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In this issue we feature news on the following:
New Appointment in Victoria
Pulse Data Australia is very pleased to announce the appointment of a valuable new staff member.
Her name is Helen Kilpatrick. She is based in Melbourne and has responsibility for promoting SmartView
amd other Low Vision product aids, as well as servicing our Victorian clients
and Agents.
She already works closely with Ramona Mandy (who promotes our BrailleNote & other general blindness products)
and the two girls have formed a formidable combination. Helen has worked in the health care industry for many years
and been resident in Victoria all her working life. She has held positions as State Manager Victoria; Regional Manager Victoria, South Australia & Tasmania;
and New Business Development Manager for high profile public companies.
She has an outstanding record of customer service, is an excellent style of person, has a perceptive nature & is confident in her approach. I’m sure Helen will engender trust
and confidence in others with her skills base and her up front, personable nature.
Helen’s contact details are shown in the “Australian Distribution” area on the back page. Her office number is (03) 9530 0280
Please give her a ring, she is a lovely lady and would love to hear from you.
It’s great to be back on top in this important state.
Victoria
on the Move
Since joining the team at Pulse Data Australia as the Victorian Low Vision Consultant in September of last year, I have been on a journey of learning and discovery, along with meeting the challenges of a new role. As the Low Vision Consultant, I am primarily focused on our magnification solutions, which includes our range of SmartView Video Magnifiers and the hand held, portable PocketViewer.
Having come from a non-related industry, I have rapidly gained knowledge of low vision and the various eye disorders, along with developing an understanding of the impact that low vision can have on a person’s life - & in particular their independence.
In the past six months, I have embarked on an awareness program aimed at educating service providers to the range of products that we provide for blind and vision impaired people. During this process, I discovered that awareness of this type of technology is fairly low. Hopefully, I am now changing this situation, which will mean more people with low vision will be able to access these products and regain their independence.
As time has gone by, I have also witnessed how innovative clients can be with what they use their Video Magnifier for. For instance, one gentleman worked out a way of illuminating slides and then magnifying them onto the screen. He was absolutely thrilled as he had not been able to view these slides for many years. Another customer had picked some flowers from her garden and proudly displayed them for me to see on her magnifier. Even with my fairly good sight would never have been able to see such fine detail.
So it is a very exciting and rewarding time for me. I am delighted to be part of the fabulous team at Pulse Data and to be part of a company, which leads the way in the design and development of this type of technology. But more importantly, I am pleased to be given the opportunity to contribute and to make a difference.
Helen Kilpatrick
ZoomText
v8.1 now available
Everybody has been full of praise for the great new version 8 of the ZoomText screen magnification programme, which was released late last year. Now V8.1 is here -
and it’s even better.
The following are some of the updates included in this new version:
- Web Finder - makes it easy to find links on any web page. Once the desired link is found, it can be clicked on, scrolled to, or read from, using ZoomText's AppReader
feature.
- Desktop Finder - helps you find and open programs and documents on your desktop, including items in the Programs folder, My Documents folder, and the Control Panel.
Line Zoom Window - magnifies a single line at a time, while automatically adjusting to the height of text in your documents.
- Fractional magnification - new powers of 1.25x, 1.5x and 1.75x let you get more information on the screen.
- Support for PDF documents - ZoomText can now read & highlight PDF documents in Adobe Reader.
- Automatic Updating - each time you start ZoomText it checks to see if you’re online.
If so, it checks to see if you’re running the latest version. If an update is available, it will ask you if you want to download it. Simply click the 'Yes' button and away you go. The download will install automatically and you will be up-to-date.
Call Anthony to place your order for this fabulous new ZoomText.
Kurzweil 1000 Update
We believe that Kurzweil K1000 is the world’s leading software that makes printed or electronic text accessible to people who are blind. It converts a PC & a scanner into a highly advanced version of the reading machine invented by Ray Kurzweil many years ago.
Version 8 of K1000 is now available. Some of the features & benefits of this great programme are as follows:
State of the art Synthetic Voice options.
Optimal Scanning solution
Accurate Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
Flexible Writing & Editing tools
Study tools
Customizable User Interface
Online E-Book & Magazine Search & Retrieval
Low Vision features
Sending files to portable devices
Sending files to email
Audio file creation while working
Kurzweil virtual printer
Familiar office applications – calculator, photocopier & fax
Braille Embosser compatibility
Kurzweil news & product enhancements.
If you don’t have Internet access to their web site, or would like printed material or a trial CD, give Anthony a call on (02) 9686 2600 & we will be happy to send you further information.
Another Award for Pulse Data
More great news for Pulse Data International …… at the recent AMCHAM (American Chamber of Commerce Business Awards) Pulse Data was awarded AMCHAM's Exporter of the Year for “Services and Technology”.
As well as this, Pulse Data was also announced as the winner of the Supreme Award. This is a huge achievement for us
and is recognition of all the hard work done in the US market to date.
As the Supreme Winner, Pulse Data receives $5,000 worth of professional services from Ernst & Young.
Throughout the US, the American Chamber of Commerce has 1400 offices. These awards lead to a huge amount of free publicity for Pulse Data through the US business sector. Ultimately we hope to see some spin off for Pulse Data HumanWare as a result.
SmartView Versus the Rest
With lots of different makes and models of video magnifiers, it can sometimes be difficult to determine what makes one product better than another.
I thought you may be interested in some of the key steps in choosing the best video magnifier:
1. It must be of high quality and utterly reliable. (We rarely see a SmartView in our service department, even ones that have been in use for many years).
2. It must meet the unique needs of a specific user. Some of these needs may be:
a. Ability to choose “on top or side by side” placement of monitor
b. Ability to choose the size of the monitor
c. Black/white & a range of colour combination when in reading mode
d. Black & White or colour requirements when in photo mode
e. Intuitive, easy to use controls resulting in less fatigue
f. Portability & stability concerns
g. Ability to share your monitor with your computer
h. On-screen calculator, time, day & date
i. Free home trial to fully understand features & benefits
3. It must be supported by a reputable company. (Pulse Data has been designing and manufacturing quality products for people with impaired vision & distributing them world-wide since the late 1970s.)
4. In most cases, you get what you pay for. (SmartView is available in a wide variety of models and configurations. Every model, regardless of price, meets the rigorous Pulse Data performance and quality standards.)
Are
You Getting the Most from Your SmartView
I am often amazed at the different ways our clients receive benefit from their SmartView Video Magnifiers. Whether it’s reading a medicine bottle, seeing the buttons on their television remote control or building components for a model train! There are countless ways that you can utilise a SmartView to help overcome your vision impairment.
Perhaps some of you may be thinking that you could be utilising it more? Well, here are some ideas and hints that may just help you:
Lets focus (no pun intended) on the SmartView models with manual focus. Knowing the focusing procedure is critical to getting the best from your machine.
So what is the best way to focus?
When you place a new document on the tray that is of a different thickness than before, i.e. going from a single sheet of paper to a phone book, here’s how to correctly focus the image.
1. Turn the size knob up to the maximum magnification.
2. Adjust the focus knob until the image is crystal clear
3. Now turn the size knob back down from its maximum position to the magnification that you are comfortable with.
Using this procedure will ensure that as you adjust the magnification the existing document will always stay in focus.
For all those using the SmartView 5000 or 8000 model - you have the added benefit of auto focus. This is excellent when you are reading documents of varying thicknesses or changing magnification for different size print, as it automatically focuses as required. But here’s an interesting feature that you may no know about that is really handy when reading a newspaper. Your SmartView may want to continually focus because the newspaper is not sitting completely flat.
You can temporarily stop the auto focus. This is called ‘freezing’ the focus.
Just wait for your SmartView to focus on the centre of the newspaper and then hold the ‘Mode’ button in until you here an audible ‘ding’. The focus is now ‘frozen’ and as you move the reading tray back and forth your SmartView will not continually try to re-focus.
To turn the ‘freeze focus’ off, just turn the size knob and every thing is back to normal.
If you need advice on getting more out of your SmartView Video Magnifier or wish to update to the latest model why not give me a call at the office on (02) 9686 2600 or mobile on 0409 86 26 00.
Phil Hazell, National Sales Manager
Project
Nexus Update
This is an update on the progress of plans to bring three major blindness organisations in NSW & Victoria together to form one single agency offering enhanced services to people who are vision impaired.
Merger discussions are well advanced between the Royal Blind Society (RBS), Vision Australia Foundation (VAF) and the Royal Victorian Institute for the Blind (RVIB).
The Boards of RVIB, VAF and RBS have approved a Heads of Agreement, which has been signed by the three agencies’ Presidents. A number of project teams have been established and are progressing well.
The Nexus Interim Board, which is made up of three nominees from each of RBS, VAF, RVIB and BCA, has met on four occasions over the past four months.
RBS president Graeme Innes has been elected the acting chairperson, with Mike Janes and Kevin Murfitt as acting deputy chairs. Three sub-committees have also been established by the Board to oversee activities and issues relating to client services, organisational integration and finance.
The Nexus Interim Board has been briefed on the requirements of corporate governance, directors’ responsibilities and the legal requirements for the Scheme of Arrangement. The Interim Board also agreed on a constitution for the newly incorporated RBS and is considering a number of other details that must be finalised before the proposed merger can take place.
Another important step in the merger process is having RBS incorporated as a public company limited by guarantee.
At the end of January 2004, this was achieved & RBS was been registered under the Corporations Act 2001. This is a vital step forward for RBS, as it will give members the opportunity to become more actively involved in the running of the organisation.
Phil Hazell Appointment National Sales Manager
Phil Hazell will be well known to our many low vision clients in NSW, but maybe not so well known interstate.
Phil has a background in Optometry having been raised in a South Australian Optometry family practice, studying Optical Dispensing & Optical Mechanics before running his own successful practices in Perth for some years.
Pulse Data was fortunate enough to gain his services 2 years ago now & during that time he has further expanded our SmartView
and low vision business in NSW. He was then appointed National Sales Manager, Low Vision – before now accepting the responsibility for all sales related activities in Australia.
Phil is a lovely guy; he is dedicated, intelligent & hard working. I know he is looking forward immensely to his new role & to meeting you all. His email address is:
philhaz@pulsedata.com.au should you wish to contact him.
PocketViewer
Review
The new model PocketViewer has just been released.
This is what we have been waiting for, for some time now, as it features an “on-off button” to add to all the other great features.
It is now manufactured at our own Pulse Data factory in Christchurch
and new & existing users will love the new feel & the new low price (now only $1,285).
In trials we have just completed with Low Vision users in the Workplace & in the Classroom, it was found that nothing provided the same advantages as the SmartView video magnifier. Accessing text & general reading was much easier with this aid than with anything else – however the PocketViewer scored heavily in situations where portability was a consideration.
Situations like identifying the tab names on top of folders, reading file names, accessing the LCD screen of the photocopier & fax machine, etc.
In the classroom the PocketViewer enabled the student to read essay questions & locate answers independently.
It was also invaluable for the sick or injured who were confined to bed (or had mobility problems)
and still wanted to be able to read.
We would like to thank our friends from the Dept of Education & Training for carrying out this trial & reinforcing our confidence in this product.
So phone us now for your requirements. Sydney office phone (02) 96862600, Melbourne (03) 9530 0280 or Brisbane (07) 3261 3593.
“TechStyle” readers not only receive the (optional use) on/off switch model, but until the end of May, also receive free delivery.
Textbooks for
Blind Students
A standard textbook for primary or secondary school students is a robust learning tool rich with photographs, illustrations, charts & maps — visual images that bring words to life.
Textbooks for blind or visually impaired students are considerably less dynamic. A full book may comprise as many as 15-20 bound Braille volumes. All of the helpful graphic components are useless unless the teacher describes them. Locating a highlighted word is cumbersome and difficult.
The learning status quo for these students may be changing as the result of a project completed by assistive technology experts who have spent the past two years developing a prototype social-studies electronic textbook that includes text, as well as descriptions of all graphic elements.
The electronic files are designed for use with an ingenious, classroom-friendly device called a BrailleNote, which is a portable, refreshable Braille, note-taker. The device converts electronic text into speech and into Braille that is "refreshed:" (produced as a ticker-tape-like continuous stream that is created by moveable pins on a keyboard), which the fingers read - the way the eye tracks words across a page.
The student can listen to the textbook or read it in Braille.
"No other textbook out there for visually impaired students has been modified to this extent," said Beaver, Associate Director of the Center for Assistive Technology. "These are the only social studies textbooks available to blind students across the U.S. that have all picture and map descriptions included," she said. "They also are the only ones designed to take full advantage of a portable note-taking device, where elements such as time lines, tables, bulleted lists, graphs and charts, highlighted vocabulary words, multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank chapter summary questions, work equally well for output of both speech and refreshable Braille.
"And because the file is electronic," Beaver added, "students can easily search for information, instead of skimming through page after page of hard-copy Braille. They can also place electronic 'bookmarks' within the text to quickly locate important material."
Beaver and her colleagues developed the electronic textbooks with the aid of 15 blind students who each received a BrailleNote, (a personal note taker with refreshable Braille developed by Pulse Data International) to test at home and in the classroom. The students' response was enthusiastic.
"For the first time ever, I have been able to do my social studies homework independently, without asking my mom to describe the maps and pictures to me or have her help me find answers within the text," said one ninth grader.
"The file can be emailed to the teacher working with that student. Once the file is unzipped, it can be copied to a standard flash disk card or floppy disk and imported into the BrailleNote", said Beaver.
Beaver and her colleagues hope to use the textbook project to conduct research into the effect of the use of refreshable Braille on Braille literacy.”
CSUN
update
Phil Hazell & I have just returned from the CSUN exhibition held in Los Angeles each year. Reports were that it was busier than last year & I know that our Pulse Data HumanWare stand attracted a great deal of interest from the
4,000 odd delegates who attended from 40 odd countries & every state of the USA.
It’s hard to pick a highlight, but the Opening address by Dr Vinton Cerf (one of the founders of the Internet) was certainly riveting.
There were lot’s of Aussies there (some behaving themselves better than others!)
and quite a number of my Asian clients from Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan & Korea.
A total of 185 manufacturers displayed their adaptive technology products & services in various size booths & the more innovative were involved in a total of 325 x 1 hour group presentations over the 4 days.
For Sale
The following equipment is for sale by our clients. To purchase any of these items, please contact the individual at the number listed:
SmartView model TX with 14” TV – excellent condition, 2.5 years old. Will deliver & train purchaser in Sydney metro area.
Asking only $1,900 o.n.o. Phone (02) 9386 9353
Mountbatten Brailler - 2 years old. New price approx $4000.
Asking only $2,500 (or nearest offer)
Versapoint 20 embosser - Replacement price over $5000 new.
Asking only $1,500 Call Joseph on (08) 8370 3395 for both.
3Com PCMCIA 56 K modem plus accessories – this is the unit Ramona Mandy was using in her Melbourne office before she went to ADSL. Asking price only $100. Call Ramona on (03) 9686 2601
SmartView model TX - black & white video magnifier (3x–25x mag).
MAX Digital Magnifier – with magnification range of 16x – 28x.
For both of the above contact Jane Cook on (03) 9825 5016
Viewpoint VGA with hand-writing stand.
This machine uses the computer monitor and you can toggle between PC output or CCTV output or split screen in either black on white or white on black text. In good condition (with instruction booklet). Asking price $500. Call Natale on 0402 473 747.
SmartView mono camera CCTV – complete with 14” monitor. Great condition - 5 years old. Purchase price was $3,850.
Asking only $2,000 o.n.o. Phone Noel on (02) 4365 2048 (Gosford)
SmartView model 3000 with 17” monitor – current model – only 18 months old – excellent condition.
Asking price only $2,500 o.n.o. Phone Yvonne on (02) 9630 6882
HP ScanJet 5300C flatbed scanner – ex demo machine in our office. Perfect condition. Asking price only $120. Phone Anthony.
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