CART

Today was the first I've heard of CART (Commincation Access Realtime Translation) or "realtime captioning."

Am I out of the loop or what? It's been around for a few years.

I just had to investigate this topic. I love the Internet. (Are libraries going to become obsolete? I still like to check out books for free, so maybe not.) ;)

Anyway, CART is mostly used by the hard-of-hearing and d/Deaf (even by those who do not use sign language).

It is an assistive device that provides access to communication by converting the spoken language into written language using a stenotype, notebook computer, and realtime software.

Where was this 20+ years ago when I was mainstreamed? I had no access to interpreters. All I could do was talk with the teachers to make sure I understood what was assigned for homework. This would have been great!! Things are always improving!! Don't you love technology?

I know that when I was going to the local tech college, my interpreters always insisted on closed captionings on videos/movies that were shown. Of course, the instructors couldn't turn off all the lights in the classroom if it wasn't CC so I could see the interpreter. (No brainer there-I'm night-blind. I could see the movie in the dark, but without CC, what's the use? Then again, can a d/Deaf or hard-of-hearing person see anything when it's pitch dark, even if they didn't have retinitis pigmentosa?) It was not easy to try to see the movie without CC and watch the interpreter at the same time.

The ADA (Americans with Disablities Act) supports CART. It did mention that it's still trying to get a foothold at the university/college level. This is surprising. A link was provided to try to gain accessiblity of CART in universities/colleges. Not all deaf or hard-of-hearing students know sign language. They may need more accommodations than just notetakers and FM systems.

Here is another link describing CART.

Makeover

Glitter Graphics

I have been wanting to change the colors of this template for some time. I tinkered with it. I switched to this template because I liked it better than my old one, but I still wanted the darker background for others with RP (or other vision problems) who may like to read this blog to have contrast. I looked at the other choices I had for templates and didn't like them. So the only option I had was go "behind the scenes" and tinker with the HTML code. The last few days I had the time to do it since Christmas is over the the pressures of school is behind me. I almost completed my makeover a few days ago, but I had a couple of "blemishes" to work through. I enlisted the help of a friend. I overlooked something. It was more that I thought it didn't work. So I went back into the HTML gibberish. This is the result. It isn't exactly what I wanted, but it's close enough.

Some people with RP need a dark background with a white or yellow font to be able to read better. I can still read with a white background with a black font. Some blogs have a dark background and they put a red or blue font in it and I can't read those so I just highlight them. I don't complain.

Some of them (those with RP) need to have the font increased. They get a software called Zoomtext. It can increase the font size and change colors of the font and/or background. Some may also have a CCTV (closed circuit TV). Some can't read a book anymore. They can scan a page of a book on the CCTV and the page appears on the computer in a larger font.

Technology is always there to help the disabled. It can be expensive. For us, we need one for our hearing (i.e., hearing aids, FM system) and our low vision (i.e., canes, CCTV). That can add up.

I may continuously change the formatting of this blog to fit the needs of others. Thank you.