Well, let me start out by saying that I for one am extremely greatful for what you've managed to achieve so far. As I've previously stated, I don't know much really, other than what me and my guitar can do, and even then, I'm making it up 90% of the time! So, I am personally 100% behind you.
I suspected there was some kind of secrecy surrounding what you and Avid were doing, and although personally I believe that almost all information should be freely available etc, there's obviously things that you can't discuss Take care, Chris Norman <[email protected]> On 14 Nov 2012, at 16:27, Slau Halatyn wrote: > Members of this list, > > I'm writing an open letter to all of you with my concerns and a request. I've > been working on the issue of Pro Tools accessibility for a very long time. I > wasn't involved with the initial progress back in OS 9 but I did become > deeply involved under OS X. I never campaigned for this "position," for lack > of a better word but I took on the role, firstly, for personal reasons, > having wanted to have an accessible platform as an audio engineer and, > secondly, for the sake of many blind musicians who needed a unified voice > representing the immediate concerns for an accessible Pro Tools platform. > I've spent enormous sums of money and countless hours on this project. I > never asked for a dime, mostly because of my personal interest in the outcome > but also because I never wanted to feel like I was beholden to anybody in any > way. There were times, sometimes huge swaths of time, that often passed with > no visible results but I knew it was time well spent because of the quality > of the relationships I've built and the results we've gotten so far. > > I now know what it probably feels like to be a politician. Let me assure you > that it's no stroll in the park. Sometimes, you are not at liberty to discuss > certain details openly for any number of reasons. I have a new appreciation > for executive privilege and classified information. That said, I've been as > open as I could possibly be with both the list and the periodic updates on > the petition site. I also have a new appreciation for how one cannot satisfy > the desires of everyone. I can also appreciate that old saying about walking > a mile in someone's shoes. > > Although, as I've said, I've never campaigned for this, I've also fallen into > this situation by default. I never asked for this and I only agreed to it, at > least in my mind, because I honestly felt responsible and I also felt that I > was the right person for the job. > > Every so often, it seems, I find the need to defend myself against what I > essentially find to be restlessness on the part of some people. I don't take > it personally because I understand that it comes from a frustration with the > status quo or, more accurately, a perceived lack of progress. I, too, feel > frustrated some of the time and I share many of the concerns of others on > this list. I agree with many ideas and I categorically disagree with other > ideas or at least their implementation and timing. I realize that, when I > happen to disagree with an approach, I probably lose the confidence of those > who see things differently. That's OK. As I said earlier, I accept the fact > that I can't satisfy everybody's wishes—it's impossible. What I do feel that > I have is the support of the majority of our community and I do appreciate > that. > > As I stated earlier, I feel like a politician and I don't particularly enjoy > it. My commitment to the issue of Pro Tools accessibility and to this > community are as follows: > > I will continue my relationship with several key individuals at Avid in the > interest of ensuring a future for Pro Tools accessibility. There are a couple > of things we're waiting for at the moment that will determine how I feel we > should proceed. Pending that initial outcome, I will make a personal decision > whether to continue the work I've been doing. Even if the outcome is > favorable, I'm not sure that I'll take on any responsibility other than beta > testing, as I've done on and off over the years. If the outcome is less > favorable, I'll offer my suggestions for a path toward a goal but I won't > take on any responsibilities unless an explicit majority of this community > give me mandate to move forward with a plan. To put a timeframe on it, > essentially, I'll probably have some feeling for which way this will likely > go in a few days, maybe a week. > > In a separate email, I will discuss some more details of my meeting at Avid. > Please be aware that I won't engage in a debate on the merits of any given > approach. I'm tired of defending and explaining things. Politicians usually > have a staff to handle such things. Please don't occupy my bandwidth with a > whole bunch of suggestions that will require loads of my time to respond to. > This is a public forum and everybody's entitled to express themselves but, > just as I am required not to take things personally, don't take it personally > if I don't engage in a debate about the merits of a particular approach. I > believe what I'm doing is right and that, every step of the way, I've made > good choices. > > I have a short session in about a half hour so the email about the meeting > will follow in the afternoon. > > Thanks, > > Slau >
