This is a point well taken. So often we forget that Book Port is an
extremely low-volume item, and, really, it's a miracle that it doesn't cost
more than it presently does. Only a couple of days ago I was discussing
with a friend how sad it is that budget-conscious people can't patronize
local, privately-owned businesses rather than, say, Wal-Mart. Sales volume
does make a huge difference. I've talked with people who are absolutely
positive that local Mom and Pop stores could compete with the big guys if
they really wanted to. Well, experience suggests to me that These people
have no real knowledge of marketing. The small town in which I live has
numerous privately-owned businesses which I'd love to patronize, but most of
them are hanging on by a thread, and definitely lack adjunctive sources of
funding.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Richard Ring" <ring.richard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <bookport@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 1:41 PM
Subject: [bookport] Re: the holidays and bookport
I believe that it is clear that the Bookport can have more features and functionality than it currently does. I also believe a survey of users would quickly show that there are individuals who would like one feature, and individuals who would like another. How will APH and Springer Design determine what features to include in the next generation Bookport? One factor will most likely be cost. Many have stated that they would like the Bookport to have the features one can have in an Ipod. Some have asked for an internal hard drive, others have asked for a full-blown note taker. Others have asked for an equalizer and so on. One thing to keep in mind is that APH nor Springer Design have the kind of R&D funding that Apple or Sony have. Nor will they ever sell as many products as either of these companies. Realistically, if the Bookport as it is currently constituted were a mainstream product, its price would be considerably less than it is now. Therefore, it stands to reason that if a hard drive, an equalizer, and the recording functionality of a Plextalk were to be added, the price would have to increase. Adding a digital camera would be one thing, adding the software that would perform OCR would be quite another. An Ipod is a mass market item, millions of them have been sold, and they will probably sell a huge number as the US goes full swing into its once a year buying orgy. I believe that the cost factor for each feature will have a great deal to say about which features ultimately end up in the next Bookport. And I also believe as I have stated before, that many on this list will be outraged when the cost goes up by several hundred dollars as it would have to if all of the feature requests that I've seen on this list were honored.
-----Original Message----- From: bookport-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:bookport-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Angie Matney Sent: Tuesday, November 29, 2005 8:32 PM To: bookport@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [bookport] Re: the holidays and bookport
Hi Mike,
I agree, to a point. But just a few years ago, people were saying we didn't need our blindness PDA's to play music either. Now, that is a standard feature of the MPower, the PacMate and the Braille Sense. Personally, I could care less about a spell checker, because once that file is on my PC, I can handle it from there. And since you must have a PC to use a BP (except for those wonderful library programs that lend them to patrons), This seems reasonable. But I'm sure that the "Book Port" we use in a few years will have a spell checker and perhaps a built-in digital camera for immediate OCR.
I also see nothing wrong with wishing to have one gadget that does a lot. But I hope others out there will remember that one of the most attractive features of the Book Port is its price tag. I want my BP to do all that a $400 piece of equipment can do. I can't quite aford a Plextalk just yet, so I'd really, really like it if my BP did everything a Plextalk would do! But I know this isn't likely. I don't want the BP to turn into a more powerful but more expensive piece of access technology that is out of reach for many people. The BP has grown tremendously in capability since I purchased mine a year and a half ago, and I haven't had to pay for an upgrade. I'm glad APH implements features in such a way as not to comptromise the existing product.
Just some ramblings from my sleep-deprived brain.
On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 12:59:33 -0500 (EST), Mike Freeman wrote:
<<SOAPBOX ON>>
I'm sorry ... I've tried to hold my tongue, but ...
IMO the Book Port is for *reading*. Recording memos is a great adjunct but is secondary to Book Port's primary purpose. Likewise with the note-taking capability. Hence, I see no reason for the spell-check or for a myriad of recording formats to be supported. If you want spell-check, use a computer or Braille Note. If you want hi-fi recording, use a PTR-1.
All the extra features add extra battery drain (ask Apple about battery
life problems with their latest I-pod!).
Itseems to me that APH engineers should "keep it simple, stupid"; simplicity means fewer software glitches and better battery-life. Let's
use the Book Port for the purposes for which it was designed and leave the fancy stuff to others. And yes, I know; some of the other devices aren't accessible. But that's not APH's problem!
<<SOAPBOX OFF>>
