Digital Battery Problems
By Alicia Waters | September 20, 2012
Try the following before you call Talking Books Plus or return a digital machine because the battery will only charge to 18 hours. This tip comes from another network library and was confirmed by the National Library Services for the Blind.
Run the machine until the battery dies. Fully recharging and discharging completely a second time will increase the battery hours more. In other words, cycling the player does improve the reporting of battery life. Batteries should be returned to be replaced only if the battery will only charge up to 12 hours remaining.
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August 2012 Bestseller List
By Alicia Waters | September 10, 2012
The August 2012 Bestseller list compiled monthly by NLS combines information taken from the bestseller lists of the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, and the Washington Post.
Bestsellers are included in the NLS list when they appear on one of the above bestseller lists for a month or more.
Once a title appears in the NLS list with an NLS number, it will not appear on future lists.
The acronyms used for newspapers and book clubs in the NLS bestseller list are:
Code Source
LAT Los Angeles Times
NYT New York Times
WP Washington Post
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Caregiver Respite Survey
By Alicia Waters | September 4, 2012
Caregiver Alliance of RI, A project of New Hope Time Exchange Care Program is seeking your assistance to distribute and complete the Statewide Surveys to advance efforts to improve access and opportunity for Caregiver Respite across the Ocean State. Caregivers Alliance of RI is looking for greater response, so are asking you to help ensure the widest coverage possible ~ deadline is September 15.
The online Family Caregiver Survey and the Provider Survey can be completed electronically. Families and caregivers, provider and agency participants, case workers, clients, church groups, hospitals, you, doctors, and even hair salon patrons… let’s be creative and please ask all of the people that can benefit to have their voice heard by completing the respite survey.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact Ellen Kreutler, New Hope Time Exchange Care Program Coordinator, Parent Support Network of RI. Tel. 401.383.4884. ellen@newhopetimeexchange.org.
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3 Booklists Added to Reading List
By Alicia Waters | August 23, 2012
The Mystery and Detective Booklist, the Health Booklist, and True Crime Stories Booklist have been recently added to the RI Talking Books Plus Reading Lists.
These lists was produced by the Wolfner Talking Book and Braille Library in Missouri. Rhode Island Talking Books Plus members should order these titles through RI Talking Books Plus. To download, Talking Books Plus members should be signed up for BARD.
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Updating TBP Membership Info
By Alicia Waters | August 22, 2012
The Catalog (WebOPAC) on the Talking Books Plus (TBP) webpage has Patron Information as a Menu selection. Follow the links for Patron Record which has the form to update TBP membership information. Either click on Send Change of Address Information to the Library or Update Patron Record to fill out and submit the form. The Patron Information-Patron Record page, also, gives the member’s current mailing address, subscribed media (i.e.,cassette, digital, large print), reading preferences (i.e., subjects and authors), magazine subscriptions and a link to Change Password. Add these changes in the Additional Comments box . We want to keep sending you the books and subscriptions you want!
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BARD Tips for login Problems
By Alicia Waters | August 20, 2012
The password and email address used for BARD is case sensitive. So is the answer given to the security question. Therefore, to simplify login, it is suggested not ot use capital letters.
JAWS13 had a bug that stops the screen from refreshing after logging in. A new update to JAWS has fixed this problem. To find out what version of JAWS you are using, type INSERT+J to open JAWS. Then type CTRL+INSERT+V .
These tips comes from the NLS BARD support team. To sign up for BARD Technical Support, email NLSDownload@loc.gov. Read the BARD FAQ at: https://nlsbard.loc.gov/NLS/FAQ.html.
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Talking Book Topics July Aug 2012
By Alicia Waters | August 3, 2012
The July August 2012 issue of Talking Book Topics has been published and mailed to subscribers. In the “In Brief section” of this issue is a description of the “New features and Materials available in the next upgrade of BARD.” See previous posting, BARD Update Coming, which gives some the details. The Talking Book Topics catalog is accessible in an electronic version.
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July 2012 Bestsellers List
By Alicia Waters | August 1, 2012
The bestseller list compiled monthly by NLS combines information taken from the bestseller lists of the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, and the Washington Post.
Bestsellers are included in the NLS list when they appear on one of the above bestseller lists for a month or more.
Once a title appears in the NLS list with an NLS number, it will not appear on future lists.
The acronyms used for newspapers and book clubs in the NLS bestseller list are:
Code Source
LAT Los Angeles Times
NYT New York Times
WP Washington Post
Topics: Books to Read, News & Info | No Comments »
Current Popular YA titles
By Alicia Waters | July 23, 2012
The RI Young Adult Round Table compiled a list of popular fictional books. The titles from the list that are Books In Process at the National Services for the Blind and Physically Handicapped are listed below. These books can be reserved for when they become available on the shelf. They can be ordered through Talking Books Plus. If not a member of Talking Books Plus, check eligibility requirements.
Black Heart by Holly Black.
Cassel Sharpe, a powerful transformation worker, is torn between his decision to work for the federal government and his love for Lila, who has joined her father’s criminal organization.
Cinder by Marissa Meyer.
As plague ravages the overcrowded Earth, observed by a ruthless lunar people, Cinder, a gifted mechanic and cyborg, becomes involved with handsome Prince Kai and must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect the world in this futuristic take on the Cinderella story.
Ghetto Cowboy by Greg Neri. Twelve-year-old Cole’s behavior causes his mother to drive him from Detroit to Philadelphia to live with a father he has never known, but who soon has Cole involved with a group of African-American “cowboys” who rescue horses and use them to steer youths away from drugs and gangs.
Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler. Hudson Avery gave up a promising competitive ice skating career after her parents divorced when she was fourteen years old and now spends her time baking cupcakes and helping out in her mother’s upstate New York diner, but when she gets a chance at a scholarship and starts coaching the boys’ hockey team, she realizes that she is not through with ice skating after all.
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Summer Olympics booklist
By Alicia Waters | July 20, 2012
Summer Olympics Book List July 2012
compiled by the Wolfner Talking Book and Braille Library, the Missouri network library.
To order any of these titles, contact Talking Books Plus by email, mail or phone. You may also request these titles online. All books listed are in the BARD (Braille and Audio Reading) download catalog. Happy Reading!
American Son: My Story by Oscar De La Hoya.
Read by Mark Delgado. Reading time 7 hours 5 minutes.
Boxing’s “golden boy” De La Hoya relates his professional experiences and his successes in the ring, where he won six world championships and an Olympic gold medal. He also recounts the triumphs and failings in his personal life. 2008.
Download American Son: My Story, DB67784
Babe: The Life and Legend of Babe Didrikson Zaharias by Susan Cayleff.
Read by Carole Jordan Stewart. Reading time 14 hours 33 minutes.
Biography of Mildred (Babe) Didriksen, who was a success at every sport she tried. In 1932 she won javelin toss and hurdles at the women’s Olympic games, and later she became a golf pro. Babe created her public image first as an androgynous star and then as a more feminine wife of wrestler George Zaharias, while keeping the nature of her relationship with young golfer Betty Dodd a secret. Babe died of cancer at forty-five.
Download Babe, DB41027
The Bicycle Book: Wit, Wisdom, and Wanderings by Jim Joyce.
Read by Steven Carpenter. Reading time 4 hours 36 minutes.
A collection of articles, essays, and poetry that Joyce deems “a celebration of the bicycle by people who ride.” Includes Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Thomas Hylton’s editorial about cycling-friendly communities, an interview with Lance Armstrong’s coach Chris Carmichael, joyful accounts of cycling adventures, and travel and mechanical advice. 2007.
Download The Bicycle Book, DB67205
By the Sword: A History of Gladiators, Musketeers, Samurai, Swashbucklers, and Olympic Champions by Richard Cohen.
Read by Bruce Huntey. Reading time 21 hours 17 minutes.
British Olympic fencer details the history of sword fighting from ancient Egyptian times to the twenty-first century. Includes anecdotes about noted warriors, politicians, and actors who wielded the sword; ponders the sociology of dueling–including cheating; and details the art of blade making. Some violence. 2002.
Download By the Sword, DB57237
Jerry West: The Life and Legend of a Basketball Icon by Roland Lazenby.
Read by Erik Sandvold. Reading time 18 hours 12 minutes.
Biography of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball player, coach, and executive. Traces West’s rise from poverty in West Virginia, college with the Mountaineers, and the 1960 Summer Olympics to professional stardom. Analyzes the perfectionism that the author asserts made West one of the best in his sport. Strong language. 2009.
Download Jerry West, DB71254
Jesse Owens: an American life by William J. Baker.
Read by Lynn Smith. Reading time 11 hours 2 minutes.
Biography of the black track and field athlete best remembered for winning four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, a feat that in one afternoon smashed Hitler’s myth of Aryan supremacy. Recounts Owens’s private and public life, focusing upon his early years, his training as an athlete, and his unique status as a black celebrity in an era still dominated by racial prejudices.
Download Jesse Owens: an American life, DB24839
The Naked Olympics: The True Story of the Ancient Games by Tony Perrottet.
Read by Mark Ashby. Reading time 5 hours 56 minutes.
Author of Route 66 A.D. (RC 56790) examines the experience of attending the ancient Olympic games as “a spectator, an athlete, or one of the overworked officials.” Recreates five hectic days and nights in Olympia, Greece, where the games were a part of the many festivals taking place. 2004.
Download The Naked Olympics, DB58757
Nike Is a Goddess: The History of Women in Sports by Lissa Smith.
Read by Kristin Allison. Reading time 15 hours 8 minutes.
Essays written by leading female sports writers that chronicle prominent women athletes and their achievements in different sports. Covers many icons, including tennis player Billie Jean King and marathon swimmer Gertrude Ederle. Also highlights Title IX and issues women face, such as discrimination. 1998.
Download Nike Is a Goddess, DB71299
No Limits: The Will to Succeed by Michael Phelps.
Read by Mark Ashby. Reading time 7 hours 41 minutes.
Autobiography of American swimmer Michael Phelps, who won eight gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in China. Describes his Maryland upbringing with two champion-swimmer older sisters, the diagnosis of his attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and his training routine. Maintains that hard work, confidence, and perseverance are necessary for success. 2008.
Download No Limits: The Will to Succeed, DB68428
The Olympics: A History of the Modern Games by Allen Guttmann.
Read by John Rayburn. Reading time 8 hours 41 minutes.
A professor and author of sports history books examines the political agenda behind the Olympics’ international athletics contests and their entertainment value since the games’ 1896 revival. Guttmann chronicles the internal struggles of the International Olympic Committee. And he shows how racial and social barriers, commercialism, and nationalism have been part of the Olympics story from the beginning. 1992.
Download The Olympics: A History of the Modern Games, DB36082
She Got Game by Cynthia Cooper.
Read by Laura Giannarelli. Reading time 6 hours 42 minutes.
Women’s National Basketball Association’s Most Valuable Player shares her journey overcoming adversity in Los Angeles’s inner city to shine among the basketball elite. Cooper chronicles her career from 1981 at the University of Southern California through stints overseas and on the U.S. Olympic Team to leading the Houston Comets in back-to-back championships. 1999.
Download She Got Game, DB55996
Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand.
Read by Faith Potts. Reading time 16 hours 32 minutes.
Author of Seabiscuit (RC 51968) details the life of Louis Zamperini (b. 1917), an Olympic runner and World War II bombardier, who survived a plane crash and forty-seven days adrift at sea only to become a POW in Japan. Relates Louis’s later religious awakening under Billy Graham’s ministry. Violence. Bestseller. 2010.
Download Unbroken, DB72129
Wilma Rudolph: A Biography by Maureen M. Smith.
Read by Gail Nelson. Reading time 6 hours 25 minutes.
Biography of African American athlete Wilma Rudolph (1940-1994), who won Olympic track medals in 1956 and 1960 after triumphing over childhood polio. Highlights Rudolph’s family life in the segregated South and her post-Olympic struggles against racism and sexism.
Download Wilma Rudolph: A Biography, DB65511
Special thanks to Natalie Junkin, Special Services Librarian, Wolfner Talking Book and Braille Library for the list.
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