That's actually on my list of things to try and save up for. Granted there's
been no indication that my current laptop, wich I've had for four years, is
about to go. But o course you never know with computers. Chances are tat
if/when I get a new laptop it'll ahve a newer OS like WOndows 7 or 9 so I
figure I'll have to get used to it. I'd have upgraded before now seeing as
I'm not fond of Vista but finances have't exactly permitted that, especially
not this year.
They're coming to take me away, ha-haaa!
-----Original Message-----
From: Thomas Ward
Sent: Friday, December 20, 2013 4:35 AM
To: Gamers Discussion list
Subject: Re: [Audyssey] mac versus windows sales plus iOS question
Hi Charles,
Oh, I won't deny the fact that most blind people are unemployed and
are dependant on disability income like SSI and SSDI, nor can I ignore
the fact that the cost of living in the U.S. is pretty high right now.
That said, though, there are certainly ways to perform upgrades and
get new hardware if a person makes it a priority. A lot of it just
comes down to managing their money better.
I am certainly not saying that a blind user has to walk into Best Buy,
Walmart, or another store and just throw down $450 for a new laptop
just like that. It obviously takes some planning, and a blind person
could, if they wanted to, budget the cost of a new computer into their
monthly budget. They could create a savings account where they put $25
here and there into it until they have the money needed for that new
computer. Maybe the will have to make a few small conscious decisions
like not buying a pizza on Friday night, maybe forego that new jacket
they want, not eat out as much, but instead could choose to save that
money for a new computer or newer software.
In my experience people, and I am talking in general here, aren't good
at budgeting their money. They often make gratuities choices like
stopping to eat at a fast food restaurant because they don't feel like
cooking a meal at home, they find something that the store they like
and buy it without caring if that money might be spent elsewhere, or
are just bad at wasting money on non-essential stuff. Either way, when
people are on a fixed income like SSI they really need to budget
everything, even something as gratuitous as eating at McDonald's, to
make the most of their money. So making a choice to buy a new computer
or a Windows upgrade could be factored into how the money is to be
spent if they make it a priority.
To give you an example before I got married and my soon to be ex
performed a lot of reckless spending I had a savings account I would
pay money into each month just like paying a bill. Sometimes I would
pay more sometimes less but after about a year I had $1,000 or so
built up in that account I could use for anything I wanted. I could go
into Walmart and throw down $450 for a new computer, and still have
plenty of money in savings left over. Since I paid money into that
account just like a bill anything I borrowed for a Windows upgrade, a
new computer, etc would soon get paid back into that account for the
next time I wanted or needed to make an expensive purchase. All it
took was working that into my monthly budget, and we weren't talking
about big sums of money to do it.
These days Windows upgrades are becoming quite inexpensive. When I
upgraded my Toshiba from Windows 7 to Windows 8 I think I paid like
$45 for the upgrade. The Windows 8.1 upgrade was free for Windows 8
users so all in all I got two Windows upgrades for less than $50.
Granted I had a new enough computer to take advantage of those
savings, but the fact remains even someone on SSI should be able to
come up with that amount of money for a Windows upgrade.
So I think your argument that blind people don't have the money won't
wash. Yes, they are poor, yes they are on fixed incomes, and yes
things may get tight now and then I think they probably could save a
little money each month if they wanted to, but I don't think they see
a need or have any particular desire to do it. That's why I say it is
more a matter of won't than can't. They have not made a conscious
decision to put some money back for new hardware and software, and
then use their lack of money as an excuse not to upgrade.
Cheers!
On 12/19/13, Charles Rivard <wee1s...@fidnet.com> wrote:
Money, money, money. Who's got the money? The majority of the visually
impaired or blind population are unemployed, in a lot of cases, not
through
any fault of their own. Upgrade with what? Or, even if you are working,
if
you use products from Freedom Scientific because you think they are the
best, most flexible, and most reliable, you've got those darned service
maintenance agreements to deal with, and the hardware and software aren't
cheap, either. They cost more than the computers they are used on.
---
Be positive! When it comes to being defeated, if you think you're
finished,
you! really! are! finished!
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