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Blogs to Watch

Here is a list of blogs, by friends, acquaintences, or otherwise, that I watch and would recommend to others to check out. Please note that opinions expressed on these blogs are the thoughts and views of their respective writers, and may not necessarily be ideas that I agree with. Also note that if a blog is out of date or hasn't been posted to in a long while, please inform the author of that blog.

• Keeping up with media trends, especially those in broadcast media, is one of my odd hobbies. Among these trends are those from the Dallas-Fort Worth radio scene. The Pop Cultural Disctrict Radio blog from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram definitely fills a nitch for me. Granted, not everyone will be interested in the "radio gosip" of DFW radio stations, but if you are, then check this blog out.

• Independent Living Aids has a blog where you can stay up to date on new products and other items. It's called All Things Tech from ILA.

• Stay up to date on new features from Google Mail with the official Gmail Blog.

• Mary Emerson and the G-Rated Podcast

• Fireman's Diary from the UK

• If you're into reality TV shows or like to keep up with what's happening on a particular show, then check out Reality Steve's blog. If you can think of a reality show, Steve probably covers it.

• The Serotek blog discusses all things related to their products such as System Access, the S.A. Mobile Network, and more.

• Karen's Corner is the blog of Karen Shandrow that has lots of interesting information on it. You also can read the various Karen's Daily Dose poems, or as she calls them KDD's, on various topics. If you use any sort of Assistive Technology, like JAWS, beware that this page has over a hundred headings. Therefore, it might take a few seconds to load.

• For fans of National Public Radio, you may be interested in the NPR Podcast Directory. There are a variety of podcasts here to please any taste.

• Access Watch is moving in a new direction with the Access Watch blog. Stay up to date with news on the AT industry, and be informed when new reviews are posted to the Access Watch database.

• If you miss an episode of Survivor or want to relive that special tribal moment, then check out the Survivor Hut, which chronicles each episodes high and low points. This blog is updated often during the show's season. You can relive moments from past seasons on this site as well.

• Stephen Baum, lead programmer for the Kurzweil 1000, has a blog all about the latest improvements in this OCR package called K1000 Engineering. Whenever a new version or significant update/upgrade is released, look to this blog for information on new features.

• Petro's podcasts has lots of interesting content covering Windows, Replay A/V, and more.

• For fans of Adventures in Odyssey, check out the official Adventures in Odyssey Podcast.

• You can now read the weekly MoPix update in blog form from AOL Ability. Though this update is also available through email, this allows you to read it in blog form, as well as see past updates.

• The Fred's Head Companion blog is a great resource from the American Printing House for the Blind. This blog, which is updated nearly every weekday, contains tips and tricks for anything from the everyday task to the computer and website oriented, and more. Whether you need to know how to tie a tie or how to download a file to your computer, you can probably find the answer here. Even though this is presented in blog form, they do have a regular Fred's Head Companion website.

• Marlaina's Musings is the blog for Marlaina Lieberg, who among other things hosts a weekly show on ACB Radio Mainstream.

• Voice of the Nation's Blind Blog, from the National Federation of the Blind, is the new look for the Voice of the Nation's Blind website, but in a blog related form. Here you can stay on top of the NFB's activities, its views on diferent topics, and more.

• Julia Mosen is the wife of Jonathan, and you can read about what's going on in their lives and her views on various topics. For those interested, Jonathan has taken all of his blog related material off line since joining Freedom Scientific.

• The Dallas based Sports Radio 1310, The Ticket, has their own Ticket Podcasts that you can subscribe to or download from this page, on all of the shows, as well as classic and amusing bits. Great for the out of town or dedicated Ticket Head or Ticket Chick.

• Woot.com Blog: Woot.com is an accessible shopping site that features a different product each day, changing at midnight Central time. The products are new and refurbished, and are discounted. A Great site for the gift shopper or the person that wants to save some money. You can also subscribe to their podcast and RSS feeds from this site. Check them out.

• Blog Maverick, by Mark Cuban: Note that this blog is not all basketball, all the time. He actually has things to say on other topics.

• Anna Dresner of National Braille Press has started a NBP Technology Blog in support of her books: "Braille.com and Beyond," "Finding eBooks on the Internet," and "The iPod Experience." If you have these books or have any of the products/software that she talks about, then you might want to check this blog often for updates.

• Access Ability is a new blog from Ron Graham, which is geared for the college or university Disabled Student Services (or DSS) professional, or anyone interested in issues relating to access or students with disabilities.

• American Foundation for the Blind Blog, written by Carl Augusto, President

• My Written Sanctuary, by Joe Orozco

• DC Night Out is an interesting weekly podcast. Among other topics, they covered the NFB's Washington Seminar for 2006. check them out.

• Blind Confidential is a well-written and thought provoking blog by a programmer who happens to work for Freedom Scientific. He does a great job of keeping his blog and his company separate though and doesn't brag of where he works just because. Though I don't agree with everything he says, I do like his entries and find myself going to his site more often than not to see what he has to say.

• The Ranger Station is a blog about current products and trends in adaptive and mainstream technology. The author, Ranger, has interesting views on these products and trends. Check it out.

• Blind Access Journal, by Darrell Shandrow

• Jeff Bishop's Technology Blog

• The JAWS for Windows and PAC Mate blog is a blog I've recently come across, which by its name, talks about all things JAWS and PAC Mate. Here's another resource to use in keeping up with what's happening with these products.

• If you're a reader/listener of Reader's Digest, then you'll like the RD out Loud Podcasts. Hear the magazine you read each month come to life.

• The Reece's Peeces blog has made it online. Read all about Shannon and her family in this frequently updated blog.

• Kim Komando

• Terrell's Home Page and Blog

• One Graham's View, from Houston, TX

• Carman Fan #1 is a good friend of mine, who is opinionated, a guide dog user, and knows a bit about JAWS and the PAC Mate. Carman Fan is new to blogging, but I'm certain there will be lots of reading here.

• Scott Spaulding, from Louisville, KY

• If you missed CSUN for 2006, then check out the ACB Radio Blog. Note that this blog may contain other announcements about ACB Radio programming. However, it also contains interviews, presentations, and other tidbits of information.

• NFB Convention 2005, from the Voice of the Nation's Blind website, operated and maintained by the National Federation of the Blind.

• CSUN 2005 Audio Blog, compiled by Marlaina Lieberg of ACB Radio.

• Blind Cool Tech Podcast, with Larry Skutchan, from the American Printing House for the Blind. Though this is not technically a blog, it is a cool podcast that I came across that is loaded with information. The podcasts range from reviews of APH products, to reviews of other products in the blindness field, to even a tour of the Louisville Zoo, and lots more. You can download the podcasts as MP3 files, stream them online, or even subscribe to the RSS feed and have the podcasts delivered to your podcast player of choice.

• And finally, it would be an oversight if I didn't list my blog.

If you're interested in starting your own blog, you can get one for free at Blogger or Live Journal. Blind people use both, but I tend to favor Blogger, since its affiliated with Googgle. I've heard good things about both though. Both Blogger and Live Journal use visual verification (typing in a number/letter code which is in the form of a graphic that your screen reader cannot read), and both have an audio option that's actually pretty clear, so you can hear the code and then type it in. This only happens when signing up with these services. You can require people to type in a verification code before they comment on your blog, but as far as Blogger is concerned anyway, this is an option that can be turned off.

By the way, Blogger has an add-on you can get which will allow you to write and publish your posts from within Microsoft Word. Check out the Blogger help page About Blogger for Word for details.

Before you blog, decide ahead of time what you will blog about and what you won't. Many people have gotten in trouble for blogging about their job, things that happen on the job, secrets of their work, or other things. As a result, their blogs were read by their employers or others affiliated with their companies, and the bloggers have been fired. This is why I strongly advise anyone who has just started a blog or wants to start one to decide now what you won't blog about, and stick to it, whether it be work, politics, moral issues, or whatever. Also, know that anything you blog on will likely be on the web for some time to come. In other words, don't write about something that you wouldn't want to come back and bite you later. Other than that, enjoy blogging. And let me know what your address is and I'll take a look at your blog and possibly even add it here.

If you have any comments or suggestions for blogs I should add, then please fill out my Feedback Form.