Comments on: Update: Kindle not helpful enough to blind users

By: A thought on Apple’s iPad

A thought on Apple’s iPad — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:01:12 +0000

[…] If, as Tyler Cowen suggests, the key market objective of the iPad is to obtain significant university adoption as a replacement for the paper textbook, one wonders how Apple’s lawyers are planning to handle the inevitable litigation from disabled-rights advocates. […]

By: John

John — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 03:32:55 +0000

The choice of the kindle is the issue, since amazon went out of their way to placate publishers; allowing them to disable the text-to-speech.

I would think if the university select a e-reader that didn’t go out if its way to block text-to-speech functionality the suit would not have been necessary.

By: Tom

Tom — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:29:14 +0000

Did I miss the part in the article where ASU owns and is responsible for Kindle? Was it not a “trial basis”? Guess some California ADA lawyers were in town and bored.

By: Robert

Robert — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:02:50 +0000

Call me crazy, but weren’t old-fashioned paper textbooks not very blind-user friendly?

By: jkoerner

jkoerner — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:06:34 +0000

So apparently the solution is to give ASU students the equivalent of a speak and spell? Sounds about right. Go devils!

By: Richard Nieporent

Richard Nieporent — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 12:22:51 +0000

Last June, the National Federation of the Blind and the American Council of the Blind joined a blind ASU student in suing Arizona State, alleging that the Kindle’s inaccessibility to blind students constituted a violation of federal law.

I guess the next lawsuit will be to outlaw the use of paper books. After all they are clearly inaccessible to blind students.

By: Aria

Aria — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 11:48:37 +0000

So give everyone an equal disadvantage? Hindering education for the sighted furthers the education for the blind…how?