UK Amazon Kindle Forum discussion
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thought some might be interested in this innovative solution for the blind or partially sighted
message 51:
by
Steven
(new)
Aug 09, 2013 04:21AM
guilty as charged Alexandra it completely slipped my mind that i was going to email you! in my defence i've been a bit under the weather the last few days with an ear infection so not been at my most alert lol!
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it's definetely worth the money imo jud.
Maybe Bill Gates could be persuaded to divert some of his charitable giving to fund a Microsoft cheap version
I can't think of a single thing that would be better to spend money on.I think you've got your priorities spot on Steven.
Download a couple thousand freebies and its paid for itself!
lol yes true! i never know where to start looking at the freebies there are so many of them. i picked up one of steve robinson's books recently which have had a lot of good comments from people on this forum.
Oh well done Steven!Steve's books are wonderful. Three so far. Each better than the last which is an amazing achievement.
So pleased, Steven. You'll certainly be entertained.
Very pleased to read this thread! I work for a sight charity so it's brilliant to come across instances where technology is improving the lives of someone who is blind or partially sighted.
That's brilliant Steve. look out for an email from me. :-)
Yes it is nice to see there is some technology available to allow those with limited vision to enjoy books. I know my father used to get large print paperbacks when he could but they were often not available for the books he likes. His eyesight is too bad to read now and he cannot use a braille reader. He is... not exactly techinical so a tablet or kindle is not really an option. As he is housebound he can't get the large print books any more either.There are tons of free books available both on Amazon and Smashwords so you are bound to find something you like. Amazon have a search criteria so you can search by cost.
If your braille reader can cope with e-pub I would happily gift you a voucher for mine via Smashwords, if you like dark fantasy romance but do check out the details as it is very...adult.
David - would you be willing to talk about your charity and the work it does on my blog, as an additional post to the ones about the lack of reading/writing options for those with limited vision. Of course if you aren't happy to do so or are not allowed then I totally understand but it might get some exposure for the charity and its work.
hi Alexandra. this may not be all that helpful but have your dad comsidered audio butooks. i know they can be expensive but there are various ways of getting them on loan. i don't know if you are uk or us based but in the uk there is the rnib talking book service. the selection of books is limited but they are a charity and do the bast they can with the resources available to them. i'm also a member of audibleddcodduk where i pay ££15 a month which entitles me thato 2 credits which i can exchange for audio books from their very extensive range. you get to keep the audio book and you can offten save a kack of money buying this way as the audio books can cost as cch as £30 or even more!
i'll check out your book... may be a while as i've got huge reading list now, i've been like a kid ina sweet shop one clicking for all i'm worth!
Hurrah for Amazon one click! That would be why my kindle is stuffed full.I am not sure Dad would be keen on the audio books but I will have a look at that, it is certainly something to consider.
Have fun with all your lovely new books. :)
My elderly neighbour can't see well, she's not registered as blind but can no longer read, our local librarian brings her talking books on her way home. I don't know if its a kindness or something they do as a library but she loves them.
my library have never done that so maybe it's a kindness!
It might well be Steven as the lady lives nearby and she is very public spirited.
excellent! things like that restore faith in the human race... i've recently been on the tube so my faith in humanity is in need of a lift!
You're a brave soul - I've never done that and I can see where I'm going! I'm happier on the metro in Paris than the tube. I whinged so much when planning a trip on my own that my husband lost his patience with me, rebooked my flight into Luton which is quite near to my sister and then drove across from Wales to get me.
I have spent many happy hours on the tube. Some of the time I was even sober. The circle line is the best. It doesn't matter if you have a little snooze
I'm just a nervous traveller - I have to check and recheck timetables and things and end up missing my train. I've never been on the tube. I don't know how to 'tube'. Elle you'll have to show me!
Genius! My gran is registered blind. I had no idea such devices existed so I'll be telling her all about this. She's never read any of my books but has told so many people about them because she's so proud. I'd love for her to be able to read one herself, even with a two grand price tag.Inspiring stuff, thanks for sharing!
Lynne (Tigger's Mum) wrote: "I'm just a nervous traveller - I have to check and recheck timetables and things and end up missing my train. I've never been on the tube. I don't know how to 'tube'. Elle you'll have to show me!"ha, id love to! tubes dont really work like normal trains. they are so regular you just need to know the times of the first and last trains going home/work/your destination and that is you sorted!
Re audible books: my sister borrows books from her local library in MP3 format. All she has to do is insert her headphone and switch the device on. So simple and much more convenient than CD's.
Oh I never thought of checking my library for audiobooks (not that I need them, I just like them)
you can get audio books via the online library in NI!
Aberdeen library does them too but my membership has expired cause I've not used it in years. Just signed up again though, my card will be available in 3 working days
Yay. I should start getting audio books again.
Steven is going in for his cochlear implant surgery on Friday and we are taking the Braille display with us, so he will be able to read as soon as he feels awake enough afterwards! I suggested that he lines up some light reading material. Originally he was thinking of Wolf Hall, but I'm reading that myself and I'm struggling with it. So I suggested he look elsewhere!If anyone's interested, Steven's writing a blog to chronicle his cochlear implant experiences:
https://deafblindblog.wordpress.com
Feel free to have a read if you're interested :)
That's a very interesting blog. Best wishes for Steven and I hope he comes out of the operation much better hearing than he goes in.
Pass on our best wishes please, Victoria, hope everything goes well for Steven, (and yourself of course)x
Bit late to this thread but good luck on Friday, Steven. The device is truly astonishing. I had to watch a couple of YouTube videos of it in action to grasp how it works. It's encouraging to see technology being used in such an empowering way.
Hope the Op went well and Steven is now on the road to recovery.Terrific blog, will follow progress with interest.
Hope all went well yesterday! I'm on my phone just now but will take a look at the blog next time I'm on a computer.
thanks everyone! feeling pretty good all things considered. i'll update the blog tomorrow with more of an update.
Good to hear it Steven. I hope you didn't give the nurses too much of a runaround!
So glad to hear from you Steven! Looking forward to the update. Keep well!
Glad you're feeling okay Steven. If you're in St Thomas' hospital, the caramel shortbread from the French sounding cafe (can't recall its name) is rather superb. I'm sure that will aid in your recuperation.
Excellent - best wishes for your further progress. :-)
thanks all. blog post is coming along but i keep falling asleep... which i hope isn't a comment on the quality of the blog lol! Andy, i was actually operated on at Guys but i'll be spending rather a lot of time at saint Thomas during my rehab after they switch implant on so i'll defentely check it out!
That's all really interesting. I was asked the other day by a colleague about how she could support a visually impaired child in a school. Most of our suggestions were to use technology - ipads, kindles and audio-books, as well as large print books. There are some resources we have access to. Any other ideas (braille isn't something the child uses, I imagine) would be very welcome.
hi Nigel. all good ideas! will you get funding for the technology? presumably the child have a statement?
Hi Steven. I'm not sure - the pupil is from a nearby school, but I'll check. There may be some IT funding available. I'm in Scotland, so the system isn't based on statements, but they'll likely be at Level 3 of the system here (where funding is allocated). I'm always happy to hear of new innitiatives and ideas, so I'll keep popping along here.
As I am quite ignorant of the procedure you've just gone through Steven I looked it up, and was really quite shocked to see the CI 'controversy' remarks on some of the sites. I know certain aids and operations aren't suitable for everyone but I was surprised to see such prejudice and strong feelings against what to me seems such an improvement for a deaf person. You obviously decided to go for it and I really admire you for it.
Glad to hear that all is going well, Steven and best wishes for a speedy recovery!
thanks all! update to my blog just been posted.
Sounds like you came through it ok - bit nerve-wracking though! I hope it will all be worth it.
I will have a proper look at that blog another day but I am now following. Glad to hear you are getting on alright and I hope the op is successful.
Nigel wrote: "That's all really interesting. I was asked the other day by a colleague about how she could support a visually impaired child in a school. Most of our suggestions were to use technology - ipads, ki..."I think it depends on degree of sight and what causes the loss. Yes large print, audio books and some readers might help. Some have text-to-speech. Sadly it may well depend on what is available locally.
Do the new models of kindles have text-to-speech?...I've only ever had the original kindle keyboard one.
