Posts Tagged ‘Accessible Reading and Braille’

Window-Eyes training by GW Micro

GW Micro will be offering a two-day Window-Eyes training at the LightHouse in February. Take the training that the American Foundation for the Blind raved about in their review of Window-Eyes training in the July 2010 edition of AccessWorld (www.afb.org/aw).

If you are a teacher who needs to know how to use the latest screen reading technology, an IT professional who needs to support blind clients, a student or current Window-Eyes customer who needs to know how to get the most out of Window-Eyes; then Window-Eyes training is made just for you.

When: Tuesday, February 7 and Wednesday, February 8
Where: LightHouse San Francisco Headquarters

What do you get when you sign up for Window-Eyes training?

You get. . .

* Hands-on training with a GW Micro certified trainer
* The entire two-day curriculum on CD
* Knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook using Window-Eyes advanced Office technology features
* Knowledge of the Internet and how to use it to its full advantage with Window-Eyes
* Knowledge of how to customize your computer, making graphics, words, and colors speak the way you want them to
* Continuing Education Units (for an additional fee)
* Many more skills. Check out www.gwmicro.com/training for more information

Unlike other training courses that can cost up to $1000 per day, the complete, two-day Window-Eyes training is only $650 per student. Check with your Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) counselor to see if this expense is covered under your DOR plan.

If you have any questions regarding the training, please contact Kimberly Cline at 260-489-3671 or kimberly@gwmicro.com for more information.

To sign up for the training, please register at https://www.gwmicro.com/Training/Window-Eyes_Training/Registration/. Make sure to select San Francisco, CA as the location for training. For more information, check out www.gwmicro.com/wetraining.

Register by Feb. 3 for 2012 Braille Challenge

Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired will host the 2012 Northern California Braille Challenge in collaboration with LightHouse for the Blind, California School for the Blind and Society for the Blind.

Braille Challenge is an academic contest for school-age youth in grades 1 to 12 who read Braille. It serves to encourage blind children of all ages to fine-tune their braille skills, which are essential to their academic and employment success in the sighted world. This is the only national academic competition for blind students in the United States and is a program of the Braille Institute of America.

WHEN: Saturday, March 3, 2012, 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Santa Clara Valley Blind Center, 101 North Bascom Ave., San Jose, CA 95128
EVENT CONTACT PERSON: Alice McGrath, amcgrath@vistacenter.org, 650-858-0202, ext. 130
HOW TO REGISTER: Download and complete the registration form and send to:

Vista Center
Attn: Alice McGrath
2470 El Camino Real, Ste. 107
Palo Alto CA  94306
Fax: 650-858-0214

Registration forms are due Feb. 3, 2012.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Teachers for the visually impaired, transcribers and braillists are needed to serve as proctors and scorers for this exciting event. Contact Alice McGrath to sign up.

For more information about the Braille Challenge, go to www.braillechallenge.org.

Victor Reader Stream Survey

To help HumanWare continue to improve its Victor Reader Stream digital talking book player, the company has prepared a 20-minute survey for Stream users. Take the survey here.

Ten respondents will be chosen at random to receive a free Stream SoftPak upgrade to their device. Participation ends November 20, 2011, and the winners will be announced on November 21, 2011.

Information provided in survey responses will be treated as confidential for HumanWare use only.

Open House: SF Library for the Blind and Print Disabled

When: Thursday, November 3, 2011, 1:00 to 7:00 p.m.

Where: The Library for the Blind and Print Disabled at the San Francisco Main Library at 100 Larkin Street, San Francisco

What:
1. Meet the new librarian, Jane Glasby.

2. Learn about the free federal “talking book” program of the National Library Service and how to sign up.

3. Learn about BARD, the online downloading of talking books and braille.

At 1:30 p.m., 3:30 p.m., 4:45 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., see:

▪ Demonstrations of BARD and OPAC—how to sign up and how to download digital talking books from the Internet;

▪ How to search the Online Public Access Catalogue of the Library.

4. See demonstrations of CCTV readers, reading scanners, refreshable computers, braille displays and braille embossers.

5. Use the new digital players.

6. See described DVD movies.

7. Win a door prize.

Contact: Jane Glasby, Program Manager, Library for the Blind and Print Disabled, San Francisco Main Library, 415-557-4253 or lbpd@sfpl.org.

Call to Save Brailled Starbucks Cards

As many blind coffee drinkers know, Starbucks sells brailled Starbucks gift cards. Apparently, these cards are not meant to stay around permanently. We’ve heard they will be taken out of circulation at the end of October, but we want them to stay!

Please take a few seconds to pick up your phone and dial 1-800-23-latte (1-800-235-2883). Choose option 2 and tell the Starbucks representative that we in the blind community don’t want the brailled gift cards to go away. They will send your comments to the people who can be influenced by our calls.

Here’s the press release for the brailled Starbucks gift card:

http://news.starbucks.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=571

LightHouse Tech Seminar – the December Dilemma

Listen via streaming at http://www.lighthouse-sf.org/listen.m3u

The holiday season is fast approaching, and you’re wondering what gift to get for that special visually impaired or blind friend or family member. Or maybe you have been good this year and want to buy yourself a gift.

Join the LightHouse for the next technology seminar and learn about the latest accessible high-tech goodies, in price ranges to suit a variety of holiday budgets.

When: Tuesday, November 15, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. PST
Where: LightHouse San Francisco Headquarters, or by phone or streaming audio

Assistive Technology consultant Peter Cantisani will talk to us about Apple TV. Other topics include the Braille Pen and the Pen Friend. We’ll have demos galore at Adaptations, the LightHouse Store, including “The Wilson” personal voice recorder, the SleepPhone (soft headphones one can wear in bed), and the iBill money identifier. There will be many other gift possibilities, as well.

You can participate in one of the following ways:

• Tune in via live audio stream on our website
• Dial in with our telephone conferencing service
• Attend in person and talk to the presenters after the seminar

RSVP to 415-694-7326 or rsvp@lighthouse-sf.org. Conference call and live stream instructions will be provided with RSVP.

Can You Hear Me Now? Technology Seminar October 6

Join the LightHouse for the next technology seminar and learn about cell phones that are accessible for the blind and visually impaired.

When: Thursday, October 6, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Where: LightHouse San Francisco Headquarters

Find out if a smartphone or a basic phone is right for you. Do you want to join the iPhone craze?  Or maybe you would prefer to use the Sprint Sanyo Vero smartphone or the Verizon Haven basic phone?

Assistive Technology Consultant Peter Cantisani and representatives from Sprint and Verizon will present and answer questions. You can participate in one of the following ways:

• Tune in via live audio stream on our website
• Dial in with our telephone conferencing service
  • Attend in person and talk to the presenters after the seminar.

RSVP to 415-694-7326 or rsvp@lighthouse-sf.org. Conference call and live stream instructions will be provided with RSVP.

Braille Readers Are Leaders Contest

The National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute, the National Association to Promote the Use of Braille (NAPUB), and the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC) are pleased to announce the 29th annual Braille Readers Are Leaders contest for K–12 students. Registration is now open.

The contest encourages children around the country to be proud of their ability to read Braille and continually work to improve their skills. As in previous years, students will read as many Braille pages as they can in two months (November 1, 2011, through January 4, 2012) to compete for ribbons, cash prizes and an all-expenses-paid trip to the 2012 NFB national convention in Dallas, Texas.

For the third year, NAPUB and the NFB Jernigan Institute are also offering a contest for mature Braille readers. Adults will compete for cash prizes, national recognition and bragging rights!

Teams of two to five participants are welcome to compete in both the K–12 and adult contests again this year. Form your teams, get some interesting reading material and warm up your fingers! For detailed information about the K–12 and adult contests, please visit www.nfb.org/BRAL.

Seven Simple Steps
1. Register: Fill out the simple online form at http://www.nfb.org/BRAL to enter the contest.

2. Gather: Collect leisure reading material (books, magazines and whatever else you enjoy reading that has a title, author and date of publication).

3. Log it: Download the reading log at http://www.nfb.org/BRAL. Save it where you will be able to access it easily, or print it and keep a hard-copy log.

4. Read: Put your fingers to the paper.

5. Leader Board: Update your “Pages Read” on the Leader Board to compete for additional prizes.

6. Letters: Contestants competing for a special award in the K–12 contest must submit at least one letter of recommendation for each award.

7. Turn it in: Submit your reading log, special award documentation and final entry form no later than January 18, 2012, at http://www.nfb.org/BRAL. Mark your calendar with the important dates below.

Important Dates
October 1, 2011: Registration for the contest opens and continues through the end of the contest.

November 1, 2011: Contest begins, and participants start tracking their reading.

January 4, 2012: Louis Braille’s birthday marks the end of the contest and the last day participants can count their pages.

January 18, 2012: All documentation for the regular contest and special awards must be submitted to the NFB Jernigan Institute by midnight. This includes reading logs, letters of nomination and final entry forms.

March 2012: Prizes are mailed out.

Paper forms may be downloaded via http://www.nfb.org/BRAL or requested by e-mail, mail, telephone or fax from:

Braille Readers Are Leaders
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place
Baltimore, MD 21230
Phone: 410-659-9314, ext. 2312
Fax: 410-659-5129
BrailleReadersAreLeaders@nfb.org

ACB and Google Conduct Survey to Better Understand Computer Usage and Assistive Technology Patterns in the Blind Community

The American Council of the Blind (ACB) recently announced it will be working with Google Inc. to survey blind, visually impaired, and deaf-blind individuals to better understand how they use computers and assistive technology to access information.

The survey, developed jointly by Google and the American Council of the Blind, will gather data about technology use and needs in the blind community. Respondents will be able to complete the survey by either telephone or web. Survey data will be used to better understand how blind users interact with the web, which assistive technologies they find most useful, and how they make decisions about whether to switch or upgrade tools.

The survey, which will run through mid-September, is available immediately at www.acb.org/googlesurvey. Individuals who want to take the survey by telephone, please call 347-772-8355.

National Braille Test to be Held at the LightHouse

The National Literary Braille Competency Test will be administered by the National Blindness Professional Certification Board on Thursday, October 13, 2011, at the LightHouse for the Blind, 214 Van Ness Ave., San Francisco.

The test is used to measure the level of a person’s ability to read and write contracted literary braille. Candidates who fulfill all application requirements and successfully pass the test are awarded National Certification in Literary Braille. Although the test can be taken by anyone, it is intended primarily for teachers of braille and future teachers of braille.

Please go to www.nbpcb.org/nclb for more information about the exam (including preparation materials) and to register. Deadline for registration is September 30. You may also contact the National NCLB Test Coordinator, Deja Powell, at dpowell@latech.edu or 318-257-2029 with any questions.