[nabs-l] Frustrated with Bookshare!

[Courtney Stover]

Hi all:

Let me see if I can clarify a bit of what's going on here, at least to
the best of my understanding.

Bookshare has recently instituted their own "web reader"  This feature
allows you to read books through the web without ever having to
download them to a computer hard drive.  Unfortunately, this feature
only works with Google Chrome, which, I'm presuming, is where Joshua's
frustration comes from.

Joshua: there are two things you need to be aware of.

First and foremost, the method everyone on this list has advocated
(downloading the file type known as Daisy Text and then reading the
XML file in Internet Explorer works beautifully with Jaws 10, and I
would know, since I had this version until very recently.)  If you
need further help, the tech support people are astoundingly helpful.
They do not contact patrons during the weekend, which is why they may
not have contacted you before now.

Secondly, they are working to make the Web Reader accessible with
other browsers.  However, Chrome is one of the most innovative, with
ever-expanding functionality and excellent security.  Firefox has
frequent updates, which makes it difficult for Bookshare engineering
to keep the software compatible, and Internet Explorer's security
issues are a concern for the staff when making the Reader compatible
with it.

There are two other points which I would like to address.  If I cause
offense, I apologize profusely, but I believe these things need to be
stated.

Firstly: there are Demo versions of Jaws.  While I do not advocate
this as a permanent solution, it is an excellent temporary one while
financial ducks are put in a row.  It does require you to restart the
computer every forty minutes, but the advantages are absolutely worth
it.  I know we don't often realize how far behind software we actually
are until we get such upgrades.  However, upgrading your Jaws (even in
demo temporarily) would virtually eliminate the myriad of
technological problems you have brought to this list.

Secondly: Joshua, please be clearer in your E-mails.  I realize there
is immense frustration in technology that is not working properly (my
hours-long battle with Learning Ally's Read Here player today makes me
particularly sympathetic to your plight), but E-mails which do not
clearly define your problem serve no one.  If you had clearly
explained that you were attempting to use a new feature called the Web
Reader which only worked in Chrome, and you needed alternative
solutions, much of the confusion I sensed underlying many of the
messages in this topic could have been averted.

I'll address one final point and then close.  I agree wholeheartedly
with Mike and Caiti.  I am one of those under 40 who has none of the
players Mike named (partially due to finances, but mostly due to
vastly preferring DoubleTalk, the synthesizer used on the original
Book Port when it comes to text files, rather than the more "human"
voices utilized by many of these players, which are so unbearably
grating for me that I am incapable of concentrating on the information
being presented.)  However, when I do need to read Daisy files, I take
advantage of the many Pc-based options or find a way to convert them
in to text.  And I always try and keep my software up to date, even if
that means using Demos.  We are disadvantaged enough as it is without
hampering ourselves by being unwilling to innovate.
Again, I hope at least some of what I have said is helpful, and that I
have not given offense.
Warmest Regards,
Courtney
P.S.: If anyone could suggest a Daisy player with a synthesizer
similar to DoubleTalk, I would be immensely grateful; I live in fear
of the day my BookPort dies.