For quick reference, here are some points we covered in the seminar:

Blogs

-A blog is a kind of ready-made website. Many blogs are informal and people use them to share their lives and interests (i.e., daily life with a new baby, chronicles of a marathon runner, a virtual gallery of personal artwork, etc.).

-A blog can also be used in a professional capacity. Lainey Feingold, a disability rights attorney, has won awards for her law website, which is run through a simple blogging platform.

-You can structure your blog by creating categories and tags for the different types of content (text that is posted) on your blog. You can create categories as whimsical as “My philosophy on sunsets” or as businesslike as “Browse our product list.”

-With a blog, you choose from a list of different templates that will determine how your blog is set up. Templates create the colors, boxes and appearance of the content. You simply scroll through a list and choose which one best suits you.

-Two blog  platforms we reccomended were WordPress and Blogger.

Websites

-While establishing a blog is a basic and workable way to make your web presence known, building your own website allows you to be more intricate with design and functionality.

-Having a blog is generally free, whereas operating a website will usually require that you purchase a domain name and pay a monthly hosting fee. This means you buy the rights to use a certain internet address name, like BlindBargains.com. Then, you must pay rent on this online space. These fees can be quite low if you shop for deals.

-Cathy Ann Murtha of Access Technology Institute spoke with us about creating websites from scratch.  Creating your own website requires that you learn to write HTM

-HTML is a code or blueprint for a website. It relies on symbols and tags that determine everything from where a capital letter goes to how a video or sound file is inserted into a page.

-Cathy of ATI offers an HTML writing course as well as remote tech support. “This course teaches the basics of web design through some of the most advanced features of HTML, including adding images, creating tables, frames and more. By the time you are finished with this course, you will have a comprehensive understanding of the language of web page design and have the ability to share your own web creation with the world.”

-As a visually impaired techie herself, Cathy really espouses HTML skills. These skills, she says, allow one to navigate advanced web design software like Dreamweaver and tweak the software to make it more accessible.

-Cathy recommends that just as the sighted person who is setting up his or her own website should have a visually impaired user test the site to catch accessibility snags, the
VI do-it-yourselfer should have sighted users review their sites to make sure the print and graphics are easy on the eyes.
-You can get in touch with Cathy at cathy@accesstechnologyinstitute.com, (520) 303-5885.

If you missed the seminar or want a second listen, tune into it on the LightHouse Tech Seminar archive page.

Have blogging/web-building plans? Travails? Know where to search for coding shortcuts and easy plug-ins? Talk back in the Comments section!

https://statejobs.doer.state.mn.us/JobPosting/5944ad2e1a56b5d64c0cf02afd2ee4fa/View

Note the minimum educational requirement in this new posting have been adjusted and now calls for a Bachelor’s rather than a Master’s degree.

Please share this posting with all who may have interest in this very
attractive position.

Thank you.

Richard Strong
Minnesota State Services for the Blind

WAIV – WorkAbility IV at UC Berkeley

WorkAbility IV is a collaboration between the State Department of Rehabilitation (DOR) and the University of California, Berkeley. WAIV (pronounced, ‘wave’) is designed to connect Cal students with disabilities to alumni with disabilities – who are also consumers of DOR – with internships and career jobs. WAIV strives to bring together employers, UC Berkeley, DOR and the participants, and as such, offers something for each of the stakeholders.

Read more here.

Check out this WID post on what NOT to do in terms of online networking if you want to present the best image to potential employers and what NOT to do if you want to avoid a Facebook faux pas at your current work place.

If you missed Friday’s  seminar, stay tuned to the LightHouse web site for the audio archive.

The chirping of an audible crossing signal is supposed to alert him and other visually impaired pedestrians when it is safe to cross the traffic-choked street, but for several weeks the signal hasn’t worked.

“I wait for some nice person, or I take a chance,’’ the Israeli native said. “I don’t know how I’m going to get around having to cross that street. I think I’ll have to find a different way.’’

Read the rest here: http://www.boston.com/yourtown/somerville/articles/2009/08/17/advocates_urge_boston_to_add_fix_devices_that_aid_the_blind/

SF LightHouse’s Director of Public Policy, Jessie Lorenz, is quoted in the article.

Long-time pedestrian safety activist Jean Lynch in attendance at the 19th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which was held last Friday in San Francisco’s City Hall.  In this picture, Jean raises a finger and voices her concern about sidewalk traffic near Golden Gate Park.

Between March 1 and June 30, 2009, 50 presentations were conducted in the Sunset neighborhood on the importance of keeping cars off of the sidewalk. Not only was this a successful neighborhood safety campaign by over half a dozen individuals with disabilities, but our presenters were able to enhance their public speaking skills and community ties by presenting on behalf of the project.

The LightHouse VLRC Coordinator Beth Berenson is to be applauded for bringing speakers and community groups togther for these 50 presentations!

The next round of funding for the SAFE Campaign follows a similar model, however, community presentations will not be limited to the Sunset neighborhood. They will be conducted city-wide. If you have clients or friends who you think might be good public speakers–please have them talk with Beth (415 694 7322, bbereson@lighthouse-sf.org).

WE WANT TO HEAR YOUR STORIES!!

WHAT: Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) has filed a lawsuit in state and federal courts against the California Department of Transportation (“Caltrans”).

WHY: Caltrans owns over 2,500 miles of sidewalks, which includes cross-walks, intersections, pedestrian overpasses and pedestrian underpasses, across the state of California. However, there are numerous reported access barriers along these sidewalks. Examples of access barriers include corners with no curb ramps, curb ramps that are too steep, poles that make the sidewalk too narrow to pass, broken and/or uneven pavement and a lack of detectable warnings (yellow domes indicating where the sidewalk ends and street begins). The lawsuits seek to make Caltrans fix these access barriers along sidewalks, intersections and pedestrian overpasses and underpasses which are controlled by Caltrans.

WHO: The lawsuit is on behalf of all Californians with mobility and/or vision disabilities who experience access barriers along sidewalks, intersections and pedestrian overpasses and underpasses which are controlled by Caltrans.

WHERE: These lawsuits include:

•Sidewalks and intersections along and across state highways. State highways with sidewalks usually become city or town streets. They are often marked by a state highway sign.

•Sidewalks over or under state highways. Pedestrian overpasses or underpasses are sidewalks along bridges which pass over a freeway or sidewalks along streets which pass under a freeway.

HOW: If you would like to share your experiences about access to sidewalks, intersections or pedestrian overpasses and underpasses covered by this lawsuit, or if you would like to find out which sidewalks in your area are covered by this lawsuit, please contact us. Even if you previously talked to us, please give us your updates. You can contact us by calling 510-665-8644 (ask for Haley or Katie) or by e-mailing us at hfagan@dralegal.org or kweed@dralegal.org.

Disability Rights Advocates
2001 Center Street, Fourth Floor
Berkeley, CA 94704
Telephone: 510-665-8644
Fax: 510-665-8511
TTY: 510-665-8716
Website: www.dralegal.org

Pushing Limits is a bi-monthly radio program on KPFA (Berkeley). It is produced by persons with disabilities and covers advocacy issues, arts, cultural affairs and current events that affect and reflect a diverse disability community. You can listen to show archives here: www.kpfa.org/archive/show/complete/33

The public speaking training segment originally scheduled for February 16 has been rescheduled.

The new date and location is:
March 2, 9:30 am to 12:00 pm
Mission Creek Community, 225 Berry Street

Cantonese translation will be provided.
 
LightHouse for the Blind will be training participants to speak at community and neighborhood meetings regarding the hazards of obstructed sidewalks.

For each assigned speaking engagement, presenters will earn $50.

Mission Creek was chosen because a number of seniors living there
have friends and relatives who live in the Sunset District.
 
By March 6, Senior Action Network will update everyone on the Senior University classes scheduled for the remaining fiscal year.
 
Thank you for your time and patience.
 
Pi Ra
Senior University Director
Senior Action Network
965 Mission St. #705
San Francisco, CA 94103
415-546-2096 work
415-225-2080 cell