Talking Books Plus News

Downloading Tip

Ann — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:29:42 +0000

This blog is being used to share what one librarian calls “workarounds” for patrons who are downloading BARD titles to their digital machine. One patron claims to load her downloaded BARD (Braille and Audio Reading Download) books to a MP3 player and then plays the books on the NLS digital book machine by connecting it to the MP3 player via a cable. This tip is not an endorsement of how to download. It is merely posted to share information from other users of BARD.

Blank Cartridge Update

Ann — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:57:11 +0000

Blank cartridges for downloading digital books from the Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) system are no longer available from Independent Living Aids, LLC. American Printing House for the Blind and Adaptive Technology, a division of Perkins Products of the Perkins School for the Blind, are selling blank digital talking book cartridges. Visit links for both American Printing House for the Blind and Adaptive Technology to get pricing and GB. Adaptive Technology sells the USB cable as well.

The words in this posting, American Printing House for the Blind and Adaptive Technology, have links to other webpages.

Kick Off RARI Conference

Ann — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:30:53 +0000

The 2010 Reading Across Rhode Island (RARI) project is being launched at a conference on January 30, 2010 at Bryant University. This conference is designed for readers, book discussion leaders, librarians, and educators from across the state. Conference attendees will meet workshop presenters ready to link the themes of the book to RI-based activities. Presenters include Dr. Judy Litoff, author of Since You Went Away, letters from the homefront during WWII; Dr. Jim Brosnan, reflecting on the literary aspects of the novel and Mary Flynn of Miriam Hospital on Economical Eating. The cast of Living Literature under the direction of Barry Press will close the day with a Reader’s Theater adaption of the novel. For more information, download the conference brochure.

The words in this posting, download the conference brochure, have a link to another webpage.

Flash Drive for Downloading

Ann — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 15:05:19 +0000

A growing number of Talking Books Plus members have their digital players. Many of these same members have joined the Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) service. With more than 15,000 audio books available for download at the BARD site, members want to know what flash drives work with the digital player. The BARD service is free. Members only need to acquire their own flash drive. Since not all flash drives work with the NLS digital player, here is one member’s experience with the flash drive she purchased. She bought the DANE ELEC brand from Target. She paid $12 but was told that when on sale they can sell for 2/$10. She bought the 2 GB size. She has used the flash drive 15 times already without any difficulty.

Digital Player Firmware Update

Ann — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 20:39:39 +0000

For those who have a Talking Books Plus digital player and download their books, here is an update of the digital player firmware. The update is now available for download. Version 2.1.3 corrects an issue for patrons using the Apple Macintosh OSX operating system to download books from the NLS Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD). According to the National Library Services for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, because of the lengthy transit time from manufacturer to library, it will be several months before players from the manufacturer will have this firmware loaded.

2010 Reading Across RI Selection

Ann — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:08:51 +0000

In the Talking Book Plus collection as RC67526, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows has been selected as the book to read in the 2010 Reading Across Rhode Island program.

Members of Talking Book Plus are invited to join Reading Across RI in learning about the German occupation of the Guernsey Islands through the letters of the members of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. According to the Providence Public Library announcement of the Reading Across RI selection, “this novel transports you, as is the nature of good books, and carries you away, improbabilities and internal logic notwithstanding. It revives the lost art of letter writing, empowered by deeply human characters who literally leap out from the pages as they contrast a dark period in history with wit and wisdom, and in doing so, demonstrates the power of the human spirit.”

The words in this posting, 2010 Reading Across Rhode Island program, has a link to another webpage.

Louis Braille Digital Exhibit

Ann — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:40:53 +0000

Louis Braille: His Legacy and Influence is a compelling digital exhibit that pays homage to the life and work of Louis Braille, the inventor of the tactile six-dot reading and writing system which changed the way that blind people were able to understand and contribute to the world. The exhibit was created by the Library of Congress, and it complements an in situ exhibit at the Library’s James Madison Building. Clicking on the “Exhibition Items” will bring up two dozen items from the exhibit. There’s quite a trove here, including a historic image of the Library of Congress’s Reading Room for the Blind from 1902 and a tactile map of the District’s Metrorail system. Many of the documents also have extra interactive features that allow users to zoom in and out around each dot, image, or corner.

The above information comes from Bill Graczyk, Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library. The words in this posting, Louis Braille, His Legacy and Influence, have a link to another webpage.

Darwin's Darkest Hour

Ann — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:13:25 +0000

On the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, this great naturalist and his wife were the focus of a docudrama, Darwin’s Darkest Hour, on Channel 36, Monday, November 9th. If you missed the program or want to read and listen to more about the life of Charles Darwin, his contemporary Alfred Russel Wallace and of natural history and evolution, see the list below for what’s available through Talking Books Plus.

Cassettes:

The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin RC015937

Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith RC068925

Darwin, his daughter, and human evolution RC055633

Evolution’s Workshop: God and Science on the Galapagos Islands RC054422

Life: a Natural History of the First Billion Years of Life on Earth RC046959

Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origin of Species RC069357

The Spice Islands voyage: the Quest for Alfred Wallace the man who shared Darwin’s discovery of evolution RC051506

Described Videos:

Ghosts in your Genes (genetics and evolution) DVD00138

Origins Fourteen Billion Year of Cosmic Evolution (how the universe and earth began amid chaos and gave birth to life) DVD00038

The words in this posting, Darwin’s Darkest Hour, have a link to another webpage.

Premiere Edition of The Download

Ann — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:33:15 +0000

Reading for the Blind & Dyslexic (RFB&D) announces the premiere of The Download, a national e-newsletter that helps keep readers up to date with the latest news and local events. According to John Kelly, CEO & President, ”The Download” e-newsletter will keep readers connected to news of national importance to RFB&D. In the Spotlight section of the newsletter, individuals are featured from across the country that make RFB&D’s mission meaningful and successful. Fall 2009 is the first issue of this RFB&D E-Newsletter.

The words in this posting, The Download, have a link to another webpage.

Movie Tie-Ins

Ann — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:18:47 +0000

For movie lovers, Overdrive ContentWire provided a list of ”Movie Tie-Ins”. Ocean State Libraries (OSL), the RI public library consortium, subscribes to Overdrive through E-Zone. Click “Ocean State Libraries E-Zone” under the Talking Books Plus Quicklinks to find titles available through E-Zone. The following Movie Tie-Ins titles are available through Talking Books Plus.

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle RC017437

The Blind Side by Michael Lewis RC063689

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens RC043546, RC013724

East to the Dawn, the Life of Amelia Earhart by Susan Butler RC045559

The Lovely Bones by Alicd Sebold RC054698

The Road by Cormac McCarthy RC063649

The word in this posting, Quicklinks, has a link to another webpage.