News April-June 1998, Vol. 29, No. 2 ISSN 1046-1663 National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped The Library of Congress Work continues toward digital standards The Digital Talking Book Standards Committee, working under the auspices of the National Information Standards Organization (NISO), continued development of a standard for a digital talking-book (DTB) system. Three working group meetings held in January focused on specific aspects of the future system. Their reports were considered by the full committee in March. The committee began its activities in May 1997 and is made up of twenty-two organizations, including those representing consumers of NLS services. Working groups meet The group tasked with examining text-navigation features (working group 1) prepared a draft report describing a list of features that would be required by the most advanced digital talking-book user reading the most complex DTB. The list described nearly fifty features, including, for example, such capabilities as moving through the book a word, sentence, paragraph, or page at a time; jumping directly from the table of contents or index to an item listed there; placing bookmarks at important points throughout the document to which a user can quickly return; and searching for a specific word or phrase. The production-guidelines group (working group 2) met and based their discussions on the draft report from working group 1. The committee members looked at the features described and analyzed their impact on the production of a DTB. Approximately half the features listed would require some special intervention during production and half could be implemented solely through functions built into the playback device. Members crafting a file specification (working group 3) followed the outline of working group 1's report, assessing how the file specification should be structured in order to implement each feature listed. The general consensus of the group was that the file structure of a DTB would consist of three major parts: an audio file, a text file (necessary for word spelling and text searches), and a linking file that synchronizes the audio and text files. Discussion also centered on the specific software tools needed to handle the complexities of digital talking books. In addition, the group recognized the need for a "book information file" that would hold summary information about the book and a "navigation center" that would include every significant text element in the book, from dust jacket information, copyright statement, and foreword, through chapters, sections, and subsections, whether or not these items were listed in the table of contents. The navigation center, as its name implies, would be the primary tool used by readers to navigate through a document. Full committee reviews After reviewing the working groups' reports, the full committee met on March 15 and 16 in Los Angeles. Members first discussed the report on navigation features. A key area of focus was the relationship between the table of contents found in the print document and the navigation center discussed above. Members were concerned that if both included a full range of navigation features and options, yet were different (the navigation center would normally contain much more detail than the print table of contents), users would be confused by the differences. The group recommended that the print table of contents contain no navigation options other than hypertext links to the items listed, while the navigation center would be very flexible and could be accessed in a wide variety of ways. The committee asked that the working group incorporate the committee's recommended changes and then make the document widely available to consumers and other interested parties for comment. Three members gave demonstrations of DTB hardware and software prototypes.  Gilles Pepin of VisuAide, Inc., demonstrated a CD-ROM-based DTB player that incorporates nearly all the functions listed in the navigation features report. He also showed the group a personal-computer-based program that altered the speed of a portion of narration over a wide range without changing the pitch of the narrator's voice.  Dennis DeVendra of Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic played a prototype DTB on a laptop computer, illustrating how a user could move instantly from one part of a DTB to another and how the text and audio segments were synchronized at the sentence level so that a sentence would be highlighted on the screen while the audio portion played.  Mark Hakkinen of The Productivity Works, Inc., also demonstrated a digital talking book that links the text and audio files. All three demonstrations revealed the great potential offered by digital talking books for ease of use, enhanced access to information, and fast, flexible navigation through a document. File specifications Mark Hakkinen, chair of the file-specification working group, led a discussion on developments in each of the three areas of the file structure: text, audio, and linking. Text. The committee continued the discussion begun in the January file specification meeting regarding the choice of markup language for the text file. Rather than endorse one particular program at this point in the standards development process, the committee chose to focus instead on the underlying requirements of text markup. A working group was created to develop the markup-language specification. Called the MarkUp Specification Team (MUST), it will be chaired by George Kerscher of the DAISY Consortium and include ten other committee members. Audio. Lloyd Rasmussen of NLS presented an overview of the current status of audio coding systems. He described the different approaches taken by the systems, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. His conclusion was that any of several widely used coding systems can provide high-quality sound and significant savings in storage requirements. Linking. Michael Gosse of the National Federation of the Blind presented a proposal for synchronizing the text and audio files at the word level, using a separate binary file to indicate the precise time at which each word begins in the audio track. When a user identifies a specific word in the audio file, the playback device would calculate its position (e.g., tenth word in the paragraph) and locate the word at the same position in the corresponding paragraph in the text file. The committee discussed several mechanisms for limiting the size of the binary file so that it would not significantly impact the overall size of the DTB. Other issues Copyright. During a discussion of copyright issues, Mary-Frances Laughton of Industry Canada reported that the Association of Canadian Publishers (ACP) has been meeting with Canadian producers of alternate format materials to discuss methods of ensuring that only eligible populations have access to such materials. Action planned. Working group 1 will incorporate committee recommendations into its navigation features document and distribute it widely for comment. Working group 3 will track and report on developments in linking schemes and markup languages. The recently formed MUST group 4 will meet at least once to begin development of the markup-language specification. The full committee will meet next in October. For more information on the NISO Digital Talking Book Standards Committee, see News, January-March 1997, July-September 1997, and October-December 1997. A list of participating organizations appears in the October-December issue. Audio advisory committee reviews digital projects A review of major NLS digital projects highlighted the National Audio Equipment Advisory Committee meeting at NLS March 18-20 led by John Cookson, head of the NLS Engineering Section. The fourteen-member group representing consumers, librarians, and volunteer repair personnel made a total of thirty-eight recommendations, including consumer concerns that any future digital talking-book machine should be small, light, sturdy, and easy to use. The committee's librarian recommendations also urged NLS to develop and implement a plan to find alternative sources for machine repair and to report on plans at the National Conference of Librarians Serving Blind and Physically Handicapped Individuals in Burlington, Vermont. Brad Kormann, chief of the NLS Materials Development Division, explained that NLS planned to address this concern at a breakfast session on May 4 at the national conference. "NLS will solicit further ideas on how it can work with the Telephone Pioneers, Elfuns, Lions Clubs, and others to increase recruitment of repair volunteers," Kormann said. Projects outlined Cookson provided committee members with a full update of the National Information Standards Organization (NISO) initiative to develop an NLS digital talking-book standard. He briefed the committee on current activity and held a lively discussion on the timing and steps needed to implement digital technology into the NLS program. Bob Fistick, head of the NLS Publications and Media Section, announced that NLS will be issuing a major paper, "Digital Talking Books: Planning for the Future," to be released in July 1998. He said the paper outlines the NLS digital planning effort and provides a complete overview of how the digital talking-book project will evolve. Fistick is coordinating publication of the eighty-page document, which includes a series of technical articles by eight NLS authors. "It is anticipated that this paper will answer many of the questions about the NLS efforts to date and into the future," Fistick said. Cookson also discussed two significant NLS studies involving current talking-book-machine technology. One study found that while inexpensive over-the-counter commercial tape players are attractive for use in the program, "to date, NLS has not found any commercial products that provide the reliability and cost-effectiveness of our NLS program cassette players." The Engineering Section is currently evaluating a new Telex player. Reviews of other significant projects included a presentation by Margie Goergen-Rood, NLS recording studio director, who discussed the NLS digital original mastering and duplication experiment, and a summary by Lloyd Rasmussen, senior electronics engineer, and Cookson on the research and development supporting the NISO digital talking-book standard development project. Committee recommendations Committee members presented a large number of recommendations for consideration by NLS staff. "These all have to be evaluated for feasibility of implementation," says Cookson, "but they are all important in showing the direction of the committee's thinking." Consumer representatives felt that the new digital talking book should be small, light, sturdy, and easy to use. The group also commended NLS on its work to date, but recommended that the study of digital talking-book technology be completed and that a prototype player be produced in the next two to three years. It also asked that committee members' names be published in Talking Book Topics and Braille Book Review. Volunteer repair representatives recommended that NLS increase funding for replacement parts for cassette book machines; that NLS fund and continue the "Train the Trainer" program as well as the volunteer recognition and recruitment efforts; and that NLS investigate several technical concerns including the development and field testing of NLS and commercial battery charging systems, the amplifier board recovery and repair effort, frozen head adjustment screws, and problems with the use of electrolytic capacitors in the C-1 frequency compensation circuit. They also recommended that NLS "review, revise, and publish the traditional `rules of thumb' for repair procedures and guidelines for head replacement, rubber replacement, limits on maximum repair time, preinspection of machines, and the like." Finally, they requested that NLS reword the volunteer repair standard torque requirement. Librarian representatives made eighteen recommendations, including "encouragement and support of NLS's continued efforts in studying digital talking-book technology and developing standards." They urged that NLS hold a preconference for machine agents at the 2000 National Conference. The group called on NLS to "study and report on the present and projected patron base to determine machine and book/magazine production needs of the program until the new (digital) talking-book technology is implemented. The study should include changes in readership such as eligible student, reading disabled, and growing elderly population." In addition, librarian committee members said NLS should make repair of the "easy" (E-1) cassette machine a high priority, and that NLS should take action to resolve the parts shortage problems in the field. Suggestions included that NLS supply repair centers with lubrication charts and specifications, as used by the manufacturer; that to "alleviate the problem of dust and other contamination in the controls, NLS should look into covering the slide area with cloth or other material"; and that the C-1 cassette player service manual be updated to include changes in the machine, new amplifier board, different parts, and the lubrication chart. National Audio Equipment Advisory Committee members Consumer representatives: American Council of the Blind, Alice Jackson; Blinded Veterans Association, Corrinne Blank; National Federation of the Blind, Bonnie Peterson; Northern Region, John Farina; Western Region, Fred Mansfield Network library representatives: Midlands Region, Robert Watson; Northern Region, Richard Riddell; Southern Region, Rebecca Sherrill; Western Region, David Whittall Telephone Pioneer representatives: Midlands Region, Jerry Adamson; Northern Region, Carl Gingrich; Southern Region, J. Walter Alfred; Western Region, Richard Iversen Elfun representative: Robert A. Smith Network exchange Missouri (Jefferson City). Great things are happening at the Wolfner Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (LBPH). First the regional library announced the availability of online access to its collections, and then its director, Elizabeth Eckles, received some well-deserved recognition. Inaugurated December 4, 1997, the Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC), also called wolfpac, will allow patrons to interactively query the LBPH's holdings from computers that have an Internet or Telnet connection. OPAC can be reached through Wolfner's home page at http://mosl.sos.state.mo.us/lib-ser/wolf/wolfhome.html. However, the patron's browser must have a Telnet application or configuration installed. Users may also Telnet to wolfpac.sos.state.mo.us or they may dial the modem line at (573) 526-0318. The call is not toll-free. On March 21 the National Federation of the Blind of Missouri presented regional librarian Beth Eckles, who has headed the LBPH since 1986, with its 1998 Missouri Affiliate Award for Outstanding and Dedicated Service to the Blind of Missouri. The plaque was presented at the annual state conference, held this year in St. Joseph, by chapter president Gary Wunder. Approximately 175 members and representatives from NFB headquarters in Baltimore attended. Florida (Daytona Beach). The Florida regional library has released three new bibliographies and, as a result of a donation, has boosted its braille production. Southern Women Writers: A Bibliography of Fictional Works from 1866 to the Present features pieces written by authors who live in the South, moved to the South, and who wrote about the South. It was compiled by Martha Forbes, assistant librarian, and Vivian Godfrey, office manager, both of the Florida Talking Book and Braille Library (FTBBL). Children's librarian Linda Hill, also of FTBBL, has produced Communication Station: Tune In at Your Library. This bibliography contains selections about the many ways people communicate-- "talking, writing, signing, and understanding"--for younger readers. Listings include braille and recorded books about methods of communications used in the past and present and those anticipated for the future. The Bradenton Talking Book Service produced Holidays: A Selective Bibliography. This publication, a revised edition of Anita Horan's 1993 compilation, includes books in recorded and braille formats for children and adults. It lists selections about Cinco de Mayo, Columbus Day, Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot, and St. Patrick's Day, among other traditional observances. Frank Duda and Terri Simon updated this one. Braille production at the Florida Talking Book and Braille Library got a boost when Bell South donated five IBM 386 computers. Don Weber, regional librarian, said the computers are being used by volunteers to help increase production of braille publications for the patrons. Four are being used at the library and one has been placed in a volunteer's home. Regional libraries: Moves and renovations In the last issue of News, we reported on major renovations and relocations of several regional libraries in the past year. The growth and improvements continue. Michigan's Wayne County regional library moved to new facilities in early 1998 (see below). The library's new address is in Westland, Michigan, although it is only about two miles down the road from the former location in Wayne. The New Jersey Library for the Blind and Handicapped at Trenton has undergone major renovations to increase storage space and improve the library for patrons and staff. Newly designed stack areas increased storage capacity by at least 50 percent; the library now has more than 54,000 linear feet of shelves. The improvements required intensive engineering to meet New Jersey's newly adopted seismic standards--essentially requiring a structure-within-a-structure to bear the weight of the library's expanding collection of more than 600,000 volumes. Other improvements included new carpeting, especially in stack areas that had been steel-grated flooring, new lighting, heating and cooling systems, and overall aesthetic upgrading. (photo: Shelving books in new stack areas at the New Jersey regional library.) Conference of Librarians: "Freedom and Unity" At the National Conference of Librarians Serving Blind and Physically Handicapped Individuals held in Burlington, Vermont, on May 3-7, several hundred librarians echoed their support of the Vermont state motto, "Freedom and Unity," by displaying the combination of self-determination and cooperation that has characterized the largest and longest lived library network in the world. The biennial event was highlighted by programs designed by the national network's four regional conferences. They included presentations on cooperation between paid and volunteer staff, subject code standardization, program evaluation measures, services to children, downloadable software tutorials, and health issues for library staff handling playback equipment. In addition to activities and program updates by ten NLS managers, conference attendees were addressed by Lloyd L. Burlingame, chairperson emeritus, Department of Design, Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, in the conference's keynote address. (See News, July-September 1997.) Dr. Euclid J. Herie, president of the World Blind Union and chief executive officer of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), delivered the Presidential Address titled "Information: A World Perspective." The conference was also treated to a return engagement by Elliot Engel, literary lecturer and professor of literature on leave from North Carolina State University, who captivated the audience with his lecture on Emily Dickinson. A highlight of the conference was a visit to nearby Montreal, Canada, where the Canadian National Institute for the Blind provided an overview of its national library services, including its new vision of library service to print-handicapped people called "VISUNET:Canada." Presenters included Michele Brul‚, managing director, CNIB, Quebec; Gabriel Collard, executive director, Institut Nazareth et Louis Braille (a CNIB partner in Quebec); and Rosemary Kavanagh and Victoria Owen, executive director and director of library services, respectively, CNIB Library for the Blind. A preconference workshop on network consulting, led by Devon Skeele, NLS network consultant, took place on Saturday, May 2, with more than eighty participants. On Wednesday, May 6, Robert McDermott, NLS automation - officer, led the national automation conference, which included demonstrations on the new bibliographic update and copy allotment facilities; READS II, the new circulation system for network libraries; and online access by libraries to the CMLS (Comprehensive Mailing-List System) patron database. Several significant developments were covered during the conference, including a report by Michael Moodie, NLS research and development officer, on a new study of educational reading services for print-disabled students. Mary Mohr, NLS network consultant, spoke on the potential benefits for network libraries of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Moodie also addressed the group on "A Digital Talking Book Standard: The NISO Process," and was followed by George Kerscher, DAISY (Digital Audio Information System) project manager, who discussed that digital project. NLS director Frank Kurt Cylke presented Vermont Telephone Pioneers with a Library of Congress plaque recognizing their volunteer machine repair efforts. The conference was coordinated by Moodie, assisted by George Thuronyi, writer-editor in the NLS Publications and Media Section, and by Alice Freeman, program management assistant in the Office of the Director. (photo caption: Keri Putnam, Nevada, calls the roll of states.) (photo caption: Karen Socha, Kansas, and other participants respond with enthusiasm to network reports of activities and accomplishments.) (photo caption: Reacting to the speaker--Grace Lyons, District of Columbia; Edye Benson, Albany, New York) (photo caption: Lloyd L. Burlingame delivers the keynote address.) (photo caption: Karnell Parry, Multistate Center West (left), converses with Kay Salmon, Idaho. In background is Euclid Herie, CNIB.) (photo caption: Jim Miller, NLS equipment control officer, responds to a question from Gary Swint, Georgia, and Deenie Culver, Alabama.) (Photos by Carolyn L. Bates.) New librarians appointed in three regionals Regional libraries in Michigan, Montana, and Texas are now under new leadership. All three librarians came from within their library or state library and are familiar to the network. Michigan. Fred Howkins became the new regional librarian at Michigan's Wayne County Regional Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped in Westland, Michigan, in early April. Howkins has worked at the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped for more than eleven years and served as assistant regional librarian since 1994. His predecessor, Pat Klemans, will remain closely involved with the regional library in her new capacity as Wayne County Librarian. Howkins plans to move Michigan's regional library further into the information age in the next few years. He has chaired the national users group working toward the implementation of the NLS automated circulation system known as the Reader Enrollment and Distribution System (READS). He also looks forward to the Wayne County regional library serving as a "beta" test site for the newer READS II system after it is installed there this summer. Michigan's regional library staff has been busy in early 1998 with the exciting but exhausting business of moving its collection of more than 120,000 volumes from the library's former home on Van Born Road in Wayne to new facilities at 30555 Michigan Avenue, Westland (see the map on the library's homepage!). The new location will ease access to the library for many of its 3,500-plus patrons; its more convenient location is on a major highway and bus route. The building houses the library's collections on compact shelving that will allow ample room for expansion. The one-story facility occupies 7,200 square feet of space, including a separate reading room for patrons using adaptive equipment and computers. The library already has an array of adaptive technology, including a Kurzweil reader that scans and reads out printed material for visually handicapped patrons. Montana. The Montana Talking Book Library at Helena has a new librarian-in-charge as of February 1998. New regional librarian Christie Briggs had considerable experience dealing with the talking-book program in her previous job as coordinator of volunteer services for the Montana State Library. "The great majority of our volunteers," Briggs said, "were involved in helping provide the services of the Talking Book Library." Before becoming coordinator of volunteer services, Briggs had also worked with several nonprofit organizations and - social services in Oregon. Briggs believes that exciting changes are in store for the regional library in the next few years, as services for blind and handicapped library patrons proliferate. An important focus at Helena will be expanding hands-on, patron-oriented services. "Perhaps it's a sense of remoteness in this state," she says, "that makes our patrons' demands for access to information so pressing." The Talking Book Library has a small-but-growing population of sophisticated computer users among its patrons, too. The installation of the Keystone Library Automated System (KLAS) in late 1997 opened the door to a new world of patron-friendly devices for extending services to print-handicapped readers. Briggs expects the regional library to focus on improving services for learning-disabled patrons, especially young people, in the next few years. "In response to the growing understanding of different types of learning disabilities and of ways to cope with these challenges, talking books and other special-format library resources will be in great demand." Montana's Talking Book Library expects its roster of patrons, now around 3,000, to increase in response to new access for learning-disabled library patrons. Texas. Jenifer Flaxbart became regional librarian of the Texas State Library Talking Book Program on May 1, 1998. Flaxbart has worked in the talking-book program for more than five years, including six months as acting division director from November 1997 to April 1998. Flaxbart's plans for the regional library in 1998 and 1999 include expanding its talking-book production and improving patron access to library materials. The Texas library's recording studio for producing talking books has been in operation for more than twenty years, and the library held a celebration recognizing its volunteers who narrate and produce talking books on April 25, 1998. In the next few months, the library will make changes in the studio and recording procedures that will enable it to participate in the NLS talking-book quality-assurance program. Another goal of the new regional librarian is to improve reader access to information about and in the library collections through innovations in automated equipment. The regional library's ACCESS system allows patrons to search local holdings and to order reading materials online. In the future, Flaxbart and the staff of the regional library hope to expand the ability of patrons to use home computers to access library materials. Patron brings braille to Kansas classroom "I didn't know braille books were that big. Or there was such a thing as legally blind," says a Manhattan, Kansas, third grader in her thank-you note to Marion Rice, subregional librarian, and Deanna Howard, a library patron. Most of the notes are filled with "I didn't know..." and "It was fun to learn," expressing the excitement of children discovering something new, different, and interesting. Howard and Rice have been giving programs at schools in the area for the past five years. They visit classrooms at all grade levels, but seem to get the most requests from third grade teachers. "Deanna is quite an amazing lady who lost her vision about twenty years ago," says Rice. "She is legally blind with some peripheral vision. She talks about white cane and guide dog etiquette and shares stories of her life experiences as a blind person, including her hobbies of bowling and quilting. "She gives a braille lesson using small braille alphabet cards given to each student, along with a flannel board and dots. She brings her Perkins brailler and brailles the names of students for them to keep." For her part in the presentation, Rice tells about talking books and how children enrolled in the program can use them at home and at school, and about toys and games for children who are visually impaired. She also asks them to share the good news of talking books with family, neighbors, and friends. "The children are fascinated by Deanna's stories and always have lots of questions for her," says Rice. "Some are pretty rare!" (Material for this article was provided by Marion Rice, subregional librarian in Manhattan, Kansas.) International briefs Ireland. The European Union-funded TESTLAB project (Testing Systems Using Telematics for Library Access for Blind and Visually Handicapped Readers) is conducting trials in six countries to help improve access to printed materials for visually impaired readers. During a two-year trial period, blind and visually handicapped library patrons will evaluate the effectiveness and suitability of new online-access technology. The innovations include new mechanisms for scanning and reading text, which produce synthetic voice output or large-character on-screen displays, and the use of braille bars, which give line-by-line braille representations of computer output. An important feature of the new systems is that scanned items are stored digitally in the computer's memory, so they can be retrieved, searched, and manipulated easily at any time after - being scanned. The National Council for the Blind of Ireland (NCBI) is coordinating Ireland's participation in the TESTLAB trials. Five of the country's libraries--the Central Library at Dublin, Clonmel, and Letterkenny, as well as the university libraries at Trinity College and Dublin City University--have had special workstations installed. The workstations are able to scan texts for special-format output and also to serve as online public access catalog (OPAC) terminals. This means that users can search electronic library catalogs using synthetic speech or screen magnification. A transitory braille display of the results of a library catalog search can be produced at the designated workstations at Trinity College and Dublin City University. NCBI has also helped establish a database containing a national catalog of materials available in tape, braille, large-print, and digital formats. As of March 1998, the database contained more than 3,000 records, and NCBI is establishing a website (www.svb.nl) to enable readers worldwide to browse Ireland's catalog of items published to serve blind and visually impaired readers. Further information on this project is available from Siobhan Bermingham, Library, National Council for the Blind of Ireland, PV Doyle House, Whiteworth Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 9, Ireland; or via e-mail at library@ncbi.iol.ie. Latin American workshop held in Buenos Aires Talking-book services for Latin American countries was the subject of a workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina, September 22- 25, 1997. Sponsored by the Uni¢n Latinoamericana de Ciegos (ULAC), this was the first meeting of thirteen Latin American countries, Sweden, and the United States. Delegates shared ideas and evaluated services now available in Latin American countries. Carolyn Sung, chief, NLS Network Division, represented the United States as one of the thirty-five delegates and observers. Dr. Sung's address to the gathering touched on the overall NLS program with particular emphasis on the recent changes in the U.S. copyright law, NLS production of Spanish-language books, the NLS Union Catalog of talking books, current use of computers in NLS, and the status of the digital talking book. This workshop was held at the Biblioteca Argentina para Ciegos and included discussions on the status of each country's program and production practices, sharing Spanish-language materials, and new technology developments. With the general consensus that access to information is an inalienable human right, the delegates recommended that:  professional training be promoted for blind and sighted persons working with talking-book services, either as paid employees or volunteers;  students from the fields of speech, journalism, and the theater be invited to serve as volunteer narrators;  standards of narration and presentation of text be coordinated so that information is consistent with the text of a printed book;  cataloging criteria be defined for developing a unified cataloging model that will provide the basic information necessary on available reading materials;  information about talking-book services be accessible to handicapped persons as well as sighted persons;  services be expanded to cover persons with other handicaps that prevent the reading of print texts;  government support be sought for the funding of programs related to the talking-book program. The delegates agreed to cooperate in several ways. These included plans for the production of a directory of talking-book services available in the region, and a decision for participants of the workshop to send information on their services to the coordinator of the Information Access and Cultural Commission of ULAC. Also, plans were discussed about approaching postal authorities, consulates, and embassies regarding free mailing and the use of diplomatic pouches to ship talking-book materials. Jewish Braille Institute reaches out to Eastern Europe In the wake of the Holocaust and decades of political repression, many Jewish communities in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union are working to rebuild their cultural and religious traditions. But participating in this effort has been difficult for several thousand blind and visually impaired people in these communities, and few resources have been available for coping with eye diseases or impaired vision. The Jewish Braille Institute of America (JBI), with headquarters in New York, is providing valuable assistance to this population through its Eastern European Outreach program. The outreach began in 1991 with volunteers making telephone calls to isolated and lonely senior citizens--survivors of Jewish families whose numbers were dwindling as a result of the Holocaust and emigration. Eastern European Outreach provided cassettes and recorders to elderly people whose visual disabilities had prevented them from reading--in some cases, for many years. They were then able to communicate with friends and family, and some even heard their relatives' voices for the first time, using devices supplied by JBI. In five years, the program expanded into a network of social groups and voluntary organizations that provide companionship and assistance, and often help fund much-needed medical and social services. Organization. Eastern European Outreach is organized around five municipal hubs--Moscow (Russia), Warsaw (Poland), Kiev (Ukraine), Budapest (Hungary), and Bucharest (Romania). In these centers, supplies and equipment are maintained, training is administered, and services are provided to local residents. In addition, materials are shipped to more than thirty smaller cities and towns for further distribution. These smaller centers include Sofia, Bulgaria; Minsk, Belarus; Zagreb, Croatia; Gdansk, Poland; St. Petersburg, Russia; Odessa, Ukraine; and at least two dozen other cities and towns. By 1997 the program had reached more than 4,000 blind and visually impaired Jewish residents in the region. JBI produces about one hundred talking-book titles each year, and it helps provide magnifiers for reading and telephone dialing, as well as assistive equipment for disabilities other than blindness, such as wheelchairs and hearing aids, in cooperation with other agencies. JBI also assists Project Vision, which has supplied several hundred pairs of reading glasses and also provides glaucoma testing and medication. In some cases, Project Vision doctors have performed sight-restoration surgery. Blind children receive special attention through Eastern European Outreach. With JBI's assistance, children as young as five years have received specially fitted glasses, tutoring assistance, and medical attention to prevent complete vision loss. A particular effort was made in St. Petersburg, where JBI helped develop a Hebrew language course in braille especially to help Jewish children prepare for their bar or bat mitzvah. Materials. Reading materials on cultural and religious topics are in great demand in Jewish communities in Eastern Europe. For this reason, books on Jewish culture and history and on Israel and Zionism are an important part of JBI's collection. JBI has recorded several hundred books in Russian, Romanian, Hungarian, and Yiddish. JBI also distributes, free of charge, cassette - players, books on tape, and music. In 1997 and 1998, JBI expects to spend roughly $325,000 for its Eastern European Outreach program, and it hopes to receive financial and in-kind contributions of at least that amount from private donors. Citations for JBI books are currently being added to the NLS Union Catalog. Patrons fish for fun and funds High winds and threatening skies couldn't dissuade twenty-five anglers with disabilities from attending the Pinellas Talking Book Library's first annual Fishing Is For Everyone fundraiser, Saturday, April 4. The event was held at the Tenoroc Fish Management Area's Derby Lake in Lakeland, Florida, where attention to accessibility and a commitment to fisheries management have turned phosphate pits and palmetto scrub into a recreational delight for people with disabilities. Professional fishing guide Captain Eric Shapiro provided the expertise and bait, while the library and Tenoroc staff supplied tackle, including adaption for wheelchair users. "The electric reel and rod holder tandem proved easy to operate and effective on the water," said R. Greg Carlson, talking-book librarian. "We anticipate adding the reel to a circulating collection of games and recreational equipment." Though the bass were uncooperative, several bluegill and a few catfish turned up during two and a half hours of catch-and-release fishing. Community sponsors contributed $50 for each angler they wished to underwrite for the event. The library made over $1,000, and the enthusiastic response of participants suggested they would return next year. "The design of the dock was helpful," remarked Tammy Draughan, an avid angler before and after she became blind. "It was the first time I got to fish in quite a while." Tammy's wait for landing a fish ended when a bluegill bit on her final cast. Portions of the fundraiser will be shown on Left Coast Fishing, an award-winning cable program in the Tampa Bay area. (This article was provided by Greg Carlson, Pinellas Talking Book Library.) (photo caption: Tammy Draughan with the bluegill she caught at the Fishing Is for Everyone fundraiser.)