[Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility

Mon Feb 15 19:07:46 UTC 2016

Well, if they do have such plans, they are keeping them a big secret.  Not 
even their top executives seem to know anything about accessible boxes. 
About two years ago, I actually emailed the CEO of Time Warner of New York 
City, Michael Diamond, and asked him when his company would be offering 
accessible cable boxes to its blind customers.  All I received was a canned, 
ambiguous  response, probably concocted by one of his executive assistants, 
that said something like,"Time Warner is constantly striving to improve the 
viewing experience for its disabled customers."

Gerald

-----Original Message----- 
From: Christopher Chaltain via Electronics-Talk
Sent: Monday, February 15, 2016 1:19 PM
To: Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances
Cc: Christopher Chaltain
Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility

How are you so certain Time-Warner has no such plans? Weren't people
saying the same thing about ComCast and all cable providers not so long ago?

On 15/02/16 06:10, Gerald Levy via Electronics-Talk wrote:
>
> Well, Time Warner Cable certainly has no plans to offer accessible boxes
> anytime soon.  Their customer service agents as well as their overpaid
> executives profess total ignorance about the existence of such devices.
> Who is going to force them to offer accessible boxes, anyway ?  The
> FCC?  The blindness advocacy groups?  The local police?  LOL!  Except
> for Comcast, the other cable providers do not seem to be taking this
> issue very seriously. Why should they?
>
> Gerald
>
>
>
> -----Original Message----- From: Rob Kaiser via Electronics-Talk
> Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2016 11:18 PM
> To: 'Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances'
> Cc: Rob Kaiser
> Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility
>
> Thank you for that suggestion. First & formost, it would really be great 
> if
> other cable companies would get on board with Comcast in getting new 
> boxes.
>
> Rob Kaiser
> Email;
> rcubfank at sbcglobal.net
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Electronics-Talk [mailto:electronics-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of cheez via Electronics-Talk
> Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2016 8:02 PM
> To: Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances
> <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: cheez <cheez at cox.net>
> Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility
>
> When I had cable, it was with Cox.  If I experienced any trouble, the
> automated system would send a signal to my box.  If the problem wasn't
> solved, then a live tech would come on the line and try to fix things.  If
> that fails, then a service tech was sent to my home.
>
>
> Vince
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Rob Kaiser via Electronics-Talk" <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
> To: "'Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances'"
> <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: "Rob Kaiser" <rcubfank at sbcglobal.net>
> Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2016 1:48 PM
> Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility
>
>
>> How are you able to set the cable box by phone? I had a problem with my
>> cable last week. I called Charter (a web site that is not accessible) &
>> they
>> like most cable companies asked me what was on the screen. When I told
>> them
>> I am totally blind & I cannot see the screen, they wanted to make an
>> appointment for a tech to come out. There was no way to set the cable box
>> by
>> push buttons. Does anyone know when Comcast's audio box for the cable box
>> will be ready? I have a feeling that once Comcast gets that ready & it is
>> a
>> feature one can get, other cable companieswill have to follow suit on
>> this.
>> If they don't they will lose many blind people. Of course, Comcast isn't
>> availablein some areas.
>>
>> I also agree with your idea Gerald as to the factcompanies should return
>> to
>> regular buttons that we can use.
>>
>> Rob Kaiser
>> Email;
>> rcubfank at sbcglobal.net
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Electronics-Talk [mailto:electronics-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
>> Behalf Of Gerald Levy via Electronics-Talk
>> Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2016 10:15 AM
>> To: Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances
>> <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: Gerald Levy <bwaylimited at verizon.net>
>> Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility
>>
>>
>> I have an even better idea.  Forget all this bluetooth and Internet
>> nonsense.  Why not make appliances with tactile buttons and switches like
>> in
>> the good old days?  What a concept!!  The problem is that the design and
>> manufacture of appliances has largely been taken over by the Chinese who
>> are
>> more interested in making cheap products than in making them universally
>> accessible.  And now that GE has agreed to sell its appliance business to
>> the Chinese electronics and appliance giant, Haier,appliance
>> accessibility
>> is likely to get even worse.
>>
>> Gerald
>>
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message----- From: cheez via Electronics-Talk
>> Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2016 12:06 PM
>> To: Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances
>> Cc: cheez
>> Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility
>>
>> Why not bypass bluetooth and make appliances accessible via the Internet.
>> If one can communicate with a fridge using a computer or smartphone, then
>> why not make it possible for one to set appliances the same way?
>> Now it may sound crazy, but if one doesn't have a computer or smartphone,
>> then they could use a landline like one can do to reset cable boxes and
>> the
>> like.
>>
>> Vince
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tracy Carcione via
>> Electronics-Talk" <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
>> To: "'Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances'"
>> <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: "Tracy Carcione" <carcione at access.net>
>> Sent: Sunday, February 14, 2016 8:35 AM
>> Subject: [Electronics-Talk] Appliance accessibility
>>
>>
>>> Many years ago now, the brilliant engineer Tim Cranmer had an idea of
>>> how
>>> to
>>> make appliances accessible.  We would get a law passed requiring
>>> manufacturers to include a chip which would broadcast menu info to a
>>> blind
>>> person's device of choice.  Those days, it was something like a Braille
>>> 'n
>>> Speak.  These days, it would probably be a smart phone, with the signal
>>> via
>>> Bluetooth.
>>>
>>> Could some version of this idea be workable today?  It wouldn't solve
>>> the
>>> problem of a touch screen control, as someone described for some
>>> dishwashers, but it would help with the problem of one button
>>> controlling
>>> different menus and submenus, like some washers I've seen.
>>>
>>> I'm not keen on my appliances being connected to the internet, but I'm
>>> also
>>> not happy with the struggle it can be these days to find something I can
>>> easily use.
>>>
>>> Tracy
>>>
>>>
>>>
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-- 
Christopher (CJ)
chaltain at Gmail

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