Thanks for that information, Joni. As soon as I'd sent out my querry,
naturally, I downloaded Book Port's MP3 audio manual, and everything I
needed to know was right there. As an avid Braille user, the notetaker
functions will probably cause me to do some Book Port shopping tomorrow
morning with my little magic piece of plastic. Love my Book Courier, but
when I look over the impressive list of additional features which Book Port
boasts, I get all excited and wish my new purchase-to-be were already here!
I especially like the idea of being able to transfer intact folders. You
can't do that with the Book Courier, but must first create a folder on the
unit and then populate it. Also, items can't be sent directly from Windows
Explorer or Internet Explorer except in a somewhat secondary fashion. No
unfiltered files are playable on Book Courier at this time. If you attempt
to send items directly from Windows Explorer or I.E., or intact folders of
any kind, the resulting transfers won't be filtered and are entirely
unusable. I'm just supplying this information for others who, like me,
could have benefitted from it a short time ago. If Book Courier's price
were considerably less than that of Book Port, I'd be quite happy with my
purchase, but there's only about a seventeen-dollar differential, and I'm
fully expecting Book Port's enhancements to be worth much more than the
meager additional cost would infer.
And incidentally, even with the large amount of email traffic being
generated by this list, I've already gotten many valuable pointers which
will undoubtedly safeguard me from a variety of common errors. Truly, it's
possible to find value in assimilating a multiplicity of viewpoints and in
appreciating our inevitable differences.
David Bennett
David Bennett asked about a comparison between the Book Port and Book
Courier. Having never seen a Courier, I can't offer a comparison. But, one
advantage I can point out that the Book Port possesses is the Braille
keyboard. I don't know if you read about this or not David. If the unit is
turned 90 degrees the eighteen keys turn into a Braille keyboard. You can
type in words or phrases to search for in text files. You can also use the
unit for a note taker. It is an ingenious idea and for a person who knows
Braille might be considered an advantage for the Port when compared to the
Courier.
Joni
Original Message: I'm new to this list, so the question I'm going to ask may well have been cussed and discussed a dozen times already, but here goes:
About two months ago I purchased a Book Courier; then, almost before I'd
unpacked the new unit I happened to read about the Book Port and its
advanced features, especially the transfer protocols and unparalleled
performance in general. I know that the two devices utilize the same speech
synthesizer and support most of the same file formats, and the price is
similar though not identical. My question, of course, is this: have any of
you had an opportunity to systematically compare these products? I would be
quite interested to learn about your experiences and the impressions you've
derived. Interestingly, I joined the Book Courier user group at the same
time I joined this one, and have received no postings at all. My feeling is
that Book Courier was fine until it was essentially transformed into Book
Port, but that its appeal is now on the wane. Would this be an accurate
summation?
