[icon-discuss] Re: renewing warranty, etc.

From: nedjurdj10@xxxxxxxxxxx
To: blakeblind@xxxxxxxxx, Icon Discuss List <icon-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 2010 20:44:38 -0500
Hello all, 

I am due to get my braille plus back in a few days from repair. My SMA is about 
to expire. Since this seems to be such a hot topic I thought I would give some 
advice. The SMA costs $75, byt you get the potential of getting new features, : 
like RFB and D support, the GPS feature, and who knows what else. Since I'm 
talking about updates I thought I'd ask, is there an actual website that you 
can go too to download the LSI files? Just simple curiosity. 


 On Tue, 2 Mar 2010 17:37:16 -0700, Blake Galbraith wrote:


>Hi, everyone.
>
>I thought I'd say something, as I have some experience with
>programming and such. As for getting a software and/or hardware
>agreement, you'd also have to look at affordability. I believe buying
>upgrades could be more expensive in the long-run, especially if you
>have problems with your hardware. I've not had problems with my Icon
>since the initial problems I had when I first got it a little over a
>year and a half ago.
>
>Anyway, to the software related side of things.
>I'm not sure how many coders Levelstar has, but in order to add
>features, you have to first figure out how to logically structure the
>program, then you write it all out. That's a simple explanation of
>what happens, but depending on what's being written, that can take a
>while. Usually, you have to debug programs quite a few times before
>they're considered stable enough for beta testing. After that, some
>beta testers try unanticipated variables that might occur within the
>program. After all, programmers can't anticipate everything in one go
>unless it's an extremely simple application.
>As a simple example, I wrote a chat server people could telnet into. I
>began writing it in 2008, but with everything going on in my life,
>still haven't released it because there's one more feature I want to
>add before I'll consider it ready for beta testing. Sometimes,
>programmers may think that way as well. So, I guess the point in
>simple terms that I'm trying to say is, we don't really know what's
>going on behind the scenes. For all we know, they could be three
>months from releasing another beta version of the software for the
>Icon and Braille+.
>
>That's my two sense for the day, folks.
>
>On 3/2/10, Clinton Lindgren <clinton@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>Well, I'm not sure this is really a fair analogy.  While it is true that
>>there
>>are quite a few updates coming out from Microsoft, most of these updates
>>have
>>very little to do with increasing the functionality of your PC or laptop.
>>Most
>>of these updates have more to do with fixing security issues, or making
>>sotware
>>piracy more difficult, as was the case with Windows Genuine Advantage.
>>Other
>>updates are created simply to enhance the look and feel of your favorite PC
>>software, like substituting the menu for a ribbon, for example.  In many
>>cases,
>>you then have to wait for a new update to your screen reader to be able to
>>get
>>much use from the new software, and depending on which screen reader you
>>use,
>>that update could cost you even more money.
>>
>>A more fair comparison would be how often a PDA, cell phone, or similar
>>device
>>gets updated.  The fact is, that in those cases, these devices get replaced
>>with new models much more often than they are ever updated, which then
>>leaves
>>the consumer to decide if they want to pay for the new model of whatever
>>device
>>it is, or accept the limitations of what they have right now.
>>
>>Well, I don't know how helpful this rambling is, and it is a bit off-topic,
>>but
>>it is something to think about.
>>
>>Good luck with your hardware/software agreement decisions.
>>
>>Clinton
>>
>>On Tue, 2 Mar 2010 05:23:17 -0800, Johnny Lam wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>>Hi, I haven't noticed any other developments for  the Icon/BP since last
>>>summer. I wonder what's up with that too? There's still lots of features
>>>that
>>>can be added to  the units, but now I'm not sure I'm interested in renewing
>>>the
>>>SMA again in the  future. And I also think there would be more upgrades
>>>once
>>>in a while. On a regular PC I will see some updates from  microsoft once in
>>>a
>>>while, not a few times a year only. Perhaps I'll be better off with a
>>>laptop.
>>>----- Original Message -----  From: Crystal    French To: Icon Discussion
>>>List
>>>Sent:  Monday, March 01, 2010 11:39    AM Subject:  [icon-discuss] renewing
>>>
>>>warranty, etc. Hi, It is getting time for me to decide whether to    renew
>>>the
>>>warranty and SMA on my Braille Plus. Maybe it is just me, but it doesn't
>>>seem
>>>that    there is much happening with further developments with the Braille
>>>Plus
>>>and    Icon. Perhaps, my impression is erroneous. What do other users
>>>think?
>>>Crystal
>>
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>For answers to the most frequently asked questions about Icon and Braille +, 
>Visit
>the LevelStar and APH FAQ pages:
>Visit the LevelStar FAQ page at
>http://www.levelstar.com/support-faqs.php
>Visit the APH FAQ page at
>http://sun1.aph.org/webcast/brailleplus2/faq.html
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