“Alexa is Amazon’s voice service and the brain behind millions of devices including Amazon Echo. Alexa provides capabilities, or skills, that enable customers to create a more personalized experience. There are now more than 10,000 skills from companies like Starbucks, Uber, and Capital One as well as innovative designers and developers.”

And now Serotek Corp is proud to announce it too is a part of the growing base of Alexa skills developers, because why swipe this way and that when you could just tell your device to play your favorite Sero audio content?

Here’s how you do it:

• Enable the Skill in your Alexa app
• Tell Alexa to “Start Sero.”
• Alexa will ask you to link your account.
• Return to the Alexa app and link your app.

That’s it!

The Alexa Skill is currently free for all current Sero subscribers. This offer will not last forever though, so please give it a test drive, see what you think, and if you like what you hear, tell your friends about it!

That’s really no shocker though, right? Look around the access technology industry and identify just one company who charges less for comparable products.

At the end of this tax season, we want to continue the tradition. We understand Uncle Sam took his bite out of your checkbook, so let’s explore a new means of saving money for the entertainment you love and enjoy on the mobile device of your choosing.

Starting today, we’re going to release new single-platform subscription packages for Sero. Each subscription package will be $6.00 per month (or $5.99, depending on the app store.) These new subscription plans can be purchased within your app. We’re doing single-platform subscriptions for:

• iOS/tvOS (which count as one platform)
• Mac
• Android
• Amazon Fire OS
• Windows

Stay tuned for the availability of another platform option in the very near future…

So what will you get?

These new subscription packages include the content and community features you’ve come to love of the Sero experience. This means, among other top selling features, the ability to download your favorite movies, TV series, podcasts, and other content for offline binge listening at home, on your commute, or where ever your travels may take you. Internet availability does not have to factor into your audio leisure.

These new subscription packages will not include email, remote access, or the Media Library. For the full experience you may continue using your current subscription plan. We understand flexibility and want you to pay only for what you desire of your Sero experience.

Take the Break!

So, what do you say? For less than the price of a fast food meal, you can count on a month’s worth of information and entertainment in the most accessible means possible, all from the convenience of your favorite mobile platform!

Are you interested? Go ahead and visit your app store now and seize this competitive promotion for new and existing customers!

If you are indeed a new customer, here are direct links to the respective app stores where the package is currently supported:

• iOS and Apple TV
• Mac
• Android
• Amazon Fire OS

Helpful Hints

On iOS, open the App Store and select the Updates tab at the bottom of
the screen. If an update is available for Sero, install it. Otherwise, make sure it’s at least version 3.1.2.

Similarly, on Mac, open the App Store and select the Updates tab at the top of the window. If an update is available for Sero, install it. Otherwise, make sure it’s on at least version 2.1.1.

On Android, open the Google Play Store, activate the “Show Navigation Drawer” in the upper left corner of the screen (below the status bar), and choose “My Apps and Games”. If an update is available for Sero, install it.

And for Amazon Fire OS devices, or Android devices using the Amazon App store: Open the App store app, activate the Left Navigation Toggle at the upper left corner of the screen (below the status bar), choose “My Apps”, then select the Updates tab. If an update is available for Sero, install it.

Questions? Concerns? Leave them in the comments, or get in touch with our very helpful customer service!

So, in a quiet rebellion against the notion we need a holiday to honor the heart, we are sharing this tender video now, from one of our own beloved staff members and her husband and their positive outlook on life that has made theirs an example worth following.

You know her as Rhonda, the lovely voice taking your calls with all your questions and concerns. In a departure from our usual spiel about technology, join us in watching Rhonda’s love story:

Do you have a love story to share? We’re conscious of the fact many of you have met via our network. If so, leave us a comment! We’d love to read about it.

Greetings From Your New Biggest Fan;

My name is Ryan Eversole and I have been using accessibility software since 1997 or so. I have been a beta tester for Dolphin SuperNova for nearly a decade now, I have done beta testing for ZoomText from the time they rolled out a 64-bit solution until present and I have even done beta testing for JAWS.

Beyond that I am the only approved trainer within about 100 miles of my home town for ClaroSoft products like Lightning and Thunder.

Additionally, despite my visual impairment I work full time as both a fully licensed California insurance agent and an I.T. Manager/Consultant. In my spare time I am actually building an invention that is guaranteed to bring blind and low vision mobility and independence to the next level. At present I am working on prosecuting my patent so for obvious reasons I cannot go too far into that piece of my life.

I am bringing all of this up because I wanted it to be clear that when I say I am absolutely floored at how awesome Sero is it is clear that I have worked with the most expensive solutions and I have been actively using assistive technology for a multitude of professional solutions for years now. I can honestly say with 100% certainty Serotek has created an excellent and amazing suite that is at very least comparable to the big, expensive solutions. The fact that I can subscribe for $240/year to Access Anywhere [now known as Sero Premium] means that it would take about 5 years to cost me as much as the initial purchase of SuperNova or ZoomText Fusion. Calculating for the rolling update model Windows has come up with now this means version upgrades that cost money will have to become significantly more frequent, so let’s throw in another $150 every other year, this means that it will likely take 8 years to match in the cost. During those 8 years however I will happily be taking advantage of a much better product with much better solutions.

Case and point SuperNova and their Book Shelf product, it takes 2-5 minutes to OCR a document and convert it into HTML and half of the time the document formatting is completely lost. Not to mention that this is just processing an existing PDF, not including time to scan the document. I was impressed to the point of being a giddy little school girl the first time I dropped 5 pages in my old scanner feeder and ran DocuScanPlus since it took under 1 minute to do everything… To say I was amazed at its speed and accuracy is completely an understatement, I was shocked and to be perfectly honest I was very upset.

My anger was in no way directed at Serotek, but at the corporate giants making money hand over fist from every Department of Rehabilitation office or similar office around the world. How is it that these giants can keep delivering a sub-par product but keep being glorified as if their solution is really a full featured and well-rounded solution? In all honesty I had no idea that Serotek had evolved it’s solutions so rapidly and so far, but none the less I am ecstatic to be aware of it now.

Are you interested in sharing your own feedback? We’re always glad to hear from you! Your questions, concerns, and suggestions on DocuScan Plus or any of our other productivity tools in our Sero suite of products are always encouraged.

And, stay tuned. We’ve been laying low for a bit, but discussion of upcoming projects is on its way…

Giving us your rating is as easy as pressing one button. Once you’ve done that, you’ll have the option to write a review as well. And don’t forget that you can share your favorite content on social networks, by email, or even in a text message if you’re running Sero on your smartphone.

Ratings and reviews are available now on Windows, Mac, iOS, Apple TV, and Android. Unfortunately it is not currently practical to write a review on the Apple TV, so instead, Sero will send you an email that you can open on your computer or mobile device to write a review.

So when you listen to something on Sero, whether you loved it, hated it, or just lost interest, please tell your community what you thought, by giving us your rating and writing a review.

How about this: Spend whatever quantity you want on a Serotek gift certificate, and we will fully match your amount. If you want a one hundred-dollar gift certificate, Serotek will give you another gift certificate of equal value. That would mean two hundred dollars toward the purchase of our popular document scanning app, our intuitive screen reading solution, a subscription to our growing feature set of the Sero app, or a combination of all three!

It just doesn’t make sense to give you only a fraction of your return. We want to double your spending power, but this deal is only good on Black Friday, from midnight to 11:59 PM Eastern Time. The inventory is unlimmited. You just need to seize it!

Are you interested in maximizing your hard-earned money? Yeah, we thought you might be, so click right now to take advantage of this rare promotion!

Now it can, if you’re running Windows 8, or better yet, Windows 10.

Starting with Windows 8, your computer can lower the volume of other sounds while a screen reader is speaking. We call this audio ducking.

Earlier this year, NVDA added support for this very handy feature. JAWS is adding support as well in the public beta of version 18. And today, we’re happy to announce that System Access supports audio ducking as well.

To start taking advantage of audio ducking with System Access, simply open your System Access preferences, go to the text-to-speech section, and check the box called “Lower the volume of other sounds while speaking”. Then press the OK button. That’s it. Now System Access will never be drowned out again.

Of course, audio ducking is useful for a lot more than dealing with the occasional obnoxious website. Say you want to listen to some music, but you also want to multitask. Before, you had to manually turn down the music to hear what your computer was saying. Now, that happens automatically, and when your computer isn’t speaking, you can enjoy your music at full volume.

We know that many of you are still running Windows 7. It has worked reliably for years, and you feel that if something isn’t broken, you shouldn’t fix it. Nobody likes change for its own sake with no real benefit, and a lot of people feel that anything after Windows 7 is just that. But while the changes in newer versions of Windows do take some getting used to, Windows continues to introduce truly useful new features and improvements. Audio ducking for screen readers is one of these useful new features, and it’s not available in Windows 7. So if you’ve been putting off the upgrade to Windows 10, we believe this feature is an excellent reason to take the leap. Once you’ve experienced the convenience of audio ducking, you won’t want to go back.

Remember that Microsoft continues to provide the Windows 10 upgrade free of charge for users of screen readers and other assistive technologies.

Take advantage of the extended Windows 10 free upgrade for assistive technology users.

Haven’t signed up yet? What are you waiting for? Get signed up now!

The move to Sero means entertainment and information from the convenience of a single app across multiple platforms. It means faster updates across the board. It means voice chat and text chat at home on your computer or on the road via your smartphone. It means the ability to download content from our ever expanding library, starting a movie on your Mac or PC and finishing it up on your tablet. You’ll be able to better rate, share, and favorite the content you want and lots more!

If you haven’t checked out Sero, we’ve got a lot to catch you up on! Sign up here and start experiencing entertainment and productivity at its finest!

By now I am sure most of the people who call Serotek know my voice. I’m Rhonda Partain the customer service-sort of tech person you talk to when you forget your user name or want to change your password. I had almost given up hope of finding a job. I had come to the sad realization that fairy Godmothers are only make believe. I guess halfheartedly I had hope one would appear and say some cute magical phrase that rhymes of course and I’d be blessed with a job I would love.

Well, perhaps she was on strike. She never showed up. Yet it turns out persistence really does pay off in the end. I am so glad that Mike Calvo and Michael Fox thought I’d be good at this job. I am grateful they took a chance and hired this girl from Georgia who loves to talk, but who listens just as well. It is awesome to work for a company whose product is one you would purchase and use yourself.

Technology is changing daily it seems. How many of you remember those manual typewriters, finding and hiring readers, typing papers for school and forgetting what you last wrote? I have often felt a bit sad as I looked at all the new technology at trade shows and conferences for the blind. It was fun to play with for a few minutes; it was fun to imagine just how great it would be if I had won the lottery and could purchase it. I felt sort of like Cinderella who knew midnight was coming. She could enjoy one more dance but in the end she’d be back scrubbing the ashes from the fireplace.

Well, I bring you all good news. You need no longer wish for a fairy Godmother, you need not wish for a rich uncle to die so you can win the lottery. Thanks to Serotek the future is affordable. You can have technology that runs on your iPhone or android, or Mac. You don’t have to give it back. Isn’t that great?

The future is exciting; don’t be terrified of change, get Sero-fied and come join the party. I feel like a kid at Christmas when I think of the future. What secret presents are hidden away in Serotek’s closet?

Change is a bit scary at first. I upgraded to Windows 10 and I am still here to tell about it. Change is a good thing; just say that to yourself. You won’t crash your hard drive or anything like that, Serotek comes up talking when the upgrade is through. Sero may look a bit different too. Internet Explorer is used instead of the Samnet browser, but it’s not hard to figure out.

Would I lie to you? Well, if you asked me about my weight, my age, or how much money I have in the bank I might, but I swear by all the chocolate in the world Sero is wonderful. Seeing is believing. If you feel worried about anything, if you have concerns, I am only a phone call away. I love helping others; I may not always know the answer but I am resourceful and I will find it out.

I enjoy working with all the staff here at Serotek. A special thanks goes to Brian who mostly has to listen to me; I think Matt is simply amazing how anyone can write all of the code needed to have zero work on multiple platforms is just mind boggling to me. I could hardly figure out when the two trains would collide in Algebra class.

We live, we learn, we grow. Life is a grand adventure!

In the meantime, we bring you the first in a series of articles exploring recent developments in mainstream technology.

Earlier this week, Microsoft released the long-awaited Windows 10 Anniversary Update. Among the most prominent features in this update are several major improvements to the Edge web browser. The Edge development team recently published a blog post describing these improvements. Among other things, that post states:

While we at Serotek appreciate the considerable improvements that the Edge team has made in accessibility since the original release of Windows 10, we must emphatically insist that the claim quoted above is, at the very least, misleading. In our opinion as assistive technology developers, the only way that claim can be considered true is if the word “we” in that sentence refers strictly to the Edge team, and not to Microsoft in general. That’s because in practice, the accessibility of even the new and improved Edge is a significant regression compared to what we always had in Internet Explorer, and even compared to Firefox and Chrome.

There are two main problems: Edge does not give assistive technologies a way to access the raw Document Object Model (DOM) of a web page, which we need in order to fill in gaps in website accessibility. Further, the speed that we can achieve in Edge is hobbled in comparison to all other browsers on Windows.

First, in both Internet Explorer and the Windows version of Firefox, screen readers have always had a way to access the raw Document Object Model of a Web page. This is the browser’s internal representation of the HTML code that makes up a page. This level of access allows all screen readers to provide various features that can fill in the gaps when a website isn’t perfectly accessible out of the box. For example, Serotek has long been known for its C-SAW (Community-Supported Accessible Web) feature, which lets users provide labels for graphics and form fields that aren’t labeled by the website developer. We are also able to implement our own website-specific work-around for accessibility problems, such as when a button or link isn’t properly marked up but just appears as plain text, or when a site doesn’t properly indicate that part of the user interface is currently invisible. Even very popular sites such as Amazon.com and PayPal still have problems like these sometimes.

At Serotek, we’ve always believed that, to the extent possible, we should make our own accessibility, rather than wait for it to be served to us on a silver platter. But to do this, we need some help from the browser. And so far, the Edge team has not provided the level of raw access to a Web page that we need to fill in website accessibility gaps as we do in other browsers. Instead, the Edge team has apparently taken the position that its only job is to provide access to websites that already do everything right in terms of following the accessibility standards. In this respect, the Edge team has done a great job, and Edge’s perfect score from the HTML5Accessibility browser benchmark reflects that. But real websites, even from large companies such as Microsoft itself, do not always properly implement the latest accessibility features of ARIA and HTML5. It’s our job as assistive technology developers to make up for these real-world shortcomings, and so far, Edge doesn’t let us do that job nearly as well as other browsers.

That’s not the only problem. One of the most touted features of Edge is its speed. However, when it comes to accessibility, the speed that any full-featured screen reader can achieve in Edge is hobbled in comparison to all other browsers on Windows. Historically, all full-featured Windows screen readers have provided access to browsers by running some of their code directly inside the browser. Basically, the screen reader gets right inside the browser’s space, and can then access all of the available information about a web page with very low overhead. But now, as part of Edge’s stringent approach to security, Microsoft has decided that screen readers and other assistive technologies must stay out of the browser, only communicating with it from a distance. We don’t have a problem with this limitation in and of itself, but it means that the mechanism that the screen reader uses to get information from the browser needs to be carefully designed for maximum efficiency, and so far, Microsoft has not done this consistently. With Edge, it’s like we’re sucking information through a straw, whereas before, we were gulping from the fire hose. Again, it’s possible for Microsoft to solve this problem without backing down on security, which is also important, but that hasn’t happened yet.

We have provided feedback to Microsoft on both of these problems. Microsoft has been receptive to this feedback, and we look forward to working closely with the appropriate development teams on further improvements. But for now, we believe these regressions are so significant that we cannot provide a level of access to Edge that we consider usable, let alone enjoyable.

Note that Serotek is not the only assistive technology developer to take this position with regard to Microsoft Edge. The following statement is transcribed from the latest podcast from Freedom Scientific:

We are in full agreement with Freedom Scientific on this point.

We recognize that Internet Explorer’s days as a top-tier browser are numbered. That is why we are working on significant improvements in our access to Firefox and Chrome. We are committed to providing first-rate access to modern browsers. But Edge still has such serious limitations that we believe our time is best spent elsewhere. We look forward to a time when we can provide excellent Web access through Edge as well as all other modern browsers.

Questions? Opinions? Please feel free to share your comment!

We’re calling it Sero. On the surface, it’s going to be a universal experience that will bring together our software services under a single app. “Sero,” after all, means “connected,” so it only made sense to develop an interface that will keep you connected across different platforms. It’s the first time in assistive technology history that users can enjoy a consistent user experience regardless of whether you’re on Android, iOS, Amazon Fire, or Apple TV.

The move to a single app means a great foundation for upward mobility. We can now deploy faster updates across the board. It means voice chat and text chat at home on your computer or on the road via your smartphone. It means the ability to download content from our ever expanding library, starting a movie on your Mac or PC and finishing it up on your tablet. You’ll be able to better rate, share, and favorite the content you want and lots more!

Yes, there will be some changes. For one thing, you’ll note we have done away with the System Access Browser. We’re no longer exclusive to Internet Explorer. Sero makes room for the kind of choices everyone else enjoys at their keyboard, but the intuitive nature of DocuScan Plus, System Access, and the former SAMNet will not be lost. Experts and novices alike will be able to immediately learn and leverage all the tools you’ve come to love and rely on for work and personal leisure.

We’re very excited about this step in our development. We think it has a lot of promise and is one more sign that times for the traditional assistive technology industry really have changed.

And, we would love for you to be a part of the final stretch of the development. We want you to be a beta tester. You’ll be among the first to kick the tires on our new universal app, and as long as you’re a participant in the beta program, you’re going to be able to enjoy all our services completely free of charge, but please sign up now because there is a limited number of seats to hand out. Please note the beta program will launch Sunday, May 8.

Ready? Join us in this next chapter of our persistent growth!

If you celebrate Christmas, may it be a merry one indeed!

Regardless of your holiday adherences, remember the gifts should be the least of our priorities. The most lasting bonds and memories are forged among friends and family, and we here at Serotek are glad to count you among our own. If it should happen that misfortune greeted you this past year in any shape, please accept our sympathies and our desire for you to experience a lift of spirit in the New Year.

Yours as always,

Your Friends at Serotek

Or, if you’d rather read about some of our changes, here’s a breakdown:

Windows 10

It’s clear by now that although Windows 10 attempts to make Windows 7 users feel at ease with the return of the Start menu, the new operating system unapologetically builds on the foundation that Microsoft laid with Windows 8. The cornerstone of this foundation is an application platform and user interface style that has gone by many names. It was once called Metro. Microsoft later referred to apps based on this technology as “Windows Store apps”. We have often called them “modern apps”. Microsoft currently prefers the name “Universal Windows Platform”. Whatever you call it, it’s even more pervasive in Windows 10, from the moment you enter your password on the Windows sign-in screen.
You’ll also find the new style of user interface in the Action Center, where you can review and respond to notifications, and in the Settings app, which is the modern equivalent of the Control Panel. Even the Start menu, meant to entice Windows 7 users, is based on the newer user interface style. And of course, you’ll find it in the Windows Store and the apps that you can download from there.

So what does this mean for screen reader users? Naturally, that depends on the screen reader. In our opinion, other screen readers have done the bare minimum to make the Windows modern UI accessible, but they haven’t made it truly usable. For the most part, they’ll just read whatever control has the keyboard focus, and leave it to the user to use screen review commands to figure out the context. We knew we could do better.
We still believe in providing the best automatic access possible, rather than forcing the user to use stick shift, so to speak. So in many parts of Windows, such as the sign-in screen and the Settings app, you’ll find that System Access reads much more automatically than other screen readers. Of course, our automatic access isn’t perfect, and we plan to keep improving it. And there are other little touches that you’ll find along the way; for example, when you talk to the new Cortana app in Windows 10, System Access will stay quiet, so Cortana can listen to what you have to say.

But beyond simply presenting more information automatically, we believe we can provide a fundamentally better user experience in the Windows modern UI than any screen reader has attempted so far. That brings us to the next thing we want to talk about.

Webify

One of the most unquestioned assumptions of Windows screen readers has been that they should mostly leave keyboard navigation up to the applications and the operating system. After all, Windows has always made it possible to move through all of the controls in a user interface by pressing Tab and Shift+Tab. But what happens when keyboard navigation is an afterthought, as it so often is in mainstream apps? What happens when application user interfaces become more like web pages, freely mixing content and UI controls? Must we use clunky screen review commands to explore and understand these apps? Fortunately, a better way has been right under our noses all along, especially for those of us who live in the SAMNet browser.

If you’re a frequent user of SAMNet on Windows, or even if you simply do a lot of web browsing with System Access, then you’ve probably come to love the way that we provide access to web pages. Like other screen readers, System Access lets you move through a web page with the arrow keys, as if you were moving through a document in Notepad or Word. But we’ve always taken it a step further. System Access has no special mode for filling out forms. We’ve always believed that making such a distinction between browsing a web page and filling out a form is unnecessary and clunky. And it seems that our users agree; people tell us that our approach to browsing web pages is smoother than anything they’ve experienced with other screen readers.

While we were working with Windows 10, it occurred to us that there’s no reason why native applications couldn’t work the same way. Why should it matter to a user whether something is a web page or an application?
After all, modern Windows apps are a lot like web pages in the way they freely mix content with user interface controls. Often they even include things called links, like a web page. So why shouldn’t you be able to navigate these apps like a web page?

Now, with System Access, you can do just that. We call this innovative new feature “Webify”. It starts with modern apps in Windows 8 and up.
Whenever you’re in one of these apps, you can navigate it like a web page. This means you no longer have to use clunky screen review commands to explore an app; just arrow through it. In some places we can even detect headings, so you can jump around with H and Shift+H. Other quick navigation commands also apply. Want to get to the next button on the screen, without laboriously tabbing through everything else in between?
Just press B. Of course, just as with a web page, System Access will automatically recognize when you’re in an edit box, so you can just type; there’s no switching between modes.

We’re using Windows modern apps as the initial proving ground for this concept, but we believe it can be applied much more widely. You may have already noticed that by default, System Access now webifies the Windows task bar. We recognize that you might prefer the old way of navigating the task bar, so you can choose not to webify it. But we encourage you to try it and let it grow on you. And we look forward to extending our Webify technology even further. For example, the Ribbon in Microsoft Office has long been a source of confusion. But just wait until we webify it within the next few months; we believe that will make it easier than ever to explore all that Microsoft Office has to offer. As a preview, you will soon have the option to webify the Ribbon in WordPad.
And of course, we welcome your feedback on other aspects of Windows and popular applications that can benefit from being webified. Ultimately, we want you to be able to learn just one way to use your computer, and have it just work everywhere.

Windows 10’s rough edges

In some ways, Windows 10 is even bolder than Windows 8 was. A case in point is Windows 10’s new web browser, Microsoft Edge. Edge is a drastic change from Internet Explorer, and this level of change was bound to impact users of screen readers and other assistive technologies. System Access has some experimental support for Edge, but it’s nowhere near ready for everyday use yet. Like other third-party screen reader developers, we are still waiting for Edge’s accessibility support to mature. According to a blog post from the Edge team late last month, Edge’s accessibility support is still “getting to good”. Microsoft continues to recommend that users of third-party screen readers use Internet Explorer for now. Naturally, we agree with that recommendation.

So what happened? Why isn’t Edge ready to use with third-party screen readers, despite the long preview period for Windows 10? Naturally, we can’t speak for other assistive technology developers. But we at Serotek were surprised by just how completely the Microsoft Edge team broke with the legacy of Internet Explorer, particularly when it comes to accessibility. For as long as we’ve been in the screen reader business, our methods of accessing content in Internet Explorer, via Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA) and the Document Object Model (DOM) interface, have been more or less unchanged. But Edge throws all of that out and introduces a brand new way of accessing web pages, based on Microsoft’s newer UI Automation (UIA) interface. This level of “out with the old, in with the new” is unprecedented in our experience; even the infamous Windows Vista didn’t change anything this drastically.

Naturally, the brand new accessibility implementation in Edge isn’t perfect. We have provided our feedback to Microsoft, and we will continue to do so as Edge’s accessibility support matures. When it’s ready, we will fully embrace Edge as the preferred web browser for Windows 10. We look forward to the day when Serotek users can benefit from the excellent work that the Edge team has done to produce a modern, standards-compliant, secure, and fast web browser for Windows.

The impact of Edge extends beyond the Edge web browser itself. For example, the Cortana app uses the Edge browsing engine to display search results and other information. Some other apps, such as Groove Music, are also based on Edge. As Edge’s accessibility and System Access’s support for Edge improve, access to these other applications will improve as well.

There are some other aspects of Windows 10 that are brand new and not yet usable with System Access and other third-party screen readers. For example, the Mail app in Windows 10 is not yet accessible. Stay tuned for future developments on that front as well.

In short, Windows 10 brings dramatic changes on many fronts, and like the operating system itself, accessibility on Windows 10 is still a work in progress. We at Serotek look forward to continued improvements in the accessibility of Windows 10, and we will take full advantage of Microsoft’s ongoing work to provide the best possible user experience on this exciting new operating system.

Sero, the future of SAMNet and iBlink Radio

Of course, we realize that today’s online world is a lot bigger than Windows. People expect to access their favorite content, social networks, and services wherever they are, whether on the go with a smartphone, around the house with a tablet, or while sitting in front of the TV. Our slogan, “accessibility anywhere”, is just an empty phrase unless we embrace these platforms too.

We were quick to recognize the importance of these newer platforms. When Apple took the unprecedented step of adding built-in accessibility to the iPhone in 2009, we jumped at the chance to bring some of our content to this exciting new platform, and iBlink Radio was the first iOS app to cater specifically to the blind community. We later expanded iBlink Radio to provide access to much of the content on SAMNet. Today, in addition to iOS, iBlink Radio is available for Android, Amazon Fire OS, and the Mac.

However, we realize that the level of access to our content, community, and services has become inconsistent across platforms. Some important aspects of SAMNet, such as voice chat, remain exclusive to Windows, while others, such as the forums, are currently unavailable on Android.
We also recognize that our branding is confusing. What is the System Access Mobile Network, and what exactly does it have to do with System Access the screen reader? And why is SAMNet buried in the iBlink Radio app?

We know you like things to be simple, and so do we. That’s why we’re unifying our content and services under one app and one name across all platforms. We call it Sero, which means “connected”. The Sero app will give you a consistent interface to all of the content and services that you love from iBlink Radio and SAMNet, across Windows, iOS, Android, and Mac. Yes, this means that voice chat, along with voice messages on the forums, will be coming to iOS, Android, and Mac. You will no longer have to be chained to your computer to hang out with your friends in our popular voice chat rooms.

Of course, there are always new platforms and devices on the horizon.
For example, you can find the iBlink Radio app on the fourth-generation Apple TV. When we release Sero, it will be available on the Apple TV at the same time that we release it for the other platforms. Note that there will be some limitations in Sero for Apple TV; for example, third-party apps don’t currently have access to the microphone in the Apple TV remote, so there will be no voice chat on the Apple TV. But we will bring as much of Sero as we can to this exciting new platform. And when Amazon eventually sees fit to make their Fire TV devices accessible, Sero will be there as well.

In short, Sero will take accessibility anywhere to a whole new level. On your computer, on your tablet, on TV and on the road, Serotek continues to evolve right alongside your personal needs.

For current customers, we appreciate you sticking with us through these exciting changes. For prospective customers, what are you waiting for to jump in and try us out for yourself?

Peak your interest a little? Well, suffice to say we are coming out with our own take on the Windows 10 experience. Why should you spend time stumbling about the intricacies of a new operating system, when you could…Oh, but we are getting ahead of ourselves.

You know, one thing we’ve always been proud of at Serotek is the way we’ve pushed the envelope on our slogan, accessibility anywhere. For our team it’s never been just another cute tagline. It’s been the centerpiece of our innovation, as early as the release of the iBlink Radio app, and now, with all the competing platforms and ecosystems, it’s even more important to meet you on the device and operating system that suits your lifestyle. And, why not introduce a few new features along the way? So, we are going to…

I know, that’s getting annoying, isn’t it?

Well, tell you what, why not join us Monday, November 16 at 8:00 PM over on Accessible World’s TekTalk. Mike Calvo and Matt Campbell will be on hand to discuss some upcoming announcements you won’t want to miss!

Again, we’ll see you Monday, November 16 at 8PM Eastern. Follow this link to tune in:

http://accessibleworld.org/announcements/1889

The Imhotep Labyrinth is a strategic board game for 2-4 players. It can be played in 3 versions with varying degrees of difficulty. In the easiest version, it takes about 10 minutes to comprehend the rules and the following game lasts approximately 20-30 minutes. Once players have had some practice, then the most difficult version of the game can be played in approximately 45-60 minutes.

The Imhotep Labyrinth is specially developed for the blind but at the same time can be played on equal terms with persons who have normal vision; thereby providing a level of interaction between the two groups in a strategic game, that would not normally be possible.

Today, virtually all board games are developed for people who have normal vision. Games for the blind are normally games that have been developed for people that have vision, but have later been adapted so that blind people may also play them.

The Imhotep Labyrinth is a game that from the outset was developed for the blind but with the aim of also allowing people with normal vision to participate. In effect, the game can be played by everybody. There was no necessity to adapt an already existing game.

The result is an extraordinary game that the WBU (World Blind Union) considers to be very helpful and supportive in their efforts to integrate the blind into normal everyday society. At the same time, we hope that due to the natural interaction that occurs during the course of a game, barriers between the blind and those that can see will be removed; and that attention is drawn to the challenges that the blind have to face every day, due to their lack of vision.

Link to our website where you can read much more about the game:
http://theimhoteplabyrinth.com/

Link to our Indiegogo where we need donators to continue with this great project. You can buy your copy of the game cheep if you are fast. There are limited copies of the cheep version where the shipping price is included. Yes, we do ship world wide:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-imhotep-labyrinth-a-visionary-game#/story https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-imhotep-labyrinth-a-visionary-game

Link to our Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/theimhoteplabyrinth

To illustrate this, they got the help of both a pharmacist and a professional basketball player.

They gave a basketball to the pharmacist who admitted she sucked at the game, never plays, and was just kind of going along with the exercise.

They made her shoot ten free throw shots, of which she made absolutely none.

Then they gave the ball to the pro ball player. He got nine out of ten on his turn. To be expected, right?

Then they blindfolded the pharmacist, encouraged her to take a couple shots, and gave her the ball.

She shot once and the crowd went wild with her having made the shot. The host was amazed.

She took a second shot, and again, she plunked that baby through the hoop. The crowd freaked and the announcer was ecstatic.

Then they took the blind fold off the pharmacist, gave her the ball again, and encouraged her to shoot another ten shots. After all, she aced the first two blind-folded and was feeling pretty good about herself.

Remember, the first time she tried, she got zero out of ten baskets. This time she made four out of the ten shots. A40% increase from her original try.

Can you see how confidence worked for her?

By the way, when she was blindfolded? She really did miss the hoop by an Arizona mile, but she was convinced she made the shots by the encouragement and false positive feedback she got from the crowd and show host.

Maybe you’re a doubter and are excusing her four successful shots by saying, “Yeah, but she had some practice shots and so she’s inevitably going to do better. Odds are in her favor she’d make some the second time.”

Okay, explain this.

The pro ball player, having missed his blind-folded shots with a less than encouraging crowd, was getting ready for his shots without the blind-fold.

The crowd was eerily silent, and when the ball player shot and made one, the crowd remained silent and talked among themselves. If he missed I think they even snickered and booed trying to embarrass him a bit. Basically, they were feeding him negative influences.

Remember he originally, being a pro ball player, shot nine out of ten shots before?

He now only made five out of ten, pretty close to the same 40% difference, only in reverse.

Can you now see how both outside influence and our own confidence and positive outlook has a major impact on how we perform?

So, how does this apply to business?

First, don’t hang with people who have a negative attitude or want to dump on your success parade. Those people who enter doubt, even if they seem like they mean well, can bring you down.

Find people who are encouraging, who cheer you on even in your failures. You know, those folks you can always count on to not let you off the hook and help get your head on straight.

And most importantly, don’t listen to yourself when you hear yourself say things like:

“Who do I think I am that I can be a business person anyway? I can’t even remember that person’s name I met this morning!”

“If I was so smart, or meant to be an entrepreneur, I’d have done it years ago. I’m too much a late bloomer for this now.”

“I should be further along than I am; maybe I’m just forcing something that shouldn’t be.”

Learn to recognize when you are telling yourself this crap, and stomp it out immediately. And I mean immediately!

Give yourself a break. You are going to have failures. Well, they are not failures if you learn something, and you will learn something. No one gets it right from the first crack.

Famous basketball player Doctor J said once that everyone was so amazed when he made it big. Everyone thought he was such a gifted player, but they never saw the thousands and thousands of hours he practiced.

There are no people so gifted they get it without failures or distinctions, there are just good marketing behind them to make it look like that is the case.

Here’s an assignment for you. Go look up just about any sport Hall of Famer. They got there by the awesome success they achieved, right?

Maybe. Did you know they all have more failures than successes? Like two-thirds more failures than success.

They had plenty of failures they could have turned into self-doubt, but they didn’t.

It’s what you tell yourself and who you listen to that will make you a success or not.

You can have all the training in the world, all the digital gizmos, all the fancy tools of the trade…

But if you believe lies about your ability and doubt yourself?

You ain’t goin’ nowhere baby!

Here’s a friendly little anchor to remind you to think on the sunny side of life.

When you here a weather forecast that is anything other than a gorgeous day…

Something like, “We have a 40% chance of isolated showers today.”

Ask yourself why the weatherperson is so negative.

Change what he or she said to, “We have a 60% chance of beautiful sunny weather today! For that leaner side of percentage, bring an umbrella, just in case.”

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… Try-try-try until you succeed!

What is DocuScan Plus?

DocuScan Plus, or DSP, is your affordable gateway to the written word. There are excellent mobile apps that let you snap pictures of items to read text, and while amazingly convenient, you sometimes need the efficiency of a dedicated computer app to consume books, brochures, bank statements, manuals, and important documents without fretting over camera views and proper angles.

Every technology has a time and place. With DSP, we’ve taken what you know about using a computer and created an intuitive means of converting print to spoken audio. Each upgrade brings a new wave of features and improvements.

Introducing DocuScan Plus V3.0

Is the new upgrade worth it? Well, check out these new features:

• You can count on clearer text results with the help of an updated OCR engine.

  • With the new DSP, it’s possible to grab your favorite bestseller from Bookshare right from within the DSP application.

    • Rely on nimble navigation of large files with better heading detection and place marking.

      • Speaking of large files, launching and navigating PDF files is now a breeze.

        • Want to convert between formats? We heard you, and now you can convert text to DAISY, MP3, or Braille, and store them in the cloud; formats include: .epub, .doc, .docx, .rtf, .txt, .html

          • Now it’s even easier for you to open image files, including: .jpg, .png, .tiff, .gif, .bmp

            • Why launch an OCR application and then open a file when you can open files in DSP directly from Windows Explorer?

              • Do you find yourself switching between Mac and PC? Well, you’ll be pleased to know there’s now better consistency in functionality and UI between the Windows and Mac versions of DSP.

                • Don’t you hate it when other OCR products make you put your screen reader of choice to sleep? We’re partial to System Access, but we know you may disagree so feel free to use DSP in conjunction with the Windows screen reader you prefer.

                  • The new DSP comes with OCR for other languages, including: Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese (including Brazilian), Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and Turkish

                  Download the Windows installer here.

                  Download the OSX installer here.

                  A Month of Discounts
                  

                  OpenBook and Kurzweil 1000, the other OCR options, cost $995. To each his own. At Serotek we work hard at developing solid performers without breaking the bank. The regular price for DSP is $299, and unlike our competition, we even give you payment options to make our lower price even easier to digest.

                  But, wait; in this month of July, we’re going to sweeten the pot even further.

                  Get your copy of the new DSP for only $249! Ready? Get the installers for your PC or Mac.

                  Can we do better? You betcha! Because you can get the new DSP for only $199 if you also take advantage of our discount on System Access.

                  Through the month of July, get your copy of System Access for only $299. At home, in school, and on the job, System Access is your key to popular applications. System Access Standalone lets you install full versions of the software on two computers. Stay on top of your e-mail inbox. Take control of PowerPoint presentations. Balance spreadsheet records. Read and write comprehensive reports, and navigate the web with the confidence of a seasoned professional. It’s your digital life after all. Own it!

                  In short, you get two great products for $498.

                  Accessibility Really is Anywhere
                  

                  So, let’s recap up to this point. DSP normally costs $299. Right now you can purchase it for $249. If you also want to buy System Access, you can own it now for $299, 25% off the normal price, which also means you can buy DSP for $199. Remember this is only good through July 31.

                  Surely it can’t get better than this? Actually, it can, because you do remember our kitchen sink deal, right?

                  Accessibility Anywhere is the perfect toolkit for a balanced life of work and play on your Windows machine, Mac and iOS devices. Pick and choose from the growing features of a screen reader, an OCR app, and a combined social network and multimedia library to stay on top of your job and special interests no matter where you are.

                  Subscribe to Accessibility Anywhere for $21.95 a month or $240 a year. Remember as part of your subscription, you do not pay separate for the new version of DocuScan Plus V3.0. It’s already a part of your subscription plan!

                  Questions?
                  

                  Leave us a comment or get in touch with our helpful technical support staff.

Aside from the obvious, everyone’s needs, desires, preferences etc. are different the answer, in my opinion, lies in the flexibility and ease of use of the paid programs. Though, I too struggle with paying $999 for software that has a free alternative. I find DocuScanPlus to be that solid middle ground in price, ease of use, flexibility and quality.

iOS, Android and Google Docs Web App are making it easier than ever to perform OCR, and access previously blank pieces of paper, anywhere. That is of course if you like spending time making sure that the lighting, distance from the paper, and coping with all of the other factors that go into taking a picture with a mobile camera, or are a Google Web Apps master, and have screen reader access on every computer you might possibly interact with.

And, if you want to access that text on any of your other devices or formats, well, I hope you like jumping through hoops. DocuScanPlus price tag still makes a few people cringe, $299. However, the easy to use interface, cloud storage built-in TTS option, and multi-platform capabilities certainly make it an appealing, flexible, accessible and more affordable, option than some other programs or hardware combinations.

It is not possible to stress the ease of use of DocuScanPlus enough! The software is simple to install, recognises the image capture hardware/software attached to/installed on the computer automatically, and there are no complex menus to navigate, you don’t have to memorize keystrokes to make it easier to perform actions, and the language used to convey the meaning of different buttons is clear and easy to understand.

There are only five (5) options when you first launch the program: Scan a Document Read a file on this computer Manage files Download from Bookshare Send Feedback How much easier does it get?

The one thing I do find to be a bit cumbersome is saving the scanned document in a different format for use on other devices. This would intuitively be something you could do, like saving, after scanning a file, however the options are only available once the document has been saved to the DocuScanPlus Cloud and you open the document again using the file management tools. Compared to the process of scanning? uploading to Drive > converting > converting to .doc, .txt or .rtf format > downloading from Drive > moving to portable device, that is involved in performing OCR using Google Drive however, this process, and the variety of formats available in DocuScanPlus puts it a bit ahead of that free competition in my opinion. You can save documents in the following formats in DocuScanPlus MP3 Structured DAISY Braille Text Large Print text

In tests the recognition process accurately recognizes and formats links, e-mail addresses, and often recognizes heading structure/formatting correctly. In 9 out of 10 scanning tests the heading structure of a pdf I had previously saved on my computer was recognized correctly. In all 10 of my scanning tests the recognition errors were never so significant for me, as to impact my comprehension of the material scanned. Was it perfect, no, but it was close enough that I could get the idea, and if I wanted I could confidently edit the errors out, without sighted assistance to compare the printed copy to the newly created electronic copy.

There are a few things I’d like to see added to the newest release of DocuScanPlus, and I’ll be taking full advantage of that send feedback button, but all-in-all I’d say that Matt has done it again, created an intuitive, easy to use product, that allows users to get the job done with as little hassle as possible!

Update: June 16

I knew when I posted my initial thoughts that changes would be made, as DSP V3 is in a testing phase. In fact just a short 7 days after writing the first
draft changes were made, and if the fact that in that 7 days the placement of buttons for saving, or converting, scanned documents into different formats,
were created and implemented in more intuitive locations, doesn’t speak to the developers commitment to the product, and making it as easy as possible
for the end user I don’t know what will.
In addition to more intuitive placement of these types of controls I also found that downloading content from bookshare is an easy and intuitive process.

I hope to have time to write a bit more soon!
If you haven’t tried DSP yet I’d encourage you to do so, and keep in mind that feedback really is taken into consideration!

Back in the day, Texaco wanted to boost their oil sales, right? This was in the early 1930’s.

So, what did they do? They paid a man named Elmer Wheeler $5,000 to come up with nine words they could use.

Is that ridiculous or what? Maybe not, we’ll see.

Remember, this was in the Great Depression, not to mention the difference on the dollar through the decades. Who knows what that’d be worth today…

Even back then, it was roughly $555 per word.

Here is what thick pockets Elmer did.

Back then they still had full service gas stations. You’d drive up, ride over a hose that rang a bell inside when you drove on it. A person would come out in a blue uniform, a logo on the front shirt pocket, a light red cloth hanging out the back pocket, and a coin dispenser belted on the waist.

They’d start filling your car with gas, wipe down the windshield, and in Texaco’s case they’d ask…

Check your oil?

Elmer suggested they ask a different question instead. The question was…

Is your oil at the proper level today, sir?

That little question got Texaco under the hood an extra quarter of a million times in one year.

When you hear the new question, you begin to doubt the level of your oil. How do you know what level it is at anyway unless you just checked it?

You think, “And what if it is low? I better have them check.”

Then leaning out the window towards the man wiping the windshield you’d say…

“Can you check it for me please, thanks.”

Questions, they are the master of sales.

Similarly a waiter or waitress might change the question from…

“Can I interest you in a glass of wine?”

To…

“Do you prefer red or white wine with your steak, sir?”

The trick is to not be pushy. I hate pushy myself. But, you don’t want to leave them an easy way out either. In a way, it’s making someone say ‘no’ to the person asking rather than the wine. Very subtle difference, but a difference none the less.

It should come out as natural as, “Wafer cone, waffle cone, or cup?” When you are at the ice cream Shoppe ordering your Swiss Cream and Cappuccino treat., because you’d never dream of having it without a container, edible or not.

If I were in the restaurant business, I might even try instructing wait staff to ask,

“And is that Rhubarb-Apple Pie or Cherry Cheese Danish for pre-ordered dessert? Cherry Cheese is the special today and both travel well for tonight’s midnight snack.”

If you are in the electronic gizmo business, you might ask,

And would that be extra lithium batteries or wall charger to go with that?

If Texaco invested five G’s to come up with nine words that changed the revenue of a huge company like that…

What kinds of questions could you ask your customer to get you under a quarter-million more hoods this year?

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all…try-try-try until you succeed!

For example, we’ve taken a hard look at our coverage of technology. As more mainstream products become accessible to blind persons, you can look beyond the current slate of excellent blindness podcasts to a broader landscape of tech journalists reporting on news and development on a daily basis; therefore, does it make sense for us to echo the stories you’re already hearing elsewhere?

So, where does that leave us? Internally we’ve kicked around the thought of moving more squarely into lifestyle topics. The Real World Fitness and What’s Up were the first steps in moving in this direction. Now we’re thinking of turning the ship more fully onto this course, pulling back from technology and blindness as a focus and carving out our own niche in popular culture in a way that integrates our community with the mainstream market.

We want to hear from you. What kind of stories and interviews outside of technology would you like to hear in our podcasts? What kind of articles would you like to read in our blog? We’ve received a number of suggestions pointing us to more instructional materials. We’ve also heard requests to concentrate tech coverage on household products.

All your suggestions are welcomed as we prepare for the next phase of our growth. There are definite plans in the works, but before moving full throttle on executing any of them, we want to know if you’re ready for a change, or frankly, if you think SPN should be put to rest. Either way, talk to us. Leave a comment here, or if you’d like to submit something private, please send it to resources@SeroTalk.com.

Thank you for being a part of SPN!

Now, this old gal isn’t your typical blue-haired senior moaning while reaching for an agitated vertebrae shuffling across the room.

This gal skis, hikes, canoes, fishes, and I still have one brow raised, but I think even hit on me recently. I’m still reeling over that one. She plays cards to keep her mind sharp and just have fun. More on that in a minute.

In fact, I was shocked out of my socks to find she was 76-years old. I knew she was somewhat older, but figured just an active 60-year old gal trying to pick up guys on the dance floor on Saturday nights.

She recently regaled us with a story about a gentleman who she claims is just a friend. He put on some music, popped the cork from the wine bottle, and served up some dinner.

I said to her, “Oh he’s hitting on you big time.”

“That’s what my sister said too,” she replied, “She said I ought to lay a big smacker on him. But, no, no, we’re just good friends is all.”

A bit perplexed, I asked her why she thought that.

“Oh,” she sighed, “I’m done. I’m burnt out. I can’t find anyone to keep up with me. I want to go hiking, skiing, and canoeing. I asked this friend to go dancing a while back,” she rambled, “and he said he couldn’t, his knee hurt.”

She went on in a disgustful tone about how he couldn’t go fishing, a less active sport, because he was having his elbow checked out.

Sport after sport she cited his excuses about something that hurt on him or didn’t work. He even confessed, he didn’t think quote, it, unquote worked anymore.

Do I need to explain what “it” is?

Well this gal’s name isn’t Alice, but if one were to, ahem, see Allice, it might give a clue to what he was referring.

She admitted, her last surgery might have ruined that for her…

Somehow I think she was just playing to his sympathy. I digress here before this no longer is a business related blog. And we really are getting to a business point, trust me.

Finally, I said to her, “Sheesh, he probably would have finger trouble playing checkers even.”

“Well,” she said, “we were going to play Cribbage, but he had a headache.”

Really, a headache? I thought that excuse was reserved only for a certain activity. Oh well.

She closed up her diatribe with a laugh saying, “And he’s 13-years younger than me!”

I couldn’t help but chuckle through her entire recollection. Man, I hope I’m as active and young as she is at that age.

Reflecting on my conversation with her, it made me think of how that very situation happens in business.

No, not clients getting picked up by business men and women. Well, okay, that happens, but that’s not what I mean.

What I’m getting at is there are times, just like this young-hearted gal found with her potential 63-year old boyfriend, where a client just isn’t a match. There will be times where as hard as one might try, personalities won’t gel, timelines never seem to work out, or excuse after excuse the info you need doesn’t get to you.

It seems forced. And you know what? Like this gal, there comes a point where you’ve just got to say, “I’m burnt out here.”

Sometimes, it’s just best to have a chat with a client and agree to move separate ways on the project. I tell you, if you feel the disconnect, they likely do too, and they’ll respect you for recognizing it and acting on it.

Of course, you want to be courteous and professional about it, but there are times it’s best to move on.

If you are starting out, it is tempting to tell yourself you need the work, and how a testimony from a satisfied client will help, not to mention the pay. But if it’s that much of a struggle it’s likely things will deteriorate anyway. I’m not suggesting however, to give up at the first sign of trouble or challenge, because there will be those as well.

Over time, if you pay attention you will know when things are stalemating. You’ll feel it in your gut. There will be a certain sense of forcing the relationship or project.

So rather than waste your time and your client’s time, agree to move on and start a project that will move you forward.

Even this young-spirited gal’s friend with the poor health who tried so hard in his sedentary way to swoon her with wine, music, and dinner; recognized he was no match for her. He finally told her, “You need to find a boyfriend.”

After finishing up my chat with this lovely old gal, opening the exit door she said it was card night that night.

I yelled out to her as she passed through the door…

“Hey, none of those wild poker games now!”

I was going to say no spin-the-bottle or strip poker, but I figured I better not be so explicit with her.

Hollering back at me she boasted, “Oh, that’s Saturday night!”

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… try-try-try until you succeed!

In this post I will not be advising you to purchase a shiny new Apple watch, or futuristic MacBook, but I feel it is time for a retrospective on other first generation products, and how they have faired. For the purposes of this article we will examine previous releases of Apple products, . although we could easily find many examples from other well established companies.

The first generation iPhone.

In 2007 Steve Jobs announced the iPhone. It certainly wasn’t the first smart-phone on the market, but it brought internet connected phones into the conscience of most Americans. To this point most smart-phones and PDA’s (remember those) were running clunky versions of the now defunct Windows Mobile operating system. The iPhone brought a simple yet elegant OS coupled with Apple’s usual hardware excellence. Furthermore, it combined the necessity of a phone with the features of an iPod.

As intriguing as it was, the iPhone had many short comings.

• It could not send multi-media messages. (MMS)

• It did not support 3G networks. That’s right 3G, not 4G.

• You could not perform simple editing functions such as copy and paste.

In short the first generation iPhone showed signs of the future, but fell short in many crucial areas.

The first Generation iPad.

In January 2010 Steve Jobs jump-started the tablet craze by announcing the iPad. To chart the iPad’s progress check out this review of all nine iPad’s released at the time of this writing. Like the iPhone, it was a good start, but it too had it’s limitations.

• It had no camera. Front or rear-facing.

• Their was a 3G option, but their was not a 4G LTE option.

• It was only updated to IOS 5. Even the iPhone 3GS got IOS 6. Really Apple?

The original iPad tells us at least a little about how Apple feels about it’s early adopters. Which is to say not much feeling At all.

Other first generation Apple products.

If these two devices aren’t enough to illustrate wariness toward 1.0 devices, search Google for reviews of the first Apple TV and Macbook Air. Like the iPhone and iPad these devices had some cool features, but they did not exude the longevity usually associated with Apple hardware–with the exception of the iPhone of corse. Furthermore, like most of Apple’s first run units they had major shortcomings. The original Macbook Air had many hardware sacrifices the world was not ready for–not unlike this new one port Macbook.

What does the future hold?

Know one can say for sure, but if you follow tech trends, you can form some ideas. More and more we are moving toward a mobile first life-style. The value of wearable technology and the internet of things has yet to be determined, and I can’t tell anyone what they should spend their hard earned cash on.

I will not tell anyone to buy an Apple Watch, or 2015 Macbook, but I do advise taking a long hard look before placing your finger on the home button to activate Apple-Pay. If you have the disposable income, or you just plain don’t give a damn about longevity, then go for it. As for me, I’ll enjoy the toys I’ve got and try not to drool over the ones I don’t currently possess.

The question could boil down to this: If you are a blind individual unable to read printed information, are you illiterate if you cannot read Braille?

In today’s politically correct and overly polite society it’s easy to express hesitant opinions that fear offending opposing viewpoints. These opinions are sadly watered down and do nothing to stretch our intelligence. I have no interest in offending anyone, but as someone who has a high regard for your intellect, and as someone who enjoys spirited debate, I trust you will take me to task, and back up your arguments, if you disagree with my opinion that you would indeed be illiterate.

We received the following responses shortly after the release of 227. Although these comments will be featured in their entirety as part of our regular Mailbag segment in 228, I offer the relevant statements here for the sake of a concentrated discussion of this touchy subject. The point here is not to pick on these individuals, or their comments, but rather to respond to thoughtful viewpoints likely shared by others in the community.

I encourage you to listen to the episode in question to draw your own conclusions.

From Josh:

I also take some issue with Joe’s definition of literacy. As an avid reader of audio books, I believe that while reading is important, it doesn’t have to only mean recognition of how letters look. While I am not advocating for the use of audio books only, I don’t think the question should be either or, but both. I realized that reading textbooks in Braille was slo and absolutely inefficient for me in high-school. On the other hand, if I couldn’t read braille signage, I’d be in big trouble!

My response:

Perhaps your issue has more to do with my interpretation of literacy. I would not be so arrogant as to define what literacy means to the rest of the world, so for the sake of neutral reference points to frame the discussion, let’s consider a few independent sources.

First, the National Assessment of Adult Literacy provides this definition: “Literacy is the ability to use printed and written information to function in society, to achieve one’s goals, and to develop one’s knowledge and potential.”

Regardless of where you stand on the debate, I think we can agree Braille can substitute references to printed information moving forward, yes?

Second, because people argue the definition of literacy has evolved, here’s a definition offered by the Ohio Literacy Resource Center:

“Defining literacy in our changing world is not easy. Several years ago, being literate meant being able to read and write a little. Now, being literate means being able to read and write at a level to be successful in today’s world and also being proficient at math, knowing how to use technology, and knowing how to solve problems and make decisions.”

Now, Before you seize on that reference to technology as justification for why you’re right and I am wrong, I think we can agree “literacy” in the Center’s definition is being used as a link to competence in a given subject. For example, an engineer is most likely literate in mathematics.

Finally, just in case you were disappointed not to see a standard dictionary entry, Oxford defines literacy simply as: “The ability to read and write.”

Okay, let’s drill down a little more, because that’s the second time we see a reference to “reading”, so what is reading?

A Houghton Mifflin Company site offers the following:

“Reading is the process of constructing meaning from written texts. It is a complex skill requiring the coordination of a number of interrelated sources of information (Anderson et al., 1985). …

“Even definitions of reading that emphasize meaning indicate that reading is activated by print. The reader must be able to translate the written words into meaningful language. Virtually all four- and five-year-old children can communicate with and learn from oral language, but very few can read, because they lack the ability to identify printed words. While simply being able to recognize or “say” the printed words of text without constructing the meaning of that text is not reading, constructing meaning from written text is impossible without being able to identify the words.”

Okay, so there you go, some unbiased definitions, none of them from blindness resources, that both frame the discussion and make my point. Are there texts out there that refute these terms? Perhaps. Feel free to make use of the comments to offer them.

Now, as to your point about Braille and inefficiency, I believe this is a lack of support by school districts that: 1) do not believe in Braille as a viable reading process; or 2) lack the resources to teach Braille. Neither of these is the affected student’s fault, but these factors should be all the more critically weighed to prevent more individuals from growing up illiterate.

From Gary:

I listened to your excellent Serotalk podcast this evening. During your discussion of Braille, my impression was that you were coming very close to equating Braille and literacy. There is little question that were one suddenly able to become a proficient Braille user, few would decline the opportunity, including me. Braille is a skill I would like to have developed when I was young. However, when I did try to teach myself as an adult, my success was minimal. Even so, the little I did learn was very useful.
Having acknowledged the point that being able to use Braille efficiently would be a very good thing and further knowing that young blind children learning Braille would be a good thing as well, please do not suggest that learning Braille is the only path to literacy. The notion that not knowing how to read and write using Braille is somehow equated with not being able to become fully literate is silly and quite wrong.
I also think that is a deep rabbit hole you head down when you suggest that using readers or text to speech or other electronic methods is not reading. Since few written materials were originally produced in Braille, having them converted to Braille and then reading the Braille is not much different than having them converted to speech. You come close to arguing that your accommodation is better than my accommodation which is another one of those silly arguments.

My response:

If Braille is not the only path to literacy for a blind person, what alternatives should we consider? You mention electronic methods. I disagree and will get to that in a moment. In 227 a point was made about raised letters, and I suppose that is another viable path to literacy. Yet, if there is a lack of resources to teach and produce Braille, I find it hard to believe there will be adequate resources to teach and produce raised text. Remember the lack of resources devoted to Braille is based in part on the notion that screen access software is replacing the need for blind individuals to learn a conventional reading method. In other words the lack of Braille support is partially based on an attitudinal perception about what is best for a blind person. Maybe the lack of Braille support is even driven by financial convenience since it might be easier to buy someone an iPad than it would be to send a teacher out to a location for proper Braille instruction.

You suggest readers, text-to-speech and electronic methods provide an alternative path to literacy. First, these factors fall flat if you accept my contributed definitions of what it means to read. If you have a definition other than an interpretation of printed symbols, by all means share it in the comments, and let’s debate its merits.

Second, since you mention readers and text-to-speech in the same sentence, I’m left to assume that by “readers” in this context you are referring to human readers. If Jack reads Jill a bedtime story, are you suggesting Jill is equally partaking in the reading process as Jack? I am going to submit that Jack is the only one reading. Jill is only listening, which leads to my final point.

Third, let’s use an example of linguistics. Language proficiency exams test on writing, reading, and listening. There is a reason why there is an accepted difference between reading and listening. There is a different level of cognitive activity between the two methods. Or, is it your position that a blind person ought to be exempt from the reading requirement in such a scenario because, for a blind person, reading and listening are intertwined?

Now, you make the point that “since few written materials were originally produced in Braille, having them converted to Braille and then reading the Braille is not much different than having them converted to speech.” If we’re drawing a direct comparison between Braille and print, print is print regardless of whether you’re looking at text on paper, splashed across a screen or scratched in dirt. Braille is Braille regardless of whether the bumps form letters on a display, a sign, or cobbled out of egg cartons. In short, the production process will differ, but the emphasis in our discussion is not the production process, but rather the consumption.

You say I come close to arguing my accommodation is better than yours. I honestly don’t understand that argument and welcome you to elaborate so that I might better respond.

From William:

Secondly, on the matter of Braille, an opinion was expressed and agreed upon, that if one did not learn Braille one was illiterate. That comment was surely not meant to be as offensive and bigoted as it sounded to those of us who loss sight later in life and have never learned Braille proficiently. One who takes advantage of electronic text and does not know Braille is far from illiterate. I assume this comment was made in an off hand manner and was not well considered.

My response:

Bigotry refers to an unfair dislike or intolerance of other people or ideas. I never claimed to dislike, or be intolerant of, people who cannot read Braille. I may have a range of reasons for why I dislike certain people, but somehow being illiterate will never rank high on that list. Let’s have a hearty debate here, but let’s not put words in people’s mouths or throw out accusations that are as inconsiderate as the claim.

The point is raised about people who are not proficient at Braille because they lost their sight later in life. Putting proficiency aside, a point could be made that if a person has some Braille instruction, they may be what is called functionally illiterate. According to Wikipedia: Functional illiteracy is reading and writing skills that are inadequate “to manage daily living and employment tasks that require reading skills beyond a basic level”.

I won’t expand too much on this point because it’s too likely we’d get sidetracked on issues of daily living, employability and overarching philosophies of blindness and independence. Suffice to say we could get into the weeds of degrees of literacy. I submit it’s a slippery slope and could create a cop-out for people not interested in forming their own definitive conclusion.

It’s worth contemplating maybe our methods of learning Braille are insufficient. Reading Braille on an electronic display could be more convenient than reading it in a large physical volume. Reading Braille as part of a communication with other people could be a lot more enjoyable than reading a one-sided narrative. Braille communication can be as dry or as engaging as we make it, but make no mistake, it must be made a priority if we are to get good at it. Otherwise, we would have chucked our iDevice if we had not made learning the navigation of touch screens a priority.

Final Thoughts

Let’s see the discomfort for what it is. I believe people would generally agree the lack of Braille in some circumstances equates to illiteracy but feel offended to be called illiterate. This is cold comfort, but if this is you, then you are part of about 32 million Americans, or 14 percent of the population in the United States, according to the Department of Education in 2013. 19 percent of high school graduates cannot read. Surely we are not pretending the evolution of technology has single-handedly solved the literacy problem across the board? Has literacy become an illusion? Rather than draw flimsy links between listening skills and active reading, we might do well to get angry with such statistics and do more to promote literacy among our peers regardless of their visual impairment.

Yes, there are some circumstances where Braille is not a viable option. There are medical conditions that would make the process of distinguishing dots difficult or downright impossible. Only you can decide if your impairment is genuine or self-imposed.

Maybe it’s time to stop complaining about how your teachers didn’t offer it growing up and make it a point to learn it now. You’ll never lose anything by learning the skill.

If you learned it but do not feel proficient at it, maybe it’s time to devote time to practicing it. You can’t really lose your literacy once you’ve gained it, just like you don’t ever really forget how to read Braille. It’s like riding a bike. Anyone can pound out the rust from any dormant skill if they want to bad enough.

If you never learned Braille and have no other way of processing printed information, and if you’re okay with that, then embrace your illiterate self! Don’t let me or anyone else dictate what skills you should or should not possess to meet your personal definition of success, but don’t feed me this bologna that because you can listen to a book with VoiceOver reading more than 300 words a minute you are as literate as I am. I hate labels as much as you do, but the undeniable truth is this: I can also listen to a book with VoiceOver working at high speed, and, I can read Braille. So, who’s the real badass?

Okay, over to you. Hopefully I’ve lit enough of a fire under your butt to motivate a comment or two. If I’m right, back me up in light of the many others who will say I’m totally wrong! And, a huge thank you to Josh, Gary, and William for sharing their thoughts. If we always agreed on everything, life would be a pretty dull state.

Wearables

According to a forecast published by Grand View Research the primary market for the smart watches is, and will continue to be, the health & fitness market. I don’t think this really comes as a surprise to anyone. The variety of sensors built into the watch have yet to prove their worth/ability, but in our ever health/exercise minded culture I think the smart watch manufactures have found a niche market, that has already proven its spending power. A CNet review covers the Watch in detail, and points out the major weakness is definitely the battery life. I however would not be surprised to see the Apple Watch revolutionise the world of health & fitness, much like the IPhone revolutionized the Smart Phone market in 2007. One thing we did not discuss in the recording was wearable accessibility. A few web searches have yielded nothing of value, for me, as it relates to accessibility of other devices. I’ve been able to locate information about how the app for the smart phone is accessible with the devices accessibility features, but nothing on the devices actual accessibility. That is, except for when looking at the Apple Watch. Since just before the release on April 10th, and since, there have been a few reviews on Apple Watch Accessibility. One of my favorites is “Apple Watch and Accessibility: First Look and More” by Steven Aquino.

Much like the Apple Watch, Pebble and other smart wearables are accessories to the smart phone, I think that the smart phone/tablet are, and will remain, accessories to the PC in the near future. While most high school students I have spoken to recently believe that the computer is dead, they reluctantly admit that there are still things they have to do on the computer because it is just easier. They write drafts of papers on their smart phone or tablet, but they need to, or prefer to, use the computer to put the finishing touches on it. If you’re looking for a wearable device that would replace your computer, tablet, smart phone and smart watch consider checking out the Neptue Suite Hub project on Indiegogo.

Life or Death of Access Technology

It seems as though it is impossible to have a discussion regarding the life or death of the PC without also having one on the life or death of access technology these days. Everywhere we turn mainstream companies are building access technologies into their devices. This is great! However, it is important to keep in mind that to mainstream companies we are, at best, 15% of their market base, and that access to a device is different than the usability or learn ability of the device and its access features. A 2013 report by Gartner Inc. encourages companies to integrate assistive technology into development. The report explains how features, once considered assistive technology for people with disabilities (PWD), are now being used by non-disabled people to solve situational/environmental disabilities, which expands the access, or assistive, technology use to a larger market.

The access technologies that have been built in, in many cases, have been designed for the casual alternative access user, not the every day user who accesses the devices with alternative strategies and tools. People without disabilities use things like Siri differently than someone who cannot use his/her hands or eyes to interact with a device. Siri is a great solution for speech-to-text for a able bodied person driving a car, but not for a quadriplegic. The text-to-speech feature of Siri is great for a sighted driver, who needs/wants quick text-to-speech response from his/her device but is not the same as VoiceOver, and gaining access to the device for someone who is blind. Don’t get me wrong, I love VoiceOver on my IOS device, and it gets the every day job done, but there is still much to be desired, in my opinion.

While Mike and Matt rightly point out that mainstream companies are moving to a system in which 3rd party access technologies are being cut out, like the Apple ecosystem, I don’t think that the day of 3rd party access is over. Do these mainstream companies get it? Do they really understand how people with disabilities access their devices? I don’t think they quite get it yet. One of two things needs to happen, in my opinion; either access technology companies need to quit complaining and start innovating to keep up with the trends, or they need to start applying for management positions within the mainstream companies and start building teams of engineers who do get it, and can work from the inside to build access solutions that do not just give access to the devices, but deliver true usability with an easy learning curve.

Home Automation

I’ve clearly had some more time to think on this topic. However, I have nothing new to add to my thoughts in the recording. Home automation is not even on my technology radar. Maybe it should be, but our environment, and experiences, shape our interests, and I trust the little old lady across the street far more than I trust tech. If I forget to turn the crock pot on before leaving for work, and I call her to run over and turn it on, not only will I get dinner but she’ll probably bake cornbread or cookies or something to add to the meal. Lets see your home automation system do that!

In the comment area, Joe brought up some really good points of caution. There was mention of not taking it to extremes, or get in the business of providing pro bono work. We are in business, and have to pay for groceries just like the next person.

While I whole-heartedly believe in having an ethic of doing more than agreed upon is a success model, and which many businesses have founded and maintained their success, there are indeed some temptations to watch out for. This is especially true if just starting out.

Let’s face it, when running head-to-head with competition in a new venture, we need to find a benefit that makes us stand out differently than our competitors.

Perhaps it’s a higher quality product or service, a unique product or methodology no one else has or does, a longer guarantee, a faster turnaround, or the ever popular attractive pricing structure.

It seems freebie work or severely undercut rates are the popular baits many startups offer their customers, and the customer is more than happy to nibble away until there’s nothing left but an empty hook, only to move on to the next fishing line dangling in the water.

Trust me, we don’t want those types of customers anyway. We want customers and clients who respect us for who we are and what we offer, who see our expertise as an investment in their sales or tool of success, not something they randomly pick off the shelves of Wal-Mart.

With that said, here are…

3 Reasons to Avoid Low-balling Your Business Rates

1. Establishing precedence.

Let’s say you are just starting out in the physical training and consultation business. Your overhead is low with mostly just your time and experience as the heart of your business. You really have no expenses to meet at the end of the month, so you got some wriggle room on your fees.

You have zero customers, the phone hasn’t rung, the inbox is empty, analytics show web traffic is low, and you are really anxious to get started.

One day while standing in the grocery line, you strike up a conversation with a shopper who has been advised by their doctor to undergo some exercise. They are complaining, because they have no idea of what to do or how to start.

Oh boy-oh boy-oh-boy-oh boy! A potential customer!

You aren’t doing much anyway, so you fall into temptation of giving this person a $10 per session deal sort of willy-nilly right there, instead of the going rate of $50 per hour.

What do you think he or she will tell friends and family after you’ve given some fantastic training? It will be…

“Hey, if you need personal training, go to this person, they are only $10 per session.”

When we set precedence, we put ourselves in a box. Plus, when realization comes to raise rates and fees, we run the risk of offending and losing that customer. Not only that, the word of mouth to friends and family will now work against us, not for us.

So, what seemed like a good idea, might not be so good in the end.

We do often see reasonable introductory rates, or sometimes “buy one session get another at half off the next one,” but those are typically promoted with a predetermined expiration date or limited to the first X amount of people. There is some structure to it so people aren’t offended when it goes to regular pricing. They understand going in it is a structured limited offer.

2. Self-confidence.

Let’s say you are looking for that first personal training client, and decide to offer a freebie to your pastor, brother-in-law, or neighbor down the road. And to gain some experience you decide to do a number of those.

You might even think it’s a good idea to do freebies in exchange for testimonies you can put up on your website.

The problem with that is, in a time when you are most vulnerable in wondering how you will do in business, subconsciously your confidence could be taking a hit. You might be subconsciously thinking people are getting what they paid for, nothing. The longer you go, the more distanced you can feel from your expertise. You’ll likely begin to doubt your value. Questions enter your mind whether you are worth as you once thought.

Then, when you think of the rates you should be commanding, you might hear yourself say, “Who am I to think I’m worth that much? “It can begin to work on your psyche.

That my friend, is not a place you want to go.

It is true you’ll get some good comments and accolades, that is always nice, but the bank account is still at zero.

It is human nature to think you get what you pay for, and that belief is not limited to the customer. It can have an effect on you as well. Do that long enough, and you’ll begin to doubt your abilities and value. Eventually, your work and enthusiasm will suffer.

Am I saying to not plan for some intro work? To come out of the gate demanding the highest fees and rates?

No. There are times we enter into a so called internship, or getting our feet wet and hands dirty without full pay, but again, these are predetermined, controlled terms. We control them, not bargain hunters looking to lead us by the ring in the nose.

If you plan to develop your own internship as an entrepreneur, make it short, include it as part of your goals, outline what you will do and how much, and stick to your deadline of when it will end.

Refuse to give in to bargain hunter’s counter-offers when your internship is over, and stick to what you are worth. Know in your own mind you are consciously doing this for a reason, find your value in it, and move on.

This is where, if you are that personal trainer for example, you might offer some bonus material. Maybe you offer to e-mail them a pre-formatted training journal, a couple articles on nutrition, a report on the best times of the day to work out, or a link to videos on warm up routines.

What are we doing here? We’re helping them meet their goal with some information we have around anyhow, but not sacrificing our rates. They find extra value in meeting their goals, and you are giving up little.

In fact, you might even have it part of your business planned to give everyone that information kit as new clients, but it appears to the customer they are being treated special, because it is not promoted on your website.

3. Market pricing.

As an entrepreneur, it is a good habit to look at the extremes of a situation. Doing so really helps clear the lines of possibilities and pitfalls. Don’t hang out there, but use it for perspective.

One extreme to look at when low-balling pricing is asking yourself, “What if everyone did this? What if everyone used pricing to lure in would be customers?”

The answer is slave labor.

I’ve seen this as a performing songwriter, in the freelance writing field, and to some degree even way back when I was in the roofing game.

For instance, go take a look at elance.com or odesk.com. It is loaded with bargain hunters looking to pay freelancers next to nothing for their expertise.

And why? Because they know if freelancers are hanging out there, they are likely just starting out, or for whatever reason, are willing to work for peanuts.

For instance, writing an 800 to 1000 word case study for someone on elance.com or odesk.com might earn you $48 – $60 at $0.06 per word.

That same case study written for a savvy business owner could earn you $500 – $1500 depending on how much interview work and research goes into it.

This is a generalization of these types of sites.

The former business looks at your work as an expense, so they are looking for a bargain. They see it as X amount of words costing them X amount of dollars.

The latter savvy business owner sees your work as an investment or tool. She sees that work converting to tens of thousands of sales, so your rates are a drop in the bucket. If you deliver as she expects, the investment to profit ratio is a joke and she’ll pay you that all day long.

Or, what if you are that personal trainer. A client can look at your expertise as an extension of their doctor’s prescription, and expense an insurance company won’t pay for.

Or, they could look at it as an investment in their health. Instead of paying tens of thousands in medical co-pays and prescriptions, not to mention higher insurance rates for the rest of their life after a major health incident, they are saving money and feeling full of energy and great every day.

Realize that when we accept low paying jobs, we help to bring the entire market down. No doubt that will effect us later when we want to command pay we’re really worth. The bottom-line here is to make a calculated start up plan and follow through. Resist the temptation to work for ridiculously low rates, even when it means you miss out on that $60 elance job.

If you are going to give your work away, do it for your favorite charitable organization where you can find good Samaritan value in it and possibly a statement of value from the organization which you can use for your taxes.

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… try-try-try until you succeed!

The original message follows:

Dear Member

In the frame of his Ph.D. project Martin Dorigo developed a novel system for reading and editing structured documents in a non-visual way on mobile and wearable devices. This App is called DOKY and it is available for Apple iPhone, iPad and Android devices!

DOKY provides you amongst others the following 3 unique key features:

1. A fast overview over the document structure
2. A fast skim and scan over the document content
3. Move, remove and insert elements and text

He would like to invite you to test his system. It will take you 15 minutes only:

1. Please go to the Apple AppStore or Android PlayStore and search for DOKY (written with Y).
   Or use the following links:
   http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/doky/id975186203
   http://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ch.dorigo.doky
2. Install and start the DOKY app
3. Follow the spoken instructions

In order to reach significant results the participation of a lot of people is required. May I ask you to forward this message to many others.

Please test DOKY until April 30th 2015. With your valuable assistance the reading and editing of structured documents will be revolutionized!

Thank you so much and kind regards,

Martin Dorigo

Before starting, I’m going to assume you are: 1) at least an intermediate computer user; 2) using a PC as a starting point; and 3) currently using a file sharing service like Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive. For the sake of simplicity, I’ll stick to Dropbox as a reference point moving forward.

OK, first, in Dropbox, create a folder called “Favorites.”

Now, in Windows, we need to change the default location of where your Favorites are stored. Currently your Favorites will be located in your User folder:

C:\Users[User Name]

• Right click on Favorites.
• Click on Properties.
• Move to the Location tab and browse to the Favorites folder in Dropbox you just created.

This is important: If you do not select the Favorites folder, your links will end up scattered all over your Dropbox amid your other files, and while it is possible to reverse the process, it’s completely unnecessary to make that mistake.

Okay, boom, your favorite links now reside in the new Favorites folder in Dropbox, which means you can now access the same links via Internet Explorer on any PC where you have Dropbox installed, right? Not so fast. You will need to change the default location for Favorites in subsequent Windows machines as well, because those subsequent machines are still pointing to the default location. Yes, you only have to do this once.

You with me so far?

Okay, the problem is that the default Favorites folder links to Internet Explorer. If you’re like me and switch between IE and Firefox, you need to create a bridge between the two browsers so that the Favorites you see in IE are the same Favorites you see in Firefox, and the simple answer is the Plain Old Favorites add-on in Firefox. Download it, install it and enjoy accessing, adding and reviewing the same Favorites no matter whether you choose IE or Firefox. Since your add-ons travel with your Firefox profile, as long as your Firefox profile is loaded in additional machines, you’ll retain the same access to Favorites no matter the PC you’re using.

Still hanging in there?

Great! Now, how do you suppose you synchronize your Favorites between the PC and, say, your iDevice? If your mental answer was iCloud! you would be correct.

Download and install iCloud to your PC, tell it to synchronize Favorites, and enjoy Favorites across Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari on iOS and OSX.

Okay, after reading all that, you want to hear the kicker? You could theoretically use EverSync to do the same, including Android and Chrome, but as I have not tested the app for accessibility, I cannot personally recommend it just yet. Hence, that is why I began by pointing out this would not be the quickest method, but it’s the strategy I’ve been employing thus far and it has served me well.

Thoughts? Alternative methods? Leave them in the comments!

“Where you go again?” the driver asks as he screeches to a halt before the light flashes red ahead of us. When my head springs back onto my neck I give him a smile, wondering if any other riders of this short bus understand that we’re in captivity with a very radical driver, who’s possibly a dog lover and republican.

“I’m going to The Godfrey, sir.”

“oh! is that hotel?” the driver asks sincerely. I retract my statement about being a dog lover. He’s definitely asexual.

I am on my way to The Godfrey in Chicago, a place I am sure, that’s packed with people who know how to be fancy and high class, whereas I know how to be lower middle class. Before this trip, I even looked up classy in the dictionary so that way I could have all the knowledge I’d need to blend into this wholesome environment.

I am staying at The Godfrey thanks to the wonderful folks in the PR department. Their emails were shiny and it didn’t include anything about going libertarian so I accepted the days that they chose for me.

Bouncing along the cold Chicago streets, I wonder what a fancy hotel will have. I’m sure it will have room service and a host of ebony men who I can’t flirt with because they are on the job. I wonder how much accessibility features this hotel will have though. I don’t know. I have saved all of the links the PR department gave me a few days ago to look at after the stay, to see if everything adds up, as if I am the singular soul who can judge accessibility. I know I can’t be that singular person, however, simply because I don’t have the best looking hair and the disability community needs excellent hair to represent them.

Finally, after a few more lurches and tire squeals, the spunky driver tells me that we have, indeed, arrived at The Godfrey hotel. My heart doesn’t understand this yet because it begins to pump even faster, as if I am facing immediate death.

As soon as the driver opens the door to the short bus, a bellman materializes out of thin air, sticks his head in and asks for a Mr Kingett. I spring up like I am in a drill line and ready my bags, a backpack and a short suitcase. The bellman helps me down the steps and I tap alongside him to the entrance of the hotel, where I’d be housed for two days. He’s exceptionally friendly. I wonder if he knows that I eat meat.

We’re very chatty going to the front desk, where I am checked in by a man named Frank. When my stay is confirmed, I am taken to my room.

The Godfrey is a hotel, not of mystery and intrigue, but comfort. Even though my good eye is swiveling to the left and the right, as I am wondering where we’re going, unable to see in the dim hall lighting, the carpet is so fluffy and soft that I don’t even hear our footfalls as we step towards an elevator that doesn’t talk. The elevator whisks me up to my floor. Soon, I am marveling at how easy it is to slide the key card in and I am soon in my sanctuary.

Once I am in my room, the adventure begins. Tapping my way along the carpeted floor, I pass by a small counter with empty wine glasses on it. A pitcher of water rests beside the glasses, begging to be sipped. I am utterly amazed that I haven’t done anything radical, like dance around my plush room.

Naturally, I want to find the most important arsenal in a travelers toolkit. The thermostat. This proves to be quite the challenge, as I don’t have any knowledge of what the thermostat looks like. It also, doesn’t talk, so I can’t quite just randomly mash buttons I find on panels around my apartment, for fear that I will cause the hotel to be on the evening news.

For some reason, my quest takes me into a brightly lit bathroom, where, I am very pleased to see that there’s epic smelling shampoo resting in a tidy beaker on the sink. The floor is a dark mahogany, which provides wicked contrast, all the more better when I am hunting for my sock I am sure I will lose when I get out of the shower tonight. This bathroom has everything I’d expect to see in a bathroom for the disabled. Bars that look as if this is a training Dojo rather than a place to read books, an easy to open shower door, and isolation for when tone deaf people start singing.

I exit the bathroom again and browse for the thermostat in my plush room. It has to be here somewhere, it just has to be in here somewhere.

Though I don’t find it, I set my mind to checking out the hotel after connecting to their wireless network. I am amazed that I don’t have to squint too much walking down the hallways. The halls stretch and curve, with speckled dots of tiny bulbs just above my head. While they don’t light up the hall enough to where I can navigate by sight, there are big patches of light near the elevator. This definitely helps in navigating.

My stay at the hotel is quiet. As I rest in my room, walk around the hotel, and meet some very interesting people without life insurance, it is soon Sunday morning and I have to leave. I am even more amazed at how lost I became resting in the bed, and dining in their open restaurant.

The restaurant, I am proud to say, is delicious. I didn’t make it to breakfast, but I did make it to lunch and dinner, where I feasted on every type of burger from the traditional cheese burger to a delicious French burger with blue-cheese that made me moan aloud, making people wonder if I have life insurance.

Sunday rolls around sooner than I’d like, and I soon have to pack up and leave my epic room, complete with a crafty thermostat. As I approach the elevators, ready to depart, I thwack a woman in sandles who smells as if she took a dip in chocolate.

“oh. Excuse me.” I say. “I’m sorry. I’m just trying to get on the elevator.”

“yeah. You and the rest of us kid.”

“what do you mean the rest of us?” as soon as I ask that question, I look around to see that the hall is filled with people. We’re stuck on the tenth floor.

We stand there for twenty minutes more, me wishing I had life insurance, before I address the crowd.

“I have an idea! Why don’t we take the stairs!” even though my CP will kill me as a thank you for walking down stairs, I don’t want to stay rooted in this hallway forever. Luckily, everyone agrees with my logic and soon, we are off to the stairs.

The stairs are what freaks me out. They are very thin, and small, and everywhere is white. The sun streams in flooding our skin with a wash of light as we descend. Behind me, a black guy watches me like a hawk in case I fall down or look like I will fall down.

Finally, we reach the bottom.

“alright dudes!” a black guy says as he readies his key card. “this should work!” with a flourish, he swipes the key card against the machine. Nothing happens.

“what’s going on?” I inquire.

Looks like my card don’t work!” he exclaims sounding as if he’s surprised the Easter Bunny doesn’t exist. A blonde woman tries. Nothing. I try. Nothing. Now, we’re stuck in a stairwell.

We whip out our cells and try to get signal. I don’t know about anybody else, but I don’t have any signal, nor life insurance. The few who do manage to get signals place a futile call to the managers of the hotel, asking for a rescue and why none of our keys work. As it turns out, keys only work on our floor we’re assigned.

It’s a good twenty minutes before we are rescued. As the time passes, I chat with Jake, the black guy who stood behind me going down the stairs. He is a music agent. There’s woman who thinks I am adorable, and she makes me blush. There’s another black guy who flirts with me in the stairwell and I exchange emails with him. There’s a woman who’s hysterical and believes we’re locked in here permanently. She has life insurance.

When all of us are rescued, we race to the brightly lit circular lobby. I admit, compared to getting good life insurance, and meeting epic people in a stairwell, I am glad I chose the latter this weekend. The accessibility is something to behold, certainly, but the adventure is much better. Better than the dashing food and striking black managers who work there.

I think the hotel should change it’s motto to “stairs are but an adventure.” it would be accurate, and better still, it would be a clever hint to the fun someone could have at the Godfrey hotel;.

When he paints a happy face on a volleyball, names him Wilson, and makes him his silent friend; we sort of chuckle internally at the ridiculousness of it.

Later, in a wild card attempt for rescue, our heart-breaks right with Hanks’ when his friend Wilson gets knocked off the raft and blown out to sea.

Not to worry, he won’t drown; he’s a volleyball for crying out loud.

Anyway, it’s not an action movie, so if you’re in to those you might not appreciate it, but I love the psychology of it.

As you might guess, stranded on the island he finds a way to get a huge S-O-S out on the beach just in case a plane should happen to fly by.

Well, fat lot of good it did for him, and you know what? Fat lot of good an S-O-S will do you in business too.

Maybe I better explain. In a distress situation, S-O-S means save our souls. While we could find ourselves in distressful situations in business and in need of saving, the S-O-S I’m talking about has a different meaning.

The S-O-S I’m talking about stands for shiny object syndrome.

What the blazes is that?

Let me explain it this way. Let’s say you are a person interested in getting into the adaptive equipment field.

Great, so you decide, “Dog-gone-it, I’m going for it! I’m going to be my own boss and control my own future!”

So, you make a business plan, figure out what equipment you are going to handle, put together some marketing ideas, and basically you are very close to launching.

But wait!

You think, wouldn’t it be cool if on my website I had a podcast giving some tutorials of the products I’ll carry? Yeah baby! So cool!

So, you start to work on that.

But wait!

Hey now, wouldn’t it be great if I had a shopping cart instead of these old school PayPal buttons for payment? After all, that would help make sales easier for customers, and you know the rule… more than three-clicks and you lose people’s attention. I need that for dang sure.

Hold it now!

What if, yeah this one is really good, what if I were to hold a live webinar and offer a discount or package deal for attendees? Now we’re talking modern marketing methods here!

Hey, now here’s something what if…

Okay, enough is enough. Do you see my point?

Are you starting to feel like you’re listening to a commercial with an announcer screaming…?

“But that’s not all, for only three-easy payments of just $19.99 you’ll not only receive our mini-widget Wacker unit, we’ll include our handy widget polish absolutely free. And not just one bottle of our incredible polish, but two bottles of our “never before released” space-age polish. Think that’s all? Guess again, we’ll also include a widget alignment device, again, absolutely free!”

Shiny object syndrome is that incredible shiny business idea, trinket, or brainstorm which always seems to catch your attention. In reality, it keeps you from putting soles of shoes to concrete and getting your business launched or moving.

Look, there are many, great, legitimate ideas and tools out there to help businesses, but as much as each might lead you to believe you can’t do without them, sooner or later you’ve just got to start where you are and get down to commerce.

Nothing will chew away at your confidence ever so slowly and silently than having those elusive trinkets and tools and ideas just out of arm’s reach for you to focus on, rather than picking up the phone and making those calls, writing those e-mails, setting up those appointments; or whatever it is you are really supposed to do to get your business moving towards success.

One day you’ll look at the console of shiny objects surrounding you, reflect on the calendar of when you started the business, and feel a failure because you have all this stuff and all this time invested, and a zero bank balance to show for it.

Please, don’t do that!

Don’t fall for S-O-S. Start where you are, you have enough to start, so just go for it.

Envision a happy customer thanking you for the extra attention you gave them, and while they’re walking away with their new adaptive technology piece, you are filling out a deposit slip for the bank.

You’ll eventually have some time to work on those trinkets, or maybe you’ll decide to farm it out while you do what you do best, educate and help others with their adaptive technology device needs.

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… try-try-try until you succeed!

I’m not a champion like Virgin Group’s Richard Branson, but I’m pretty sure Mr. Branson would agree with the gold nugget I’ve learned through the years and will share with you below.

Many years ago my dad started a roofing business with just a pick-up truck, a straight-claw hammer, a 40-foot aluminum ladder, a leather nail pouch, and a box of nails.

Eventually as my brother and I grew old enough, we worked in that business.

I started at thirteen years-old cleaning residential customer’s lawns on tear-off jobs. I was the guy who picked up all the scraps and old roofing, tossed it in a wheel barrow, hoofed it out to the driveway or street, then picked it up again to toss in a truck. Crappy work, but I earned some bucks and it was a great learning experience.

Here’s the good part though, ten years later, at twenty-three years of age I was running a flat-roof crew and successfully bidding large commercial projects against contractors who’d been in business longer than I’d been alive.

Of course, hard work and persistence on my dad’s part was huge, because it allowed the stability for me to take interest in the business at an early age.

As I look back though, there was someone else who was very instrumental to our success.

A salesman from a roofing system manufacturer took interest in our family business. He shared personal experiences of his own previous roofing business, he shared tips and tricks he picked up from other contractors, he would talk us up to potential business clients in our region, and he knew a lot about our personal lives.

Cripes, I think I still have a couple Wilkinson knives he gave us for a wedding present over 30-years ago.

There is no way we would have had the success we did if not for the help from this individual. Yes of course, he increased his sales numbers by selling product, but it was good product to start with, and he knew that helping others with their business, would help him out in the end. He cared first, and reaped second.

More recently, one business I’m in involves distribution companies. For certain products there are two main distributors. One of them I’d used for years mostly because there was little other choice, we’ll call them Distributor A. The other is a much smaller company; we’ll call them Distributor B.

I’ve been using smaller Distributor B more and more, and plan to use them almost exclusively for the foreseeable future.

So how can Distributor B come in and grab my business from Distributor A who I’ve used for almost two decades?

Here’s why.

When I ask Distributor A if they can do something, it’s either, “No, we can’t do that,” or “I’ll look into it,” and I never hear from them again.

Distributor B says, “I’ll look into it,” and the get it done.

I haven’t seen a Distributor A sales person with product samples at my place for probably 8-years other than once when they wanted to push a cellular sales device they were getting into.

Distributor B stops by nearly every month to bring samples of products, tell me about new things coming on the market, and shoot a little BS as well.

With Distributor A, my inside salesperson left back in December of 2014, and I still don’t know who replaced her despite my asking about it three –times.

With Distributor B I know the name of the billing person, my inside sales rep, and of course my field rep who comes by. If I want a product they don’t carry, they’ll do their best to get it for me.

Basically, Distributor A doesn’t give a rip about me, the sales guy is only interested in dealing with companies who have big sales numbers, and personally his agenda when I do talk to him is quite transparent. I don’t really care for him.

He very much gives off the impression I mean nothing to him because I’m not a big business client of his. How hard is it these days to send a simple personalized e-mail to check in virtually? Besides, I live 10-minutes off a main highway corridor running through our state, not out in Timbuktu.

Distributor B’s sales guy is somewhat surface talk, but he’s a good guy and cares about helping me be more profitable. He’s gone to bat for me with product pricing right from the owner himself, and has really worked hard to gain my business, as small as it might be compared to the big boys.

So what can we walk away with here?

If you serve other businesses, or even if an individual customer, make it your business to help them grow, increase profitability, or achieve their goals.

I can pretty much guarantee you’ll gain their loyalty and increase your own business as a result.

This is exactly what is meant by helping others helps yourself. The catch is, you genuinely have to feel helping out a customer is your real interest and your gain is a bi-product. If you try to buffalo your way through the opposite, they’ll see right through it in your words, tone, actions, and energy. Do not under estimate your caring, or lack thereof, as well body language, verbal tones, and follow-through; which speak much louder than words themselves.

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… try-try-try until you succeed!

I’m kidding, get out there and pump some iron!

One pivotal morning, Truck keys jingled in my pocket, I patted my pup on the head with, “I’ll be right back pal. “ Shutting the door on my way out; an immediate thought came to mind, “Did I just? … Oh no I didn’t … Oh yes I did! I just locked the door behind me!” Realize, my truck key does not have a house key with it.

Writer’s note: In case you weren’t paying attention–that would be the pivotal moment right there.

Faster than Clint Eastwood’s cheroot clenched pistol draw, a quick jab to the left front pocket, no house keys! In one fluid move, a slam to the right front chest pocket of my coveralls–which would have impressed even Chuck Norris. Rats! No keys there either… and no cell phone!

Continuing my Dance of External Disappointment, it was… tighten fists, flap lips in various unrecognizable contortions, blend in a burst of vocal expression of self-disgust. Rounding out the choreographed diatribe was a simultaneous wielding of the arms, with an ugly spasm-like twist of the torso.

I’d thought I heard the neighbors squinting out their front window saying “Wow honey. Get a load of this. Brad’s doing some sort of Mosh-ercize, Turbo Slam or something out in his driveway. In the dead of winter no less.”

I stood in the driveway with the pup staring at me through the glass front door with a tongue dangling toothy grin. Was the toothy grin just a sympathetic expression of a canine panting in despair of its owner’s predicament, or more like, “Brad? That hot oatmeal on the counter right over there? That’s mine. Yeeaaah baby!”

How important is remembering your house keys when heading out for the day? Pretty dang important at 15-degrees below zero. Come to think of it, there are a few important keys you need to remember heading out to your day no matter what temperature it is outside.

Key#1: Have a positive attitude and believe you can do it.

No one will ever believe in your ability to be successful as much as you will need “you” to believe in it. Okay yes, there are those around you that see your potential and offer support, but if you don’t see it, or play it down with excuse, they’ll eventually stop. No one wants to keep smacking the encouragement ball to the outfield and drag you around the bases.

It’s your own belief that counts because you’re the one out in the trenches. And you know what? You really can do it if you just get after it. Nearly everything in this world is a teachable skill, and despite how it might appear, we’re all learning everyday so you’re not alone. Just go for it and don’t forget to enjoy the journey.

Key #2: Get going and actually do something.

Funny how once we decide to do something, we’re expected to take action on it. Whose idea was that anyway?

That doesn’t mean endless answering of emails, rabbit trailing down YouTube lane, checking with your neighbor if he brought back the rake he borrowed last fall.

It does mean prioritizing your goals, provided you’ve made them, and accounting for your time. You’re the boss, it’s up to you to give yourself performance reviews, and your boss can get a bit tough. Focus on your tasks, don’t procrastinate, you’ll “loose end” yourself to a point of submersion.

Key #3: Balance the view.

When you’ve forgotten the second key on your keychain, don’t spend all your time looking in the rear-view mirror for it or constantly reminding yourself of all those mistakes you left behind.

Learn from them yes, but hey, there’s a reason the windshield is larger than the rear view mirror. Spending valuable time squinting at that mirror only leads to not paying attention to the things coming at you through that big clear glassy thing with the wipers on it.

Glance at your past to learn from it, but spend the majority of your time looking at what’s ahead. In case you need a blunt reminder–that would be your immediate future, and you’re the one driving straight into it.

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… Try-try-try until you succeed!

Would you agree with that statement?

After all, as entrepreneurs that is our badge of honor, right? Freedom and independence.

We don’t want anyone telling us we have to show up for work an hour earlier…

Can’t take our sick kids to the doctor appointment today…

Need to change our family vacation because a co-worker has that slot already…

Need to solve a problem the bosses way when the obvious perfect solution is right there…

Got moved to a different department due to downsizing…

Or worse, get handed a pink slip.

I’ll be the first to admit, after all these years of being family- or self-employed, I don’t think I could work for anyone else and not be totally miserable.

However, should our independence allow us to disregard wisdom? Does it morph to a point of stubbornness or digging in our heels where it actually hurts us?

What do I mean?

One of the businesses I operate has a connection with a group of similar independent business owners. We sell similar products and have the same dispensation methods for the most part. In fact, in many cases about the only difference in our businesses is the size, shape, and gender of the owners themselves.

In other words, we have a lot in common in our businesses.

That would mean we could discover something, learn something, or find a success in our independent business; then share it with others, and very likely they too would have that same success.

What’s even more is the way our business affiliation is set up, the better each individual business owner does, the stronger the group becomes as a whole fiscally. Talk about incentive to share information and help each other out, right?

Well, you’d think so, but here’s the rub.

A few of us have tried to get these folks to share information via an e-mail discussion list 3- or 4-different times now. After all, we are in different geographic locations, and while we get together once or twice a year at a conference, that doesn’t go too far in networking ideas and successes.

Unsuccessful in getting them to participate, shaking my head incredulously along with a few others who are not business owners but who are involved in this group, I came up with another idea.

I put together an e-mail informing this group that they have a chance at winning twenty-five bucks, proceeded to encourage them about the personal benefits of the discussion list, and reminded them what types of things we could share. All the while sprinkling in a total of four different times that they could win $25. All they needed to do was simply reply to the e-mail, give some ideas how they plan to grow their business, and pick a number from one to a thousand. The closest number to mine wins. I even e-mailed the number to a non-bias party for transparency.

All proud of myself for digging in my own pocket to try helping this group to participate in their own success, within a handful of hours I got a call.

A fellow business owner on the other end said they had gotten communications from other business owners wondering why they had to pay $25 to be a part of the e-mail discussion list.

Huh?

What?

Your what hurts?

I was literally open-mouthed and no words came out.

First, I immediately lose respect for someone who doesn’t have the hutzpah to pick up the phone or send me an e-mail directly asking, “What the hell are you getting at here?”

But, four times I’d Mentioned they could win $25 just for participating in their increased chance of success. All that was asked was to reply to the e-mail and share ideas so we can learn from each other.

And somehow I was soliciting money from them? Hmm.

Afterwards, I sent off a copy of the e-mail to other individuals not affiliated with the group to see if I in any way portrayed a solicitation. If I did, I’d own up to it and apologize.

These folks were just as perplexed as I.

I love to learn, and there is a huge lesson in this. As I said, I’m all for being independent, feeling free, being my own boss and all that. But I walked away from this experience reinforcing the principle of looking at the world for what it is, not with the motive of proving inaccurate assumptions.

You know, take the glasses off and not look through rose-colored ones, dark sunglasses, or ones green with envy or jealousy. Just look at it for what it is.

These folks really are nice, good people, I really like them, but if they would have actually read the four times I mentioned about possibly winning money, rather than seeing a dollar symbol and assuming that meant they had to pay, they would have read it in a whole different way.

Get this. Out of the twenty-six business owners the e-mail went out to, just one person red it and got it. One single person, that was it! Incredible. If it took that one person 5-minutes to reply, he earned $300 an hour just for responding.

I know the lack of response was not completely due to the twenty-five dollar thing. As I said, I’ve tried this before, this group has just dug in their heels. They don’t want anyone telling them what to do, or even worse, expose how they are doing things in case it turns out not to be right.

I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be wrong, find a new way, and improve my profits; rather than live in fear I may be doing something wrong, don’t want to admit I’m not the Warren Buffett of my industry, and increase my profitability by learning from others.

Honestly, I don’t take the inquisition or lack of response personally. And am I done trying to get this group united? I would if I saw no benefit from it. But no, I see the end result before it is realized, and it looks pretty good from where I sit. I might just pick up the phone and call each and every business owner to make sure they’d gotten it, find out why they didn’t respond, and take a new approach.

Listen, we can’t be so stubborn, so independent, so into ourselves that we ruin our opportunity to role model other peoples success and steer clear of pitfalls they’ve experienced.

Let’s do ourselves a favor in business, find ways of networking and hooking up with others who do what we do, learn from them, share what we’ve learned, even in sectors where competition is a concern, there are things we can learn from others.

And most of all, do not make assumptions about the world around us with the motive of only proving our own insecurities, fears, or self-righteous independence.

A very interesting study was done years ago, maybe you’ve heard about it. A group of individuals in a lab setting were given barbiturates, and another were given amphetamines.

The thing is, each group was told the opposite. That is to say, the barbiturate folks were told they were taking amphetamines, and vice versa.

What they found was an incredible result. Not all, but a good many of the people who were given barbiturates and told it was amphetamines? Experienced amphetamine symptoms, even though their body consumed the exact opposite.

If that doesn’t prove our pre-determined minds are capable of controlling how we experience the world around us and how we see it, I don’t know what will.

Well, that last may not be as pervasive as the first and second. Someone recently told me the number of guide dog users has actually declined in my millennial generation. I have no evidence proving this one way or the other, but for the general public, to see a blind person with a guide dog feels as natural as butter and toast.

Thing is, I’m not so sure guide dogs are right for everyone. Or, maybe I’m just projecting my own uncertainties onto the rest of the community?

Last November I took the first step in the application process to return for a second Seeing Eye dog. It’s been more than three years since I lost Gator, and even though I’ve gotten around just fine with a white cane, I am approaching what feels like the final years with sight, however minimal that sight might be. I admit it’s unnerving if I sit still long enough to contemplate total blindness. NFB philosophy be damned, and the thought of an extra set of eyes to help me navigate the world does bring a measure of comfort. But, is it enough to go get another dog?

In no particular order, here are reasons why a guide dog would be a terrible idea:

1. It’s expensive!

Taking possession of a guide dog is not in of itself expensive. To my knowledge, the Seeing Eye is the only school that charges for ownership, and at $150 for first time students, $50 for returns, the amount is negligible.

It’s everything that comes after graduation that is expensive. You should take good care of your pets regardless of their purpose, but service animals demand that extra stretch in commitment to ensure their long-term health. That means better than average dog food, consistent vet visits, and springing for medical treatments that some would deem optional under less special circumstances.

2. It’s inconvenient!

At the Seeing Eye you get up early to begin the daily training. Fortunately these days I’m getting up at 3:30, giving me an unfair advantage over my future comrades, but beating dawn at school is different from beating dawn at home, on a Saturday, in the middle of winter, a snowy winter, a snowy winter when you wake up feeling like a truck ran you over.

After a long day of flying, your first priority is not locating a cab, finding your room, or feeding yourself. At least in my experience, the top concerns were twofold: 1) finding a place for Gator to relieve himself; and 2) finding a trash can to dispose of it. You’d be surprised at how much of a nuisance it can be to find a friggin’ trash can when you need one!

This, of course, assumes the stubborn canine chooses to relieve himself on command. Remember that snowy winter where you felt like crap? Pun totally intended? Well, if you’re in a hurry to get somewhere, but you know your dog well enough to know they need to go out, you will stand there, maybe pace back and forth until he finds the perfect spot. And you are sorely tempted to shake the animal, because both you and he know the whole damn world is basically its urinal, so just go for the love of all things holy!

And speaking of traveling, tall people bid thee farewell to leg room. Yes, some dogs are smaller and therefore easier to stow away, but small or large, it’s less space for your feet or the carry-on you used to be able to place beneath the seat in front of you.

3. It’s time-consuming!

On any given day you can decide to go outside, or not. You can decide you’re going to take a walk, or not. Your dog, however, requires both, and even now, living on a large fenced-in lot, I understand despite my ability to open the back door and cut the dogs loose, proper exercise is necessary to keeping a dog engaged and out of trouble.

4. It’s unwelcomed attention!

The United States has made decent strides in implementing equality laws. Sadly, we’re still a tad bit behind in changing minds. Did you read about the ACB’s lawsuit in DC? So, yes, that means the cab driver may or may not pick you up. You may or may not be welcomed into a restaurant, and while you may file complaints, is that really the way to make a name for yourself as a person with a disability in the 21st century?

Let’s not even talk about attention to appearance. No matter how hard you work at it, you will have dog hair on your clothing. That’s just part of the bargain, and while you might get a pass for casual dress, wearing dog hair on a suit deals a hefty blow to your attempts to be taken seriously.

And, we can’t talk about attention without acknowledging the obvious. From here on out, it’s all about the dog, ’bout the dog, ’bout the dog, no kidding! When I had Gator I often wondered if my friends and acquaintances even remembered my name! Even now, several years after reconnecting with old acquaintances, the leading question is not about my health, my job, my general well-being, but rather: Where is that handsome shepherd of yours?

5. It can be dirty work!

When I was training with Gator, everyone made such a big deal about bonding with your dog this and bonding with your dog that. Say what you will, but there is no greater bonding experience than cleaning after your animal, be they pet or guide.

The first morning we were expected to begin cleaning up after our dogs, one of my new friends nearly gagged. I laughed. What a girl! Then one morning Gator had diarrhea. I stopped laughing…

The dog will inevitably vomit. If you’re good, you may even avoid stepping in it. One day my idiot dog went and got his paw stuck in some discarded fencing. It’s a good thing blood doesn’t phase me.

Damn! Any Words of Encouragement?

If you were contemplating a dog, came across this post and felt discouraged, you should not get a dog. It’s a lot of work. It’s a lot of responsibility. It’s constant care and attention and a commitment to keep up the dog’s level of training. No one will fault you for being mature enough to walk away.

If, however, you plowed through it and decided none of these deterrents really deterred you, by all means push forward.

I have never heard of anyone who returned their dog on account of not being able to afford it. That’s not to say you should not go into the commitment with your eyes wide open and take steps to prioritize their care. If the dog needs to be prematurely retired, and you choose to keep your dog, assuming your school lets you keep the dog, the small financial breaks you get at the vet cease to exist. Your school can usually provide a good safety net for active guide dogs, but medical emergencies can sometimes outpace school assistance.

Owning a guide dog can be inconvenient, but hell, being blind can be inconvenient. You may as well have a good excuse to bring your puppy to work. As for the airplane comfort? Well, there’s no lying about that one. If you’re tall, you’re screwed.

Yes, handling a guide dog can take up precious time you could have once spent doing something else. I don’t know. I mean, it seems like a fair trade considering the service they perform on your behalf, and the bonding thing really does smooth over some of those minor gripes.

Unwanted attention? Well, here again I point back to the blindness thing. You’re always going to attract it in some form or fashion. Society has not improved to such a degree that the role of service animals is fully embraced in all public spaces and across varying cultures. It’s really going to come down to whether or not you love dogs by nature and whether or not you feel the dog is worth it. Learn to make a lint brush part of your essential tools. People will generally understand you have a dog; therefore, the dog hair is a nuisance but at least a condonable shortcoming on appearance.

That leaves us with the least fun aspect of owning a guide dog, and well, there’s no covering up that one. It would be crappy of you to leave your dog’s mess behind. Neighbors will raise a stink. Strangers will give you dirty looks. Your fellow blind comrades will turn up their nose. Haha. The puns sounded so much funnier in my head than they do coming through your screen reader, I’m sure.

In all seriousness, there are definite pros and cons to committing to a guide dog. Do not get a dog because your family thinks it’s a good idea, you think it would be cool to have a fully trained pet, or need to rely on a dog to gain your independence. Whatever the guide dog school marketing might argue, the dog does not grant you independence; it will enhance it. Do get a dog if you can treat the dog as a living, breathing companion you can collaborate with to navigate the world.

So, why do I care? Because I’m toying with the idea of returning for my second dog. Someone said writing things out helps with the brainstorming, so why not turn my scribbles into a post you can mutually benefit from? And, speaking of blogging, I always thought it was a little lame when people kept a journal of their guide dog training experience. Kind of fru fru if you ask me, so if I go back to school, I’m totally blogging the experience like the lame-ass blind person that I am! And you will read it, because you are every bit as curious as I am to know, if I go, whether or not my dog will come with a redonkulous name like Bon Bon, Daisy, or Pebbles… Actually, come to think of it, Pebbles would be kind of cool.

Comments? Questions? I’ll answer what I can and leave it to the experts to field what I cannot. And if you think it would be worth featuring a SeroTalk Extra maybe not even so much on guide dogs, but on understanding animal behavior, let me know this as well.

The following definitions were retrieved from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary leadership, as a noun means 1: the office or position of a leader 2: capacity to lead 3: the act or an instance of leading 4: leaders Leading, an adjective 1: coming or ranking first : foremost 2: exercising leadership 3: providing direction or guidance 4: given most prominent display Professionalism, A noun: the skill, good judgment, and polite behavior that is expected from a person who is trained to do a job well 1: the conduct, aims, or qualities that characterize or mark a profession or a professional person(see 1professional) 2: the following of a profession (as athletics) for gain or livelihood.

Qualities/Characteristics According to Forbes Magazine the top 10 qualities, of a leader, are: Honesty Ability to delegate Communication Sense of humor Confidence Commitment Positive attitude Creativity Intuition Ability to inspire The Holden Leadership Center includes the following as must have characteristics of good leaders Ability to be proactive rather than reactive Flexibility/adaptability Respectfulness Open-mindedness Resourcefulness Ability to recognize achievement Being well informed/educated Being interested and engaged in feedback and making change Being well organized Consistency Discussion

I have had the opportunity to learn from some of the greatest minds in the assistive technology industry. They have not only taught me a lot about technology, access technology/accessibility, and other specific hard skills; they have also taught me some valuable soft skills, like how to be an effective teacher and to relate to consumers in a meaningful yet professional way. Through it all they have demonstrated leadership and professionalism that I aspire to. Those who have modeled leadership and professionalism throughout my life, education and career have lead by providing direction/guidance and demonstrating professionalism. Each of my mentors have been honest, creative, committed, and had a sense of humor, though some may have been a little dry. In short, they have been teachers.

Professionalism has been demonstrated to me in a variety of ways. First, these people were honest and treated others with respect and dignity. Second, these professionals utilized constructive criticism and provided direction/guidance to others who might be struggling or disagree with them on a topic. The third way that professionalism has been demonstrated by my mentors is through open, direct, conversation and information sharing.

An action that one perceives as honest or respectful may be perceived differently by others. Honesty and respect are key components in defining both leadership and professionalism. If the perception of honesty or respect is perceived as dishonest or disrespectful conflict may arise, and the professionalism or capacity for leadership may be questioned. It is such perceptions that leave the definitions of professionalism and leadership open for interpretation.

So, how do you define leadership, or professionalism?

I’ve wanted one for years. When I could see, I loved to ride bike. An afternoon ride out to my parent’s place and back twenty-miles away was not all that out of the ordinary.

The Walkman radio piping tunes in, riding along the river on a fall evening, taking in the aroma of the country, checking out the wildlife, getting chased by Cujo–for those old enough to remember that movie.

It was great exercise. I loved it. So, I wanted to get back into biking indoors to get the cardio exercise rolling again, and see if I can get the old muffin top back down to flat-belly.

Here’s the point.

I researched all these spinner bikes and thought I had one picked out until I ran across this outfit in California.

They had some YouTube spots that were, and are, just awesome. Jeff, unfortunately no longer with us, did an excellent job of making you feel his place was the place to buy a bike, and really it is. I totally recommend Studio-Cycles.com. Tell them I sent you… What the heck.

Anyway, this place is top notch, they really know there stuff, they saved me from making a wrong decision on a bike, they are awesome in every area accept for one.

The last communication I had with them was something like:

“Your bike is shipping, attached is a copy of your invoice, and here is our purchase policy below.”

Not only that, the reply, obviously an auto-responder e-mail, was filled with those character artifacts one gets by pasting in a Word document into an e-mail management system.

You know, “Thank you for ú purchasing ú your ú new bike ú from us!”

Oh boy, aren’t those characters so much fun with a screen reader, not.

Here’s the thing though, even though I really like this company, and I would recommend them, I was really disappointed how they left the seller-purchaser relationship.

As a marketer, I absolutely know they are missing an opportunity with every sale to sell more, and as a purchaser I felt like someone dropped the conversation in mid-sentence.

What should they have done?

As a purchaser I would have really appreciated an e-mail stating something like:

“Congratulations on making the right choice for your new bike! We’re excited for you to get riding, and we want you to know we’re here for you anytime to ensure you get the most from your new purchase.

And to prove it, here is a 7-Point check on how to properly set up your new bike so you don’t’ injure yourself by exercising with an improperly adjusted ride.”

That is the sort of thing they should have done. Education, a company can never go wrong educating their customer after the sale. Even if I was an experienced rider, I would have appreciated the effort.

As a marketer in that same e-mail, I would have taken opportunity to offer some workout videos one can follow along with. People go to clubs or take their bikes to live workout classes where an instructor instructs to gear up, bump down, or double time the cadence; but one can follow an instructor at home too with a video workout.

Why would they not take that opportunity to add to their annual sales by helping a customer use the product they bought? I don’t have a clue.

It wouldn’t end there. I’d offer a daily tip for the first week, and maybe one a week for the next three-weeks.

Each time I’d be helping them with some aspect of their health plus offering products like protective mat, bike maintenance and polish kits, digital counsels to be attached, SPD bike cleats or shoes, proper biking attire…

The list could go on.

As a customer, I would appreciate the tips and education, and I’d be willing to look at their offers too. Why? Because I trust them and I have confidence in them.

As a marketer, even after all that, I’d still send my customers some sort of update or other reason to contact them at least once a month, because if they bought a bike from me, they likely know others who ride, and there is no better sales tool than word of mouth from a trusted source, a friend.

And that is the main point with this follow up system. You, or a friend of yours, are more likely to buy from someone who you’ve already laid out cash to once before, than someone totally new.

As an entrepreneur? Do not let that opportunity pass you up. Don’t’ let the invoice be the last thing your customers see or hear from you.

Once you’ve got a customer’s trust, respect it, but use it as well. A customer is 80% more likely to purchase from you again if they are happy with the initial purchase. Don’t leave them feeling as though they’ve been sold something, make them feel they’ve purchased more than the product, they purchased your experience and support which goes beyond the credit card transaction.

Do this in your business, and you’ll build a solid customer base and strong word-of-mouth advertising.

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… try-try-try until you succeed!

Do you wish it was possible to remotely access your friend’s PC regardless of their choice of screen reader? Or even, gasp, remotely help a sighted friend or family member?

Have you found yourself wishing the solution could be as intuitive as it is affordable?

Since 2007, Remote Incident Manager (RIM) has been a reliable solution for assistive technology trainers and tech support providers seeking to provide assistance computer to computer, and in its latest iteration, remote assistance is easier and more affordable than ever for everyone from the tech know-it-all to the green novice.

We’re rolling out RIM day passes, and here’s how we roll.

For the person offering help:

1. Buy a day pass from us. No sense in shelling out hundreds of dollars if you only need remote access every now and then, right?

2. Download and run a small program on your PC to start the remote session.

3. The program will give you a 9 digit code you will share with that PC user in need.

For the person receiving help:

1. Head over to SeroHelp.com, then download and run a small program to set up the remote connection.

2. When prompted, enter the 9 digit code you got from your techno-savior. Press Enter and presto! You’re connected.

If the computer has to be rebooted, don’t worry; the connection will come back on its own. So no matter how many of those annoying reboots are required while whipping that stubborn PC into submission, you’ll both remain connected through it all. Doesn’t that sound romantic?

RIM is compatible with all major Windows screen readers, on both computers. If you’re helping someone who isn’t running a screen reader, then our very own System Access will run in a special mode where you hear the speech but the other person doesn’t. Yes! This means that it’s now practical for you, a blind computer professional, to remotely help your sighted friends, family, and clients. Aren’t you amazing?

While we know you’re a tech genius, you’ll find helpful instructions all along the way. It’s so easy it doesn’t need any documentation. We do all the magic for you. And besides, why would we want you tearing apart our documentation and telling us how you would have written it differently?

So, the big question is, of course, how much will this all cost? How about five bucks to get someone out of deep doo-doo? But don’t procrastinate on helping your friend or relative with that pesky PC problem, because after 30 days, the price will go up to $14.95. Which still isn’t much money if you’re up the creek without a paddle.

We’re also sharing the love with our loyal RIM subscribers by slashing our subscription prices in half. Now for just $49.95 a month or $499 a year, you can help your friends, family, and customers with those vexing PC problems at any time, or even train someone else to become a tech god, just like you, if that were possible. And if you’re not yet a RIM subscriber, there’s no better time to get started, because now you don’t even have to pay that annoying $199 setup fee anymore. So now you’ll have money for therapy when you just can’t figure out why Aunt Tillie is having so much trouble watching Facebook videos of her grandkids on her 5-year-old PC. Or just buy her a tablet and still have some money left for yourself.

So come on, take a walk on the wild side! If you’re ready to take on the challenge of becoming a one-person PC tech support department, sign up now!

I like them…

And I mean no harm to them!

In fact, in my little example, I even made a way for this little guy to be just fine.

That said, I’m sure you’ve heard the way to boil a frog without him knowing it is to put him in a kettle of cold water and then turn on the heat to gradually bring water to a boil, rather than drop him in a hot kettle, otherwise he’ll jump right out.

This is a metaphor used to describe how gradual changes eventually become detrimental without us being aware it’s happening.

It’s a silent killer of projects or even business.

Do you know as entrepreneurs, even though we are in control of our own destiny, our own business, that same thing can still happen to us?

Not only that, we could truthfully claim we were busy getting things done, and we still got boiled.

Let me explain it this way and see if we can save a frog today.

Let’s pretend we put a little frog in a kettle of water, we’ll call him Mr. Greenskin. We put the kettle over the burner, but instead of us turning up the heat, we’re going to let Mr. Greenskin decide whether he gets boiled or whether he can swim in his indoor pool and enjoy himself.

The basic rule is this; if Mr. Greenskin keeps the water clean of leaves and pieces of hay, the burners will not come on.

But, if he lets leaves and pieces of hay float around, the burners will come on, and its frog legs for dinner, right?

So, in goes Mr. Greenskin. We place the kettle on the burner which is off, and there’s the little guy doing the frog stroke all around his little pool there.

So far so good, no leaves or sticks of hay, so Mr. Greenskin is cooling himself nicely.

Let’s say we toss a couple flies in the water.

Oh, look at that, Mr. Greenskin likes that. Now he’s got a pool-side buffet.

Let’s toss in a handful of more things. We’ve got a couple dozen leaves of various sorts, a couple sticks of hay, maybe fifteen flies, ten red ants, and we’ll toss in a mosquito or two for good measure. All the things our little green friend needs to clean up, but only certain things to keep from turning on the burner and boiling the water.

Our little green friend is having a great time at work. He’s downed a few flies and an ant, and is thinking of one of those mosquitos for dessert.

He starts to notice the water is getting a bit warm, so downs the last few insects, and he’s stuffed. He can’t even move anymore he worked so hard cleaning up the water.

Floating there, he notices bubbles in the water and he’s breaking a sweat.

Mr. Greenskin’s in deep trouble.

He was busy cleaning up the water the whole time he was in there, so what’s the problem?

The problem was he only did the fun stuff. He didn’t give a rip about no floating leaves or pieces of hay which were the more important things to get done. It was the insects he was interested in cleaning up, because they were fun tasks to do, tasty too I might add.

Let’s pause our little story here.

Is that something you find yourself doing in your business or even at home?

Do you make this big list of things to do and start picking away at the easy or fun stuff to do?

Maybe you had to do a little research on a project or idea. You love research, not to mention the YouTube rabbit trails, so you grabbed a bowl of snacks and camped out at your desk.

Could be you had to create a spreadsheet. Since you love doing spreadsheets, you bought some special coffee and brewed some up for your little project.

Perhaps you needed to clean up the office a bit before you tackled the rest of the list of items, so you put on a new CD you downloaded and shoved a headset on while cleaning.

Maybe for you doing research, creating spreadsheets, and cleaning your office are like our little green friend’s yummy fun to eat insects.

Maybe you skipped the calls you needed to make, bills you needed to pay, and appointment you needed to make with an unhappy client to try saving his patronage.

And here’s a back pocket kicker…

When you get all the easy stuff done and you think you are finally ready to dig into the harder stuff, the harder stuff will have gotten even harder to think of doing, and there will be a fresh batch of easy fun stuff tempting your attention. Before you know it though, you’ll be breaking into a sweat noticing there’s steam and bubbles in the water.

Look, as business owners, there is always something for us to do. Some of it more pleasurable to do than others, and some no fun at all. Some might take us well out of our comfort zone.

The point is to keep from boiling in your own water, prioritize the list and don’t cop out by going for the easy-peasy stuff.

You don’t want to look back and see you had been busy the whole time taking care of business items, but missed the things that kept everything in perspective and operational.

I’m all for making tough things fun to do, and even doing some of the more enjoyable parts of business after a rough day, but that doesn’t take away the fact the more challenging stuff needs to be done.

Often times, these are the backbones of your business and a bit of a personal challenge. Handle them and not only will your business do better, but you’ll gain a boatload of confidence having plowed through those items.

Next time you’re faced with challenges? They’ll seem a little more like the easy-peasy stuff and less of a challenge!

Happily Mr. Greenskin tossed out all those bits of leaves and hay at the last minute and he’s back to doing his little frog stroke around the pool.

Until next time…

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… try-try-try until you succeed!

Back when I was seven, many things were accessible, and if they weren’t, my grandmother would help make them so.

Not being able to see, my primary way of learning was through reading, touching objects, and listening to explanations. Of course, all my other remaining senses came into play, but hearing and touch were, and are, my primary link to the world not constructed by books.

Even though I had never heard the word Accessibility, I was an early adopter of its concept.

One day, my grandmother took me to a museum that was new in town. It was different from the ones we frequented, and I was very eager to feel exotic artefacts under my fingertips, and experience paintings through verbal descriptions given to me via headset. I eagerly speed-walked with my grandmother into the museum, my stomach full with butterflies over the soon-to-be.

When the tour started, I could sense the body heat of a dozen people beside me. I waited for my grandmother to take me to the artefact so I could explore it. She didn’t. I began to tune into the many exclamations beside me describing how wonderful the artefact was. Why was it so wonderful? I wanted to know too! I wanted to feel it and see what people were talking about. I soon began to cry, and people’s feet shuffled as they turned and stared at me. With steely resolve, my grandmother picked me up and pushed her way to the front of the crowd with my white cane dangling in my grip. When she reached the front, she ducked under the rope and placed my hand on the elegant statue carved with dynamic symbols. People started complaining that a sign said ‘Don’t Touch’. Soon, a stern sounding man cleared his throat next to me.

“Miss? I’m the manager here.”

I felt the air whoosh as my grandmother whipped around. With slicing syllables, she told the manager:

“If you tell my blind grandson to take his hands off this statue, I will take every ‘Don’t Touch’ sign down and burn them all. I will then tell the police what I did and sue you for lack of accessibility.”

nineteen years have passed since then, and I have heard and witnessed countless instances in which companies and people just don’t exert any will to include the blind and the visually impaired whatsoever, unless forced by law.

The Americans with Disabilities Act was a huge breakthrough for our inclusion, but it didn’t merge us with the sighted world. People didn’t want to include us, so often we had to go to special groups, events, and even jobs for the blind. We also had to fight for education as well. Entertainment was, and still is an issue accompanying all the other accessibility barriers.

It took a law in 2010 to make Audio Description available on television. Before the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act, we couldn’t watch movies, TV shows, or any visual media with audio description as frequently as today. Audio Description is as important to us as closed captioning is for the Deaf. It opens up a whole new mode of entertainment that we’ve never been able to experience before.

However, there are still a lot of companies that don’t want to offer it, and are not forced to by law. Many of these companies reside in the internet realm, a place the law hasn’t even scratched yet. Audio Description is available on TV, and more DVDs, and even more movie theatres. The law applies to the top 25 TV networks now but will increase.

But even with all this inclusion, no Video on Demand service, such as Netflix and Hulu, has Audio Description.

I’ve wondered why Netflix won’t provide Audio Description, or even accessible interfaces so that our adaptive software can interact with their website and web player fully. I’ve examined this through all different angles, even finding out for myself the cost of describers, and other production costs. It’s not all about cost however. The BBC has shown that cost doesn’t matter when it comes to Accessibility, offering an Audio Description On Demand service through the BBC iPlayer. Many other companies and organisations also show that having audio description on the web is not hard at all. All of these can be found on our audio description on demand page.

It wouldn’t be hard at all to include Audio Description on Netflix. Two methods could be done to achieve this. Closed Audio Description, where the viewers would need to select a language track, requiring less bandwidth and less server space on Netflix’s part. There would definitely be downsides to this as well, such as that Audio Description wouldn’t be able to be available on every Netflix compatible device, such as the Nintendo Wii, as the Wii even has a hard time with closed captions.

Another way is to have a separate blind version of the same movie or TV show, like iTunes has it. But this will require that the film or TV show be uploaded twice. From a technical point of view, this would be the easier thing to do, but who knows, the servers might buckle.

For years, the blind community has asked and even begged Netflix to make their site and service accessible, with accessible web design and Audio Description, but Netflix have said “No” repeatedly, and eventually the blindness advocacy groups just give up.

I refuse to give up though. Which is why I started the Accessible Netflix Project.

Our aim for the project:

Netflix is a popular internet streaming and rental service that streams TV shows as well as movies. It also allows subscribers to rent DVDs. The Netflix platform isn’t accessible and that’s what this project aims to change. With the help of the community we will make Netflix a truly accessible place for everyone to enjoy.

The Purpose (Mission)

1. To provide accessible software and interface to Netflix users

Implement and ensure future accessibility practices and consideration

1. Ensure that relatively all types of disability are taken into careful consideration at all times

These are the targets we want to meet

1. Provide a screen reader friendly experience to all Netflix functions on the PC and mobile devices with all screen readers

Provide an easily navigable interface for the mobility impaired using adaptive technology.

1. Provide easy access to audio described content for the blind and the visually impaired on streaming services as well as DVD selection currently and in the future.

Regardless if it’s inconvenient or costly, Netflix should provide Accessibility solutions. Many blind people pay for a service they can barely use, whether they are a novice or advanced Screen Reader user.

It has been a long 2 years since I began the project. So far, they have told us “No”, directly, nine times and counting.

Determined to have the freedom to enjoy Audio Description on the Internet, a place that has become a utility for my work and entertainment needs, I decided to ask them why they said no. The first time, they said that:

“We don’t have control over the content that makes the Audio Description, so we’re not the people who you should be contacting.”

So, I started contacting studios for the next three months, often going through back door connections to get to producers, and explaining the situation. Seth MacFarlane, the producer of Family Guy, a show that has Audio Description on TV, was one of these connections. I wanted to make it as cheap as possible for Netflix, so I asked these producers if they would simply give the Audio Descriptions to Netflix at no charge. Many, including Seth, agreed to this.

I replied to Netflix with the fantastic news, and this was their response:

Hi Robert,

Thank you for being a Netflix fan and for being so passionate about making Netflix more accessible. At this point we have no immediate plans to add Audio Descriptions to our service. We continuously evaluate this and we will let you know if there’s a change, but don’t expect it to come in the near future.

I don’t understand why they’d say no. Even after contacting 56 different people in the company, they all said the same – don’t expect it anytime soon, even with the studio support.

It deeply disappoints and frustrates me that access to a service that’s so accessible to my wallet is impossible for me to use independently, simply because I require adaptive technology. I can’t even manage the site independently, no matter how many advanced keystrokes I learn or new Screen Reader tricks. Blind and visually impaired people shouldn’t be banished to outside sources to get described content. We are millions and millions strong, and our revenue would help grow Netflix. And, small aside, they’d surely be given excellent publicity for being the first mainstream company to do this.

The accessible Netflix project has grown and, with it, we have dedicated team members who will ensure equal access to entertainment simply because it should have been done a very long time ago. There isn’t an excuse anymore as to why this can’t happen. My team and I are here for entertainment equality and we will continue to be for years ahead.

The ADA was meant to include and not divide. Blind people should have reasons to spend their income. We should be able to laugh with glee with our family, enjoying an Audio-Described comedy. We should be able to proudly call ourselves a Netflix customer. My team and I will do whatever we can to ensure everybody gets past the unnecessary velvet rope and touch an accessible Video on Demand service that is accessible to everybody else. I don’t understand why Netflix doesn’t want to give us that inclusion, and I possibly never will, but I do understand one thing for certain – it should happen. It will happen, with our leadership.

I’ll share that little nugget with you, plus give you a link to something worth listening to which describes the life of an entrepreneur quite well.

First, let me invest in a few sentences to set the scene.

Its 2005 and I’m in Nashville for a week, sitting in a room full of serious songwriters at a writer’s camp which was put on by the top songwriting organization in the country.

At the front of the room are hit writers whose tunes were on every station program directors playlist across the country at one time or another. And … There I was, a corn-fed, do-it-yourself musician from the Midwest expecting these folks to take time to show me how to write songs.

Granted, I was in a room full of peers who were looking for the same information, and the instructors were getting paid handsomely to teach, but that’s not how I felt sitting there. It was pretty intimidating. I wondered if my music and I even belonged there.

Opening the week’s event, one instructor walked up to the front of the room, put his foot up on a chair, leaned on his forearm resting across his perched knee, looked at all the people sitting there anticipating his words, and said:

“There’s one thing you need to know about your music. There will be times when you are the only one who will believe in it. Publishers, industry pros, … No one else will get it. You will be left alone with your music, but, if you don’t believe in it? No one else ever will, and it won’t go anywhere!”

What he said really stood out to me. First of all, it was addressing the doubt I was feeling sitting in the front row. Secondly, I realized that principle is huge for any entrepreneurial endeavor we chase.

We often hear the romantic side of working for yourself. And it is true; there is that side of it. I have the good fortune of working with my sweetie each and every work day. We don’t have to ask permission from anyone to have an extra cup of coffee in the morning, to take an extra-long lunch, to run personal errands as long as we’re out and about, or to say, “You know what? Let’s skip work today and go play a bit.”

Ever been in a job where you only get so many days off, sick or not, and if you surpass it, you’re fired? I don’t worry about it. As I type this I was scheduled to be a work, but my wife and I are a bit sick, so we stayed home. No calling anyone, no pretending to sound sicker than you are on the phone so the boss doesn’t raise a judgmental eyebrow.

Those decisions don’t require much belief though do they? They are rewards.

There is however, another side to the time card. When it comes to problems at work and there seems to be no solution, and I’m in a real pinch, there ain’t a boss to hang the problem onto while I go home for the night either. There are times when it’s literally midnight and creative solutions need to be made, and there is no one there to say it will work or it won’t. It’s my call, and I had better believe in it.

There are times when you must believe what you are doing is right, watch for evidence of that, and where things need to be adjusted, adjust them and move on.

In other words, one has to have the confidence and strength to get through the tough times, or just like that songwriter said, if you don’t believe in it, it all stops right there.

Plus, like anyone, I make wrong decisions. Do you think that has an effect on the next time I’m forced to make a call on something? It can if I let it, but it’s a good idea to adopt the notion that tomorrow starts a new day, the slate is clean, and any mistakes we’ve made is strictly for purposes of learning, not creating debilitating fear in the decision at hand. The past does not have to equal the future.

So, if you are contemplating entrepreneurship or just now entering it and are having some doubts, first know that we all experience frustration and overwhelm. There are times I wonder why I just don’t go get a job and work for someone else so I can come home at 5:00 p.m. and leave the day’s worries behind me. There are times of vehicle breakdowns, overbooking my time, unforeseen snags cropping up, and we better not leave out technical problems like a computer crashing.

But, I can look back on past challenges where it appeared there was no way through it without loss, and see somehow we made it through. And not only did we make it through, but confidence gets a boost in the process. Once again, I’m so glad to be a free spirited entrepreneur, and really, I could do it no other way. I believe in what I am doing.

A 9-to-5 person asked an entrepreneur, “How can you go to work and not know how much money you are going to make that day?”

To which the entrepreneur said, “How can you go to work every day knowing the most you can possibly make that day?”

For us entrepreneurs it is the freedom, the challenge, the unknown that is thrilling. It’s a strange balance of taking risk and realizing our potential. Without the belief in our ideas or plans however, especially in the rough and challenging times, we will fold. Give yourself some credit, realize you’ll make mistakes. It’s not that we’ve made them that matters, it’s what we do with them. It’s about not letting our confidence be shaken, but to forge ahead because we know what we want in life.

I don’t know if you ever heard the below monologue. I believe it is meant for high-school or college graduates, but if you listen to the words it clearly defines the life of the entrepreneur. I listen to it every so often. I love it. There is so much truth to it.

Have a listen to, Oh The Places You’ll Go.

Live like you’ll never get hurt, dream like nobody is watching, and above all… Try-try-try until you succeed!

The thing is, in my experience, those who are fluent with as many tools as possible are the most successful in employment. What matters more, your convictions for the tool of choice, or having a job that pays the bills, and allows you to live the quality of life you desire? I thought so! So, it is time to become multi-tech-savvy.

The Employment Environment

I am exposed to a variety of potential employment environments as an AT specialist, with an emphasis in communicating with employers and job site accommodation,. Most employers take advantage of networking to distribute information to employees. More recently a trend toward web-based applications has been observed. The web-based applications tend to be written for one web browser or another. Often the companies web app can only be displayed in Internet Explorer, or in Mozilla Firefox, and the screen must be set to a specific resolution to display the contents.

Hardware Decisions

Businesses have to make decisions regarding what hardware and software to purchase, deploy and maintain. The decision is often based on matching the technology to the environment and nature of the business. In retail business owners have multiple choices. They can purchase a Windows, or Mac based Point of Sale system, or a mobile point of sale system that utilizes either IPad, Windows tablet or Android tablet hardware. If one chooses to learn only how to use an IPad, with VoiceOver or Zoom, they may be limiting employment opportunities.

Browser Decisions

It seems unthinkable that a business could operate, in today’s market, without an internet connection. Web browsers are designed to be the gateway to the Internet. Business owners again have many choices. The decision regarding which is best for the companies type of work, need for security are likely to outweigh their desire to accommodate an individual users preference.

Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox are reviewed as having superior security and privacy features. This may be one of the reasons that they are common among business information infrastructure. A web search reveals that from year to year, and version of browser to version of browser, one or the other will boast greater security or faster speeds than the other.

Access Technology Decisions

In recent experience, and simply stated, NVDA works better in Firefox than it does in Internet Explorer 11 and later. JAWS works better in Internet Explorer 11 and later than it does in Firefox. Some web pages display better in Firefox than they do in Internet Explorer and vice-versa. Toss Apple products into the mix, and you will likely see the same thing.

There are also differences between how one screen magnifier will display a page verses another, and this is compounded by the diversity in how browsers display text. Screen magnification users may have to learn to configure how the text is displayed in the browser, as well as how to enhance the text with the magnifier, to identify the optimal viewing experience.

Training Decisions

Q:Which screen reader, or magnifier, and browser combination do I need to learn?

A: As many as possible!

In Conclusion

At one point it was safe to say that Microsoft Windows was the business standard, and that if one wanted to be successful in an employment environment they needed to be proficient with Windows, Internet Explorer and a Windows-based access technology. This is no longer the case, as business owners/operators have a variety of choices available to them, and select the hardware, software and web browsers that best meet the business needs as far a security, data sharing and other factors. Great news, many of the options available to employers are accessible to consumers of access technology! Bad news, this can make it difficult to know which access technology one should learn to use effectively.

If one limits him/herself to the use of a specific access technology, employment options could become limited. Title I of the ADA uses the term “reasonable accommodation” to allow employers and employees some leeway in job site accommodation. Is it reasonable to ask an employer to risk their companies security or, potentially, rebuild their communications and data sharing infrastructure to accommodate a single users preference in access technology when access is available through other access technology tools?

Share your thoughts in the comments!