access to technology

[annie]

every year the Center on Disabilities at California State University at Northridge holds a mammoth expo on technology for the disabled close to the Los Angeles Airport.. hundreds and hundreds of vendors come from all over the world to show their products. there are many workshops for professionals; these workshops are expensive.

access to the exhibition floor is free. all the vendors allow you to try out their products.

i will be going to it at least one day. if people want to look at the list of exhibitors and find things they would like me to try out and report on i will be glad to do it. post on this thread anything you want me to check out.

of course if anyone else is going it would be great fun to meet there.

the website for the exhibition is

http://www.csun.edu/cod/conf/

[Bobbi]

Thank you :).

I'm looking at the list of Exhibitors. I'd be interested in finding out what you may think of:

AD Information & Communication Co. as well as other voice activated or voice recognition designed products and how well such might respond, the level of user-end "training" (if any or much) required and so on.

I'm more specifically interested in products that are voice-responsive for computer use and home use... for people with ltd. mobility and low vision.

I see there is quite a list of vendors. I hope you don't get swamped with requests but I do thank you so much for offering to check out what your own energy level and your time may permit. It's very generous of you to make such an offer.

[dahlek]

I believe they have one in downtown DC, but I've never considered going 'cause the parking's soo bad! The one here also seems to be geared more towards caretakers than those of us who are trying to lead physically mobile lives.

Hope the awareness, at least spreads! - j

[annie]

this stuff is not cheap. it is geared mostly towards anyone with money. this frequently means schools.

there are many shows for the disabled, but as far as i know this is the only one which focuses on technology. check the website.

[Bobbi]

Maybe businesses would be interested in the expo. then.

I must have misunderstood your initial post.

[annie]

or maybe my initial post didn't make sense?

usually more than half the venders are selling voice activated stuff. tho every year there is one thing that has the most venders, usually stuff for the blind predominates.

i live on social security and SSI in an area where cheap rent is higher than the max SSI. i am constantly astonished that everyone does not.

most of this stuff is very expensive. what astonishes me every time is that there are lots and lots of people who seem to be planning on buying it. mostly of course parents of disabled kids, but there are adults buying for themselves also.

a lot of the buyers are institutional, mostly schools.

give me a list of the oh maybe five products you are interested in and a price range and i will see what i can do there. i will walk by everything, and if there are other people asking questions i always stop and listen.