LIBRARY LINE LIBRARY FOR THE BLIND AND PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED THE FREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA

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1 LIBRARY LINE LIBRARY FOR THE BLIND AND PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED THE FREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA Spring 2016 A Message from Keri s Desk Happy spring from Philadelphia! I hope you spent most of your time this winter hibernating with a good book and avoiding the snowstorms. On the topic of books, I would like to share a few books I have had read recently. I am currently reading Stephen King s Four Past Midnight (DB32004 and LP12148). It is a collection of four novellas and is a short read. I usually read books that are between 15 and 25 hours long, so this book has been a nice break. The recent partnership of Jesse and Jonathan Kellerman is a great surprise. They are both bestselling masters of crime fiction and have partnered on the new Detective Jason Lev series. I just finished the second book, The Golem of Paris (DB82718), and it was electrifying! A tangled thriller of past and present swirls family, murders, secrets, and two continents together with a heart-wrenching crescendo the first book in this series is The Golem of Hollywood (DB80073 and LP31241). I don t think either book will disappoint if you love a thrilling ride. If you have any favorite titles you wish to share, I hope you will send us your review, so we can post it on our Facebook page or use it in a future newsletter. Your dedicated librarian, Keri Wilkins Administrator

2 New BARD Mobile Apps Are Here! The BARD (Braille and Audio Recording Download) Mobile Application for Android devices is now available at the Google Play store. If you do not already have a Google account, you will need to create one, and then log in to download the app, which can easily be found by searching for BARD Mobile. The BARD Mobile app is a free download and is compatible with any device running Android OS 4.1 or higher. The Kindle Fire BARD App is also here! NLS reached an agreement with Amazon for a Kindle Fire application (only versions 2013 to present). This app allows customers to download NLS books from BARD directly to their Kindle Fire tablet. Download the app from the Amazon Appstore. If you do not already have a BARD account, you will need to fill out an application at nlsbard.loc.gov/login/nls. Use the application instructions link and select the appropriate application to fill out. Call us if you have questions or need more information. New Braille Code On January 4, 2016 (Louis Braille s 207 th birthday), NLS implemented the Unified English Braille (UEB) code, which is the first extensive change to Braille code since the 1930s. The new code uses the same six-dot pattern, but it drops some contractions, uses different spacing rules, and allows for translating a wider array of symbols. These changes will especially benefit students and other users of technology. Existing books in the current Braille code (English Braille American Edition) will remain in the NLS Braille collection and will still be available to patrons. The Braille Authority of North America (BANA) is the body that oversees the use, teaching, and production of Braille in the United States. More information about the new UEB Braille can be found on the organization s website: brailleauthority.org/ueb.html. To help readers transition to the new code, BANA has released the UEB Reader, a free hardcopy booklet with an overview of the changes and example documents to read. To request a free copy, please call Kim Charlson at and leave a message with your name, address, and phone number, or send an to kim.charlson@perkins.org.

3 Featured App: Be My Eyes The Be My Eyes app assists visually impaired users by connecting them with sighted helpers. By using direct-video call technology, the visuallyimpaired individual can point a device s camera at an item or area and the sighted individual can either help by reading the information on the product or guiding the visually-impaired individual in locating an item. This app is useful in navigating new surroundings or reading expiration dates on perishable items or medicines. All assistance is provided by a volunteer. The Be My Eyes app is currently available for Apple devices. The Android app is under development. The idea for this app came from Hans Jørgen Wiberg, a visually-impaired individual who realized the need for this service through his work with the Danish Blind Society. For more information, please visit bemyeyes.org. Resources for Bibles and Other Sacred Writings Many of our customers express interest in having their own copy of the Bible to keep, or interest in a wider variety of sacred writings than is currently available through NLS. For those interested, NLS has put together an excellent reference guide, which is available online at loc.gov/nls/reference/guides/bibles.html. We also refer customers to Braille Bibles International, which offers the Authorized King James Version, the English Standard Version, and the New Living Translation in audio on digital cartridge for no cost. They also offer the King James and the New King James, as well as a children s Bible in Braille at no cost. For a $15.00 donation, they will provide the King James and New King James Bibles in large print. Braille Bibles International can be found at braillebibles.org or by calling

4 Don t Forget about NFB-Newsline! We offer NFB-Newsline, another free service, to our customers. This toll-free service allows customers to listen to over 300 newspapers and magazines using their telephone. There is now also an option to listen on a personal computer or portable device. The following Pennsylvania newspapers are available: Allentown Morning Call Altoona Mirror Bucks County Courier Times Butler Eagle Centre Daily Times Citizens Voice (Wilkes-Barre) Erie Times News Hanover Evening Sun Lancaster News Lebanon Daily News Patriot News (Harrisburg) Philadelphia Daily News Philadelphia Inquirer Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette Pittsburgh Tribune Review Pocono Record Reading Eagle Times Tribune (Scranton) Wilkes-Barre Times Leader Williamsport Sun Gazette York Dispatch To learn more or sign up for Newsline, contact LBPH at

5 FAQ (Frequently Asked Question) Why am I not receiving books? Here are some tips to help ensure that books and other material keep arriving on a regular basis: Timely return of material: It is best to send back items as you finish them, to ensure that new material arrives. Magazine cartridges must be returned before the next issue is sent. Request list: If titles are mailed to you based on a request list, be sure you keep a lengthy list. This ensures that you always have material on the way. Magazine Subscriptions Good news if you receive magazines! NLS has extended the checkout time for magazines on cartridge. If you receive a magazine cartridge that has only weekly magazines, you will have three weeks to read them instead of one week. If the magazine cartridge has weekly and monthly magazines, you will have seven weeks to read them instead of four weeks. If the magazine cartridge has only monthly magazines on it, you will have seven weeks to return it. Please contact us if you are interested in adding or cancelling any magazine subscriptions. Goodbye to Cassettes! The National Library Service has ceased production and distribution of the cassette book and magazine collection. NLS continues the Analog-to-Digital program, digitizing many of the books originally produced in the cassette (analog) format the converted titles can be downloaded from BARD or requested on cartridge. The digital book collection (DB) far surpasses the cassette collection in both quality and quantity.

6 Summer Camp at LBPH LBPH partners with the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) to bring the BELL (Braille Enrichment and Literacy Learning) Program to Philadelphia. The BELL Program is designed to provide intensive Braille instruction to blind and low-vision children during the summer months. This program serves students who are not currently receiving enough Braille instruction in school or could benefit from Braille enrichment over the summer. We hold the program for two weeks in July in Center City, Philadelphia, at LBPH. Most activities are group-oriented, though some lessons are independent. Topics include nonvisual techniques, Braille reading, and travel skills. Children also learn things they do not in school such as the practicalities of everyday life, like passing items to others at the lunch table and navigating on their own. Students come to the program with different levels of Braille experience, from those who are able to read contracted Braille to those who are just beginning to learn the alphabet. This year s camp begins on July 11, If interested in registering your child for this camp, please contact the NFB of Pennsylvania at or send an to bell@nfbp.org. Computer Classes at LBPH Inglis Community Support Services (inglis.org) offers comprehensive programs that support the physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being of individuals with disabilities living independently in the community. We are pleased to partner with Inglis to offer computer classes at our location. These lessons include basic computing skills, access and management, voice activation software, Skype, computer art, and much more. Our classes are every Friday, starting at 10:00 a.m. Outreach News Do you love our service? Share your love by becoming an ambassador for LBPH and telling everyone you know about us! Our outreach team is happy to exhibit at resource fairs, conventions, conferences, and veterans events and may be able to provide speakers for events at schools, libraries, support groups, retirement communities, and senior centers throughout the state.

7 If you would like us to provide a speaker at your support group or facility or to exhibit at your event, or if you are interested in becoming an ambassador, please contact Aimee Thrasher-Hanson at or thrasher-hansona@freelibrary.org. Interested in Volunteering at the LBPH? We are currently looking for volunteers for special library projects, as well as narrators. For more information contact Angel Chambers-Gilliam at or chambersa@freelibrary.org. Donations, Memorials, and Bequests Would you like to be part of the Friends of the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped? Donations to the Friends of LBPH are accepted at any time and are used to enhance and improve library services. Checks should be made payable to the Friends of the LBPH and sent to 919 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA For your convenience, donations can also be made online at freelibrary.org/support. Be sure to direct your gift to My Neighborhood Library and choose Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped in the drop-down menu.

8 Library Line is written and edited by staff of the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped of the Free Library of Philadelphia. It is available in alternative formats upon request. Library Hours Monday Friday, 9:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. Contact Us ADDRESS Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped Free Library of Philadelphia 919 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA PHONE FAX WEBSITE freelibrary.org/lbph Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped Free Library of Philadelphia 919 Walnut Street Philadelphia, PA Free Matter for the Blind and Physically Handicapped Return Service Requested possibility Empowering customers through accesible services