Vision WeblettersWebletter - March 2002
…a brief update from Vision World Wide. We've got something of interest to everyone, so feel free to share it with your colleagues, or forward it to a friend, who can subscribe easily by sending a message to: VisionENews-subscribe@yahoogroups.com or Click Here and enter your e-mail address in the form provided. In This Issue:
****************************************** 1. The Straight Dope On Alternative And Complementary Medicine Here is an interesting web site you might want to check out. "CAM on PubMed" contains citations of journal articles related to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). It was developed jointly by the National Library of Medicine and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine to help people search easily for journal articles related to a variety of CAM therapies, approaches, and systems - from acupuncture, to herbs, to traditional oriental medicine. Visit http://www.seniors.gov/articles/0201/camonpubmed.html.
2. New Discussion List Launched For Librarians & Library Patrons Vancouver, WA March 14, 2002 - Library Users of America, a non-profit association, announced today that it has launched a new Internet discussion list designed for librarians and patrons to share information and ideas about programs and services of all types of libraries as they affect those who are blind or visually impaired. Anyone interested in becoming a part of this highly relevant sharing of ideas and concerns activity may subscribe simply by sending an e-mail post to: librarytalk-subscribe@topica.com or complete the form on the association's web site at http://libraryusers.tripod.com/internet.htm There is no charge and members can subscribe and/or unsubscribe as they wish. For more information, contact: Pat Price at 317.254.1185 or by e-mail at pprice@indy.rr.com.
3. Samizdat Now Offers 864 Books On Its British Literature CD As part of its ongoing updating process, Samizdat recently announced that 119 new books have been added to its British Literature CD (ISBN 0915232979), thus bringing the total to 864. This amounts to about 3 cents per book. Details of the additions can be read at http://www.samizdat.com/update.html or the complete Table of Contents (TOC) at http://www.samizdat.com/britlitcd.html. This collection contains works of English, Welsh, Scottish, Irish, Australian, and Canadian authors. Samizdat also offers four other "Classic Collections" CDs that are similarly priced at just $29. These include: 1. Children's Books CD (See Current TOC @ http://www.samizdat.com/childcd.html) 2. American Literature CD (See Current TOC @ http://www.samizdat.com/amlitcd.html) 3. World Literature CD - With works in English translation and in the original (when available) (See Current TOC @ http://www.samizdat.com/worldlitcd.html) 4. Non-Fiction CD - Includes History, Natural Science, Social Science, Philosophy, and Reference. (See Current TOC @ http://www.samizdat.com/noncd.html) Those who purchase any of these CDs at the retail price of $29 can buy an updated version of the same CD for just $10, a maximum of four times a year. The "upgraded" version will contain the full text of each book, not just the newly added ones. To order any of these CDs, go to http://store.yahoo.com/Samizdat. There is no charge for shipping orders in the U.S.
4. Tips For Adding Special Characters To MS WORD Documents Have you ever needed to add a Copyright, Registered, or Trademark symbol to your MS WORD text? Here's an easy method: 1. Ctrl+Alt+C= Copyright symbol (©) 2. Ctrl+Alt+R=Registered symbol (®) 3. Ctrl+Alt+T=Trademark symbol (™)
5. New Treatment For Amblyopia (Lasy Eye) According to a report published in the March 2002 issue of Archives of Ophthalmology, researchers at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia who conducted a study of children with amblyopia, commonly referred to as lazy eye, responded as well to the use of atropine drops as they did to wearing eye patches. Although vision in the amblyopic eye improved faster in the patching group, the differencee between the groups at six months was small and not statistically significant. Study participants were seven years old and younger, with visual acuities in the amblyopic eye between 20/40 and 20/100. Atropine eye drops work by temporarily blurring vision in the unaffected eye, forcing the eye with amblyopia to be used -- this strengthens it and improves vision. The advantage of atropine treatment is that the parent simply places a drop in the child's eye once a day. With patching, the parent must monitor the child wearing the patch sometimes for six or more hours daily for weeks or months. This research finding may lead to better compliance with treatment and improved quality of life for children with this disorder because many children do not like the appearance of the eye patch and teasing that may accompany it, and will not fully cooperate, which can lead to treatment failure. Active children in particular may resist keeping the patch in place.
6. The Disability History Museum The Disability History Museum has no bricks and mortar. It is a "virtual" museum that provides online access to a searchable digital collection of documents and images related to disability history in the United States. The Museum's mission is to promote understanding of the historical experience of people with disabilities by recovering, chronicling, and interpreting their stories. It's goal is to foster a deeper understanding of disability and to dispel lingering myths, assumptions, and stereotypes by examining these cultural legacies. Museum artifacts are drawn from public and private collections around the country. They exist as primary source materials in the Library, and then are interpreted in Museum exhibitions and Education resources. Visit the Museum at http://www.disabilitymuseum.org/. (Note: Some sections of this new web site are still under construction.)
7. QuickBooks IS Accessible QuickBooks is a popular accounting software for small businesses. However, it is believed by some to be inaccessible to those using screen readers. The new discussion list started by Sam Rossier has been established so blind computer users can share access strategies, screen reader configuration approaches, and to provide support for those wishing to achieve competence with this powerful business application. These are the only topics to be discussed on the list. To subscribe, send a message to: QB4the-blind-subscribe@topica.com Please note spelling and dashes in the above address. If you have difficulty subscribing, you may contact the list owner at samuu@sover.net. Note: This discussion list is for QuickBooks only - not Quicken.
8. APH Announces 11th Annual Art Competition For Artists Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired The American Printing House for the Blind (APH) is inviting visually impaired or blind artists of all ages to submit artwork for its eleventh annual international art competition, Artists may enter artwork created in any visual art medium, including (but not limited to) painting, drawing, printmaking, fiber, metal, or wood. Award winners receive a cash award and a ribbon. They are invited to go to Louisville to receive their awards at the October meeting of Ex Officio Trustees. (While APH cannot pay the full travel cost of those attending, a stipend to assist with travel is available.) There are two deadlines this year: April 15 is the deadline for entries from preschool through high school; May 1 is the deadline for entries from adult artists. Rules and forms that may be filled out and printed are posted on the web site: http://www.aph.org. Artists may also contact APH to request a copy of the entry form and rules of the competition by phone at 1.800.223.1839 or 1.502.895.2405, or by e-mail at rwilliams(a)-aph.org.
9. BrailleNote Is Now Multi-Lingual Many readers will
be interested to know that the multi-lingual
feature of Pulse Data's new notetaker, BrailleNote,
will allow the user to:
Cuts of the Multi-Lingual software will be distributed to users attending CSUN next week in Los Angeles, CA on flash cards which are serialized to their respective units with access to the languages they purchase. Access to each language will list for $249 U.S. Read more about this unique Braille computer by visiting the company's web site at http://www.pulsedata.com or by contacting Larry L. Lewis, Jr., Product Marketing Manager - BrailleNote Family, 955 Pembrook Road, Cleveland, OH 44121. Tel: 216.381.8100. Fax: 216.381-8107. E-Mail: larryl@pulsedata.com.
10. Microsearch Makes Library Collections Accessible Online On March 14, 2002, Microsearch Corporation, a leading provider of Web-based document publishing services, announced a comprehensive solution set for online publication of library special collections. Microsearch's offerings combine services and proprietary software tools to provide library web site visitors with easy, full-text access to library special collections. Microsearch's services include scanning, conversion, indexing, full-text searching, hosting, and other functionality. As libraries are increasingly turning to the Internet to make their special collections more accessible to patrons, Microsearch provides them a complete online solution. It offers museum quality scanning, electronic conversion, a professional researcher-designed search engine, and mirror-copy CD-ROM or DVD publishing for portability and preservation of special content. This is how it is accomplished. Microsearch publishing specialists visit the library, become familiar with the unique features of the special collection, and design a customized online solution. A typical special collections project involves some combination of the following offerings: -- Scanning and Conversion, which includes digitizing of text or images, on site or off. -- Full page indexing and searching, which is achieved by implementing Microsearch's proprietary WebSearch Studio authoring, retrieval, and hosting software. These software tools enable creation of online libraries that feature fast and precise searching of an unlimited number of documents. -- PDF to HTML Conversion, which improves searchability and access to existing PDF files by enabling simultaneous searching of an unlimited number of documents, and instant Page-by-Page downloading of long documents. -- Hosting and Administration, which ensures maximum access to software, enables regular database updates; software upgrades and data back-up. Microsearch utilizes highly secure Web servers. -- CD-ROM and DVD publishing, which provides portability and preservation to an online library. Microsearch solutions apply to all special collections and research databases involving documents of virtually any type, including text or image, paper or electronic files, books, microfiche, photographs, negatives or plates. All services are available immediately. For more information about the above and/or the company, contact Susan Kelly, Microsearch Corp., Stonehill Corporate Center, 999 Broadway Avenue, Saugus, MA 01906. Tel: 800.895.0212. Fax: 781.231.9996. E-Mail: info@microsearchcorp.com. Web: http://www.microsearchcorp.com.
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Updated March 17 2002
