[nabs-l] learning ally and download frustrations

Tue Apr 15 20:54:46 UTC 2014

hi,
well I don't have an ios device, and If I did, I wouldn't use their ap as I 
heard some of the buttons have problems; rewind is one of them.

Glad it works for you; I like to   navigate my books and often rewind to 
hear a few minutes back; so this would not work for me.

-----Original Message----- 
From: Mikayla Gephart
Sent: Tuesday, April 15, 2014 4:14 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] learning ally and download frustrations

I did not even know that. I just started with the app on Saturday, and have 
pretty much mastered it.

Sent from my iPad

> On Apr 15, 2014, at 1:46 PM, Kirt <kirt.crazydude at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Michaela,
> I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with you. The iOS app didn't 
> even have a rewind button until about a week ago. If that's not shoddy 
> workmanship I really don't know what is.
> Best,
> Kirt
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>> On Apr 15, 2014, at 10:23 AM, Mikayla Gephart <mikgephart at icloud.com> 
>> wrote:
>>
>> Do you have their app for IOS? It works pretty good.
>>
>> Sent from my iPad
>>
>>> On Apr 14, 2014, at 10:51 PM, Ashley Bramlett 
>>> <bookwormahb at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>>
>>> Chris,
>>> Couldn't have said it better. I attempted to do the online downloads to 
>>> no avail.
>>> I was able to browse the catalog, select the books I wanted, and add to 
>>> bookshelf, and that's as far as I got.
>>> I have attempted to download the darn manager twice with the same 
>>> results.
>>>
>>> I'm serously contemplating bookshare now.
>>> How does bookshare compare with learning ally? Is the site and download 
>>> process simple? I know its daisy text. Is the text marked simliar to 
>>> learning ally where its by part, chapter, and subsection of the chapter?
>>> Does bookshare  have the same textbooks and variety as learning ally?
>>> What are the formats now? I hear they are adding new formats all the 
>>> time. Can the daisy software they give you have human like sounding 
>>> speech?
>>> I heard they were adding mp3 files.
>>>
>>> Bookshare started as a source for more leisure type reading, but I know 
>>> now they have changed and gotten more and more texts from publishers.
>>>
>>> There isn't much choice for accessible texts. Learning ally and 
>>> bookshare are the two main sources.
>>> Even if I used bookshare, not all my books would be there, so I'd need 
>>> learning ally too.
>>>
>>> So, perhaps, I'm therefore stuck with learning ally even though I feel 
>>> they are leaving the blind segment behind, a segment that they were 
>>> founded upon.
>>> Chris, you are more tech savvy than me, so to hear you have trouble too 
>>> makes me feel better.
>>>
>>> Ashley
>>>
>>> -----Original Message----- From: Chris Nusbaum
>>> Sent: Monday, April 14, 2014 10:32 PM
>>> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
>>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] learning ally and download frustrations
>>>
>>> I agree and have had many similar frustrations. Since their rebranding 
>>> as Learning Ally, I believe, they have shifted their focus from the 
>>> blind to those with learning disabilities, leaving us all but forgotten. 
>>> Sad but true.
>>>
>>> Chris Nusbaum
>>>
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>>
>>>> On Apr 14, 2014, at 4:22 PM, "Ashley Bramlett" 
>>>> <bookwormahb at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Hi all,
>>>>
>>>> Do you all think learning ally makes changes not in our favor for 
>>>> nonvisual access? Well, I do. Since they changed their name, I knew 
>>>> this was trouble.
>>>> Well, to start, no longer is the book catalog searching easy. Sure you 
>>>> can do it, but your results do not show you all you need; before it 
>>>> showed it all in a good way; like your publisher and copy right year. 
>>>> Now its barried among links which is harder as you have to listen to 
>>>> the whole line to hear it all, one of which is the year. Oh, and did 
>>>> you notice the links to get to the next and previous pages are no 
>>>> longer links? Jaws does not recognize them as links. I clicked on it 
>>>> with enter and it worked, but it should read as a link with screen 
>>>> readers.
>>>>
>>>> Now, if that is not bad enough, I  have tried unsuccessfully to use the 
>>>> darn download manager. Thankfully, I usually use the old fashion cds, 
>>>> but sometimes I’m in a pinch, like now, and need to download asap so I 
>>>> have instant access, not wait for the mailed books.
>>>>
>>>> I’ll call them again. I searched for the books and clicked on add to 
>>>> bookshelf; they were added.
>>>> Then, I attempted to install their download manager.
>>>>
>>>> The learning ally is no ally to us.
>>>> The old download manager was screen reader friendly and I successfully 
>>>> downloaded a lot of books!
>>>>
>>>> The download manager does not give a lot of screen prompts, and there 
>>>> was no way to ensure it finished installing. I did click on the next 
>>>> buttons, so I thought it was installed. Well, when I called them last 
>>>> week, we determined it was not installed since no icon was on desktop, 
>>>> nor did I see it in my computer as I searched.
>>>>
>>>> I don’t know how to get from the bookshelf step to dowloading them with 
>>>> the download manager, and then  using my victor reader stratus.
>>>>
>>>> This is rediculous not to be user friendly. I cannot express my 
>>>> disappointment enough that for years I used them with no issues, ever 
>>>> since high school, and then in college got my own account. I had issues 
>>>> with some readers, but not obtaining books. The readers are not always 
>>>> the greatest quality. But, the book service was fine. I even asked the 
>>>> DC recording studio to record a few books, and they were happy to do 
>>>> so! They sent me my books in installments either on cassette, or later 
>>>> via cd. It worked well. I also picked up my books after recording them 
>>>> in good condition.
>>>>
>>>> But, now, as learning ally, the website is terrible. They have cut 
>>>> critically needed staff in my opinion from regional offices. Get this, 
>>>> they cut staff, but then increase your membership fee! Where is my 
>>>> increased 25 dollars going? Where are the costs there in that 
>>>> nonprofit? Oh, maybe to increase outreach to the dislexic population, 
>>>> which does not want the name dislexia in the title of the nonprofit.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> I’ll call again. I need help with this stupid download manager. they 
>>>> said there is a specialist who can better help me who knows about 
>>>> screen readers.
>>>>
>>>> I’m curious about your experiences with downloads.
>>>>
>>>> Thanks.
>>>> Ashley
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> nabs-l mailing list
>>>> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
>>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
>>>> nabs-l:
>>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/dotkid.nusbaum%40gmail.com
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> nabs-l mailing list
>>> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
>>> nabs-l:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/bookwormahb%40earthlink.net
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> nabs-l mailing list
>>> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
>>> nabs-l:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/mikgephart%40icloud.com
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> nabs-l mailing list
>> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
>> nabs-l:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/kirt.crazydude%40gmail.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> nabs-l mailing list
> nabs-l at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> nabs-l:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/mikgephart%40icloud.com

_______________________________________________
nabs-l mailing list
nabs-l at nfbnet.org
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
nabs-l:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/bookwormahb%40earthlink.net 