Inaudible Nonsense

Brunch. Bourghetto style. 
Inaudible Nonsense Brunch. Bourghetto style.  I’ve been become something of a known brunch hater. The reasons are myriad: the food is almost uniformly poorly done (it’s a cheap way for a bar to make extra money, and they don’t skimp on the cheapness); conversely the food is way over-priced; the ideal of brunch is full of bourgeois trappings that are about nothing more than keeping up wi...
Thu, Jan 27 2011

Deaf space
Inaudible Nonsense Republishing this from an original post March 10, 2008, as it’s timely (still interests me) and wanted to move to front of the queue separately from stuff I’m backdating from to tumblr. A number of years ago, I read Aaron Betsky’s Queer Space: Architecture and Same-Sex Desire, a examination of LGBT cultural geography in the built environment and how it is manifest thr...
Tue, Sep 29 2009

Things you can’t do while signing: knit. Things you can do:...
Inaudible Nonsense Things you can’t do while signing: knit. Things you can do: talk with your mouth full of food. Signing wins!
Sun, Sep 27 2009

Visualizing Imogen Heap’s song First Train Home by...
Inaudible Nonsense Visualizing Imogen Heap’s song First Train Home by frogdesign. From an interview of Imogen Heap on her collaborative proceses and visualization of music in Eyes Can Hear at design mind. Oh! Also? Click the link to see whole song visualization.
Fri, Sep 25 2009

Design jobs can be a particularly hard place for the Deaf...
Inaudible Nonsense Design jobs can be a particularly hard place for the Deaf in mixed offices. There is tendency — especially among the hearing — not to want to change old habits around orally expressed opinions and on the fly the decisions. Not entirely surprising in the educational foundation the oral critiques reigns. Add in group brainstorming, and the design workplace looks especia...
Thu, Sep 10 2009

Oh she did NOT say that
Inaudible Nonsense Oh she did NOT say that: Oh, yes, yes she did: Gov. Paterson blindsided by S.I. Sen. Diane Savino: Lack of vision not race the issue “It’s not his race - it’s his blindness. Democratic Staten Island Sen. Diane Savino charged that Paterson’s impaired vision is what’s actually hampering his ability to do the job…” (From the Daily News) As a Deaf job seeker, this k...
Sun, Aug 23 2009

David Lynch's new interview project
Inaudible Nonsense David Lynch's new interview project: Which is very unfortunately not captioned. How disappointing. How is that people are doing obviously extensive and well planned web video projects this and not planning for even the most basic accessibility? Found via BaseNow
Wed, Jul 08 2009

From my twitter stream earlier. Anyone know wear AFI lists...
Inaudible Nonsense From my twitter stream earlier. Anyone know wear AFI lists their open captioned movies?
Fri, Jun 26 2009

Captioning Key for Educational Media
Inaudible Nonsense Captioning Key for Educational Media
Mon, Jun 22 2009

falling into something new
Inaudible Nonsense In 2002, I started blogging (here). That was eventually became here. Then with increased hearing loss, I welcomed the Deaf community to Inaudible Nonsense. Great start, really slow finish. So after experimenting with Tumblr — as an inspiration catcher at Trumpery and as an annotated shopping list at I Want Candy — I decided that it’s ease of posting made it the perfec...
Sun, Jun 21 2009

i can move mountains: YouTube announces support for...
Inaudible Nonsense   Apparently, I can change the course of media overnight (be sure to leave your suggestions and tips in the appropriately places, I will take requests on a first come/highest tipper basis). YouTube announced support for subtitles and captioning. See the announcement at TechCrunch.
Fri, Aug 29 2008

the video web: leaving the Deaf out of politics?
Inaudible Nonsense Web video has changed a lot about advertising, PR and broadcast media. Yet it's fairly easy enough to avoid, or at least ignore. I have enough distractions as it is, so if there isn't a large world of captioned video on the web it didn't really feel like any great loss. Until the 2008 presidential campaign. With YouTube [...]
Thu, Aug 28 2008

Noted: subtitling community
Inaudible Nonsense Two posts to Lifehacker this week — DivXLand Media Subtitler Embeds Subtitles into Movie Files and Subdownloader Grabs Subtitles For All Your Movies — lead me into the world of subtitle sharing (what seems to be an outgrowth of anime fanboys and fangirls that share subtitles with each other). Apparently there some legal issues here in terms of who [...]
Sat, Aug 23 2008

My white whale: fingerspelling
Inaudible Nonsense So fingerspelling is a bit frightening, a much bigger hurdle than signing words and phrases. I mean it feels like a bit like what watching foreign-language television used to when I could hear. A lot of fast attempts at communication and about zero comprehension. I've taken to practicing quite a bit in random places, especially [...]
Thu, Aug 21 2008

Noted: vocational rehabilitation and job hunting
Inaudible Nonsense A counselor for a department of vocational rehabilitation gets the Q&A treatment at i711.com. Since I'm in the process of trying to find work in NY, this came at a good time. I've been reluctant to seek out these types of departments. I always imagined that their ideal client was someone that was really bad off: accident [...]
Wed, Aug 20 2008

so how did it end: summer at Gally, wrap-up
Inaudible Nonsense Hey there! Sorry to keep you hanging. That last week of Gally summer-session ASLI was intense. Homework, midterms, finals, final assignments — throw all of that in with some big decisions at home... and I feel like I went to bed and then woke up and its the middle of August. So the first question is [...]
Sat, Aug 16 2008

thursday afternoon: more thoughts on learning ASL
Inaudible Nonsense Tomorrow is midterms. Eek! right? These compressed summer schedules everything is faster. I just had a spring break, it lasted 20 minutes. Anyway, since I really should be studying. A quick few thoughts. Maybe it was my last post, or maybe it was several hours watching myself sign on a web cam or watching the documentary [...]
Thu, Jul 10 2008

tuesday evening: thoughts on learning ASL
Inaudible Nonsense Monday was a whirl so I didn't have time to put down my thoughts. Now — two five hour classes and a couple study sessions later – here are my thoughts on learning ASL so far anyway. The Gally summer school is intentionally intensive. Both less and more so than I had hoped. Partially from my own doing. I will [...]
Tue, Jul 08 2008

in the morning: ASL begins
Inaudible Nonsense Beginning at 9 am on Monday, 7 July, I begin ASL I at Gallaudet summer school. Had my orientation today, which is where the photo came from. I'm excited about this new beginning. Wish only that I could have afforded — either in time away from work or monetarily — more than one class. I'm trying [...]
Mon, Jul 07 2008

from the bookshelf: web standards and accessibility
Inaudible Nonsense Finally finished reading Jeffrey Zeldman's Designing with Web Standards (2nd Edition). The book gets lots of attention as does Zeldman. And for good reason, he's one of the grandfathers of web standards and general man about the web. He's also a great writer who can tackle a topic like CSS, XHTML and web standards with humor [...]
Sat, Jun 21 2008

the big hunt: update on NYC and accessibility
Inaudible Nonsense So despite my (obvious, see previous post) love for San Francisco, I'm still smitten with the idea of moving move to New York City. I didn't get much feedback from the NYC side of the Deaf/HH community in regards to accessibility and deaf-friendliness, so I wrote to the Manhattan Chapter of the Hearing Loss Association [...]
Thu, May 29 2008

i see words: captioning sucks! (now let’s fix it)
Inaudible Nonsense I'm working on a longer post about the accessible web inspired by Jeffrey Zeldman's Designing with Web Standards, Second Edition when what should pop up on my Twitter feed? “CaptioningSucks.com. Now let's fix it” from none other than Zeldman himself. In Designing with Web Standards, Zeldman lays out an incredibly strong case for accessibi...
Wed, Apr 02 2008

the big hunt: NYC vs. SF which is the better Deaf city?
Inaudible Nonsense In theory, I live in the Deaf Capitol, the District of Columbia, which would be great and all if that was the only thing that defines me. But it's not. And what was supposed to be a one year stop-over in DC has turned into almost four years. (Egad!) So although my hearing continues to [...]
Tue, Mar 18 2008

cultural geography: Deaf Space
Inaudible Nonsense A number of years ago, I read Aaron Betsky's Queer Space: Architecture and Same-Sex Desire, a examination of LGBT cultural geography in the built environment and how it is manifest through leading gay and lesbian architects. It's a fantastic read. Now comes Deaf Space, and an architecture and planning for Deaf interaction and accommodations. Call me [...]
Mon, Mar 10 2008

i see words: speechreading training?
Inaudible Nonsense In my constant quest to start self-learning projects that I don't finish, I am looking for a speechreading program. I swear I had found one through Seeing and Hearing Speech but that apparently now is only Windows-compatible (I have a Mac). I am positive that they used to sell a DVD version, but I may [...]
Fri, Feb 29 2008

interpretive dance: CART vs. ASL, a law student’s...
Inaudible Nonsense I'm in the process of looking at graduate programs in design. Simultaneously trying to figure out what kind of accommodations I'm going to need. As I'm not fluent in ASL, I'm leaning toward something like CART, but not every school is ecstatic about this choice. So in my quest to find a less biased opinion, [...]
Thu, Feb 21 2008

I see words: not so Muppetational captioning
Inaudible Nonsense In a video rental fit of surrealist diversity at my favorite local video store, Video Americain, I left with Mala Noche, Gus Van Sant's first feature film; Inland Empire, the David Lynch film; and the Muppet Show Season 2 Disk 2. Of course how else?
Thu, Nov 29 2007

common courtesy: have you thanked your CA today?
Inaudible Nonsense I've really taken to IP-relay services, but you know? I'm not all that comfortable with it, especially 2LVCO. I almost always flummox the first attempt: forget to take the CA off hold, hang-up on the other caller or the operator. I've also made some of those calls to customer service people that tend to frighten me a [...]
Fri, Nov 16 2007

from the internet archives: Gladwell on retail anthropology
Inaudible Nonsense I can distinctively remember when I read this article. Like it was yesterday. Turns out it was eleven years ago! Although I remembered much of the underlying premise of the article, I had forgotten some of the details: Gladwell's New Yorker piece is actually about Paco Underhill. I remembered it as being about William Whyte. And [...]
Sat, Nov 10 2007

i see words: NYT delivers debate video paired with...
Inaudible Nonsense I regularly feel left out of the whole web video thing. Not enough captioning going on, real time or otherwise. Just saw at Political Animal that the New York Times is posting not just the transcripts from political debates but linking it to the transcript. Click on a section of the transcript and it will [...]
Thu, Nov 08 2007

i see words: fomdi? seriously?
Inaudible Nonsense If you've been on any major Deaf blog or website, or are on any mailing list for any Deaf organization, you've know doubt seen an advertisement or a mention of Fomdi.com, a search site for finding captioned movies. But seriously? It's the least functional website I've ever witnessed.
Sun, Oct 28 2007

hey! wait a minute: does that job description discriminate?
Inaudible Nonsense If you are a designer and have looked for work, you've know doubt seen something like: ...exceptional skills in creativity, design strategy, leadership, print and electronic production, and verbal and written communications... (emphasis mine) So I understand that there are plenty of designers and artists (and well just plain folks) that couldn't ...
Sat, Oct 20 2007

i see words: Pop!Tech live, but not accessible?
Inaudible Nonsense From Kottke: As they did last year, Poptech is streaming their entire conference live on the web for free. October 18-20. They also take questions from the web audience, several of which they used last year on stage. What do you think the odds are that it will be captioned? I've got my money on zero. Which reminds me that I was thinking about attending the Offf ...
Tue, Oct 16 2007

identity roundabout: am I deaf?
Inaudible Nonsense I've wondered how to classify myself. Or I guess I didn't wonder, but after a recent conversation I have to wonder should I wonder? I know that there is much gnashing of  teeth over big "D" Deaf and little "d" deaf. The born deaf versus the late deafened adults versus the hard of hearing versus the ASLers versus the SEEers versus th...
Sun, Oct 14 2007

i see words: drive-through for the deaf/hh
Inaudible Nonsense UPDATE: Apparently, the post link at YouTube isn't going to work. So here's the clip. First: Chicago, represent! Okay, got that out of the way. Second: this "technology" is so simple that the set up costs are practically none existent. Even training the employees would hardly add anything to this set-up. Also, Chicago's ABC affiliate ha...
Thu, Oct 11 2007

unite!: deaf/hh design professionals on facebook
Inaudible Nonsense Design is inherently collaborative. But I love it. I love it because it's collaborative. But dealing with a hearing loss has been challenging in that environment. With the theory that I can't be the only one dealing with this - enter facebook groups. I've set a up deaf/hh design professionals group at facebook. Hope to see you there.
Mon, Oct 08 2007

rallying the troops: where's my captioned web video?
Inaudible Nonsense The time is right for an explosion in captioned online video. The web video "airwaves" are not a government entity so it would be hard to mandate captioning like was done with CC in 1970s. We are (as every news magazine has reminded us) in a New Decentralized Paradigm(TM). Its going to have to be a grassroots, net-community level effort. As such, the value...
Sat, Sep 29 2007

new sounds from way out: is that what my voice sounds like?
Inaudible Nonsense It's been a rocky late spring through summer. Whatever threshold my hearing was on it, it crossed over. And then back. And then back over. There was an actual defect with my hearing aid in the spring - but this turned out to be a red herring. The hearing aid was fixed and then two weeks later, my hearing itself had fallen again. Fun times. I recommend it. A+++ S...
Sat, Sep 22 2007

weirdness: more strangeness from Apple
Inaudible Nonsense Just saw that Apple has not made the iPhone hearing aid compatible. HLAA seems to be all up in arms about this. But that's their job as advocates. I have to wonder if this was an oversight - how difficult could it be? Phone manufacturers that weren't making hearing aid compatible mobile phones three years ago suddenly are. So this seems like an oversight. [...]
Thu, Sep 20 2007

i see words: iTunes and closed captioning
Inaudible Nonsense No doubt the "iTunes adds closed captioning support" meme has already made its way around the deaf blogosphere. Like here. I'm happy to know this; although, it doesn't appear there are actually any videos that go ahead and offer captioning. I'm an Apple fan. I have two Apple computers now. I have had one at home since I was 11 or so - my [...]
Wed, Sep 19 2007

relay run-around
Inaudible Nonsense Last I reported. MacMall handled a relay call well - at least from the sales side. Jennifer there answered my call without missing a beat. Closing the deal? Not quite as painless. I opened a credit account. And was approved immediately. Apparently, they need confirmation of unspecified "details." They made a call to my relay direct number. And sent an [...]
Tue, Sep 18 2007

the relay call is coming from inside the house!
Inaudible Nonsense So the relay and chat software combination is idea that seems made in heaven. It can be scary as fuck, though. Just FYI. Especially if you have no TTY experience. Unable to find one service that meets all my needs (more on this later),  I'm signed up with a handful of relay services: i711, Hamilton, IP-Relay.com. IP-relay is the only one that has the one that [...]
Sat, Sep 15 2007

the pow-wow in my head
Inaudible Nonsense So tinnitus is weird. Or I'm going crazy. Don't discount that idea yet. It can sound like all kinds of things. But for the last few days, it's been an ongoing pow-wow - lightly strumming guitar, quiet war cries, like the end of large gathering under the stars. Embers slowly burning out in the fire. I can practically smell the burning wood. Perhaps my [...]
Sat, Sep 15 2007

TTY emulator for OS X?
Inaudible Nonsense Doesn't seem to exist. This is weird. There are PC versions. There once was a Mac program called SofTTY (aw...), but that company no longer exists, plus it was $75 versus the free versions offered for the PC. I'm pretty certain at this point that I'll be able to deal entirely with IP relay — especially with IP relay that works with instant [...]
Sat, Sep 15 2007

teach yourself ASL in 800 easy lessons.
Inaudible Nonsense About a year ago, I hired a tutor and was all set to go to town on Vista's Signing Naturally. This was radically cheaper than going to community college in Northern Virginia. And meant that I was going to be enrolled in two different schools taking classes in the evenings and weekends while working two jobs. That seemed nuts. My tutor flaked and then I just got [...]
Sat, Sep 15 2007