with all of the changes that have been made.

For instructions on how to upgrade the firmware, you can navigate to www.gwmicro.com/kb1107. For your convenience, you will find the article below:

GWKB1107 : Upgrading The BookSense Firmware

This Knowledge Base article applies to both the standard BookSense (ruby red) and the BookSense XT (off white).

From time to time, there will be a new update to the BookSense. The updates are made available by means of an image file called a firmware update. In order for your BookSense to take advantage of the new features, enhancements, or bug fixes, you must install the new firmware onto your BookSense.
Downloading and Extracting The BookSense Firmware

When there is new firmware to download, it will be available as a zip file from the downloads section of our web site. Upgrading the firmware requires that you first download the firmware zip file from a PC. Once the zip file has been downloaded, you need to extract the contents to the root of your SD card (secure digital card).

To download the firmware update from your PC, do the following:

1. Insert your SD card to the BookSense and connect it to the PC. It is important to take note of the drive letter of the SD card.

2. Point your web browser to: http://gwmicro.com/Support/Downloads/

3. Depending on which BookSense model you want to update, choose either the “BookSense Standard (ruby red)” or the “BookSense XT (off white)” link from the list.

4. The firmware will be packed in a zip file. Choose the appropriate version and press ENTER on the download link to begin downloading the zip file.

5. If your browser prompts you to save or open the file, choose save. If prompted for a file name, we recommend keeping the original file name.

6. Once the zip file has been downloaded to the PC, navigate to the location of the file and press SHIFT-F10 on it.

7. Up or down arrow to the menu item called “Extract All”. Then press ENTER to open it.

8. A dialog box will open. Press ENTER on the “Next” button.

9. An edit box will prompt you for the location where the files should be extracted to. Type the drive letter of your SD card followed by a colon and a backslash. Example: “E:\”.

10. If you don’t know the drive letter of your SD card, you may press TAB to select the “Browse” button. Then you can select the drive using the “Select a Destination” dialog box. It is important to extract the firmware files directly to the root of the SD card and not inside a folder.

11. Once the path has been selected, tab to the “Next” button and press ENTER.

12. At this point the PC will begin extracting all of the files to the root of the SD card. This may take several minutes as the files are relatively large. Once the firmware files have been extracted, navigate to the “Finish” button and press ENTER.

13. Close any open windows you may have by pressing Alt-F4 on each. Then disconnect the BookSense from the PC by way of the “Safely Remove hardware” program of the “System Tray”.

The aforementioned steps assume you are familiar with connecting and disconnecting the BookSense to and from the PC. If you are not, please refer to KB1104 – Connecting and Disconnecting the BookSense To and From the PC (www.gwmicro.com/kb1104) for assistance.

Performing the Actual Firmware Upgrade

Once the firmware files are in the root of the SD card and the BookSense has been disconnected from the PC, you are ready to upgrade your BookSense.

To perform the actual firmware upgrade, do the following:

1. Connect the AC charger to the BookSense.

2. If the BookSense is not already powered on, press the play/pause button for 2 seconds to power it on.

3. Press the stop/cancel button to close any files or books you may have open.

4. Press the menu button to open the main menu.

5. Press up or down arrow until you reach the advanced menu item. Then press right to open it.

6. Press up or down arrow to choose upgrade. Then press the menu button to choose this option.

7. The BookSense will search the root of the SD card and if it finds the firmware, it will ask you if you want to upgrade the firmware. Press the menu button to choose Yes and continue.

The BookSense will inform you that it will be restarted. When the BookSense restarts itself, you will hear a series of beeps as the new firmware is written to the BookSense. This process can take a few minutes. Once the firmware has been successfully installed, the BookSense will reboot once more.

Once you hear the startup music and the female voice speaking, it is safe to start using the BookSense. To verify that you are using the new firmware, press the menu key and navigate to the global options menu. Then arrow to the system status menu and press the menu key to open it. While in the system status dialog box, press the up or down arrows to hear the status. One of the lines will read out the firmware version along with the release date. Once you verify that the new firmware has been successfully installed, you should remove the firmware files from the SD card. Please note that you must use your PC to remove the firmware files from the SD card.
Troubleshooting the Firmware Upgrade

The following are some troubleshooting tips in no particular order in case the firmware does not update or in case something does not seem to be working correctly after updating. If you are having trouble upgrading the firmware of the BookSense and none of the following tips are helping, please contact GW Micro technical support.

    * If you attempt to install older firmware on the BookSense rather than newer one, the BookSense will prompt you if you are sure. Only continue with this if you are sure that you want to go back to an earlier release.
    * Sometimes one of the voices of the BookSense may not work properly after upgrading the firmware. if this happens, you must do a factory reset of the BookSense by pressing the number 4 button. While holding the 4 button, press the reset button with the end of a toothpick. However you must keep pressing the 4 button for up to 20 seconds. Once you release the button, the BookSense will reboot itself.
    * If for whatever reason the firmware is not upgrading from the upgrade option in the advanced menu, you can upgrade it by pressing the cancel and the 9 buttons at the same time. While holding these buttons, press the reset button with the end of a toothpick, but keep holding the cancel and 9 buttons until you hear the system will be restarted message.

The gw-news list is an announce only list used for GW Micro news and product information.

 

News Wire

     

On Monday July 20^th, JoAnn Becker will present an introduction to Facebook, one of the world’s largest social networks. She will discuss the myriad ways in which people are using this social utility to communicate with one another. Users can join networks organized by city, workplace, school, and region to connect and interact with people. They can also add friends and send them messages, and update their personal profiles to inform friends about themselves.

 

During this presentation JoAnn will demonstrate:* how to register and create an account;* how to build a personal profile; *how to add friends; * how to upload photos; * how to explore settings.

 

If there are classmates, colleagues, friends with whom you wish to reconnect, Facebook may be able to help. 

 

Date:  Monday, July 20 2009.

 

Time:  5:00 p.m. PDT, 6:00 p.m. MDT, 7:00 p.m. CDT, and 8:00 p.m. EDT

           And elsewhere in the world Tuesday 0:00 GMT

 

Approximately 15 minutes prior to the event start time; go to The Pat Price Tek Talk Training Room at:

http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rsc9613dc89eb2

 

Or, alternatively.

 

Select The Pat Price Tek Talk Training Room at: http://www.accessibleworld.org. Enter your first and last names on the sign-in screen.

 

All Tek Talk training events are recorded so if you are unable to participate live at the above times then you may download the presentation or podcast from the Tek Talk archives on our website at http://www.accessibleworld.org

 

All online interactive programs require no password, are free of charge, and open to anyone worldwide having an Internet connection, a computer, speakers, and a sound card. Those with microphones can interact audibly with the presenters and others in the virtual audience or text chat with the attendees. To speak to us, hold down the control key and talk; then let up to listen. 

If you are a first-time user of the Talking Communities online conferencing software, there is a small, safe software program that you need to download and then run. A link to the software is available on every entry screen to the Accessible World online rooms.

 

Sign up information for all Accessible World News Wires and discussion lists are also available at our website http://www.accessibleworld.org.

 

Accessible World Contacts:

 

Robert Acosta, Chair

Accessible World

818-998-0044

Email: boacosta@pacbell.net

Web: http://www.helpinghands4theblind.org

 

Joann Becker, Events Coordinator

Accessible World

617-969-1213

Email: joannbecker@pcomcast.net

 

George Buys, CEO

Talking Communities

Email: buys@talkingcommunities.com

 

The Accessible World, a division of Helping Hands For The Blind, a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization, seeks to educate the general public, the disabled community and the professionals who serve them by providing highly relevant information about new products, services, and training opportunities designed specifically to eliminate geographic and access barriers that adversely affect them.

 

 

News Wire:

 

Accessible World Talks about Captchas on the Internet

 

During the July 13, 2009 installment of the Accessible World Tek Talk Room, Bernard Maldonado, Founder of Solona.net, the Free Captcha Solution Service for visually impaired people, talks about all aspects of Captcha.  While this tool limits spam registrations, and spam blog posts, it also affects the way visually impaired people surf the internet.  Some sites offer usable audio captchas; most sites do not.  In any case, people with both visual and hearing difficulties are affected even more.

 

The presentation will address different kinds of captcha, specific site examples, components of captcha, and the future of captcha.

 

Bernard will also discuss Solona and what role it plays in helping visually impaired people independently solve captchas on the net.

 

Please follow @solona on Twitter and submit questions that you have prior to the presentation so that Bernard can address your specific question, or email your questions before July 13 to: MySolona@gmail.com.  You may also ask questions at the end of the presentation 

 

Contact Info: Bernard Maldonado

Email:  MySolona@gmail.com

Skype: bernardmaldonado

Twitter: @solona

 

 

 

Date:  Monday, July 13, 2009.

 

Time:  5:00 p.m. PDT, 6:00 p.m. MDT, 7:00 p.m. CDT, and 8:00 p.m. EDT

           and elsewhere in the world Tuesday 0:00 GMT

 

Approximately 15 minutes prior to the event start time; go to The Pat Price Tek Talk Training Room at:

http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rsc9613dc89eb2

 

Or, alternatively.

 

Select The Pat Price Tek Talk Training Room at: http://www.accessibleworld.org. Enter your first and last names on the sign-in screen.

 

All Tek Talk training events are recorded so if you are unable to participate live at the above times then you may download the presentation or podcast from the Tek Talk archives on our website at http://www.accessibleworld.org

 

All online interactive programs require no password, are free of charge, and open to anyone worldwide having an Internet connection, a computer, speakers, and a sound card. Those with microphones can interact audibly with the presenters and others in the virtual audience or text chat with the attendees. To speak to us, hold down the control key and talk; then let up to listen. 

If you are a first-time user of the Talking Communities online conferencing software, there is a small, safe software program that you need to download and then run. A link to the software is available on every entry screen to the Accessible World online rooms.

 

Sign up information for all Accessible World News Wires and discussion lists are also available at our website http://www.accessibleworld.org.

 

Accessible World Contacts:

 

Robert Acosta, Chair

Accessible World

818-998-0044

Email: boacosta@pacbell.net

Web: http://www.helpinghands4theblind.org

 

Joann Becker, Events Coordinator

Accessible World

617-969-1213

Email: joannbecker@pcomcast.net

 

George Buys, CEO

Talking Communities

Email: buys@talkingcommunities.com

 

The Accessible World, a division of Helping Hands For The Blind, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, seeks to educate the general public, the disabled community and the professionals who serve them by providing highly relevant information about new products, services, and training opportunities designed specifically to eliminate geographic and access barriers that adversely affect them.

Last year I learned of a group in Pennsylvania that helps to find loving homes for greyhounds after they have served their usefulness at dog tracks around the country. A friend of mine in the Harrisburg area has taken in a couple of these dogs in the past and asked me to buy some raffle tickets to help raise funds for the organization and I gladly did so to help them out.

 

My friend Tom has once again asked me for help.  Nittany Greyhounds is once again in need of help.  One of the dogs they have rescued from the dog tracks has broken it’s leg and has had to undergo expensive surgery.  Tom asked me if I could spread the word around for donations in order to help Nittany Greyhounds cover this extreme cost.

 

So I’m posting the message below for anyone out there that may be interested in helping out.  Nittany Greyhounds  is a worthy cause and I hope that you will consider helping them out.  Any donation would be greatly appreciated.

 

The web site is:

www.nittanygreys.org

and here is the message that Nittany Greyhounds sent out:

We need your help. Faith, one of our newest arrivals, broke her leg while running at the kennel last week. We prayed for a bad sprain but it is, in fact, broken. In fact, she is having surgery today–two pins to hold her ankle bones in place until they heal. Anyway, the estimate for this surgery is $1800, so we need help with this huge chunk of change we didn’t plan on.

If you can see fit to donate to this beautiful little girl’s surgery, that would be really wonderful (remember, it’s 100% tax deductible as a gift).

Please send your donations payable to:

 

Nittany Greyhounds

P.O. Box 602

Port Matilda, PA 16870

 

If you want to use a credit card, call 814-933-6981 and
Nancy will be happy to take that information. We appreciate your help!  This is the first time this has happened and I sure hope it’s the last.

I thought I’d try something different here and post an audio blog entry here.  I had quite a lot to say and am not the best writer in the world.  I guess I’m not the greatest speaker in the world either but in this case I thought I’d try out an audio format here.

 

Please feel free to post your thoughts here. i welcome everyones ccomments.  If you get nasty with your comments here, your post will get deleted. 

 

Thanks in advance and please let me know if you would like to see more audio posts in the future here on the blog.

 

 

 

—

Rick

 

 

News Wire 

 

This week, we hope to learn about how to download thousands of inexpensive Old-Time-Radio Shows from Bill Sparks’ great web site.

 

On Thursday, June 11, at 6:30 p.m. EDT, the “All Things Radio

podcast will be featured in The Fred Bertelsen Old Time Radio

Room of  www.radiooutofthepast.org.

 

“We’re delighted to add “All Things Radio” to our Thursday evening line-up,” said Robert Acosta, chair of Accessible World. “It’s a natural fit with our usual Thursday evening Old-Time-Radio get-together, which will continue at its usual 8 pm EDT start time,” Acosta continued. “And this link to Bill Sparks’ radio-related web sites will undoubtedly prove beneficial to all.

 

“All Things Radio” began early this spring. The 11 podcasts run thus far are available for download from the “All Things Radio” folder at

 

www.legend-oldies.com

 

Averaging about an hour in length and generally anchored by Gary Stevens, each podcast features
1. Radio news from Jeff Bennett,

2. Format and call letter changes from Jennifer Sparks,

3. Airchecked samples of radio stations from Bill Sparks,

4. Profiles of broadcasters and podcast contributors from Walt Kramer,

5. And occasional historical features, such as the history of Detroit‘s WJR.

 

“We at “All Things Radio” are extremely pleased that Radio out of the Past’s Fred Bertelsen Old Time Radio Room will be our home starting June 4,” said Bill Sparks. “After each podcast, there’s usually close to a half-hour available for an informal chat about radio. Anyone who would normally come in for the 8 pm Old Time Radio program is welcome to join us for the chat, which is usually moderated by Marcia Moses. For that matter, all are welcome to come in at 6:30 pm EDT and make a night of it.

 

“Bill Sparks currently has three streaming radio channels on line. They

 are:

1. The Legend, featuring oldies from the mid ’50s to the mid ’70s,

2. The Country Legend, featuring classic country music, and
3. Remember Radio, featuring old-time radio shows.

 

The three radio services operate 24/7, and links to them can be found

At: www.billsparks.org

 

Also available from www.billsparks.org are links to at least eight thousand radio stations that stream their broadcasts on line.

 

From another Bill Sparks web site, www.billsparks.com, thousands of old-time radio shows are available for purchase. Customers may either buy programs on CDs, or purchase copies of shows that can be downloaded.

 

Bill Sparks, Group Facilitator

Email: bil@billsparks.org

 

Date:  Thursday June 11^th, 2009

Time:  3:30 p.m. PDT, 4:30 p.m. MDT, 5:30 p.m. CDT 6:30 p.m. EDT,
           and elsewhere in the world Thursday 10:30 GMT.

To participate in “All Things Radio”, the OTR gathering that follows it, or both,
go to: http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rs8d80999b8145

Or, alternatively,

Select The Fred Bertelsen Old Time Radio Room at: www.radiooutofthepast.org. Enter your first and last names on the sign up screen.

All online interactive programs require no password, are free of charge, and open to anyone worldwide having an Internet connection, a computer, speakers, and a sound card. Those with microphones can interact audibly with the presenters and others in the virtual audience or text chat with the attendees. To speak to us, hold down the control key to talk and let up to listen.

If you are a first-time user of the Talking Communities online conferencing software, there is a small, safe software program that you need to download and then run and install. A link to the software is available on every entry screen to the Radio Out of the past online rooms.

Sign up information for all Accessible World News Wires and discussion lists are also available at our website: www.accessibleworld.org

 

Accessible World Contacts:

Robert Acosta, Chair
Accessible World
818-998-0044
Email: boacosta@pacbell.net

Web: http://www.helpinghands4theblind.org

Joann Becker, Events Coordinator
Accessible World
617-969-1213
Email: joannbecker@comcast.net

George Buys, CEO
Talking Communities
Email: buys@talkingcommunities.com

 

Radio Out Of The Past, a division of Helping Hands For The Blind, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, seeks to educate the public and blind Old-Time-Radio fans concerning the historic and literary value of Old-Time-Radio.

 

News Wire:

 

Accessible World Tek Talk is very pleased to present Judy Dixon, Consumer Relations Officer, National Library Service for the Blind and Physically handicapped.

 

Judy Dixon will demonstrate and discuss the new NLS Digital Talking Book player that will be arriving in libraries later this summer.

 

Judy will also speak to us about accessing and using Web Braille as well as the NLS Downloadable services.  If time permits, she will discuss any future programs contemplated by NLS.

 

 

Date:  Monday, June 15th, 2009.

 

Time:  5:00 p.m. PDT, 6:00 p.m. MDT, 7:00 p.m. CDT, and 8:00 p.m. EDT

           and elsewhere in the world Tuesday 0:00 GMT

 

Approximately 15 minutes prior to the event start time; go to The Pat Price Tek Talk Training Room at:

http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rsc9613dc89eb2

 

Or, alternatively.

 

Select The Pat Price Tek Talk Training Room at: http://www.accessibleworld.org. Enter your first and last names on the sign-in screen.

 

All Tek Talk training events are recorded so if you are unable to participate live at the above times then you may download the presentation or podcast from the Tek Talk archives on our website at http://www.accessibleworld.org

 

All online interactive programs require no password, are free of charge, and open to anyone worldwide having an Internet connection, a computer, speakers, and a sound card. Those with microphones can interact audibly with the presenters and others in the virtual audience or text chat with the attendees. To speak to us, hold down the control key and talk; then let up to listen. 

If you are a first-time user of the Talking Communities online conferencing software, there is a small, safe software program that you need to download and then run. A link to the software is available on every entry screen to the Accessible World online rooms.

 

Sign up information for all Accessible World News Wires and discussion lists are also available at our website http://www.accessibleworld.org.

 

Accessible World Contacts:

 

Robert Acosta, Chair

Accessible World

818-998-0044

Email: boacosta@pacbell.net

Web: http://www.helpinghands4theblind.org

 

Joann Becker, Events Coordinator

Accessible World

617-969-1213

Email: joannbecker@pcomcast.net

 

George Buys, CEO

Talking Communities

Email: buys@talkingcommunities.com

 

The Accessible World, a division of Helping Hands For The Blind, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, seeks to educate the general public, the disabled community and the professionals who serve them by providing highly relevant information about new products, services, and training opportunities designed specifically to eliminate geographic and access barriers that adversely affect them.

    News Wire:

 

Radio. It’s more than just your favorite FM music station or AM news outlet. There is a whole audio world so please Join us on the 1st Wednesday of each month starting in June for Radio Waves to explore radio in all its forms: shortwave listening, ham radio, long-distance listening, scanning, and more. Each month we’ll review reading from the hobbyist and trade press, and discuss all things radio.

Bring your questions, radio experiences and listening tips to share with other radio enthusiasts. Radio Waves, debuting on Wednesday, June 3rd at 6PMPacific

If you would like advance recorded copies of Jim’s articles for june, please write to Robert Acosta and put your email address in the body of your request and he’ll send them to you

Jim Tedford, Group Facilitator

Email: radio@drizzle.com

 

Date: Wednesday, June 3^rd, 2009

 

Time: 6:00 p.m. PDT, 7:00 p.m. MDT, 8:00 p.m. CDT, 9:00 p.m. EDT

         and elsewhere in the world Wednesday 1:00 GMT.

Approximately 15 minutes prior to the event start time; go to the Accessible World Auditorium at:

http://conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rs5affc3cfa191

 

Or, alternatively,

 

Select the Accessible World Auditorium at: http://www.accessibleworld.org. Enter your first and last name.

All online interactive programs require no password, are free of charge, and open to anyone worldwide having an Internet connection, a computer, speakers, and a sound card. Those with microphones can interact audibly with the presenters and others in the virtual audience or text chat with the attendees. To speak to us, hold down the control key and talk; then let up to listen. 

 

If you are a first-time user of the Talking Communities online conferencing software, there is a small, safe software program that you need to download and then run. A link to the software is available on every entry screen to the Accessible World online rooms.

 

Sign up information for all Accessible World News Wires and discussion lists are also available at our website:

Accessible World Contacts:

Robert Acosta, Chair

Accessible World
818-998-0044
Email: boacosta@pacbell. net

Web: http://www.helpinghands4theblind.org

 

Joann Becker, Events Coordinator

Accessible World

617-969-1213

Email: joannbecker@comcast.net

 

George Buys, CEO

Talking Communities

Email: buys@talkingcommunities.com

 

The Accessible World, a division of Helping Hands For The Blind, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, seeks to educate the general public, the disabled community and the professionals who serve them by providing highly relevant information about new products, services, and training opportunities designed specifically to eliminate geographic and access barriers that adversely affect them.

 

 

 

 

Just thought that I would invite other comments from users of the beta or release candidate of Windows 7 and what you think of it so far.  What are your experiences with installing it and using it on a daily basis.  What do you like about it?  What do you dislike about it?  Will you buy Windows 7 when it comes out or stick with what you are using now?  What types of hardware are you running Windows 7 on? 

 

—

Rick