what does this have to do with the braillenote list? Isaac On Mon, 21 Mar 2005, Sarai D. Bucciarelli wrote:
> This sounds neat.Sent: Monday, March 21, 2005 9:26 PM > Subject: [alabama] New Talking Book Being developed > > > PR Newswire > > Monday, March 21, 2005 > > > > Battelle Leading Effort to Design Next-Generation Talking Book Player > > > > COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 21 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Library Service > for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), Library of Congress, has > chosen a consortium led by Battelle to design and develop its > next-generation digital talking book players. > > Battelle is working with HumanWare, the National Federation of the > Blind, and the Trace Center to develop a new player to meet the needs of the > blind and physically handicapped and others with print disabilities. The new > flash- based player will be lightweight, portable, and durable, and is > expected to be freely distributed to over 700,000 individuals in the U.S. > > "We are excited to have brought this exceptional group of companies on > board. We have great confidence in their capabilities and we know that the > product they design will be a success for our patrons," says Frank Kurt > Cylke, NLS director. > > Digital talking books revolutionize the reading experience by providing > advanced features such as ease of navigation, better audio quality, and the > ability to enter bookmarks. Additionally, a complete book will fit on a > single flash memory card. > > "Battelle has a 75-year history of leveraging technology for the benefit > of our customers and investing in the human community through service to > others. This opportunity sits squarely in this space and we are very > excited about it," says Battelle's Dave Easter, Vice President of Product > Development Solutions. "Battelle's Product Development Solutions staff has > extensive experience designing products for the medical and consumer > products industry. > > We bring strong skills in project management, product integration, > engineering, industrial design, and the translation of user needs into > critical design specifications." > > The consortium brings together a powerful, diverse group of experts. > > HumanWare, the new business created from the recent merger of VisuAide and > Pulse Data International, has designed and commercialized digital talking > book players since 1999 under the Victor Reader product line. The Trace > Center at the University of Wisconsin has been a pioneer in technology for > the disabled for more than 30 years. And the involvement of the National > Federation of the Blind ensures that those individuals most affected by the > new players have a voice in their design and development. > > "This project will enable the blind to actively participate in the > development of the next generation audio book player," says Dr. Marc Maurer, > President of the National Federation of the Blind. "Our community has an > opportunity to contribute directly to this important project." > > "We are excited to participate in the first redesign of the NLS > audiobook player in the last 30 years and to contribute HumanWare's and our > partner's experience toward the launch of a revolutionary player to serve > the visually impaired and print-disabled community," says Dr. Gilles Pepin, > President of HumanWare Canada. > > > > About Battelle > > Battelle is a global leader in science and technology. Headquartered in > Columbus, Ohio, it develops and commercializes technology and manages > laboratories for customers. Battelle, with the national labs it manages or > co-manages, oversees 19,000 staff members and conducts $3 billion in annual > research and development. Battelle innovations include the development of > the office copier machine (Xerox), pioneering work on compact disc > technology, medical technology advancements, and fiber optic technologies. > > > > About HumanWare > > HumanWare combines two of the industry's most innovative companies - > VisuAide and Pulse Data International are recognized as world leaders in > their respective fields. Products like the SmartView video magnifier and > more recently myReader - the world's first low vision auto-reader - are > redefining the way people look at low vision while the Victor Reader family > of digital talking book players has been at the forefront of the industry > since its inception. The BrailleNote is the best-known solution in the > notetaker market today, and this market will be expanded with the > introduction of Maestro. > > Finally, the companies produce the world's only commercialized GPS based > orientation solutions for the blind - Trekker and BrailleNote GPS. > > > > About NLS > > NLS is in the midst of a full-scale transition from analog audio > cassettes to DTBs, a project that will involve creating 20,000 DTBs (10,000 > converted from cassette and 10,000 recorded digitally) and developing a > digital playback device to replace the four-track tape player that has been > in service for nearly three decades. NLS has approximately 730,000 audio > cassette players in use worldwide today and maintains an inventory of more > than 23 million cassettes containing audio books and magazines that it > circulates free of charge to blind and physically handicapped readers. > > > > > > > ___ > To leave the BrailleNote list, send a blank message to > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > To view the list archives or change your preferences, visit > http://list.pulsedata.com/mailman/listinfo/braillenote >
