Top Tech Tidbits for Thursday, Issue #165, July 3, 2008

1) J.J. Meddaugh will figure prominently in this week’s Tidbits. He has launched a new site, accessiblephones.com, where people can find, purchase and download manuals for most of the accessible mobile phones available, both for U.S. users and increasingly for users throughout the world.
http://www.AccessiblePhones.com

2) Through his blindbargains.com site, J.J. is providing some audio coverage of the current NFB convention in dallas. For instance, this interview with Jonathan Josen discusses the soon-to-come version 6.1 of thePac Mate and gives some information about version 10 of JAWS which is scheduled to begin a public beta cycle later in the summer:
<http://www.blindbargains.com/redirect.php?redirect=3251>

3) We previously mentioned Mobile Geo, the forthcoming gps program which will run on Windows Mobile cell phones. Chris Grabowski from Sendero Group discusses the product and briefly demonstrates it in this interview:
<http://www.blindbargains.com/redirect.php?redirect=3252>

4) Finally, J.J. has joined the growing cadre of people producing scripts to enhance the functionality of Window-Eyes, or to use the program to perform tasks which were hitherto not possible. In this short demonstration, listen as he uses a bar code scanner and a Window-eyes script to identify packages and read product directions.
<http://www.blindbargains.com/redirect.php?redirect=3243>

5) A visit to Window-Eyes Script Central will reveal scripts, working under Window-Eyes beta version 7, to greatly enhance the functionality of Winamp, Skype, and iTunes, and to give Window-Eyes itself such functionality as progress bar indicators and the ability to provide a virtual text view of any window.
https://www.gwmicro.com/Script_Central/

6) Information Technology and Disabilities, June, 2008, the professional E-Journal from EASI, is now available for free reading.
<http://people.rit.edu/easi/itd.htm>

7) EASI will offer five free online webinar “snapshots” during the North American summer: Providing and Managing Accessible PDF Documents, Tuesday 8 July at 16:00 GMT; Making Accessible Online Surveys Tuesday, 8 July at 18:00 GMT; Making the Move to Vista: Things You Need to Know, Tuesday 15 July at 18:00 GMT; AMIS a Free Software DAISY Pllayer, Tuesday, Wednesday, 23 July at 18:00 GMT; and the Word-to-DAISY Add-in, Tuesday, 7 August at 18:00 GMT. Pre-registration is required, and also gives you a link to the archive when it becomes available:
<http://easi.cc/clinic.htm>
EASI also offers a number of fee-based courses during the summer:
<http://easi.cc/workshop.htm>

Serotek has announced an initiative, Keys for K-12, whereunder visually impaired students in the U.S. can receive a free annual renewable license for as long as they are in school to use System Access Mobile and download it into a thumb drive for easy use on any computer where they happen to be.
<http://www.serotek.com/kk12.html>

9) Humanware has released version 2 of the firmware for the Victor Reader Stream, enabling the versatile device to play files in Windows Media, contracted braille and rtf formats and incorporating other fixes. The Stream Companion software has also been updated to make transferring files to the Stream easier.
http://www.humanware.com

10) Humanware has now released the Trekker Breeze, the more simplified gps unit designed for those who need to follow a fixed route.
http://www.humanware.com/en-usa/products/gps

11) Adobe Reader version 9 is now available. By default, the download comes with some extras you may not want, so this page allows you to just download the reader software:
<http://www.adobe.com/accessibility/products/reader/>

12) One of the reasons many people like the Firefox web browser is its ability to be enhanced by add-ons. One such add-on is called Webvisum, and purports to make the browser more accessible to those with limited or no vision, for instance, by providing a means to solve CAPTCHA verification schemes. They’re looking for user feedback on the add-on.
http://www.webvisum.com/

Dean Martineau provides adaptive technology training by phone, online and in person, with flexible arrangements, and at affordable prices.

Feel free to forward individual Tidbits, or the entire tidbits issue, to interested people (but make sure they don’t already receive it; a lot do!) When doing this, please have the courtesy to cite your source, perhaps directing them to the tidbits web site (see below.)

tidbits is intentionally concise, but I know a lot of people don’t understand many of the items because little explanation is given. If a Tidbit brings up a question in your mind, feel free to ask, and I’ll answer as time, knowledge and inclination permit.

Visit the Tidbits page at www.topdotenterprises.com/tidbits.htm where you can subscribe to the rss feed and grab back issues. All that welcome information for future issues can come to me at dean@topdotenterprises.com.

People can subscribe to Tidbits via e-mail: tttt-join@topdotenterprises.com (make sure to get all 4 t’s into the address!)

Tracking the NFB Convention

For those who are wanting to follow the NFB conventionand all of the cool things that are taking place, I would direct you to:

 

http://www.blindbargains.com/

There is an interview with  Chris Grabowski, technical support specialist for Sendero Group, where Chris discusses Mobile Geo and  Jonathan Mosen, Vice President of Blindness Hardware Product Management for Freedom Scientific, where Jonathan talks about all that is to come in PAC Mate Omni 6.1.

 

http://therangerstation.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

Discusses JAWS 10, Victor Reader Stream and  Trekker Breeze.

 

I would keep a close eye on the two above links as there will be many more things revealed as we continue through the NFB convention, go through ACB and Sight Village.

VICTOR READER STREAM THE PROVEN SUCCESS STORY, IS NOW EVEN BETTER WITH A FREE VERSION 2.0 SOFTWARE UPGRADE

Longueuil, Canada, June 30, 2008 — Victor Reader Stream, the pocket-sized portable MP3 player designed for blind and low-vision people has swept the world wide market place since its launch in September 2007. Heralded by its users as the most significant assistive technology in recent years, the Stream has already enhanced the life style of thousands of blind and low vision people world wide. In addition to the variety of audio formats (MP3, DAISY, and NISO books and music) supported by Victor Reader Stream, the new version 2 software will add even more media and text formats.

Victor Reader Stream version 2 will now play electronic Braille files with its built-in text-to-speech including multiple formats of English Braille encoded files, Unified English Braille, and non-English Braille formats. Version 2.0 also adds playback of Windows Media Audio (WMA) and Rich Text Format (RTF) files. , Further, the bookshelf feature has been extended to enhance the access and playback of all media types with special new features for Audible books, Podcast files, and music.

With the addition of the new media types of version 2.0 the Stream now provides a pocket size device that can play an impressive list of alternate format books and documents available to the print-disabled. IT will play the special navigable DAISY and NISO digital talking books produced by most libraries for the blind in the world. It can be authorized to play the AudioPlus digital books from Recordings for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D) in the United States. It can play Bookshare.org digital books. It can be authorized to play the popular commercial audio books, newspapers, and magazines from Audible.com. It is optimized to integrate with Serotek.com who provide an extensive repository of digital multi-media content for blind and low vision people. It also plays MP3,, OGG Vorbis, WMA, Wav, AMR-WB+, SPX, and FLAC audio files. The built-in text-to-speech can play electronic text formats including BRF (Braille), HTML, RTF, TXT, and XML. In addition to its extensive digital player capabilities, it has a voice recording functionality for recording of voice notes, meetings, and lectures.

What Stream customers are saying:

“I love my Victor Reader Stream and it travels with me wherever I go.”

“This is one of the best products I have seen come along in a long time. It is well made, works right out of the box, and reads just about any kind of book you need read.”

“It’s one of the most impressive and well-planned and well-working pieces of equipment I have seen for a long time.”

“We appreciate the overwhelming enthusiasm of our customers and are pleased that we have been able to incorporate many of their suggested new features and improvements in the enhanced version 2 of the Stream”, says Gerry Chevalier, HumanWare Victor Reader Product Manager. “And the best news is that the latest version 2 software can be installed for free on all existing Victor Reader Streams.”

The Stream has extensive navigation features for moving through audio books and text files, including functions that allow you to move to the next chapter, section or page, or to set bookmarks. For all audio book and media formats the Stream provides a variable speed control with digital pitch correction which allows the reader to accurately listen at higher than normal playback speed.

The player is completely accessible by blind and low-vision users. All keys and messages are provided through audio feedback. The player has a built-in User Guide and a Key Describer mode.

 

Besides playing electronic text, the integrated text-to-speech voice announces the track names of music files. It uses an SD memory card to store books and music transferred from a computer.

Victor Reader Stream can be purchased online at

www.humanware.com (in USA). Current Victor Reader Stream users can upgrade their player to software version 2.0 online at www.humanware.com.

 

www.humanware.com) is the global leader in assistive technologies for the print disabled. HumanWare provides products to people who are blind and have low vision and students with learning disabilities. HumanWare offers a collection of innovative products include BrailleNote, the leading productivity device for the blind in education, business and for personal use; the Victor Reader product line, the world’s leading digital audiobook players, and SmartView Xtend, the first fully modular and upgradeable CCTV-based video magnifier.

 

Press Release: The Trekker Breeze Is Now Available!

TREKKER BREEZE, THE EASY ALL-IN-ONE HANDHELD TALKING GPS IS NOW AVAILABLE

Longueuil, June 26, 2008 – HumanWare is now taking orders for the Trekker Breeze, a state-of-the-art talking GPS specially designed for the needs of visually impaired users. This simple orientation tool is designed for use when travelling in familiar surroundings or pre-defined routes. The product will also be appealing to people not comfortable with computers and screen readers. The new model is an addition to our popular Trekker and BrailleNote GPS systems, which have thousands of users worldwide. With this innovation, HumanWare will make GPS technology even more accessible to a greater number of people.

The Trekker Breeze is available for purchase at an affordable price of $895. In the fall of 2008, The Trekker Breeze will become available in other languages for European and Asian countries.

Like other GPS products from HumanWare, the Trekker Breeze provides talking GPS directions that help users know where they are, where they are going and what is around them.

Trekker Breeze offers the important benefits of GPS orientation tools. It enhances autonomy and confidence in travelling and makes learning new routes easier. Users can record routes as they walk them with sighted assistance. Routes can then be previewed and activated for future use. As they walk by, users receive audible information, such as street names, intersections and reference landmarks. In case they are lost, they can retrace their steps. They can also reach favorite destinations with turn-by-turn instructions from their current position. The product makes it easier to travel alone, and allows people to discover and enjoy their surroundings.

“GPS technology brings great benefits to visually impaired travellers. With this new addition to our product line, Humanware now offers GPS benefits to an even wider portion of the visually impaired population,” said Lucia Gomez, Product Manager. “Easy and intuitive, Trekker Breeze offers basic orientation functions in an all-in-one hand size device. It is also the most affordable GPS tool specially designed for the needs of users who are blind.”

HumanWare offers the most complete line of GPS tools for visually impaired people. The line includes the popular BrailleNote GPS and Trekker. BrailleNote GPS is a full-featured GPS tool that integrates seamlessly with Keysoft. It is available with any of the BrailleNote family of products. BrailleNote GPS benefits from the highly efficient and easy-to-learn Keysoft interface. Sleek and discreet, Trekker is a powerful GPS solution running on a mainstream palm-size PDA. Trekker is highly appealing to professionals and students already familiar with computers and screen readers.

“Trekker Breeze will make the potential of GPS technology even more accessible to the blind,” said Lucia Gomez.

The BrailleNote GPS and Trekker are currently available from HumanWare. For more information, please visit http://www.humanware.com/en-usa/products/gps

About HumanWare

HumanWare (www.humanware.com) is the global leader in assistive technologies for the print disabled. HumanWare provides products to people who are blind and have low vision and students with learning disabilities. HumanWare offers a collection of innovative products include BrailleNote, the leading productivity device for the blind in education, business and for personal use; the Victor Reader product line, the world’s leading digital audiobook players, and SmartView Xtend, the first fully modular and upgradeable CCTV-based video magnifier.

For more information:

HumanWare
Nicolas Lagace
Tel.:                (450) 463-1717        
E-mail: nicolas.lagace@humanware.com

Icon and Braille+ Software Release 1.11.16

From: “Marc Mulcahy” <marc [at] levelstar [dot] com>
Date: Tue, 24 Jun 2008 08:38:05 -0600

Hi All:

Software version 1.11 build 16 is released.?? This one contains support for
content from Audible.com.?? The complete what’s new is below.

Marc

What’s new in 1.11

Bug fixes:
* fixed navigation in continuous read–reading no longer gets stalled when
arrowing through a document while in continuous read.
* Fixed continuous read in the docking station–Alt + Space should now read
beyond the current paragraph.
*Fixed problems disconnecting from Ethernet in the dock.
*Keylearn Mode now works correctly when docked.
*Braille Translator is much faster.
* NLS books beginning with short clips of silence, such as the May issue of
Smart Computing, no longer hang up the bookshelf.

New features and changes:
*Audible content is now supported!
* Software packages installed through File Explorer such as games are now
automatically re-installed after an update.
* New Manage Software Utility lists all installed software packages,
including system software.?? This utility only allows for the removal of
software packages–packages must be installed by selecting them in File
Explorer or downloading them through the Check for Software Updates utility.

*There is a new item in the Applications Menu called Work Space which
contains 4 views: Welcome, RSS, Recent Books, and Recent Files.?? Through
these various views, the Work Space application gives you quick and easy
access to your most recently downloaded RSS podcasts and articles, your
recent books, and your most recently accessed files, as well as providing a
quick link to the APH or LevelStar website (depends on your unit).??

To navigate among the views, press Pound + the Left and Right Arrows (Alt +
Left and Right when docked). To navigate among the items in a given view,
use the Up and down Arrows.?? If the view contains a folder structure, use
the Right arrow to enter a folder, and the left Arrow to exit back out of
the folder to the previous structural level.

In addition, you’ll find when you check for software updates this go-round
that there are two additional packages available for download: an audio
tutorial package, and an audible content package.?? If you choose to download
and install these packages, they will also appear in the Welcome View of the
Work Space below the manufacturer’s website.??

The Audible content package contains several samples of various types of
content from Audible.com as well as a link for a free trial.?? The Audio
Tutorial package is an audio daisy book containing updated versions of all
of the tutorials produced by LevelStar, including the introduction to the
docking station and a tutorial on the new Work Space application.

* Due to the addition and placement of the Work Space application under
number 1 in the Applications Menu, the Address Book is now number 7 in the
Tools Menu, and so can be accessed by typing 57 from the Applications Menu.

* Due to the fact that f10 will be one of the programmable hotkeys for
opening programs using the docking station, the Qwerty command for accessing
the Options Menu within a program is now Alt + O.

And finally,
* The Check for Software Updates utility now supports the installation of
multiple packages.?? Press Select to mark each package you wish to download,
then press OK to begin download and installation.?? All the packages will
download, next all the packages will install, if a package requires a reboot
as do the system software packages, this will happen next, and finally after
the restart and restoration of data, games and other software packages
installed from File Explorer will be re-installed.

Known issues.
1. The NLS books that give “error 22″ when unpacking: we’re stillworking on
it.
2. Can’t currently select links from email or RSS articles when docked.
3. The unit ocasionally resumes with no system sounds or media player or
bookshelf audio.?? Closing all applications, powering off, and turning the
unit back on again usually fixes this.?? We’re still working on fixing the
underlying issue.
4. The function key on the dock says nothing in key learn mode.
5. Occasionally, when docked, no audio can be heard through the dock’s
speakers.?? Pressing caps lock seems to resolve this.?? We’re investigating
the underlying issue.
6. Re-installation of packages with interdependencies silently fail.?? This
only affects anyone who has a bunch of interdependent .ipk files installed.
7. Installing the Soduku game hangs the installer.

Update: Coming up on Main Menu for the week of June 25 – Window-Eyes 7.0 Fully Disclosed

Coming up on this week’s Main Menu Live, we dedicate the two hour episode to
talk all about Window-Eyes 7.0. Doug and Aaron from GW Micro will be with
us as well as many beta testers from the Window-Eyes private beta team. We
will discuss the product and the many scripts that will be available on GW
Micro’s Scripting Central web site found at:

http://www.gwmicro.com/Script_Central/

We had Doug and Aaron on Main Menu in the past and it is time to bring them
back to discuss the product and to get feedback from private beta users and
scripters on the new version. Jamal Mazrui has written a significant amount
of scripts for the 7.0 product and he will be here to talk about the many
things he has developed. I will discuss the newest refinements to the
Winamp scripts that will be available including features that could replace
the ACB Radio Tuner for Winamp users that use Window-Eyes as well as much
improved access to the Auto-Tagging capabilities of Winamp. Aaron and Doug
will talk all about the GW Toolkit scripting library, the AutoComplete
script, the progress indicator script, the VirtualView script, the Weather
or Not script, and much much more.

As of this writing, we are happy to report that Window-Eyes 7.0 Public Beta
1 is available at the following link:

http://www.gwmicro.com/beta

Here is how to participate in the show:

The number to call into the show is 866-400-5333.
You may email your questions to: mainmenu@acbradio.org
You may also interact with the show via MSN (Windows Live) Messenger. The
MSN Messenger ID to add is: mainmenu@acbradio.org

Would you like to interact with a group of Main Menu listeners about the
topics heard on Main Menu and Main Menu Live? You can do this by joining the
Main Menu Friends email list. The address to subscribe is:
main-menu-subscribe@googlegroups.com

Come join an already lively group of users.

Would you like to subscribe to podcast feeds for Main Menu and Main Menu
Live? The RSS feeds to add to your podcatching application are:

Main Menu – http://www.acbradio.org/podcasts/mainmenu
Main Menu Live – http://www.acbradio.org/podcasts/mainmenulive

For this next week, only the Main Menu Live podcast feed will be updated.

Main Menu can be heard on Tuesday evenings at 9:00 Eastern, 6:00 Pacific,
and at 1 universal (GMT) on Wednesday mornings on the ACB Radio Main Stream
channel.

Follow this link to listen to the show:

http://www.acbradio.org/pweb/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=8

Jeff Bishop and Darrell Shandrow
The Main Menu Production Team

Opinions expressed belong to the Individual Contributors.

Podcast:

ml20080625.mp3

Window-Eyes 7.0 Beta 1 Is Now Available!

Jun-24-2008

After much anticipation, Window-Eyes 7.0 Beta 1 is now available.  Window-Eyes 7.0 Beta 1 offers the latest advancements in screen reading technology, including full Unicode support, new scripting functionality, web browsing enhancements, a new synthesizer, and much more.

Full Unicode support means the ability to work with more international languages. Web browsing enhancements mean easier navigation between controls, and the ability to add placemarkers that can remember places on a webpage even when the webpage changes. ECI Eloquence 6.1 is now available as yet another speech option. Other enhancements like speed increases for list views, the system tray, and error reporting, being able to increase and decrease the speech rate during read to end, new options for keyboard voice interruptability, and numerous bug fixes make Window-Eyes 7.0 Beta 1 a welcome update.

The most notable enhancement in Window-Eyes 7.0 Beta 1, however, is scripting. Window-Eyes scripting is unparalleled in its design and implementation.  Rather than require a scripter to learn a proprietary language, Window-Eyes 7.0 Beta 1 allows a scripter to choose from a number of standard computer languages for writing scripts.  This means that more people will be able to take advantage of Window-Eyes scripting, and ultimately more accessibility to more software applications. Access all Window-Eyes features and settings, all operating system windows and properties, create custom accessible dialogs for user interaction with power and ease, and more.

To make scripts easily accessible and encourage script development, GW Micro has created a centralized script repository called Script Central (www.gwmicro.com/sc). Script Central provides script developers with the tools to distribute their scripts, and provides scripts users the tools to download, comment, rate and track favorite scripts.  The GW Micro forums (www.gwmicro.com/forum) have also been enhanced for general script discussions, script requests, script announcements, and much more. While we encourage everyone to take advantage of Script Central, Window-Eyes scripts can be hosted anywhere and distributed by anyone.

Read more about all of the features Window-Eyes 7.0 Beta 1 has to offer, and download your copy, at www.gwmicro.com/beta.

GWKB1088 : Switching To The New ECI Eloquence Speech Synthesizer Included With Window-Eyes 7.0

Product: Window-Eyes
Category: Guide
Author: Raul Gallegos
Date Added: 06/24/2008
Last Modified: 06/24/2008

---

Window-Eyes 7.0 comes with a newer version of the Eloquence software synthesizer called ECI Eloquence 6.1. This version of Eloquence is directly tied to Window-Eyes and therefore does not use the SAPI interface. This also means that you can use Eloquence as your synthesizer when running Window-Eyes mobile from a removable device such as a USB drive (also known as a flash drive, pen drive, or USB memory stick). In order to successfully switch to using this newer version of Eloquence, you cannot be using the older 5.0 version of ETI Eloquence. If either a Window-Eyes script or a third-party application such as other access technology is using the older Eloquence, that script or application will need to be closed or disabled. If it is not, then the new Eloquence engines may not be found, or you might experience a system hang.

Switching to the newer ECI Eloquence version 6.1

The following steps will guide you in switching to a temporary synthesizer first, then switching to the newer Eloquence to insure a smooth change over. These steps assume you are using the default hot keys for Window-Eyes.

1. Press CTRL-\ to focus the Window-Eyes control panel.
2. Press ALT-F, then the letter Y to open the synthesizer selection dialog box.
3. Press the HOME key then the letter D to select the DECtalk Access32 (Window-Eyes) synthesizer.
4. Press the ENTER key and Window-Eyes will begin speaking using the DECtalk Access32 synthesizer.
5. Press ALT-F4, then the ENTER key to shutdown Window-Eyes.
6. Press CTRL-ALT-W to restart Window-Eyes. Remember it will still be speaking using the DECtalk Access32 (Window-Eyes) synthesizer.
7. Press CTRL-\ to focus the Window-Eyes control panel.
8. Press ALT-F, then the letter Y to open the synthesizer selection dialog box.
9. Press the HOME key then the letter E twice to select the Eloquence synthesizer.
10. Press the ENTER key and Window-Eyes will begin speaking using the Eloquence synthesizer.

Some final notes

1. If no other applications are using the older ETI Eloquence 5.0 engines, you can remove them from the PC.
2. If you choose to leave the older ETI Eloquence 5.0 engines on the PC, you cannot switch back to using this synthesizer without first switching to another temporary synthesizer and restarting Window-Eyes. Failing to do this could result in a system hang.
3. The newer ECI Eloquence 6.1 synthesizer is directly tied to Window-Eyes. This means you can use it if running Window-Eyes mobile from a removable device such as a USB drive (also known as a flash drive, pen drive, or USB memory stick). Details of installing Window-Eyes mobile are found in Knowledge Base Article KB1067.
4. If you have multiple sound cards in your PC, you can tell the newer Eloquence synthesizer which card to use.

 

http://www.gwmicro.com/Support/Knowledge_Base/?kbnumber=GWKB1088

Top Tech Tidbits for Thursday, Issue #164, June 19, 2008

1) The latest version of the popular Opera web browser now supports the Voiceover screen reader for the Mac.
<http://www.lioncourt.com>

2) If you want to know what software version 2.0 of the Victor Reader Stream will contain, you’ll hear it first if you attend Tek Talk on GMT Tuesday, 24 June at 00:00 (Monday evening in the States.)
<http://www.accessibleworld.org>

3) The Assistive Technology Center is now a dealer for MobilEyes, a product which we mentioned several months ago here which purports to be a portable reading machine, magnifier, mp3 player, organizer and computer all in one. Hence, they are offering free hour-long demonstrations of the product online. Two such demos will take place onGMT Friday, 20 June at 17:30 and 21:30 GMT. To get a place, e-mail
connie@atechcenter.net
Then drop into the room at the appointed time, download the free conferencing software if you haven’t done so before, and participate.
http://www.atechcenter.net

4) Gw Micro has created a video demo of the SenseView Duo, the portable digital magnifier that claims to magnify both close-up and at a distance, enabling reading of both restaurant menus and signs with the same unit.
<http://youtube.com/watch?v=cPFa4CesXZU>

5) The next Hadley School seminar will be entitled Mobile Access and Your Adaptive Technology and will take place on Saturday, 21 June at 16:00 GMT. Registration online is required
http://hadley.edu/seminar
And recordings of past seminars are available
http://hadley.edu/2_f_past_seminar_hadley.asp

6) For those not familiar with it, the Hadley School offers free correspondence courses to the blind worldwide. Their course on Internet Basics has recently been updated, and they also have a course on Internet, Beyond the Basics.
http://www.hadley.edu

7) Dolphin Systems has released version 3 of their EasyReader Daisy book reader. This version is said to work closely with the Microsoft Save as Daisy plug-in for Word. It supports fifteen languages and comes with the Acapela software synthesizer built-in.
http://www.yourdolphin.com/productdetail.asp?id=9&z=3

Fred’s Head Companion introduces us to Radiopaq, a site that contains a large listing of online radio stations and podcasts. They seem to have some good international radio station coverage, so we’ll see if they keep the links updated.
http://www.radiopaq.com/

9) That prolific blog and web site also mentions WikiAudio, the encyclopedia for everything audio.
http://www.wikiaudio.com/

10) Another discovery from there is Jot, a free service which lets you use your cell phone to send e-mails and reminders to yourself and e-mails to others, as well as listen to news feeds.
http://jott.com/

11) Here’s a pretty accurate Fred’s Head Companion posting called The Ten Net Commandments:
http://www.fredshead.info/2008/06/ten-net-commandments.html

12) Here’s a new blog to track: Managing Assistive Technology in Higher Education.
http://athighered.blogspot.com/

13) Code Factory is offering a competition in which ten winners will share some $20,000 worth of prizes.
<http://www.codefactory.es/en/page.asp?id=251>

14) As laws requiring drivers who talk on mobile phones to use headsets proliferate throughout the U.S.,here is a site which can actually benefit anybody in the world and is apparently one case where, if something looks too good to be true, it still might be true: FreeHeadset.org will send a headset for your particular phone anywhere in the world for the shipping cost of $3.94.
http://www.FreeHeadset.org <>

15) An organization known as Association of Blind Citizens slaims to provide grants for adaptive technology to citizens of the U.S.
http://www.blindcitizens.org/

16) Dakota State University is offering an online course, Introduction to Computers, and reader Keith Bundy is teaching a class under this course title for users of screen readers, braille displays, magnifiers and speech recognition technology. The three-credit course will cost $658.65 and will provide much information about Office 2007. Perhaps the best way to get through the registration process or get more information is to e-mail
keith.bundy@dsu.edu

Dean Martineau provides adaptive technology training by phone, online and in person, with flexible arrangements, and at affordable prices.

Feel free to forward individual Tidbits, or the entire tidbits issue, to interested people (but make sure they don’t already receive it; a lot do!) When doing this, please have the courtesy to cite your source, perhaps directing them to the tidbits web site (see below.)

tidbits is intentionally concise, but I know a lot of people don’t understand many of the items because little explanation is given. If a Tidbit brings up a question in your mind, feel free to ask, and I’ll answer as time, knowledge and inclination permit.

Visit the Tidbits page at www.topdotenterprises.com/tidbits.htm where you can subscribe to the rss feed and grab back issues. All that welcome information for future issues can come to me at dean@topdotenterprises.com.

People can subscribe to Tidbits via e-mail: tttt-join@topdotenterprises.com (make sure to get all 4 t’s into the address!)

Skype 4.0 Beta 1 for Windows

Hello! I’m Mike Bartlett, Director of Windows Product Management here at Skype.

Four and a bit years ago we changed the way people talked. Free calling is something that brings smiles to people all over the world, every day. We’re very proud of that.

Today, we’re announcing the most exciting change to Skype since inception – Skype 4.0 Beta 1 for Windows.

Over the years, we’ve added a lot of richness and functionality to Skype. It’s no longer just a little piece of software for making free calls. Our video calling experience, now enjoyed on over a quarter of all Skype to Skype calls, is starting to take centre stage alongside other great features such as instant messaging, group conversations, SMS & voicemail.
This video is recorded in HD – we recommend viewing it full screen (for those of you reading this in an RSS reader, you can watch the briefing video here)

A while ago we realised we had outgrown our home. There was so much to pack in, and Skype got a bit crowded. We learnt that people new to Skype had so much choice, they didn’t always know where to start or how to find things. So we decided to move into a bigger, better home. Skype 4.0 Beta 1 for Windows.

We’re sharing this beta with you a little earlier than normal because we know it’s a big change, and sometimes change can take some getting used to. We’re going to spend the whole summer listening to your feedback and making changes so that when we do launch the final version, we’ll make sure it’s perfect. Because we’re releasing it early, a few little things aren’t available in today’s beta: full history and contact groups are two examples.
This video is recorded in HD – we recommend viewing it full screen (for those of you reading this in an RSS reader, you can watch the introductory demo video here)

So what’s new then? We’ve given video calling the screen size it finally deserves, plus we’ve made it really simple to use. A single click on the Video call button and you’ll be seeing and talking. Video doesn’t start off really small anymore – it’s big and beautiful to begin with. You can also resize and move your own video window around the screen quite easily. Plus in one click, you can have an IM conversation alongside the video call.
Helping people juggle lots of conversations all at once is another reason behind the big changes in 4.0 Beta. We found people had to keep track of multiple windows in order to have a few conversations. In fact, if you had a High Quality Video call alongside an IM, plus you were sending a couple of pictures that was five windows! It’s now all in one window. Take a look at the Conversations button just above the Contact list. It’s a list of all the conversations you’ve got going on. Just click between them to pick up a conversation right where you left off. You can also pop your conversations out into separate windows if you prefer having different windows for different conversations.
This video is recorded in HD – we recommend viewing it full screen (for those of you reading this in an RSS reader, you can watch the advanced demo video here)

Finally, we’ve made working with Skype Certified hardware dead simple. We heard some of our users were having problems when plugging and unplugging new devices and sometimes people couldn’t hear them talking. In Skype 4.0 Beta for Windows, the first time you plug in your new device, Skype will automatically detect it and start using it. We’ll remember your devices so that next time, even if you switch headset mid-call, we’ll get it right.

OK, that’s enough from me. Go ahead and download it, try it out for a few days, make some video calls and then let us know what you think.

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