[MD-AtLarge] Two helpful announcements

Wed Dec 28 19:25:21 UTC 2016

Hello all,

You will not want to miss the two messages below from Jerry Price concerning
access to Verizon TV and software to make using BARD easier. 

Best wishes for a happy New Year!

My apologies if someone has already shared this information.
Text to Speech

Verizon offers Text to Speech functionality for the Fios TV on-screen guide
to enhance accessibility for visually impaired customers. The Text to Speech
feature provides audible voice read out of on-screen text, such as menu and
guide data. This feature can be enabled or disabled via the on-screen guide
and provides normal voice reading of the text displayed within the menu
on-screen.

How to enable Text to Speech

Text to Speech functionality is available on most Verizon set-top boxes. The
feature can be enabled via the settings menu: Menu > Settings > System >
Accessibility
> Text to Speech > on/off

If you need help getting the Text to Speech feature working on your set-top
box, contact us anytime at 1.800.Verizon (1.800.837.4966). One of our
skilled representatives can enable the feature remotely for you.

Set-top box compatibility

If you are disabled and feel you would benefit from Text to Speech, but have
a set-top box that isn?t compatible with this functionality, you can swap
your set-top box for a compatible alternative at no charge. If you need help
installing new equipment, a Verizon technician will assist you at no charge.

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Need more help with this feature?

Contact the Verizon Center for Customers with Disabilities:
Toll-free at 1.800.974.6006 Voice or TTY 508.251.5301 Videophone Monday
through Friday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm Email us at:
vccd at verizon.com <mailto:vccd at verizon.com> 

--
Catch Dan Price Live:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z_0UJVGzYs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQBWJDRYn4A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAJBUO_V83E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiRvX2jMx-A

------------------------------

Message: 2
Date: Tue, 27 Dec 2016 10:01:39 -0500
From: Jerry Price <techguy410 at gmail.com <mailto:techguy410 at gmail.com> >
To: NFB of Maryland Baltimore Chapter Discussion List
                <greater-baltimore at nfbnet.org
<mailto:greater-baltimore at nfbnet.org> >
Subject: [Greater-Baltimore] BARD Express Released
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<CAHrvgbdocbxTCeug+g45XdMrqWEYeZM_C4PR9zE556+Hj=o+Ug at mail.gmail.com
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The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped
(NLS), Library of Congress, has accepted the donation of ?BARD
Express, a Windows-based software program that will aid in the use of
the NLS Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) service. The free
software will be available to patrons of the NLS program in December
2016.

BARD Express will make browsing BARD audio materials, downloading
titles, and transferring them to a cartridge or USB drive much easier
for patrons using a PC.? said NLS director Karen Keninger. ?We hope it
will make the thousands of books available on BARD readily accessible
to more patrons.?
BARD Express was the brainchild of Kirk Saathoff, a software developer
whose wife and son are patrons of the NLS braille and talking book
program and frequent users of BARD. ?For years, I watched my wife
sometimes become a bit annoyed with her computer, and I know [most]
software is designed without regard for people with disabilities,?
Saathoff said. ?My hope in developing this software was that it would
allow more people to enjoy books while minimizing the time and
frustration involved in accessing them.?
BARD Express manages audio materials that users download to their
computer and categorizes the materials by books, magazines, read
items, and unread items for easy sorting. The program also simplifies
downloading and transferring talking books to a cartridge or USB drive
by providing a button that unzips and transfers the files to an
external storage device. It also provides device management options
from the main menu.
Don Olson, BARD operations manager at NLS said, ?BARD Express enables
NLS patrons to more easily unzip the books they download from BARD.
Gone are the days of having to carry out multiple file management
steps in order to place a book or magazine on an NLS cartridge or a
USB drive.?
Olson explained that BARD Express ?provides step-by-step menus to more
easily move books from a PC to a patron?s device of choice.? The
program will simplify searching for titles on BARD by presenting
various searching and browsing options from the main menu, such as
search by series, search by keyword, browse the recently added and
most popular lists, and browse the magazine collection.?
According to Olson, NLS plans to release the software, along with
support resources?such as a BARD Express ?how-to? video series,
Frequently Asked Questions about BARD Express, and a Getting Started
Guide for supporting library staff in the network of cooperating
libraries. A link to the download site for the new free, software will
be provided on BARD in December 2016.
NLS administers the braille and talking-book program, a free library
service available to U.S. residents and American citizens living
abroad whose low vision, blindness, or disability makes reading a
regular printed page difficult. Through its national network of
libraries, NLS mails books and magazines in audio and braille formats,
as well as digital audio equipment, directly to enrollees at no cost.
Music instructional materials are available in large print, e-braille,
braille, and recorded formats. Selected materials are also available
online for download, and are accessible through smartphones. For more
information, visit loc.gov/ThatAllMayRead/ or call 1-888-NLS-READ
(1-888-657-7323).

-- 
Catch Dan Price Live:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z_0UJVGzYs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQBWJDRYn4A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAJBUO_V83E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiRvX2jMx-A

Sharon Maneki, President
National Federation of the Blind of Maryland
410-715-9596

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