Bookshare's Read2Go iPhone Application Now Available

Image: iPad with the Read2Go App
Logo displayed on the screen.

Attention Bookshare members.  Bookshare's long awaited Read2Go iPhone and iPad Application is now available. The following is an excerpt from the Read2Go announcement from the Bookshare Blog:

"Announcing the new Read2Go App, the DAISY reader for Bookshare on the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.  Read2Go is an accessible e-book reader that was developed by Benetech (the parent nonprofit for Bookshare),  in partnership with Shinano Kenshi Co. Ltd (best known for its PLEXTALK® brand of digital talking book players)...

This very easy-to-use app for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch connects directly to Bookshare for immediate on-the-go reading.  From within the app, individual users and schools supporting students can search, download, and read Bookshare books and periodicals and manage their books in a bookshelf. In addition, Read2Go reads DAISY 2.02 and 3.0 materials from some other sources...

Additional features, such as study tools, images, and multiple languages, will become be available in the coming months."

The Read2Go application is available from the iTunes Apple Store for 19.99.  You must be a Bookshare member to access this service.  If you have a condition such as vision loss/impairment you may qualify for Bookshare membership.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Bookshare

CLICK HERE to read the original Bookshare Blog Post

CLICK HERE to learn more at read2go.org

WBRC Tours New RFBD Recording Studio

Interior of a recording booth at the newly located Recording

for the Blind & Dyslexic offices in Palo Alto, CA

Ten staff from the Western Blind Rehabilitation Center (WBRC) toured the newly located Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic (RFB&D) offices in Palo Alto, CA during the RFB&D ‘Record-A-Thon’ in March 2011. The staff participated in a tour of the new facility as well as education regarding the RFB&D services, membership, and technology. RFB&D, originally founded for wounded veterans, works to bring accessible materials to individuals with visual and learning disabilities, free of charge. Materials ranging from fiction novels to advanced subject textbooks including science and mathematics are voice recorded by volunteers and are made available via the RFB&D website. This can be extremely valuable as volunteers are able to explain charts and graphs that are not ‘translated’ when scanning documents.

WBRC staff got a chance to take a look at books marked with

notes prior to recording to guide the volunteer reading the materials

Currently the RFB&D has 20 recording studios throughout the United States and has recorded approximately 78,000 books. Members are able to download these recorded books free of charge using their computer and can also request the RFB&D to record books not currently available for download. RFB&D has also recently published an iTunes application which allows users to use an iPad, iPhone, or iPod to access the RFB&D data base and download books without using a computer.

For a LINK to the RFB&D website CLICK HERE