Hi Tom.
What you say about lack of experience sounds familiar indeed. To an extent
it seems to be a general problem, ---- but one which is 100 times worse for
someone with a disability, ---- and I have to say, an atitude which is
probably worse in this country than in the states.
I've just found generally the "whaaaaa! he's blind" syndrome of your average
Britain seems to be far more serious than that of other nations I've either
been in, ---- like America and Norway.
What I was thinking here though, is about atitudes of blind people
themselves.
Today, I met two representatives from Guide dogs to start off the
application process. When discussing what sort of mobility commitments my
dog might have, one of the guide dog trainers freely said "your not like
most blind people, ---- you go out and do things and want to do more, ----
most have to be told what it's possible for them to do"
I know myself I have a tendency to pre-judge blind people into the "I can't
do X because I'm blind, or learn how to do X myself" catagory.
This comes from too much experience of specialized schools and agencies
where that was very much the atitude, and meeting too many blind people who
have similar thoughts.
On one occasion for instance, one blind person told me not to apply to a
certain university because they had a very bad disability service and "one
blind student had fell in the lake!"
While there are issues it's necessary to have independence for, ---- mostly
if you fall in a lake it's your own fault! Also, ---- if the disability
service is good, --- that's a bonus. If (as is the case in Durham), it
isn't, ---- then can't you sort things out yourself?
It wasn't until I actually started talking to blind people from other parts
of the world, --- -and ones who'd had enough gumption to go out and find
this list, that I realized i was making a mistake in classifying all blind
people this way.
I do wonder though if, ---- while certainly not all, a significant majority
of blind people do have this "I cannot do X" attitude which also applies to
gaming.
I've certainly spoken to people who tried a brief free audio game, couldn't
get the hang and so stopped bothering with games in general, ---- or found
one game they liked, and never tried to see if there were more games out
there or not, ---- simply assuming that was the end of things.
Then, ---- as I believe phil has commented in the passed, there is the
codling atitude of agencies and organizations.
In trying to obtain some braille lables, I phoned durham society for the
blind this afternoon and spoke to a chap there.
For interests' sake i mentioned audio games. He said the Durham society
certainly neither stocked them nor provided information on them (they didn't
stock braille lables either as it happened, so this wasn't a huge surprise).
The really interesting thing this chap said though, was that the only audio
games he'd heard of were Azabat's and he assumed all other games to be
similar.
While there is probably a place for simple, easy to use no tech skills
required simplistic games, ---- if this is the only impression people get of
audio games, ---- it's not any wonder there's no interest!
I can't speak for the states or anywhere else (certainly as I said, I
believe there are quite a few countries where things are different).
But in Britain, it does strike me the problems in selling audio games are
just a reflection of deeper atitude problems about blindness.
Unfortunately though, the only way to change this, ---- is maximal exposure
and education!
This is now turning into a preaching session, ---- so i'll stop!
Beware the grue!
Dark.
---
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