Dear Friends and all those members of this group who have casted thier votes on 1st Febrrar 2007 are requested to fill the form below and let us know about your voting experience. The data that is collected would be sent to the EC
Please Let us know your voting experience: Name: Contact Email: Contact No. Ward: Name of Polling Booth: Floor: Were there ramps Yes /No If yes was the ramp steep?? Yes /No Did the EVM have Braille facility? Yes /No Or did you receive a Braille sheet with the list of candidates? Yes /No Were you allowed the help of escorts to assist you to cast ballot? Yes /No Were the Election Officials interact courteously and assist you? Yes /No Please mail this to Mr. Raju Waghmare. At India Centre for Human Rights and Law. CVOD 4th Floor, Pala Galli, Char Nal, Masjid Bunder, Mumbai-400009. ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, January 31, 2007 8:41 PM Subject: AccessIndia Digest, Vol 9, Issue 110 > Send AccessIndia mailing list submissions to > [email protected] > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > You can reach the person managing the list at > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of AccessIndia digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. PC World says farewell to floppy (Vikas Kapoor) > 2. Microsoft Tailors Vista to Meet EU Requirements (Vikas Kapoor) > 3. Hardware Vendors Launch Powerful Vista PCs (Vikas Kapoor) > 4. Vista's Promising Video Upgrades (Vikas Kapoor) > 5. Does Vista Violate Antitrust? (Vikas Kapoor) > 6. Fw: SWAN system to help blind and firefighters navigate > (Geetha Shamanna) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:28:26 +0530 > From: "Vikas Kapoor" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [AI] PC World says farewell to floppy > To: "Access India" <[email protected]> > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > PC World says farewell to floppy > > Jan 30, 2007 > > The time has come to bid farewell to one of the PC's more stalwart > friends - the floppy disk. > > Computing superstore PC World said it will no longer sell the storage > devices, affectionately known as floppies, once existing stock runs out. > > New storage systems, coupled with a need to store more than the 1.44 > megabytes of data held by a standard floppy, have led to its demise. > > Only a tiny percentage of PCs currently sold still have floppy disk > drives. > > "The floppy disk looks increasingly quaint and simply isn't able to > compete," said Bryan Magrath, commercial director of PC World. > > It is not the first time the death-knell for the floppy has been sounded. > The first nail in the coffin came in 1998, when the iMac was revealed > without > a floppy disk drive. > > Then in 2003, Dell banished disk drives from its higher spec machines. > Best-selling 12 inch Blue Monday was sold in a sleeve designed to look > like a floppy > disk > > In 1998, an estimated 2 billion floppy disks were sold, according to the > Recording Media Industries Association of Japan. > > Since then global demand has fallen by around two-thirds to an estimated > 700 million by 2006. > > Only 2% of PCs and laptops currently sold by PC World still have built-in > floppy disk drives and by the summer it will phase even these out. > > It is with mixed feelings that the computer store has decided call time on > the floppy. > > "The sound of a computer's floppy disk drive will be as closely associated > with 20th Century computing as the sound of a computer dialling into the > internet," > said Mr Magrath. > > But with computer users increasingly using the internet or USB memory > sticks - some of which store 2,000 times the capacity of the floppy disk - > to transfer > data, it is becoming redundant. > > It is a far cry from its halcyon days in the 1980s and 1990s, when > floppies provided essential back-up as well as playing a crucial role in > transferring > data and distributing software. > > The first floppy disk was introduced in 1971 by IBM and heralded as a > revolutionary device. > > There will be shops where they can get the data transferred but it they > still have the original data they would be advised to invest in a portable > hard > drive or put it online > > The brainchild of a group of Californian engineers led by Alan Shugart, it > replaced old-fashioned punch-cards. > > An eight-inch plastic disk coated with magnetic iron oxide, the nickname > "floppy" came from its flexibility. > > In 1976 the disk shrank to five-and-a-quarter inches - developed again by > Alan Shugart, this time for Wang Laboratories. > > By 1981, Sony shrank it some more - this time to three-and-a-half inches - > the standard used to this day. > > By the early 1990s, the growing complexity of software meant that many > programs were distributed on sets of floppies. But the end of the decade > saw software > distribution swap to CD-ROM. > > Alternative backup formats, new storage such as the CD-RW and the arrival > of mass internet access, consigned the floppy disk to the dusty corner of > peoples' > desks and, eventually, the bin. > > For those in the industry, there is little to mourn in the loss of floppy > disks. > > "You can get so much more information on other forms of storage. > Technology moves on," said Bryan Glick, editor of Computing.co.uk. > > But, he said, its demise, could prove problematic for those who have > stored precious data on disk. > > "There will be shops where they can get the data transferred but it they > still have the original data they would be advised to invest in a portable > hard > drive or put it online," he said. > > Interestingly, software giant Microsoft seems to be keeping the flame > alight for the floppy. > > Its newly-released package Office 2007 still pays homage to it by > continuing to use a floppy disk as the icon for saving a document in > Microsoft Word 2007. > > http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/technology/6314251.stm > > Vikas Kapoor, > MSN ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Skype ID: dl_vikas > Mobile: (+91) 9891098137. > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:38:42 +0530 > From: "Vikas Kapoor" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [AI] Microsoft Tailors Vista to Meet EU Requirements > To: "Access India" <[email protected]> > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > Microsoft Tailors Vista to Meet EU Requirements > > Jan 31, 2007 > > Microsoft Tailors Vista to Meet EU Requirements > > Company says new OS was changed after discussion with the European > Commission; more revisions to be released in the first service pack. > > Paul Meller, IDG News Service > > Tuesday, January 30, 2007 04:00 PM PST > > As > Windows Vista appeared > in computer stores worldwide, Microsoft said today that part of the design > of the new operating system is the work of the European Commission. > > "Following discussions with European Commission, Microsoft committed to > make a number of changes to the Windows Vista operating system prior to > release," > the software maker said in a statement, pointing to three functions of the > operating system: security, search, and fixed document formats. > > Default Search Settings Changed, New APIs > > Windows Security Center, which looks like a dashboard, gives the user an > overview of what security software is running on the system and the status > of checks > and upgrades of firewalls and antispyware protection. > > Rival > security software firms > and the European Commission suspected this could give WSC an unfair > advantage. Microsoft said it agreed to develop a > new set of application programming interfaces > for release in the first service pack, scheduled for later this year, > which can be invoked by third-party security programs to turn off the > alerts presented > by WSC. > > Similarly, PatchGuard--software that protects against the modification of > the operating system kernel--has been added to Vista. Some security > vendors have > in the past made modifications to the kernel as part of the implementation > of their security software. > > PatchGuard prevents such modifications in the 64-bit version. Microsoft is > now > working with vendors > to develop new kernel-level APIs that will provide access to the kernel to > address this issue, Microsoft said. > > The APIs will be available in Windows Vista 64 with the first service > pack, scheduled for later this year. > > Regarding search, Microsoft has changed the way > default settings > are made for Internet search within both Windows Vista and > Internet Explorer 7 . > > "These changes now ensure for users that they are able--through a series > of windows and options--to make a clear, conscious, and open decision on > their > default search provider. Furthermore, users will retain at all times the > ability to change this and all further defaults in the operating system at > will," > Microsoft said. > > Changes Made to XPS Licensing > > Microsoft's own fixed document format software is known as XPS. "In > response to the Commission's concerns, the company has made fundamental > changes to the > licensing structure of the XPS fixed-format technology and has committed > to submit the technology to an international standards body for adoption > as an > open industry standard," Microsoft said. > > The XPS standard will be made available under licensing terms that do not > exclude any industry or licensing model including the General Public > License, > it said. > > "In response to Commissioner Kroes' letter of March 2006, Microsoft > created a single application programming interface so that independent > software developers > can create applications to allow users to save documents in XPS or other > formats, such as Adobe's PDF," Microsoft said. > > Microsoft said it has also disclosed through a licensing program the > relevant information to enable the implementation of XPS technology on > competing client > and server operating systems. > > Microsoft has also responded to a further European Commission demand to > submit XPS (as well as future extensions) to a standards setting body. > Microsoft > will submit XPS to the Ecma International. > > Microsoft said it will also enable the implementation of XPS under an > open-source business model (GPL) through use of a covenant not to sue--a > model that > Microsoft has applied to Web services and open XML document formats and > that has, it said, "been welcomed by the Open Source community." > > EU Gets Vista Sans Media Player > > European customers and original equipment manufacturers will be able to > buy a version of Vista that has Microsoft's Media Player stripped out. > This unbundled > version of the operating system complies with the > 2004 European antitrust ruling , > which ordered the company to offer two separate versions of both the home > and professional versions of the operating system. > > "In compliance with the European Commission's decision of March 2004, home > and professional editions of Windows Vista without Media Player > functionality > will be released in Europe on the same schedule as the Windows Vista > general availability launch," Microsoft said. > > These are called the N versions--denoting "no media player," the company > said. > > http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,128702-pg,1/article.html > > Vikas Kapoor, > MSN ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Skype ID: dl_vikas > Mobile: (+91) 9891098137. > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:45:15 +0530 > From: "Vikas Kapoor" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [AI] Hardware Vendors Launch Powerful Vista PCs > To: "Access India" <[email protected]> > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > Hardware Vendors Launch Powerful Vista PCs > > Jan 31, 2007 > > PC vendors rushed to launch souped-up computers today, offering faster > chips and larger hard drives to handle the demands of Microsoft's new > Windows Vista > operating system. > > Microsoft will begin selling Vista to consumers at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, > following its launch for corporate users in November. The > Vista launch > fever sparked the introduction of new desktops and notebooks from Dell, > Gateway, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo Group, and others. > > Vista > offers users > a brazen graphical interface, demanding PC upgrades to provide optimal > performance for its Aero glass translucent desktop windows and other > features. In > an era when sinking prices for chips and memory have pushed PC makers to > slash their prices, vendors are jumping at the opportunity to add advanced > components > to each PC--and add dollars to its sticker price. > > Dell's Vista PCs > > Dell recommended that Vista customers upgrade their PCs from single-core > to dual- or quad-core processors, from 1GB to 2GB of memory, from graphics > integrated > on a motherboard to a dedicated graphics card, from standard display to > wide-screen, and from standard to fast-spinning hard drives. Vista can run > on slower > PCs as well, but it will automatically disable certain features, said Alex > Gruzen, senior vice president of Dell's product group. > > "If you installed Vista on an older system with a minimum performance > level, you would frankly be overpaying if you paid for Premium or > Ultimate, because > the operating system scales itself to the capability of your hardware > platform," he said. > > Dell opened a > Vista-oriented Web site > with advice for consumers looking for the best PC to support their flavor > of Vista--whether Vista Home Basic, Home Premium, or Ultimate. > > "Vista has changed the user experience. In the past, for gaming you might > get a discrete graphics card, but otherwise all those recent hardware > advances > went largely untapped if you were simply editing a document or browsing > the Web," Gruzen said. "What's exciting about Vista is that it brings > those hardware > advances to bear in your day-to-day experience, instead of saving all that > horsepower for discrete applications." > > Vista, for example, allows users to play a video instead of displaying a > static photograph as the "wallpaper" on their everyday desktop. Dell began > taking > orders for those computers on Saturday, and reported a 20 percent rise in > Web activity compared to the previous weekend, leading to the sale of > 10,000 > Vista-loaded PCs. Microsoft will allow vendors to start shipping those PCs > tomorrow. > > Hewlett-Packard launched its own fleet of Vista-ready PCs, including its > full HP Pavilion and Compaq Presario lines, led by the > TouchSmart IQ770 PC > desktop and the Pavilion tx1000 notebook, which allow users to augment > Vista's graphical interface by navigating via a touch-screen display > instead of a > mouse. Some of those PCs are further upgraded to support the greater > computing demands of Vista Premium. > > The company is also selling migration consulting services, helping users > transfer files, photos, and system preferences to a new PC. Its > technicians can > even do the work remotely by connecting to a user's PC over the Internet. > HP charges $60 for a 45-minute session of that SmartFriend service. The > company > also has a > Vista information Web page . > > Vista: The New Standard > > PC vendors acknowledge that many consumers and businesses will wait to > upgrade their PCs until they are more comfortable with Vista's new > features. But > the makers say that Vista is here to stay, whether a buyer is upgrading > tomorrow or next year. > > "Vista will become the new standard. The only question will be which > version of Vista you want--are you a gamer, a writer, someone who does 3D > design work > or digital video?" said Ken Walker, chief technologist for Gateway. > > "You will be hard-pressed after [this] week to find an XP system available > on store shelves," though Gateway will continue to sell the old OS through > its > online store, Walker said. > > Gateway's designers used the Vista launch as an opportunity to make more > changes than just the necessary graphics and memory upgrades, Walker said. > They > also switched from Intel's BTX desktop motherboard design to the more > common ATX, and moved from a USB 1.0 to a high-speed 2.0 data port. > Gateway, which > also has a Web page > devoted to Vista , > will support Vista on its DX430 desktops, NX270S notebooks, and eMachines > Q1 line. > > XP-Based Systems in the Bargain Basement > > Indeed, retailers like > Micro Electronics' Micro Center > offered deep discounts for Windows XP-based PCs from Acer, HP, and Toshiba > over the weekend, granting $150 rebates in an effort to clear the outmoded > notebooks > off their shelves. The stores also plan to stay open between 12:01 a.m. > tonight and 1 a.m. tomorrow to accommodate eager buyers. > > http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,128683-pg,1/article.html > > Vikas Kapoor, > MSN ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Skype ID: dl_vikas > Mobile: (+91) 9891098137. > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:47:59 +0530 > From: "Vikas Kapoor" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [AI] Vista's Promising Video Upgrades > To: "Access India" <[email protected]> > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > Vista's Promising Video Upgrades > > Jan 31, 2007 > > When it comes to graphics, Microsoft's new operating system may earn its > name. Vista promises plenty of great views with upgrades for richly > detailed games, > as well as better-looking and more-useful desktop apps. > > Much of the expected benefit will come from DirectX 10, the first complete > rewrite of Microsoft's ubiquitous package of graphics tools, and its move > toward > what's called a Unified Shader Model. Though games will receive the > biggest benefit, Microsoft says that Vista's improved use of graphics > resources will > allow all applications to add more animation and visual effects without > slowing your PC to a crawl. Of course, there's a catch: DX10 must be > paired with > similarly boosted graphics hardware, meaning you'll have to shell out for > a new video card. But you can still benefit from other advances with > today's > cards. > > Pipeline Power-Ups > > The revamped, more powerful DirectX "allows us to do a lot more processing > on the GPU [graphics processing unit] and speeds everything up immensely," > says > Chris Donahue, director of business development for Microsoft Games for > Windows. > > DirectX 9, used widely for today's games, employs different parts of the > video card to determine the visual appearance of pixels and vertices > (where lines > meet). A set number of "pipelines" handle only pixel shaders, while others > are just for vertex shaders. If creating a certain 3D scene hits the pixel > shader > pipelines hard but uses only a few of the vertex shaders, the extra vertex > pipelines lie dormant. > > DX10's Shader Model 4, however, uses the same hardware resources for > pixel, vertex, and even new geometry shaders. That approach allows GPU > vendors to design > chips with pipelines that can run any type of shader, and also makes it > easier for GPUs to handle things like physics effects that currently must > run on > the CPU. In general DX10 is more CPU-friendly, with less processing > overhead. > > The end result? A more flexible graphics system, and one that makes better > use of the GPU's processing power. > > "It's a step forward," says Mike Goodman, a senior analyst for research > firm The Yankee Group. "This is another way to take advantage of the > processing > power of PCs that Vista will operate on." > > That power will cost you, though, as you'll need a next-generation > graphics card that can handle DX10's new features. A card from nVidia's > GeForce 8800 > series will set you back $400 or more. ATI will offer DX10-ready video > cards as well, but as of press time it hadn't released details. > > http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,128275-pg,1/article.html > > Vikas Kapoor, > MSN ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Skype ID: dl_vikas > Mobile: (+91) 9891098137. > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 5 > Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2007 18:50:44 +0530 > From: "Vikas Kapoor" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [AI] Does Vista Violate Antitrust? > To: "Access India" <[email protected]> > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > Does Vista Violate Antitrust? > > Jan 31, 2007 > > As Microsoft gears up for the consumer launch of Vista, rivals slammed the > new product, claiming that it breaks the very same European antitrust laws > that > its operating-system predecessor, Windows XP, fell foul of in 2004, and > that it will be riddled with bugs. > > "Microsoft has chosen to ignore the fundamental principles of the > Commission's March 2004 decision," said Simon Awde, who chair the European > Committee for > Interoperable Systems (ECIS), in a statement last week. He added that the > new product goes even further, by leveraging its desktop dominance to > compete > on the Internet. > > ECIS > filed a formal complaint > about Vista to the European Commission's antitrust division a year ago. > The Commission said at the time that it would examine the complaint > carefully. That > examination is understood to be still ongoing, however Commission > spokesman Jonathan Todd wasn't immediately available to comment. > > Elbowing the Standard? > > On Friday the ECIS described Vista as "the first step in Microsoft's > strategy to extend its market dominance to the Internet." Microsoft's XAML > markup language > inside Vista was designed to replace HTML, an industry standard used for > publishing material online, the ECIS statement claims. > > XAML is designed to be dependent on Windows, and therefore not > interoperable with other systems, ECIS said. > > In addition, > Vista > and > Microsoft Office > 2007 will introduce the Open XML file format called OOXML in a move to > replace the ODF industry standard. > > "Unlike the ODF file format which operates on multiple vendor platforms, > Microsoft's OOXML today only runs seamlessly on the Microsoft Office > platform," > ECIS said. However, Microsoft has said its applications > will also support > the ODF format. > > "With XAML and OOXML Microsoft seeks to impose its own Windows-dependent > standards and displace existing open cross-platform standards which has > wide industry > acceptance, permit open competition and promote competition-driven > innovation," said Thomas Vinje, a partner at law firm Clifford Chance and > legal advisor > to ECIS. > > "The end result will be the continued absence of any real consumer choice, > years of waiting for Microsoft to improve--or even debug--its monopoly > products, > and of course, high prices," he added. > > Ready to Roll Out > > Microsoft declined to comment on the ECIS statement. With Vista and Office > 2007 scheduled to debut in retail stores Tuesday, the company is gearing > up for > a marketing blitz, which in Belgium will include the lighting up of the > Atomium--a construction modeled on the structure of an iron molecule that > dominates > the northeast skyline of the city. > > Vista and Office 2007 > were available > to business users in the fourth quarter last year. > > http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,128675-pg,1/article.html > > Vikas Kapoor, > MSN ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo ID: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Skype ID: dl_vikas > Mobile: (+91) 9891098137. > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 6 > Date: Wed, 31 Jan 2007 20:41:55 +0530 > From: "Geetha Shamanna" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subject: [AI] Fw: SWAN system to help blind and firefighters navigate > To: "Access india" <[email protected]> > Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" > > We believe you'll find this information quite interesting. Our thanks to > Geoff Eden for bringing it to our attention. > environment > Aug 15 ,Technology > Student Joseph Patrao demonstrates the SWAN system. > Full size image > Imagine being blind and trying to find your way around a city you've never > visited > before -- that can be challenging for a sighted person. Georgia Tech > researchers > are developing a wearable computing system called the System for Wearable > Audio Navigation > (SWAN) designed to help the visually impaired, firefighters, soldiers and > others > navigate their way in unknown territory, particularly when vision is > obstructed or > impaired. > The SWAN system, consisting of a small laptop, a proprietary tracking > chip, and bone-conduction > headphones, provides audio cues to guide the person from place to place, > with or > without vision. > "We are excited by the possibilities for people who are blind and visually > impaired > to use the SWAN auditory wayfinding system," said Susan B. Green, > executive director, > Center for the Visually Impaired in Atlanta. "Consumer involvement is > crucial in > the design and evaluation of successful assistive technology, so CVI is > happy to > collaborate with Georgia Tech to provide volunteers who are blind and > visually impaired > for focus groups, interviews and evaluation of the system." > Collaboration > In an unusual collaboration, Frank Dellaert, assistant professor in the > Georgia Tech > College of Computing and Bruce Walker, assistant professor in Georgia > Tech's School > of Psychology and College of Computing, met five years ago at new faculty > orientation > and discussed how their respective areas of expertise -- determining > location of > robots and audio interfaces -- were complimentary and could be married in > a project > to assist the blind. The project progressed slowly as the researchers > worked on it > as time allowed and sought funding. Early support came through a seed > grant from > the Graphics, Visualization and Usability (GVU) Center at Georgia Tech, > and recently > Walker and Dellaert received a $600,000 grant from the National Science > Foundation > to further develop SWAN. > Dellaert's artificial intelligence research focuses on tracking and > determining the > location of robots and developing applications to help robots determine > where they > are and where they need to go. There are similar challenges when it comes > to tracking > and guiding robots and people. Dellaert's robotics research usually > focuses on military > applications since that is where most of the funding is available. > "SWAN is a satisfying project because we are looking at how to use > technology originally > developed for military use for peaceful purposes," says Dellaert. > "Currently, we > can effectively localize the person outdoors with GPS data, and we have a > working > prototype using computer vision to see street level details not included > in GPS, > such as light posts and benches. The challenge is integrating all the > information > from all the various sensors in real time so you can accurately guide the > user as > they move toward their destination." > Walker's expertise in human computer interaction and interface design > includes developing > auditory displays that indicate data through sonification or sound. > "By using a modular approach in building a system useful for the visually > impaired, > we can easily add new sensing technologies, while also making it flexible > enough > for firefighters and soldiers to use in low visibility situations," says > Walker. > "One of our challenges has been designing sound beacons easily understood > by the > user but that are not annoying or in competition with other sounds they > need to hear > such as traffic noise." > SWAN System Overview > The current SWAN prototype consists of a small laptop computer worn in a > backpack, > a tracking chip, additional sensors including GPS (global positioning > system), a > digital compass, a head tracker, four cameras and light sensor, and > special headphones > called bone phones. The researchers selected bone phones because they send > auditory > signals via vibrations through the skull without plugging the user's ears, > an especially > important feature for the blind who rely heavily on their hearing. The > sensors and > tracking chip worn on the head send data to the SWAN applications on the > laptop which > computes the user's location and in what direction he is looking, maps the > travel > route, then sends 3-D audio cues to the bone phones to guide the traveler > along a > path to the destination. > The 3-D cues sound like they are coming from about 1 meter away from the > user's body, > in whichever direction the user needs to travel. The 3-D audio, a > well-established > sound effect, is created by taking advantage of humans' natural ability to > detect > inter-aural time differences. The 3-D sound application schedules sounds > to reach > one ear slightly faster than the other, and the human brain uses that > timing difference > to figure out where the sound originated. > The 3-D audio beacons for navigation are unique to SWAN. Other navigation > systems > use speech cues such as "walk 100 yards and turn left," which Walker feels > is not > user friendly. > "SWAN consists of two types of auditory displays - navigational beacons > where the > SWAN user walks directly toward the sound, and secondary sounds indicating > nearby > items of possible interests such as doors, benches and so forth," says > Walker. "We > have learned that sound design matters. We have spent a lot of time > researching which > sounds are more effective, such as a beep or a sound burst, and which > sounds provide > information but do not interrupt users when they talk on their cell phone > or listen > to music." > The researchers have also learned that SWAN would supplement other > techniques that > a blind person might already use for getting around such as using a cane > to identify > obstructions in the path or a guide dog. > The researchers' next step is to transition SWAN from outdoors-only to > indoor-outdoor > use. Since GPS does not work indoors, the computer vision system is being > refined > to bridge that gap. Also, the research team is currently revamping the > SWAN applications > to run on PDAs and cell phones, which will be more convenient and > comfortable for > users. The team plans to add an annotation feature so that a user can add > other useful > annotations to share with other users such as nearby coffee shops, a > location of > a puddle after recent rains, and perhaps even the location of a park in > the distance. > There are plans to commercialize the SWAN technology after further > refinement, testing > and miniaturizing of components for the consumer market. > Source: Georgia Institute of Technology > This information may be found at. > http://pda.physorg.com/lofi-news-swan-sound-system_74861620.html > > www.vipconduit.com > and > www.accessible-devices.com > > > > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > AccessIndia mailing list > [email protected] > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > End of AccessIndia Digest, Vol 9, Issue 110 > ******************************************* > > ___________________________________________________________ What kind of emailer are you? 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