News
ISSN 1046-1663
April-June 2000, Vol. 31, No. 2
National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped
The Library of Congress
NLS inaugurates cost-analysis tool
NLS has created a new computer-based cost-analysis system that will allow
the library service to compare the costs of its current program with those
likely to be incurred in the deployment of a new technology. The advent of
the system is a critical step in the progress of the NLS Digital Talking-Book (DTB) Program. In pursuit of the long-range goal of cost reduction--one
of the most compelling reasons for change--the cost-analysis system must be
accurate, efficient, and easy to use. This system, the life-cycle cost (LCC)
analysis model, is now entering the final stages of review and testing at
NLS.
     NLS director Frank Kurt Cylke calls the system "a significant
intellectual effort that will allow the Library accurately to identify
overall program costs for the current talking-book program as well as to
project costs for the program in the years ahead."
     Effectiveness of the system is dependent on two major elements:
     (1) accurate identification of all cost factors for both materials and
services, including those services provided by network libraries, and
     (2) a means to easily and accurately project and compare the
differences in long-term cost prospects for NLS materials based on the
usefulness, availability, and pricing of technological components, plus the
impact of such differences on the delivery of products and services to
patrons.
     "In the simplest terms," Engineering Section head John Cookson writes
in a recent paper, "we must know the cost of providing service using the
incumbent technology, we must be able to project this cost out to a ten-year
horizon, and we must be able to estimate the cost of the digital
alternative."
Establishing base costs. In October 1999, NLS began working with a team
contracted through Northrop Grumman on the design of the life-cycle cost
(LCC) model. Working together through the fall and winter, the Northrop
Grumman-NLS team identified some one hundred data elements that contribute
to costs of NLS's current talking-book system, described these elements, and
noted the information sources in a data dictionary. The group has worked
through the intricacies that describe the relationships among the elements,
created data-flow diagrams, and applied computational connections to the
data.
     In February, NLS hosted a meeting that included representatives from
each of the four regions of the network and from state libraries through
which most regional libraries receive support. The lead analyst from
Northrop Grumman presented the data dictionary elements to the librarians.
NLS wanted to explain the methodology used to capture and project network
library costs, which represent a large segment of total system costs. The
librarians learned of a wide-ranging analysis of network library costs that
isolated particular costs for providing audio equipment, book, and magazine
services. But because this analysis was completed in 1990 and based on 1989
figures, the NLS team needed to discuss with the librarians different
techniques for bringing the 1989 costs up to 1999. Federal fiscal year 1999
will be the base year in the cost model. Two days of deliberation brought
consensus among the network and state librarians and the LCC model
development team.
     Since February, the team has been putting together the final data
element descriptions, the computations, and the interface between the
computer model and the computer user. The preliminary model is scheduled for
delivery to NLS at the end of May. After review and comment on the
preliminary model, the final model will be delivered in August.
Projecting the costs. Through the computations, the model can state the
effect of cost changes in a variety of ways. One might be, "How much does
the current system cost this year? Next year? Over ten years?" Another might
be, "How much does it cost to provide one hour of reading? One book
circulation? One magazine circulation?"
     Starting in August, NLS will use the model to continue to capture the
year-by-year cost changes to the analog audio talking-book service and
project the system costs over a ten-year period. Then, as decisions on the
technology of a digital system begin to fall into place, NLS will use
comparative costs for the alternative system to model it over the same ten-year period. The comparative LCC model will aid NLS in making future
decisions about the costs of an alternative digital system and the most
cost-effective time to begin transition to that system.
     The inauguration of the LCC analysis modeling tool is taking place
simultaneously with other developments in the Digital Talking Book Program.
These include the establishment of stable digital talking-book standards and
the refinement of digital mastering and duplication procedures that will
gradually and systematically replace the obsolescent analog recording
systems now in place.
     Says project director Tom Martin, assistant chief of the NLS Network
Division, "Whether analog--the current technology--or digital, the NLS
talking-book program will continue to provide eligible readers with books
and magazines in audio format and will continue to work with cooperating
network libraries in delivering services to those readers."
Background. Knowledge of relative costs is an essential component in
effective decision making as the complex deliberations about future
technological transitions proceed. Writing in early 1998, John Cookson
identified the need for an interactive software package to help explore and
compare cost issues. In Step Three of "Twenty Steps to Next-Generation NLS
Technology" (a key text in the NLS strategy statement Digital Talking Books:
Planning for the Future), Cookson called for the development of a "computer-based cost-analysis tool for the NLS system and candidate digital systems"--that is, potential future DTB systems undergoing analysis and evaluation to
determine their long-range viability. In Cookson's first formulations, four
primary functions were envisioned for the cost-analysis tool. The software
would
    build a historical cost data set
    examine and forecast long-term trends
    estimate critical decision points
    determine cost range within which DTB adoption is feasible.
     Cookson and his engineering colleague Lloyd Rasmussen have observed
that "when a technical advancement such as dense solid-state memory is
introduced into the consumer entertainment market, a plethora of competitive
products is introduced at premium prices. Market pressures and the quest for
standards cause losers to disappear, while demand causes winners to fall in
price, sometimes precipitously. On the other hand, older technology can
experience price escalation and availability problems as demand declines.
Our model is designed to capture and depict these phenomena so that we can
identify more economical technology plus the best time and level of
investment to recommend. When subject to critical scrutiny, the model's
inputs and computational procedures must be able to engender credibility and
confidence."
     Further information relevant to the LCC analysis model and its role in
the library service's strategy--including the full text of the NLS planning
document Digital Talking Books: Planning for the Future--may be found on the
NLS web site <www.loc.gov/nls>.
(photo caption: (Standing) Wendell Evans, senior cost analyst from Northrop
Grumman Corporation, and Frank Kurt Cylke, NLS director, discuss the life-cycle cost (LCC) study model with (seated) Jenifer Flaxbart, Texas, and Jim
Scheppke, Oregon. Network representatives met with NLS staff and the LCC
contractor in February. Photo by Steven Barrett.)
National Audio Equipment Advisory Committee meets
The National Audio Equipment Advisory Committee (NAEAC) met at NLS
April 5-7, 2000, for three days of reports, discussion, and deliberation.
Representing consumers, network librarians, and equipment repair volunteers,
the fourteen-member group developed recommendations in thirty-four areas of
concern. NLS will respond to each of the recommendations in the near future,
after a period of review and evaluation.
     Following a welcome by NLS director Frank Kurt Cylke and Materials
Development Division chief Brad Kormann, the committee attended a series of
presentations by NLS personnel on the current state of equipment production
and repair and on the probable shape of things to come on the digital
horizon. Moderator John Cookson, head of the NLS Engineering Section,
introduced a panel of NLS staff members who discussed the issues of concern
in their particular areas of specialization.
     Don Smith, head of the Quality Assurance Section, assured the
committee that production of materials under government contracts continues
without difficulty. The purchase of headphones is in the process of being
finalized. Kevin Buck, equipment and materials maintenance coordinator,
honored volunteer repair personnel for their work last year on 113,000
machines, saving NLS nearly $4 million in labor costs. He also discussed the
new automated inventory control system, which, based on a three-month cycle,
will foster a more efficient and equitable distribution of parts.
     The next panel reviewed proposed product changes. John Bryant, head of
the Production Control Section, addressed the status of cassette magazine
production, affirming that magazines in flexible-disc format will be phased
out by the end of 2000. Michael Moodie, research and development officer,
talked about the successful inauguration of the new-style braille book
mailing containers that replace the old fiberboard units in use since the
1930s. John Cookson described engineering solutions to problems caused by
component obsolescence.
     A subsequent panel, also made up of Cookson, Moodie, and Bryant,
described major projects, informing the NAEAC on development of digital
audio products and processes. They touched on many aspects of the digital
audio initiative, including the development of an NLS digital talking-book
standard in collaboration with the National Information Standards
Organization (NISO), and the move to digital original masters. Senior
electronics engineer Lloyd Rasmussen, audio book production specialist Billy
West, and studio director Margie Goergen-Rood later joined the panel for
further explorations of the digital environment of the future.
     The second day of the meeting was made up of subcommittee sessions,
punctuated by an unusual midday break. The monthly NLS digital audio
discussion group luncheon--one of a series of open, informal gatherings
exploring various aspects of next-generation technology--happened to
coincide with the NAEAC meeting, and a large combined aggregation of
representatives, speakers, and interested NLS staff met together for a
relaxed brown-bag lunch and a set of entertaining presentations. Michael
Moodie and Tom McLaughlin, assistant head of the Quality Assurance Section,
demonstrated two electronic books new to the commercial market, SoftBook and
the Rocket eBook System--hand-held interactive digital devices capable of
storing and displaying thousands of pages of text. John Cookson played
samples and passed around a miniature player-recorder the size of a
disposable lighter, with a 64-megabyte storage capability--the Sony Memory
Stick Walkman. (None of these products is under consideration by NLS as part
of the Digital Talking-Book Program except insofar as familiarity with the
rapidly developing technology may stimulate creative responses to problems
of implementation.)
     George Stockton gave a demonstration of a type of noise-reduction
software called Sound Forge that NLS will experiment with at multistate
centers. The software is used in the digital duplicating process to enhance
the sound quality of older original analog master tapes by removing unwanted
extraneous noise.
     A musical interlude was provided by a taped performance of the Bards
of Taylor Street (Tom Bickford and Debbie Brown of Quality Assurance and
Lloyd Rasmussen from Engineering), who sang a barbed parody of Tom Paxton's
"The Marvelous Toy." In the Bards' version, a reader's high hopes for a
utopian digital future are undermined as the book itself seems to disappear
in the process of ever more sophisticated technological refinement.
     On the third day, the subcommittees assembled their recommendations
and presented them formally to NLS just before the noon adjournment. Among
recommendations from the consumers subcommittee were the inclusion of
braille labels on TBT/BBR computer diskettes and two changes for cassette
magazines: an indication of narration time for articles, and a braille label
with side number and number of cassettes.
     Telephone Pioneers and Elfuns made numerous recommendations concerning
modifications and enhancements of the equipment they repair, including
several concerning amplifier boards. The repair volunteers formally
complimented Brad Kormann, Kevin Buck, Kevin Watson, Bob Fistick, and others
involved in the recognition of the contributions of repair volunteers. But
the volunteers were critical of the depth of detail in some NAEAC meeting
presentations, and of a lack of clarity and specificity in some responses to
recommendations in the past.
     Librarians proposed several ideas for improving machine audit
procedures and identified some design features that could usefully be
incorporated in the development of digital talking-book equipment. The
librarians also commended Sheryl Smith of Engineering and Nancy Smith from
the Production Control Section for their work in coordinating the meeting.
(photo caption: The Bards (Tom Bickford, Debbie Brown, and Lloyd Rasmussen)
have become an NLS institution. Their performance at the NAEAC was taped to
enliven an audio demonstration. Photo by Yusef El-Amin.)
(Participants
Consumer representatives: Sharon Stralkowski, American Council of the Blind;
Elsworth Sharpe, Blinded Veterans Association; Sam Gleese, National
Federation of the Blind; Robert Haag, Midlands Region; Doug Hall, Southern
Region.
Network library representatives: Ronald Rose, Midlands Region; Christine
Lisiecki, Northern Region; Rebecca Sherrill, Southern Region; John Brewster,
Western Region.
General Electric Elfuns representative: Robert Smith.
Telephone Pioneers representatives: Jerry Adamson, Midlands Region; Carl
Gingrich, Northern Region; Joseph Bernal, Southern Region; Richard Iverson,
Western Region.)
National Meeting: Librarians look "To the Future"
The nation's librarians serving blind and physically handicapped individuals
brought in the new millennium with a theme of "To the Future" during their
five-day idea and information sharing session in Los Angeles, California,
Sunday, April 30, through Thursday, May 4. Spirits were high among the more
than 200 participants as speakers, panelists, and audience shared in the
upcoming digital revolution for the nation's talking-book program. The Roll
Call of the States, moderated by Dr. Henry C. Chang, director of library
services, Braille Institute of America, was given added zest with the flag
of each state held high as the state's name was called.
     The biennial event featured panel presentations by the regional
conferences that highlighted approaches and activities beyond traditional
service patterns: "Partnering with Public Libraries to Serve Print-Disabled
Patrons," "Aging in the 21st Century: Meeting the Needs of Older Adults,"
"Information Access beyond Talking Books: Facilitating Access to Computers
and Information," and "Talking Book Services in the Third Millennium."
     World Blind Union president Dr. Euclid J. Herie, chief executive
officer of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, delivered an
address on the future of world library service, noting his impending
retirement while making a call for greater international effort to improve
library services for blind persons. Dr. Herie's address, "WBU: To the
Future--A Millennium Perspective" outlined steps to advance library services
in the digital age and envisioned how the world's blind people might benefit
from information technology now in its infancy.
     Other conference highlights included a stimulating poetry experience
by Billie Dee, a well-known Southern California poet, who drew rave reviews
from the conference audience. In the spirit of the Library of Congress's
Poet Laureate program, NLS director Frank Kurt Cylke proclaimed that Billie
Dee be the NLS poet laureate with a two-year term of office.
     Other speakers included Dale C. Williams, inspector general of the
Library of Congress, who discussed the upcoming national audit of talking-book machine inventories in a presentation entitled "Everything You Always
Wanted to Know about Being Audited, but Were Afraid to Ask." And Jim Gadd,
executive director and chief operating officer of the Telephone Pioneers of
America, gave an overview of the wide-ranging activities of the Pioneers
around the country, as well as documenting the contributions of the Pioneers
in the repair of machines for the talking-book program.
     In working sessions on current activities, two panels on outreach
campaigns, including the new national public service announcements and the
recently completed "Take a Talking Book" senior multimedia campaign, were
moderated by Bob Fistick, head of the NLS Publications and Media Section. A
breakfast colloquy led by Ruth Nussbaum, librarian in the NLS Reference
Section, was held to "Focus on Native Americans." And automation activities
were summarized in presentations by automation officer Robert McDermott and
automation specialist Lloyd E. Lewis, along with user-group discussions for
the various automation programs at use in the network.
     The conference was preceded by two preconference workshops: "Outreach
and Awareness," conducted by Bob Fistick, was attended by more than seventy
network librarians and featured presentations of NLS activities and program
materials, a case study of public relations activities in Southern
California, a panel discussion on public relations solutions titled "Network
Success Stories," and an idea-sharing session in which participants
generated more than thirty suggestions for improvements in the national
program. Another workshop, "Preparing for the Machine Audit," was conducted
by the NLS Materials Development Division (MDD). Brad Kormann, chief of MDD,
opened the session, which was moderated by James Miller, equipment control
officer.
     Actor Dana Elcar presented an inspirational keynote address recounting
his experiences of coping with vision loss and eventual blindness. A well-known actor with credits in 40 motion pictures and 600 television
productions, including eight seasons in the role of Pete Thornton in the
television series MacGyver, Elcar spoke about how producers decided to write
vision loss into his Pete Thornton character so he could continue acting.
Since losing his sight, Elcar has continued to teach acting workshops in
Southern California and has worked with the National Federation of the Blind
to create workshops on overcoming the fear of blindness.
     The national conference was coordinated by Mary Mohr, network
consultant, Network Services Section. She was assisted by John Bryant, head,
Production Control Section, and Lee Probasco, quality assurance specialist,
Quality Assurance Section.
     Conferees were given an extensive tour of the facilities of the
Braille Institute of America (BIA) as well as a presentation on
"Intercultural Outreach" in the greater Los Angeles area by Leslie E.
Stocker, president of BIA. That evening, BIA hosted a reception at the John
Paul Getty Museum. Earlier, conferees were guests at the Queen Mary for an
evening reception on the famous ocean liner.
     Conferees were treated to a presentation about Asteroid Braille, an
asteroid discovered in July 1999 and named in honor of Louis Braille. Dr.
Eleanor Francis Helin, planetary scientist/astronomer of the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and discoverer of Asteroid Braille, gave
an overview of her work in identifying asteroids that could collide with
Earth in the future, and told how she discovered Asteroid Braille through
NASA's Deep Space 1 spacecraft flyby. Her talk was preceded by a viewing of
her interview on Cable News Network (CNN) in April. Dr. Helin's remarks were
followed by those of Kerry Babcock, a senior software engineer with Command
and Control Technologies, Inc., of Kennedy Space Center, Florida, who won
the International Planetary Society contest to name the asteroid. Babcock
related how he and his wife, Victoria, had earlier named their daughter
Braille, after he learned how to transcribe books into braille using Library
of Congress instruction manuals. In 1999, Babcock took his relationship to
braille one step further and entered the asteroid-naming contest. His entry
stated: "Louis Braille invented the braille language so those who could not
see could obtain knowledge and explore through the written word. Likewise,
Asteroid Braille provides knowledge about our universe and its origins to
the people of Earth, who through Deep Space 1, are also able to explore what
previously they could not see." Babcock presented his daughter, Braille, now
five years old, to the audience along with his son, Keenan Karai, eight.
Braille Babcock thanked the audience for the opportunity to be with them and
told everyone that "I love all of you, thank you. I even love my brother."
(photo caption: Deep Space 1's 1999 flyby of Asteroid Braille was the
conference symbol.)
(photo caption: The audience listens intently to program presentations. In
foreground, Nancy Stanton, Braille Institute, Los Angeles, California; Carol
Taylor and Gordon Reddick, Rocky Hill, Connecticut; and Kathy Kappel,
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Photo by Phil Bard.)
(photo caption: Equipment Control Officer Jim Miller's materials
demonstration gets attention from Rebecca Sherrill, Macon, Georgia, and A.
Nicot, New York City.)
(photo caption: Staff members from the Sacramento, California, regional
library review notes between presentations. Photos by Phil Bard.)
(photo caption: The four regional conferences presented panels on future
concerns. Here, Linda Montgomery (right) moderates the Western Conference
program on "Aging in the 21st Century: Meeting the Needs of Older Adults."
Photo by Phil Bard.)
(photo caption: Keynote speaker Dana Elcar. Photo by Phil Bard.)
(photo caption: Actor Dana Elcar met with network fans between conference
sessions for questions, autographs, and just conversation. Photo by Phil
Bard.)
(photo caption: NLS director Frank Kurt Cylke (left) and poet Billie Dee
(right) chat with a girl named Braille. Photo by Phil Bard.)
(photo caption: Five-year-old Braille Babcock addresses the convention.
Looking on are Dr. Eleanor Francis Helin (foreground), discoverer of
Asteroid Braille, and Braille's father, Kerry Babcock, who won the
international contest to name the new asteroid. Photo by Phil Bard.)
Poem for Asteroid Braille
for Dr. Eleanor Helin and Braille Babcock
I. Space Moths
We know the Universe
is largely made of nothing,
vast as the space between the atoms
of our bodies. Bravely,
we send our tiny moth-like probes
out into the night,
their solar-panels spread
like fragile wings, they are drawn
toward the ancient glow of galaxies
a billion years extinct.
II. The Minor Planet Vesta Spawns the Major Asteroid Braille
Long before the Vestal Virgins
let the sacred flame burn out,
long before the Goddess of the Hearth
joined a league of drifting rocks,
the Asteroid Braille was formed
from Vesta's side, and flung toward Apollo.
Tumbling in the solar wind,
Braille is now in near-Earth orbit,
a mischief-maker flirting with collision,
aching for a chance to play with fire.
III. Star Blind
The star-nosed mole
has never seen the sky, is unaware
the canopy of night glows
in celebration of her stellar snout.
IV. Prayer
The story of our Past
is embossed on flying rock, the asteroids
that grope their way around the Sun,
measuring the stretch of time
between the last big bang and the next
big crunch.
Each night the sky opens
like a prayer etched in braille. We stretch
our fingers out toward the stars
in supplication, and though we cannot see
where it is we are going,
we are filled with hope for Tomorrow.
     --Billie Dee
Network Exchange
New Jersey. Vianne Connor retired from her position as director of the New
Jersey Library for the Blind and Handicapped effective May 31, 2000. Connor
had been regional librarian in New Jersey since 1993. During her tenure,
Connor increased staff, expanded the Audiovision radio reading service to
northern New Jersey, and increased their on-air operations. She also worked
assiduously to provide a viable collection of materials in both braille and
recorded formats and participated in the CUL Consortia, which upgraded the
library's computer database. Connor plans on enjoying her retirement and
will be moving to central Florida in June.
(This article was provided by Deborah Toomey Rutledge of the New Jersey
State Library.)
Florida (Lee County). The Lee County Talking Books Library, a branch of the
Lee County Library System, has a new public access computer adapted with
ZoomText Xtra Level 2, a program designed specifically for people with low
vision or reading disabilities. Level 2 magnifies print up to 16 times,
speaks all on-screen text, echoes typing, and automatically reads multipage
documents.
     This computer is part of a grant received from the Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation Library Program. It provides free public Internet access,
word processing, electronic databases, spreadsheet programs, encyclopedias,
and educational software for all ages.
     The Gates Foundation helps public libraries to improve public access
to computers, the Internet, and digital information. The Library Program
hopes to reach nearly all of the public libraries in the U.S. and Canada.
The goal is to reach 11,000 public libraries within five years, starting
with the communities most in need.
     Permission to install ZoomText2 on this secured computer was obtained
from the Gates Foundation only after they previewed and tested ZoomText's
compatibility with their preinstalled software. This process preserves the
system's integrity.
     The Lee County Talking Books Library has a volunteer computer coach
available by appointment to assist patrons with the computer at the library.
Additional coaches are being recruited through local volunteer recruiting
agencies, the Visually Impaired Persons Center in North Fort Myers, and the
Lee County Talking Books newsletter. Computer training for local patrons who
are vision impaired is available through the Visually Impaired Persons
Center.
(This article was provided by Ann E. Bradley, Lee County Talking Books
librarian.)
Michigan (Washtenaw County). More than seven hundred people attended the
April 25, 2000, Low Vision Vendor Fair: Products and Services for People
with Visual Impairments, which was held at the Washtenaw County Library for
the Blind and Physically Disabled (LBPD), cosponsored by Washtenaw County
LBPD and Ann Arbor District Library. A perfect spring day and an
enthusiastic crowd contributed to an overwhelming success!
     People came from Sterling Heights, Waterford, Jackson, Adrian, Monroe,
Royal Oak, Detroit, Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor--from all over southeast Michigan.
There were young people and old people; people with walkers and with canes;
people with guide dogs and in wheelchairs. People came to see and to try
low-vision aids, magnifiers, and other low-tech items to help them in their
daily lives. They came looking for new high-tech equipment to allow them to
access the Internet with a voice synthesizer, and for scanning print
materials to read in synthesized speech. They came searching for agencies
and organizations to assist them with their low-vision situation. The crowd
was huge!
     Twenty-three vendors displayed at the fair. Another twenty-three
vendors provided catalogs that were distributed to attendees. Six libraries
(Ann Arbor District Library and five libraries from the Michigan network of
libraries for the blind and physically disabled) displayed information
regarding local services.
     Based on reactions from attendees, it is evident there is a real need
to bring low-vision products and services to the public. Several people told
library staff that this event was an answer to their prayers. Washtenaw
County LBPD plans to hold a second fair in the next 18 to 24 months,
probably in a larger venue that could accommodate more people and more
vendors.
(This article was provided by Margaret Wolfe, subregional librarian for
Washtenaw County, and is located on the library's home page. For more photos
and lists of participating libraries and venders, see
<www.co.washtenaw.mi.us/DEPTS/LIB/libvend.html>.)
(photo caption: Visitors at the Low Vision Vendor Fair learn about useful
technology.)
(photo caption: A scene stealer at the fair.)
California (Los Angeles). Frances Lantz, author of Someone to Love and more
than thirty young adult books, was the featured speaker at Meet the Author
Day, February 11, 2000, at the Braille Institute Library. The purpose of
this day was to encourage young adults who are legally blind or physically
handicapped to read. Sixty guests, including students from Irving and Noble
middle schools, attended. Someone to Love has been given the Best Young
Adults Book Award by the American Library Association.
     Lantz informed the group that her book Stepsister from the Planet
Weird has been made into a television movie to be aired on the Disney
Channel. She shared her love of writing stories, which she has done since
childhood, and how, as an adult, she went about improving her writing and
having books published.
     Program organizer Julie Uyeno introduced the author; Braille Institute
president Leslie E. Stocker presented Lantz with a gift basket; and library
director Henry C. Chang gave prizes to those who correctly answered
questions about the speech.
(photo caption: ALA book award winner Frances Lantz is flanked by regional
librarian Henry C. Chang and Braille Institute president Leslie E. Stocker
at the library's recent Meet the Author program.)
Introducing two new regional librarians
Two new regional librarians have arrived in key spots in the NLS network.
Both Ruth Hemphill and Andrew Egan already have impressive records of
librarianship and, in particular, serving patrons with visual and physical
handicaps.
Tennessee. Ruth Hemphill joined the regional library in Nashville as
director in late 1999. She brings her expertise acquired over twelve years
at the Missouri regional library, where she served as senior librarian and
service librarian in the 1990s. Before joining the regional library in
Jefferson City, Missouri, Hemphill had worked in several public libraries in
other Missouri cities. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in
Library Science from the University of Missouri.
     Hemphill and her staff of eleven have big plans to expand their
already broad array of services to visually impaired readers across
Tennessee. Their next outreach campaign will aim to increase library patrons
beyond the roughly 6,000 now registered with NLS.
     Hemphill's plans for the year also call for implementing NLS's READS
II program. This requires converting the patron database to new software
that enables librarians to maintain electronic records of both reading
materials and machines in circulation, patron requests, and library
inventories, among other things. READS II will also enable librarians to
download bibliographic data through the Internet, rather than having to
enter this information on the keyboard. Hemphill's recent trip to the
Kentucky regional library helped her anticipate some of the changes that
accompany the implementation of READS II.
     Other responsibilities as regional librarian extend beyond the walls
of the library itself. Hemphill will be consulting with state library
officials and administrators to implement programs that will affect blind
and handicapped individuals across the state in the coming year.
Rhode Island. Andrew Egan, former network services supervisor at Rhode
Island's Office of Library and Information Services (OLIS), assumed new
responsibilities in April as supervisor of the Talking Books Plus program at
the regional library in Providence. His experience in providing library
services to patrons with special needs has given him valuable expertise for
guiding the regional library through the exciting changes that lie ahead.
Before joining the network library team at OLIS, Egan had worked as an
institutional consultant, shaping library and information services to meet
the needs of individuals in hospitals and other institutions.
     The Rhode Island regional is already using the READS II program. Plans
for the next few months include implementing a new outreach and awareness
program to increase the number of registered patrons beyond the present
2,100-plus. Egan also hopes to expand library staff beyond the three full-time (and one part-time) employees who are assisting him in this ambitious
program.
     Egan holds a master's degree in library science from the University of
Rhode Island. He has maintained his academic ties and demonstrated his
commitment to his field by teaching classes and working with students with
disabilities at a local community college for the past ten years.
(photo caption: Network librarians and NLS staff mingle between sessions at
the national conference in Manhattan Beach, California. As well as providing
the pleasure of personal contact with peers, such informal meetings provide
opportunity for much exchange of information. See conference coverage above.
Photo by Phil Bard.)
The Program
The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped of the
Library of Congress publishes books and magazines in braille and in recorded
form on discs and cassettes for readers who cannot hold, handle, or see well
enough to read conventional print because of a temporary or permanent visual
or physical handicap.
     Through a national network of state and local libraries, the materials
are loaned free to eligible readers in the United States and to U.S.
citizens living abroad. Materials are sent to readers and returned by
postage-free mail.
Books and Magazines
Readers may borrow all types of popular-interest books including
bestsellers, classics, mysteries, westerns, poetry, history, biographies,
religious literature, children's books, and foreign-language materials.
Readers may also subscribe to more than seventy popular magazines in braille
and recorded formats.
Special Equipment
Special equipment needed to play the discs and cassettes, which are recorded
at slower than conventional speeds, is loaned indefinitely to readers. An
amplifier with headphone is available for blind and physically handicapped
readers who are also certified as hearing impaired. Other devices are
provided to aid readers with mobility impairments in using playback
machines.
Eligibility
You are eligible for the Library of Congress program if:
 You are legally blind--your vision in the better eye is 20/200 or less
with correcting glasses, or your widest diameter of visual field is no
greater than 20 degrees;
 You cannot see well enough or focus long enough to read standard print,
although you wear glasses to correct your vision;
 You are unable to handle print books or turn pages because of a physical
handicap; or
 You are certified by a medical doctor as having a reading disability, due
to an organic dysfunction, which is of sufficient severity to prevent
reading in a normal manner.
How to Apply
You may request an application by writing NLS or calling toll-free
1-800-424-9100, and your name will be referred to your cooperating library.
News is published quarterly by:
National Library Service for the
Blind and Physically Handicapped
Library of Congress
Washington, DC 20542
All correspondence should be addressed to the attention of Publications and
Media Section.
Editor: Vicki Fitzpatrick
Writers: Rita Byrnes, Robert Fistick, and Ed O'Reilly