Hey Gord, You certainly have firsthand knowledge of what it's like. I, too, we all, are hoping for Logic accessibility as well. That's the subject of another post which I will make when I have a chance. See my lengthy post elsewhere for more info on the meeting itself.
Cheers, Slau On Nov 14, 2012, at 3:12 PM, Gordon Kent wrote: > Hi Salu: > Believe me, I understand your position fully. I have had a similar > relationship with Cakewalk for around 15 years now. Through meetings in > person at their office in Boston, as well as a lot of work on the beta team, > I feel I’ve been able to accomplish quite a bit. Mike Mandel has also > attended these meetings. I think companies like this like to deal with as > few folks as possible with matters like this, and you are the obvious person > for working with avid and pro tools. I personally would not have a problem > contributing financially to your efforts. It is much more expensive to fly > to LA and stay out there than it is for me to take a one day junket to > Boston. And, there has been a significant period of time where Cakewalk has > really not been able to devote any real time to accessibility issues when > they decided to go in a new direction with their Sonar X products. Even > companies like Reaper, who started with all good intentions, have not been > able to solve some issues, and the person who has written the access module > is Russian and very hard to get in touch with. I sincerely was hoping that > Apple would come through with logic. > > Gord > > From: Chris Norman > Sent: Wednesday, November 14, 2012 11:38 AM > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: some more details about the meeting and your support > > 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 >> > >
