[bookport] Re: Realistic Wish List
- From: James Nuttall <jnuttallphd@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: bookport@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 18 Aug 2005 12:03:14 -0700 (PDT)
Thanks for the review Bruce. I think your recommendations are really doable
within the present frame of the BookPort. Good suggestions again. Jim Nuttall
Bruce Toews <dogriver@xxxxxxxx> wrote:
Let's pick my wish list apart. Let's see just how outrageous my
suggestions are and how they would transform, through wild disregard for
the current purpose of the BP, the unit into something else like a pocket
PC. Here is an annotated version of my wish list, showing just how radical
my changes are and how they will destroy life on this planet as we know
it:
HIGH PRIORITIES:
1. USB 2-enabled; the speed difference is substantial.
No functionality increase here, just a difference in speed for existing
functionality.
2. A true lock mode that doesn't activate the unit every time a key is
pressed;
Again, no increased functionality here, just more efficient use of an
existing function.
3. Seek to time feature; seeking by time is fine for short files, but seek
to time would still, in my mind, be desirable.
Yes, it's a new function, but it's well in keeping with BP's mandate.
Searching through a long audiobook MP3 can often be better facilitated by
jumping directly to a specified time.
4. Direct, no-vonversion-necessary, OGG Vorbis support.
Nothing new to learn, just a little more versatility in formats that are
allowable. Well with in BP's current mandate.
5. Option for an externally audible beep to indicate recording. The record
feature is really nice, but it gets less convenient if you have to put on
a pair of headphones each time to get the audible varification that you're
recording.
Nothing new to learn, unless the audible beep is configurable in the menu.
Just making an existing function more convenient.
6. Independent volume controls for voice and audio.
The volume differences between synthetic speech and audio are really quite
profound, and if you have the volume set right for a piece of audio, you
might miss error or warning messages the machine tries to give you.
7. More memory in the unit and a more modern processor, so that things
like necessary conversions, grade two translation, etc. could be done in
the unit and on the fly.
Offers speed increases and more flexibility for APH programmers.
Essentially it allows the BP itself to do what the software previous had
to do. What if you don't have an hour to transfer a large book to your
unit?
8. 4-GIG CF card support.
No new functionality here, just more potential versatility for those who
want it.
9. Correct mapping of the stereo channels to the correct speakers.
Simple fix of a hardware bug, no new functionality.
10. Still-finer control of volume.
No increased options to learn, just a finer control over how loud you want
your unit to be for those of us whose ideal volume is between two existing
volume levels.
11. Eliminate transfer limit of 250 MB
Just the removal of a restriction that inhibits transfering of DAISY books
on CD. No new functionality.
12. Ability to sort directory listings automatically so files play in
correct order.
Again, BP's mandate is served by this, some purchased MP3 books are
numerically named and it is helpful to know what order you're going to
hear your book in. No new outward functionality, but a smoother reading
experience.
Lower-Priority:
1. Third battery to run the clock.
This could be a small watch battery which would probably last for years,
since it's just running a clock, not displaying or saying anything.
2. Ability to write error messages to files so that line numbers need not
be memorized.
Handy for beta testing.
3. Memorize latest point read in a file in case that point was
inadvertently navigated away from; should work for audio and text files.
Not terribly ground-breaking, just a way to get to the last point read in
case you inadvertently lean on the go-to-top feature or something.
I utterly fail to see what is so outrageous about these suggestions, or
how these suggestions turn the BP into something other than what it is.
With the exception of the rewiring to correct the switched stereo channels
and a clock backup battery, everyon one of these suggestions is directly
relevant to book reading. I am not asking for PDA functions, for Internet
support, or anything else that doesn't directly fit into BP's reason for
being. My list isn't suggesting radios, external speakers, WIFI support,
spell checkers, dictionaries, blood pressure gauges, dehumidifiers, or
anything else like that. I was very deliberately thinking of the BP's
mandate, what it's here for, and what its potential, with redesign, could
be to improve on its existing features and purposes.
--
Bruce Toews
E-mail and MSN/Windows Messenger: dogriver@xxxxxxxx
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 Thu, 18 Aug 2005, Scott D. Henning wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I only drop in sometimes, this discussion is interesting. The Pocket PC is
> the machine many are envisioning for raw horsepower and connectivity. The
> battery life is poor, but they are very mature devices now. If someone wrote
> a screen reader for it...we could experience true Windows power and
> frustration. Devices with a focus like Bookport can be more stable and can
> be easier to use, due to a lack of ambiguity. I actually feel the Bookport
> may already be too many things. I have hundreds of keystrokes to remember
> (so does everyone else here, smile), I actually think menu driven software
> and devices make sense when so many options are availible.
>
> The Bookport can evolve, should evolve, but I do not think it should lose
> it's basic function in a wealth of features.
>
> Scott D. Henning
> Cheif Engineer
> KSUT Public Radio
>
>
>
>
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