I Second Bill Paul's point about the importance of integration.

["Jacobs, Steve I" <sj131264@exchange.DAYTONOH.NCR.com>]

In the attached message Bill Paul stresses the importance of "smooth
integration" as a critical success factor in successfully accommodating
individuals with disabilities through the use of IT products.  

Bill's comments have motivated me to do the following...

Just like it was recommended (in Section 255) that AAES be formed in support
of the success of adhering to 255's guidelines....  I propose that Section
508 list, as a standard, that assistive technology solution providors make
their support databases available to Federal support organizations (in
free-form full-text format) for the purpose of establishing an assistive
technology, cross-product, support database.  Theoretically, this should
help to minimize integration problems.  

PLEASE NOTE:  The number of occurrences of particular problems, user
information, and other information deemed proprietary by the manufacturer
will not need to be included in the information provided to said Federal
Support umbrella Organization.  

I would be intertested in everyone's thoughts concerning my comments
above... and the following:


Potential 508 Compliance Problems:

* Difficulties with integration;
* Slow, internal, response time to correct problems;
* No organized way to determine which products are yielding the best ROI in
the areas of supportability, dependability, functionality, customer support
responsiveness, etc.;


Free-Form Text Database Benefits:

* Save money by enabling Federal support staff to resolve problems more
quickly and efficiently and log the solution(s) for others to make use of;  
* Easier identification of IT support people, with specific IT
knowledge-sets, across all disabilities and agencies;
* Easier identification of individuals using particular assistive
technologies.  This could be helpful in problem-solving and mentoring.
* Save manufacturers money by providing mechanism for enhanced local support
capabilities;

Proposed Free-Form Text Database Functions:

* Create similar resource to Technet;
* Track HW and SW incompatibilities between assistive technologies and
computers;
* Document successful support and accommodation processes;
* Identify best practices;
* Create virtual communities of common users;
* Support mentorship program;
* Share hints, tips and suggestions;
* Metrics to help determine customer satisfaction; 

Free-Form Text Database Critical success factors:

* Manufacturers of assistive IT will need to provide information contained
in their technical support databases to Federal Government Support
Organization;
* All HW and SW acquisitions, in the area of assistive technologies must be
entered into database.


Sincerely,


Steve Jacobs, President
Individuals with Disabilities: 
  Enabling Advocacy Link (IDEAL) at NCR
NCR Corporation
1529 Brown St. EMD-5
Dayton, Ohio 45479

(937)445-6396 Voice
(937)445-2468 Fax
(800)855-2880 TTY
steve.jacobs@daytonoh.ncr.com
www.ncr.com



> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Bill Paul [SMTP:BillPaul@compuserve.com]
> Sent:	Monday, October 19, 1998 8:15 AM
> To:	Multiple recipients of list
> Subject:	EITAAC - Families Subcommittee
> 
> 
> The list David Bolnick provides, is very comprehensive but I would like to
> emphasize that what is often missing is the systems integration.  For
> example, Don Dillin, a recognized expert in the field of assisstive
> technology for the visually impaired, was hired by me to install in my
> second home, a computer, scanner, printer with Zoom Text and Compuserve. 
> He purchased an IBM computer an HP scanner and an HP printer.  He brought
> the boxes with the hardware to my home and spent about 10 hours trying to
> get the disparate black boxes and software to work.  He could not get the
> HP scanner to work with the computer, and we had troubles with the
> compatibility of Compuserve and Zoom Text.
> 
> He went back to Washington with the boxes and he worked another group of
> hours and had to change computers to get the system to work.  He sent the
> sysstem w/o the printer to my home.  I put the sysstem together and the
> scanner still did not work.  It turns out that my printer and the
> scananner
> did not play together.  Don kindly offered to fly down to FLA to fix it. 
> Instead, I sought out a local guru who in turn could not get the system
> and
> the scanner to work.  I called HP and voiced my frusstrations that it
> shouldn't require an expert to make the basic system work.  I asked him if
> I had bought all HP equipment, would the system be compatible.  He said
> no,
> different product developers don't talk to one another and it will never
> happen.
> 
> I will now try to buy a combined printer, copier and scanner and hope that
> it works with Zoom Text.  
> 
> Lesson learned buy a system unless you are a computer buff.  I and many of
> my disabled  friends are users and know littele about video cards and the
> like.  This is a very tough issue but in the end, software must not only
> be
> able to be accessible to assistive software purchased by the government,
> but also the wquipment must be able to be put into a system wihich works
> without requiring a software and computer expert in residence.
> 
> Bill Paul