[Dtb-talk] NLS Digital Players

[David Andrews]

Personally, I think NLS is due a lot of credit.  They resisted the 
pressure to use CD's.  They started this process back in the 90's, 
and while they can be slow and ponderous at times, they developed a 
system that works well for most of their target audience.  And ... 
for those more technically inclined there is the download service.

Dave

At 11:53 PM 2/14/2010, you wrote:
>These are some of the very reasons we settled on the NLS cartridges. 
>We have found we can get about 4 books on one. You don't really want 
>more than that anyway. Imagine hearing that your bookshelf had 100's 
>of books in it and you had to go one by one to get to the one you want.
>
>We thought about using SD card but when we tested such we found them 
>just too small and easy to loose.
>
>
>Gregory Kearney
>Manager - Accessible Media
>Association for the Blind of Western Australia
>61 Kitchener Avenue, PO Box 101
>Victoria Park 6979, WA Australia
>
>Telephone: +61 (08) 9311 8202
>Telephone: +1 (307) 224-4022 (North America)
>Fax: +61 (08) 9361 8696
>Toll free: 1800 658 388 (Australia only)
>Email: gkearney at gmail.com
>
>On 15/02/2010, at 12:27 PM, Tim Gillett wrote:
>
> > David wrote:
> >
> > "NLS does not provide blank cartridges or thumb drives.
> > They are in the business of providing books preloaded on cartridges
> > - in the way that they have provided cassettes."
> >
> >
> > Yes it's easy to forget the whole purpose of the NLS larger 
> cartridge housing
> > is to make it easy for the Print handicapped to read books.
> >
> > One of the downsides of the miniaturisation of electronics has 
> been its effect on the blind.
> >
> > The compact cassette was still reasonably large enough for easy 
> use by the blind.  Whereas
> > on the modern flash card there is usually not enough room  for 
> adequate braille or printed labelling
> > for example, let alone reliably inserting such small media into a player.
> > And what if the blind person drops a tiny memory card? How do 
> they find it again?
> >
> > Similarly players with tiny control buttons and tiny 
> screens  make them almost impossible to use,
> > especially for the elderly blind.
> >
> > I came across this many times with the blind here in WA when 
> cassettes were the current format
> > and here in WA. but clients had to find their own cassette player.
> > The old "shoebox" cassette player with its large piano key 
> operation was fairly easy for most blind to use.
> > But once it started to disappear from the market and was replaced 
> by smaller, more fiddly Walkmans
> > the blind struggled to use these players.
> >
> > I'm pleased to see the designers of the NLS player specified a 
> largish cartridge
> > even though it only contains a small memory stick inside. This is 
> practical for the blind,
> > however antiquated and "uncool" it might appear by sighted 
> people's standards.
> >
> > Similarly it's pleasing in the NLS DTB to see other features 
> carried over from the old TBC1 players
> > such as internal speaker, rechargeable battery, variable speed 
> control, automatic power down etc.
> >
> > It's important we stay real and remember  the many blind people 
> in their homes who have to use these devices.
> >
> >
> > Tim Gillett
> > Audio/Electronics Technician
> > Perth, Western Australia
> >