You can't play tapes on a Book Port, and as far as I'm concerned this
issue is dealt with and laid to rest.
Bruce
-- Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12 NIV
Bruce Toews E-mail and MSN/Windows Messenger: DogRiver@xxxxxxxx Radio Show and Podcast: http://www.totw.net Web Site (including info on my weekly commentaries): http://www.ogts.net Info on the Best TV Show of All Time: http://www.cornergas.com
On Wed, 19 Apr 2006, Reed Poynter wrote:
(see the note below.)
So, those of us outside of the U.S. can make use of both Bookshare and RFBD. The temporary restriction is with most of their copy written material on cd.
When I spoke to RFBD a while ago, they indicated that it is the material distributed on CD that is the problem. I have been receiving tape books from RFBD for years. So, tapes are no problem internationally from the U.S. It's curious to me that the particular type of medium would be a problem.
While it sounds like Bookshare also expects to have this restriction removed by the end of this year, as per the note below, they do have a relatively large amount of material available to those of us who are outside of the U.S.
In so far as a modification to the BP manual is concerned, I think it would be much more appropriate to include the following caveat:
"With regard to the use of the BookPort north of 60 in Canada, it is strongly recommended that the BookPort be used inside of the igloo only. It's just too dam cold up there! If you find it necessary to listen outside, carry the unit tightly wrapped in a seal skin pouch directly next to your body. Your body warmth may reduce the inevitable shivering-synth-voice syndrome experienced by many users north of 60. If this symptom begins to show itself, warm the BP by blowing gently on the unit; taking care to not make contact with your lips. If you make contact, the BP will freeze instantly to your lips and you will look really silly walking over the frozen tundra."
Reed
-----Original Message----- From: Janice Carter [mailto:Janice.C@xxxxxxxxxxxx] Sent: 2006/04/19 17:12 To: Reed Poynter Subject: Bookshare.org in Canada
Thank you for your note. The following will not be great news for you. We have some copyrighted books available to international users (O'Reilly Media for example) and are planning on having several thousand traditional reading books by the end of the year.
We are making every effort to get world permissions from publishers in order to serve you better. Hope this information helps for now.
International Visitors
U.S. Copyright Law
Bookshare.org is able to operate in the United States under a special exemption in U.S. Copyright Law that was created in 1996 that enables us to distribute copyrighted materials in specialized formats to individuals with print disabilities in the United States. You can read more detail about the Chafee Amendment on our Legal Information page. For this reason, most of the Bookshare.org collection is currently available only to U.S. residents with print disabilities.
Publisher Permission
Publishers can grant Bookshare.org permissions to distribute their books to people with print disabilities worldwide. Currently the Bookshare.org collection contains several hundred technical books from O'Reilly Media, Inc. that are available to qualifying individuals around the world.
More information on titles from O'Reilly Media, Inc.
People who do not reside in the United States may join Bookshare.org and purchase annual subscriptions with limited access as described above.To subscribe, an individual with qualifying print disabilities must first become a member of Bookshare.org, supply proof of a qualifying disability, and pay for an annual subscription. To subscribe, begin by registering online from the "Individiual Subscription" link on any page. Learn more about submitting proof of disability.
We encourage foreign residents to contact us with any questions prior to beginning the membership process. Please send an email to oreilly@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Public Domain
Bookshare.org also features a large collection of public domain books that are no longer under copyright, and therefore do not have distribution restrictions. Our international visitors can download any of the public domain material from this website. These books can be accessed through the standard website search functions (public domain search results indicate that membership is not required for download).
Janice Carter Director, Literacy Programs Benetech 480 S. California Ave., Suite 201 Palo Alto, CA 94306-1609 USA (650) 475-5440 x122 (650) 759-5828 cell (650) 475-1066 fax janice.c@xxxxxxxxxxxx www.benetech.org The Benetech Initiative - Technology Serving Humanity A Nonprofit Organization
-----Original Message----- From: Reed Poynter [mailto:Reed.Poynter@xxxxxxxxx] Sent: Wednesday, April 19, 2006 4:16 PM To: Info Bookshare.org Subject: General Information Request
I am told that membership to Bookshare is restricted to the U.S. Is this true? What is your policy for non-Americans? I am a Canadian Citizen. Can I join?
Thanks.
Reed
