[Nfbmo] tech seminar
Gary Wunder
gwunder at earthlink.net
Tue Oct 30 12:30:03 UTC 2012
That would be cool. I am not only intrigued by outdoor navigation but by the
indoor stuff folks are working on. Sometimes a large hotel is more difficult
for me than the street crossing outside it.
-----Original Message-----
From: Nfbmo [mailto:nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Bryan Schulz
Sent: Friday, October 26, 2012 4:39 PM
To: NFB of Missouri Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] tech seminar
hi,
i would like to see something like learning a gps and barcode app then later
in the day, you have to find some store and come back with a certain product
without human assistance.
Bryan Schulz
----- Original Message -----
From: <DanFlasar at aol.com>
To: <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, October 26, 2012 12:36 PM
Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] you and dog guides.
>I think this is a great idea too. We are in the midst of a real
> revolution in technology that can make our lives much more productive,
> efficient
> and enjoyable - if only we can figure out how to use all these new gizmos!
> I'd be willing to help out with this - and I think we have a lot of
> tech savvy members who have a lot to contribute. We can host it here -
> but
> I think the topic is so wide-ranging that we would need two days to offer
> a basic understanding of the available technologies out there and how to
> use them.
> Dan
>
>
>
>
>
> In a message dated 10/26/2012 12:30:54 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
> goodfolks at charter.net writes:
>
> yes I would be happy too. How does the third saturday in January sound? I
> have some other ideas which I will communicate with you off-list.
>
> Thanks for asking.
>
> Fred Olver
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Gary Wunder" <gwunder at earthlink.net>
> To: "'NFB of Missouri Mailing List'" <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, October 26, 2012 10:36 AM
> Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] you and dog guides.
>
>
>> Good morning Fred. I think having a seminar on I devices would be a fine
>> thing. Would you be interested in organizing it? I think it could be
>> very
>> informative.
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Nfbmo [mailto:nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Fred Olver
>> Sent: Friday, October 26, 2012 9:08 AM
>> To: NFB of Missouri Mailing List
>> Subject: [Nfbmo] you and dog guides.
>>
>> So, we're having a seminar on dog guides? An interesting topic to say
>> the
>> least. I do wonder though, why we are not having a seminar on the use of
>> I-devices, an item which offers more flexability and perhapse more
> options
>> in terms of offering independence to a much larger segment of our
>> population/group. Let me say first of all that dogs are wonderful
> animals.
>> I
>> have two of them as pets. They each weigh about 40 pounds and help me to
>> get
>> some much-needed exercise on a daily basis. I decided to write this
>> piece
>> because I am concerned from the perspective of a former dog-user about
> the
>> whole concept of your using a dog as a guide for the first time if you
> are
>> considering doing so. There are some things I personally think you need
> to
>> know that you probably won't hear at the seminar this Saturday. First of
>> all, there's a good chance that some of your friends won't want your dog
>> in
>> their car, especially if it's wet. Some folks just don't want to deal
> with
>> the whole issue of dog-hair and unless you are able to sit in the front
>> seat, there may not be enough room for your dog in the back, on the
>> floor
>> where it should be. Secondly, although it is against the law, there are
>> some
>> cab drivers who will be unwilling to transport you and your dog because
> of
>> their religious beliefs. Third your dog isn't always going to relieve
>> itself
>> on cue. There may be times when your dog decides to take a dump in a
> mall
>> or
>> public building and you will need to clean it up. You will no longer be
> an
>> individual. You will be a team, and chances are that Fourth, at some
> point
>> people are going to walk up to you and speak to the dog first. Five,
>> sometimes, people may even feed your dog, or your dog may pick up some
>> food
>> from the floor when you are in a restaurant. Six, people are going to
> want
>> to pet your dog, and my experience tells me that although you might want
>> to
>> make lots of friends and a dog is a good way to do so, that if your dog
> is
>> in harness you ought not let anyone pet your dog not ever, while it is
>> working. If you do, once, than your dog may think it is okay for folks
> to
>> do
>> that on a regular basis and begin asking for attention without your even
>> knowing it.
>>
>> Some folks feel that because they have dogs as guides that they ought to
>> be
>> entitled to reduced rates for shots and other services from their
>> veterinarian. At one time there used to be a tax credit for folks who
> make
>> use of a dog guide although aI don't know that is true at this time.
>> Some
>> schools may offer assistance to extremely ill dogs, however you should
>> expect that if your dog gets hurt that you need to be responsible to pay
>> the
>> vet bills. In other words, if your dog gets hurt, you should not expect
>> someone else to pick up the tab just because you are blind.
>>
>> Some folks are going to be afraid of your dog, just because it is a dog.
>> Your dog is not your child and should not be treated as such. It is a
> very
>> loving animal, but it is also a tool which will allow you independence
>> however if not handled properly it can become a burden, a miss-behaving
>> child and more trouble than it is worth. Some people feel they must take
>> their dog absolutely everywhere, some show more common sense and have
>> determined that a baseball stadium or a bar are not good places for a
> dog.
>> Make sure you use common sense when working your dog. Is it really
>> necessary
>> to inconvenience others so you can use your dog when you could give it a
>> break and use your cane? After all, this whole independence thing, isn't
>> it
>> interdependence, and knowing when to allow yourself to rely on others at
>> appropriate times? If you are going to make use of a dog guide, and I
>> use
>> this term because Guide Dogs is the name of an organization, you need to
>> keep up your cane skills. You also need to let others feed your dog say
>> once
>> a week, and you need to give yourself time away from your dog, because
>> if
>> you don't, your dog may bond itself so much that it might not choose to
>> eat
>> when others attempt to give the dog it's dinner when you are away.
>>
>>
>>
>> Below is a piece from my book Dealing With Vision Loss which can be
> found
>> at
>> http://www.dealingwithvisionloss.com some folks will disagree with what
> I
>> have said and what is said below, it is after all my own opinion. What
>> matters though here, is that if you are going to consider getting a dog
>> for
>> use as a guide that you understand as much as possible some of the
>> ramifications of doing so. The good and the bad.
>>
>>
>>
>> YOU AND DOG GUIDES
>>
>> I just can't tell you how many times I have been asked "how come you
> don't
>> have a seeing eye dog?" Well, there are lots of reasons, but the fact
> is,
>> that most sighted people look at dog guides as "Wonder-dogs." When in
>> reality, if you don't know how to get some place, how are you going to
>> tell
>> your dog to get you there? When you look at the list of resources in
>> this
>> book, you will not find any dog guide schools listed. There is a
>> specific
>> reason for that. Most schools which train people who are blind to make
> use
>> of dog guides like those individuals to be proficient in use of a cane,
>> FIRST. Consequently, whether you want to use a cane or not, if you are
>> thinking about getting a dog you need to learn to use a cane first.
>>
>> My own experience has taught me that, while using a dog guide, my
>> orientation skills, that is to say that my skills of "knowing where I
> was
>> in
>> relation to my environment" deteriorated. I was relying on my dog, as I
>> was
>> supposed to, so much, that I inadvertently became less aware of what was
>> around me. Partly because I was not using my cane to be able to know
>> that
>> that trash can or bench was there, because my dog guide was taking me
>> around
>> it, as he was supposed to, but I found that when I didn't have my dog
> with
>> me that getting around, maintaining my orientation and being mobile was
>> a
>> much more difficult proposition than with a dog and that in order for me
>> to
>> be able to maintain my orientation skills that I needed to stop using a
>> dog.
>> Over the years, dog guide schools have modified their stand on using
> canes
>> and dogs. Used to be when you would go to the school, they would take
> your
>> cane away from you. Now, some schools encourage folks to use their canes
>> in
>> unfamiliar areas, or in order to help you to determine where you are in
>> relation to objects around you. A footnote to these comments
>>
>> concerning dogs, when I was learning to use a cane, I asked my Mobility
>> instructor whether or not I ought to consider getting a dog guide? He
> said
>> "no", that my skills were good enough that I didn't need one. Turns out
> he
>> was right.
>>
>>
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