Saying Goodbye to a Niche

Creating a niche for yourself in marketing can be a successful strategy by focusing your work on a particular group of people or interests. However, there are occasions where that niche becomes too limiting, and you have to open up and develop a larger space for yourself.

For the last few years I have written this blog that initially sought to cater to Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors. When I started the blog, I was in graduate school and looking for new ways to enhance my work using technology, and a blog appeared to be a good option. The idea was to provide information and resources to VR counselors regarding disability and rehabilitation as well as provide as sense of community for these diverse professionals. (Visit the Inaugural Post for the details.)

While valuable, the scope of MaineVRC has become too restrictive, and limited. I am launching a new site and will no longer be updating this space. Thank you for your participation and readership.

Please join me at my new site JoshuaHowe.com

iPhone and Android app which adjusts for Color blindness

DanKam is a $3 iPhone and Android app which allows the user to adjust for their colorblindness.

Though not colorblind himself, Dan Kamisky designed the app, and gives a great run down on it on his blog, aptly named Dan Kamisky's Blog. 

He excerpts some of the reviews from the app stores, and they're understandably positive,

"As a colorblind person I just downloaded this app. How can I f*cking nominate you to the Nobel Prize committee? I am literally, almost in tears writing this, I CAN FRICKIN’ SEE PROPER COLORS!!!! PLEASE KEEP UP THIS WORK! AND CONTINUE TO REFINE THIS APP!
–Aaron Smith"

This is why I love the web and technology.  This is a perfect example of a great idea which would improve the lives of thousands of people.  Because of technology and the web, he was able to bring it to fruition and get out at a reasonable cost for people to access.  And as it's a mobile phone application, it also allows people to use it where they live and function, rather than being tied to a desktop.

Dan Kamisky's Blog
DanKam; Augmented Reality for Color Blindness

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Temple Grandin on Autism at the TED Conference

Temple Grandin at the TED conference talking about how "The World Needs All Kinds of Minds"

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Special Olympics Athlete First video

Here's a beautifully done video for Special Olympics.

SPECIAL OLYMPICS from MTC CORP on Vimeo.


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Prosthesis through the years

Great image of a young boy with multiple sets of prosthesis and how they've grown with him.

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Eric Idle is a Greedy Bastard (it says so in his diary)

This has nothing to do with disability. I love Monty Python and Eric Idle, so enjoy this short piece about his book "The Greedy Bastard Diary"

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Howie Mandel's OCD and book "Don't Touch Me"

Short piece about Howie Mandel's experience with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder).

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FCC Releases Working Paper on Accessibility and Technology

"Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Releases Working Paper on Accessibility & Technology Issues

The FCC has issued the agency's firstever working paper addressing accessibility and technology issues. The paper builds on recommendations in the National Broadband Plan, and looks at the many barriers to broadband usage faced by people with disabilities, including inaccessible hardware, software, services, and web content and expensive specialized assistive technologies. This link opens a PDF document. This information is also available in text format."

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Accessibiltiy assistance

I've been a bit scarce around here for the last 6 months or so as I've been working on developing a new business and developing some training.  In the next few weeks, I'm going to post different ideas or questions for the community to consider and respond to.  People are free to post a comment, e-mail me, or leave me a message using the "Call ME" link to the right. 

Some of the areas I'm looking at getting some feedback on are:

1. Styles of help text for Word forms
2. Script for individual who receives call for an accommodation
3. Font preferences for large print (style and size)

For some of these there's information (like large print standards), so I'm looking for preferences.  However, for many of the questions, there's no information that I've been able to find, and its all about what people are doing in practice.
Thanks in advance for your help, and assistance,

Josh

http://www.flickr.com/photos/loopzilla/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

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Subversive anti-cancer cross-stitch kits

 All I can think is that Katie  would have loved this.  She died of breast cancer just over a year ago.  We came across some pictures the other day.  In the picture someone's holding our video camera, so we spent the next hour finding the video of that day.  It's from about 6 months before she was diagnosed, and less than a year before she died.  She would have loved these:

Subversive anti-cancer cross-stitch kits: "

For survivors-to-be whose healing arsenal includes attitude. I dedicate this post, on this particular day, to Gloria Rosa Linda, who is going to beat the living shit out of breast cancer. Sewing kits range from $12 to $20, depending on what materials you'd like to include. Julie Jackson is the crafter behind them. See also these bracelets, too (those are not for sale) (subversivecrossstitch.com, via Fuzzy Gerdes)




"


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“Your eyes deserve a better afterlife. Pledge them.”

“Your eyes deserve a better afterlife. Pledge them.”

BharatEyeBank.org: Dinner: Via "I believe in Advertising"

An excellent bit of advertising.

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Friends of Cancer Patients: Beach Towel

Friends of Cancer Patients: Beach Towel: Via "I Believe in Advertising"

"Friends of Cancer Patients asked them to raise awareness about the risks of over-exposure to the sun, which causes skin cancer killing 20 people daily. They came up with an ambient idea to highlight this fact: 300 beach towels, shaped like coffins, were displayed around the beach and distributed among the public. The initial reaction of the beach goers was shock, followed by an instant appreciation of the gesture; many of them even asking for free sunscreen."

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Aimee Mullins on Adversity

Another great talk from Aimee Mullins

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Freud Finery: Magnetic Therapy

Anyone who has read this blog for any amount of time realizes that I have a love of Freud and Freud accessories. I actually lived a couple blocks from Freud's house in Swiss Cottage, London where he fled before the Nazi occupation of Vienna. It's an amazing experience to see The Couch.

From Nerd Approved Gadgets: Freud Finery: Magnetic Therapy: "

Freud would have a field day with the manner in which some people will want to dress this magnetic copy of himself. I am sure he would understand you putting a suit and hat on him, he may not take so kindly to the leathers and mohawk. Your fridge, your choice. Much more fun than your average set of magnetic poetry on the refrigerator.

Product Page ($15.95)

"

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Google Adds Automatic Captions to YouTube

Great news via Able Bodied:

Google Adds Automatic Captions to YouTube: "I knew Google Voice would have multiple uses for people who are deaf and hearing impaired, but I didn’t expect this news to come so fast: Google is adding automatic captions to YouTube videos. Google announced the news today on its official Google blog, and while the feature is definitely a work-in-progress, it’s an exciting [...]

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My Life is Average

I've been reading a funny log called My Life is Average (MILA), and it's full of little stories from people about funny things that happended. Here's a few recent entries which are disability related. Enjoy,


#1406239: "Today, I was signing with my deaf friend. I asked him if he had ever expierenced an awkward silence. He immediatly (sic)stopped signing and just looked at me. This was, in fact, an awkward silence. MLIA.

#1488921: "Today, I was walking into my college's student center when I noticed a blind student with a guide cane a few paces in front of me. A few seconds later a girl rudely pushed her way between the blind student & the friend he was walking with to get into the building. The blind student started walking faster behind the girl & proceeded to hit her feet with his guide cane tripping her up over & over again. He played it off like it was an accident & he was just trying to get around, but the grin on his face told me otherwise. MLIA

#1362944: "The other day in my English class, we were discussing one of the books from The Odessey, The Cyclops. Our teacher was having us demonstrate what it is like to be a cyclops by covering one of our eyes with our hand. Me, having a prosthetic eye, decided to just remove it for a better demonstration. After, I asked, 'Does this work too?'. The teacher looked over, to answer my question. The expression on my teacher's face; priceless. MLIA.

#1372388: "Today we lost power at my school. Everyone was silent in the darkness until my friend laughed maniacally and shouted 'At last the tables have turned!' He is blind. MLIA

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AbleGamers Reviews Games From a Disability Standpoint

From Slashdot AbleGamers Reviews Games From a Disability Standpoint: "eldavojohn writes 'Early last month a visually impaired gamer sued Sony under the Americans with Disabilities Act (and if you think that people with disabilities don't play games, think again). The AbleGamers Foundation has decided to step forward and provide a rating system for games that blends together a number of factors to determine a score with regard to accessibility. Visual, hearing, motion, closed captioning, speed settings, difficulty settings and even colorblindness options are all taken into account when compiling these scores and reviewing these games.'

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

"

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Dear Wheelchair Maker

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Remembering Mario Nardone

Mario Nardone

I proud to be part of a project called Project 2996 and blessed to have received the name of Mario Nardone to remember as part of the project to remember those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001.

He is a man who appears to have touched many people's lives in so many positive ways, from his wit, generosity and great nature.

Mario worked in the Euro Brokers at 2 World Trade Center. Below are excerpts from articles and memorials to Mario, they are the words and stories from those who knew and loved him. God bless him.

"Mario was an avid traveler and athlete who loved the outdoors. He enjoyed hockey, scuba diving, skydiving and snowboarding. Mario was in great shape and often biked or roller bladed from his Upper East Side apartment to his mother’s house on Staten Island. He will always be remembered for his beautiful smile and priceless sense of humor.
The oldest of three children, Mario was devoted to his family. He treasured the wisdom and company of his father, a longshoreman, and supported his parents when his father became gravely ill, paying for the upkeep of their home and opening a restaurant account for them. In October 2000, one month after the death of his father, Mario took his mother and aunt to Las Vegas, where he biked 100 miles to raise money for a friend’s son who was ill with leukemia. Mario’s mother felt that Mario was too good for this earth and deserved to walk on clouds.
On September 10, 2001, Mario had asked a friend to join him while he shopped for an engagement ring for his girlfriend, Megan McCourt. He planned to propose to her on a surprise trip to New Orleans at the end of September." -EuroBrokers memorial

"In September 2000, Mr. Nardone lost his best friend and confidante, his father, Mario Sr., to cancer. The following month, he took his mother, Linda, and his aunt, Geraldine Bianchi, to Las Vegas, where he biked 100 miles to raise funds in memory of a friend's son who had died of leukemia. When he finished the ride, he took his mother and aunt on a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon.Later that month, he told his mother something needed to be fixed in the garage. When she opened the door, a baby-blue ribbon was wrapped around a brand new Audi. Mr. Nardone also furnished his mother's house with a nursery to help celebrate the birth of his two nephews, Justin and Tanner. His mother cherishes a postcard her son sent home during a visit to Rome: "The Sistine Chapel is a great work of art -- just like yourself," he wrote. On Sept. 11, the bond broker with Euro Brokers was at his office on the 84th floor of the World Trade Center's Tower 2. He was last seen walking down a staircase shortly before the second airliner hit and remains among the missing. Because the Manhattan resident was so physically fit -- often biking and Rollerblading to his mother's house in Tottenville -- Mrs. Nardone believes, "He could have made those steps in a flash. He had to be helping someone. I just know it." -SILive.com

"Mario Nardone called his mother Tuesday morning to say he had found just the doctor for her. Linda Nardone has serious knee problems, and her son, a 32- year-old bonds broker, had done a little research. "He said he found a doctor who took care of the pope and the doctor doesn't take insurance, but it doesn't matter," his mother said. Mr. Nardone was the guy with the million-dollar smile and the million-dollar heart." -NY Times
"mario,
it seems there isn't a day that goes by that a tear doesn't enter my eye, a longing to see your face, hold you, speak to you. an indescribable sadness. or yet a funny memory enters my mind and causes me to chuckle and wish you were still here. thankful for the times we did share. the experience. i had no idea how your life would play such a role in mine. i sense you around me. i feel your presence. you will always be forever in my heart.....miss 155" -Legacy.com guestbook

"You were also one of the brightest young men I have ever met-down to earth with a gentle and endearing smile. I miss you Mario. Your indelible smile and wit will forever be engraved in my memory. Love always-your friend Scott" Legacy.com guestbook

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Handcontrols for an Airplane

Wired has a good article on a guy whose rigged an airplane to fly using hand controls entitled "New Hand Controls Allow the Disabled to Fly"

"Flying an airplane, like driving a car, requires using your hands and your feet. While cars can be modified so the disabled can drive, there have been few options for people who can’t use their legs but still wish to fly. Scott Johnson wants to change that.

Most people are familiar with the stick or yoke used to make the airplane pitch up and down or bank left and right. But airplanes also have two pedals that direct the rudder, which is critical in controlling the aircraft in turns or a tricky crosswind. The Minneapolis flight instructor said he’d received phone calls from people who dreamed of becoming pilots but were told they couldn’t because of their disability, so he decided to find a way to open the sky to them."

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