Re: [orca-list] linux notetaker (was gui)

[Christopher Chaltain <chaltain gmail com>]

I agree that note takers aren't dead. Just because someone doesn't see a 
value in them doesn't mean they aren't valuable to someone else.

I know people have also said that MP3 players are dead because they can 
be replaced by smart phones. Well, I still have a Booksense, and it's 
still my preferred way of reading audio books. I can just press a single 
button, any time of the day or night, no matter what else I've done in 
the interim, and start listening to my book right where I left off. This 
convenience is worth something to me.

The same is true for a note taker. When I had a Braille 'n' Speak, I 
loved it for the same reason I like my Booksense. I was literally just 
one button away from editing my file right where I left off. I no longer 
have a note taker, and I fill that role now between my smart phone and 
my laptop, but the convenience is not the same. I hate going into a 
meeting and then have to spend a few keystrokes pulling up an 
application and a file so I can start taking notes. I know this can be 
mitigated somewhat with different software packages, but the convenience 
of the Braille 'n' Speak is still worth something to me.

In other messages people have criticized note takers for running Windows 
CE and using older hardware, but there's no reason this has to be the 
case. There have been note takers running Linux and Android, and they 
can be built around more powerful hardware. The advantage to a note 
taker though is not to spend money on hardware performance that isn't 
necessary. Netbooks were popular in their day because they were 
inexpensive hardware but yet still powerful enough to get the job done. 
I see no reason a note taker couldn't be built around Linux and Orca.

On 09/04/2015 12:50 PM, Alex Midence wrote:
> You need to get your facts straight and you also need to do something about your condescending rhetoric.  It 
> is extremely off-putting and quite offensive.  Note taker's are not dead.  I use mine every day and know many 
> others who do.  I find it invaluable in corporate meetings where I have to be able to listen and contribute 
> but want to read over handouts and make notes.  I use it in church to read before the congregation.  I use it 
> at night to read bedtime stories to my children.  I also use it for learning new skills as it has a braille 
> display and can play daisy books.  Some things are better assimilated via reading.  And, yes, I got it from a 
> government agency and no, I do not feel guilty because I have been a gainfully employed tax payer for about 
> the last 20 years which means I helped pay for it.  I am glad and profoundly greatful for the existence of 
> organizations such as the ones you so blithely and disrespectfully refer to because of all the good they do 
> for many m
an
>   y other people.  A lot of the folks who work there are underpaid and overworked but still do what they do 
> because they care enormously and believe greatly in empowering blind people in many ways besides technology.  
> They should be recognized as a valuable treasure for the blind community and lauded for all the good that 
> they do instead of disparaged by people in the very communities they exist to serve.  You should be ashamed 
> of yourself.
>
> Alex M
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: orca-list [mailto:orca-list-bounces gnome org] On Behalf Of Kyle
> Sent: Friday, September 04, 2015 12:32 PM
> To: orca-list gnome org
> Subject: Re: [orca-list] linux notetaker (was gui)
>
> I have been building computers for some time as part of the work that I do, mostly as a hobby. However, with 
> today's low-cost hardware, I will begin building a new generation of computers. Not notetakers. Computers 
> running Linux and a wide range of desktop applications, including Orca for those of us who need something 
> that talks. There is more to come as I experiment and even call for testers in the near future. Yes, there is 
> a business opportunity here, but not in notetakers, which are pretty much dead, and only the too big to fail 
> blindy companies and government agencies keep them alive just a little while longer, even though they know 
> that most cell phones can actually do far more. Anyway, stay tuned. This is gonna be big.
> Sent from my dreams
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--
Christopher (CJ)
chaltain at Gmail