[bksvol-discuss] Re: Something interesting
- From: "Shelley L. Rhodes" <guidinggolden@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 13 Dec 2009 21:51:10 -0500
Good points Jamie.
A lot of textbook publishers claim that they have um accessible electronic
formats of books for purchase. The chaviots are however that you must purchase
the useless to you print edition, and mail in proof of said useless purchase,
and then pray to the publisher Gods, beg for mercy, provide some kind of not so
obvious proof that you are indeed not faking a disability, yep I take my dog
everywhere with me and this harness is a fashion statement, and if perhaps the
stars are aligned correctly, or you provided the appropriate sacrifices you
might get some form of Cd with the book on it, but that doesn't mean it will be
completely accessible.
Smile. I gave up trying to get publishers to provide books in college, it was
a lot less work and time and hastle, and frustration and anxiety if I just
scanned the darn thing myself, the positive side, Bookshare gets the books.
Before Chafee came into existence by the by was tacked onto a Omnibus spending
bill, like the one moving through congress at the moment, even the Library of
Congress had to beg permission from the all-mighty publisher Gods, to even
adapt or modify a book, so the poor, disabled people could borrow them. Smile,
so I say yeah for Bookshare. In an ideal world, it wouldn't matter if I was
blind or not I would be able to access books as others do, but we haven't
gotten to that ideal world and in the mean time Bookshare fills a wonderful gap
and does it well. So live long Bookshare, and prosper, and the DOE should keep
funding Bookshare, is a good grant program. Smile.
Shelley L. Rhodes, VRT
Guide dogs for the Blind Alumni Association
www.guidedogs.com
Reading a book is like rewriting it for yourself. You bring to a novel,
anything you read, all your experience of the world. You bring your history and
you read it in your own terms. -Angela Carter, novelist and journalist
(1940-1992)
----- Original Message -----
From: Jamie Yates, CPhT
To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Sunday, December 13, 2009 11:07 AM
Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: Something interesting
I also don't think publishers lose money because y'all don't buy their books
because you would not be buying their inaccessible books anyway. And many
people DO buy books and scan them. But so many of you don't even have a way to
scan the books so what on earth do publishers expect you to do? Magically gain
eyesight? Magically find a way to hold books so you can read them? Magically
heal dyslexia so you can read print easily?
Obviously the Department of Education thinks Bookshare is a good thing or it
would not have given Bookshare the grant it did and the law says Bookshare is
legal for people who qualify.
Maybe if publishers offered a digital copy to purchase that was accessible
for people with print disabilities they would have more of a case but clearly
they don't always do that. Saying they offer audio to purchase isn't a good
argument either because some people are both deaf and blind and audio does them
no good at all.
Plus, I, as a sighted reader, spend almost nothing on books. At any given
time I have a dozen books from my library and of the over 200 books I've read
this year, I've purchased maybe 3 of them and only one of them brand new at
full price. That's what libraries are for. Do publishers begrudge public
libraries who purchase their books and then lend them out for free?
--
Jamie in Michigan
Currently Reading: Matchless by Gregory Maguire
Earn cash for answering trivia questions every 3 hours:
http://instantcashsweepstakes.com/invitations/ref_link/49497
See everything I've read this year at: www.michrxtech.com/books.html
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