Call for Artwork Submissions for Second Annual Art Exhibit by Blind Artists

Calling all Artists! Submit your artwork for display at the Eye Care Center of the Southern California College of Optometry. Shared Visions 2006, the second annual juried art exhibit by artists who are blind or legally blind. Works selected will be exhibited in the Eye Care Center for a period of one year. Artists may also offer their work for sale.

PDF Brochure

THE DEADLINE FOR ARTIST SUBMISSIONS: MONDAY, JUNE 19, 2006.

Download the 2006 Submission Pack:

Forty-five works of art by blind and legally blind artists have been on exhibit at the Eye Care Center at the Southern California College of Optometry since last fall. "Shared Visions 2005," an exhibit of paintings, photography, ceramics and mixed media works by blind artists, welcomed over 200 local residents to the reception. Much of the 2005 artwork can be viewed at the following website, as well as interviews with the artists: LetsGoExpo

Obtain application packets for 2006 submissions:
Website: www.SCCO.edu
Email: SharedVisions@scco.edu
Phone: 714.449.7462

Mail: Eye Care Center, Southern California College of Optometry
Shared Visions: 2575 Yorba Linda Blvd., Fullerton, CA 92831

Media accepted: Paintings, drawings, photographs, sculpture, and mixed media pieces.

ATIA Online goes live

Did you miss the ATIA Conference in Orlando?
If you made it, did you miss some presentations due to scheduling conflicts?

Now you can access much of the valuable information shared at the ATIA
Conference through www.atiaonline.org

Event Title.........................ATIA 2006 Online Conference
Where.............................Online at www.atiaonline.org - it's all online!
When?............................ Now! through November 30, 2006.
The Cost? ........................Free access to over 50 presentations; $49.00 for access to all archives

Over 100 hours of audio and video recordings were captured at the ATIA (Assistive Technology Industry Association) conference held in Orlando this past January. ATIA parntered with OcuSource (www.ocusource.com) to create the www.atiaonline.org website. The website, powered by OcuSource's subsidiary LetsGoExpo online conferencing service (www.letsgoexpo.com), brings recordings generated at the live conference to end users unable to attend the live event held in Orlando. The site has audio recordings, samplings of streamed video, documents and more.


List of archived presentations:
* A "Continuum of Learning" for Children Using AAC Systems
* AAC Intervention with Children and Adolescents: Getting Results!
* AAC Interventions for Communication Partners: Cross Cultural Applications
* Accessible E-Learning Demonstrations Using IMS Accessibility Specifications
* Accessible Information Technology in Education: An Awareness Video
* Accessible Multimedia in E-books
* AGE Appropriate Services for Adolescent and Adult Communicators with Severe-
Profound Disabilities
* AT and UDL: Teaming Up to Meet the Needs of All Learners
* AT Consideration in the IEP: To Be or Not to Be
* AT Outcome Data Collection Tools--Platform Independent and Web-Based
* Avoiding the Pitfalls, Brick Walls, and Trees of Assistive Technology
* Blogging the Accessible Way
* Building Effective Campus-Based Teams with the ATSTAR Curriculum
* Building Interactive Classrooms Through Environmental Engineering and AAC
* Closing the Circuit: Building Accessible Modules from the Ground Up
* Developing a Universally Designed Curriculum: One Unit at a Time
* DISTANCE LEARNING: POLICIES AND PRACTICES THAT PROMOTE ACCESSIBLE DESIGN
* Expanding the Benefits of Cooperative Buying: Sharing What We've Learned
* Finding Their Bliss: Discovering Ways to Increase Active Participation
* Getting Started with School-based Data Collection on AT Strategies and Tools
* Guidelines for Submitting Manuscripts to Assistive Technology Outcomes and
Benefits
* Implementing AAC in Acute Care Settings Beginning in Intensive Care
* Increasing Mean Length of Utterances on AAC: An Action Research Project
* Inside the Trainer~s Studio
* Instructional Strategies for Using Video Magnifiers
* Integrating AAC Into Leisure and Learning
* Interpretype for Deaf and Deaf-Blind Communication
* Let~s Play! Selecting Toys with Universal Design Features
* Low Tech Adaptations Across the Curriculum
* Mastering Microsoft Word
* Moving Students Forward
* Note Taking Strategies Using Technology for Students Who Are Visually
Impaired
* Organizing my Space
* Partner-Assisted Communication Strategies for Children Who Face Multiple
Challenges
* QIATConversations: 2006 Update
* Sorting through Symbol to Text Systems
* STFLS Meets Core Vocabulary for AAC Users: Supporting Language and Literacy
Through Start-to-Finish
* Supported Readings: Understanding Symbol Supports
* Switching to Talk ~ Not Just Talking Switches
* Tactual Literacy for Students with Severe Cognitive Challenges
* Teacher Use of Kidspiration with Elementary Students: Impact of Teacher
Training
* Technology in the Preschool Setting: The Impact of CollaborativeTraining
* The Assistive Technology Wheel for Young Children
* The C.O.A.S.T.: A Framework to Facilitate Assistive Technology and Inclusion
* The Economics of Developing Assistive Technology: A Hypothetical Case Study
* The True Power of Teaching with Technology
* The User Experience: Accessibility and Usability in the Online Environment
* Thinking Beyond AT in the Classroom Phase 2 of ILT Project
* Using Assistive Technology to Increase Undergraduate Student Engagement
* Using Technology to Enhance Literacy and Language Skills
* Using Written Assistive Technology Implementation Plans
* Video in the Classroom on a Shoestring Budget
* Visual Considerations for Individuals with Complex Communication Needs


EXHIBITOR OPPORTUNITY
Register to exhibit:
http://www.letsgoexpo.com/expos/Ocusource/ATIA01182006/index.cfm?page=regdirect
Exhibitor details:
http://www.letsgoexpo.com/expos/Ocusource/ATIA01182006/index.cfm?page=exhibinfo

Exhibitor Agreement:
http://www.letsgoexpo.com/expos/Ocusource/ATIA01182006/ATIA01182006exhib_agmt.p
df


OcuSource.com, LLC
(888)299-6657 x704
ocusource@ocusource.com
www.ocusource.com

OcuSource Cafe Ready for Action at EXPO

OcuSource Expo launched the Show Cafe - a virtual coffee shop for use during the OcuSource Expo for blindness and low vision industry.

Visitors may enter the cafe, register to win daily coffee voucher giveaways, and even enter a virtual conference room where visitors to the expo are relaxing and conversing.

The Expo is a virtual conference which brings all the features of a physical event to the attendee so that the attendee doesn't have to travel to attend a conference.

The event begins June 8th with opening ceremonies, including a keynote address by entrepreneur Jim Stovall, and an evening of entertainment with world-famous entertainer Pat Boone.

Visit www.ocusource.com and visit the Expo.

Help page and live help desk launched

The OcuSource Expo is coming together very well.
To assist the exhibitors and presenters to enjoy the event to the maximum possible, a Live Help Desk has been launched at: http://ocusource.com/expo/expo.cfm?page=help

In addition to the live help available, visitors may also view instructional videos for speakers, exhibitors, and of course, attendees.

Pat Boone and Jim Stovall to Kickoff OcuSource Virtual Conference

For Immediate Release

Pat Boone and Jim Stovall to Kickoff OcuSource.com’s Virtual Conference for Blind and Low Vision Consumers and Vision Impairment Professionals

Placentia, CA – May 17, 2005

OcuSource.com, the vision impairment industry portal, announced motivational speaker Jim Stovall as keynote speaker, and singing sensation Pat Boone as opening night entertainment on Wednesday, June 8^th at 7pm central time. The opening ceremonies for the Expo will be held via online web-conference at www.ocusource.com.

“We hoped to make the opening of the expo an evening to remember. Who could be better than one of today’s greatest blind entrepreneurs coupled with one of the world’s best known names in entertainment? We’re simply delighted to bring two such spectacular individuals to our event,” stated Dr. Lou Lipschultz, CEO of OcuSource. “OcuSource provides information to a significant number of seniors and their caregivers due to the very large number of individuals with macular degeneration and other sight-threatening disorders. We hope that the combination of experiencing Jim Stovall’s success as a blind individual, and the fun of visiting “live” with one of the music icons of his time, word of our valuable event will spread amongst the seniors across America,” stated Lipschultz.

Jim Stovall is one of the most influential blind individuals of our time. An accomplished speaker, Jim has been a national champion Olympic weightlifter, a successful investment broker, author, and entrepreneur. He is Co-Founder and President of the Narrative Television Network (NTN), which makes movies and television accessible for our nation's 13 million blind and visually impaired people and their families. Although originally designed for the blind and visually impaired, over 60% of NTN's nationwide audience is made up of fully-sighted people who simply enjoy the programming. NTN has grown to include over 1,200 cable systems and broadcast stations, reaching over 35 million homes in the United States, and NTN is shown in 11 foreign countries.

With over 45 million units sold and 38 top-40 hits, Pat Boone is recognized by Billboard Magazine as the #10 rock recording artist in history, placing higher on that impressive chart than either Madonna or Billy Joel. Entertainment Weekly proclaimed him 'Winner of the Week' in 2003 as Pat Boone incredibly landed his 61st hit on Billboard's Hot 100 Chart from his American Glory album. Pat also has enjoyed a successful movie career with memorable credits including “State Fair” and “April Love”.

OcuSource created the virtual conference so that those individuals involved with vision loss can share in the excellent resources found at major industry conferences. The online “conference center” has easy-to-navigate “presentation halls” and “exhibit halls” which allow the visitor to find his or her way to the topic of interest. Presentations are completed in tcConference web-conference rooms, which are supplied by OcuSource’s venture partner Talking Communities. Presentation topics include macular degeneration, living with vision loss, employment, education of the visually impaired, and presentations for vision care professionals. Exhibit halls are filled with “booths” staffed by manufacturers, vendors, agencies, organizations, and other entities eager to share information about their services and products. Visitors who are unable to attend the live portion of the conference can still experience all the benefits through archived streaming videos of the presentations available for 14 days after the close of the live portion of the event.

“Our greatest challenge is spreading the word to the seniors of North America,” stated Lipschultz. “We’re hoping for distribution throughout the network of senior-oriented websites and organizations”. The expo is now accepting applications for exhibitors, presentations, and sponsors, all of which are available online at www.ocusource.com/expo/expo.cfm.

About OcuSource

California-based OcuSource.com, LLC is the owner and operator of www.ocusource.com , an internet portal dedicated to assisting the low vision and blindness industry with essential online resources. OcuSource’s mission is to enhance access to products, information, and services to individuals with vision impairment, as well as the professionals who assist them, through a set of integrated web-based resources. OcuSource provides vision impairment-specific resources such as auctions of adaptive products and accessories, search tools to find local and national resources like doctors and agencies, as well as other tools useful to eye care and rehabilitation professionals. The privately held company was founded in 2003, and is headquartered in Placentia, California.

About Talking Communities

Michigan based Talking Communities (www.talkingcommunities.com) creates interactive synchronous web conferencing tools which provide customers numerous capabilities in both their business and personal lives at a very affordable rate. Live voice-over-internet conference rooms are suitable for public or private business meetings, employee training and support, family get-togethers, educational purposes, public and private interactive events, live broadcasts, and web presentations. The company entered the market with its Audio Tips resource located at www.audio-tips.com. Audio-Tips is a family-oriented voice-chat community open to anyone seeking friends, support, fun, and learning.

Contact information: Louis Lipschultz, OD President & CEO – OcuSource.com, LLC Email: loul@ocusource.com Website: www.ocusource.com Phone: 888-299-6657 ext 701

Contact information: George Buys President & CEO – Talking Communities Email: buys@audio-tips.com Website: www.talkingcommunities.com Phone: (810)667-3043

OcuSource Announces Virtual Conference for the Blind

For Immediate Release

OcuSource Announces Virtual Conference for Vision Impairment Industry: Brings Presentations, Services & Products Directly to Consumers’ Desktops

Placentia, CA – May 5, 2005

OcuSource.com, the vision impairment industry portal, announces OcuSource EXPO – the virtual conference for the visually impaired and the service providers who support them. Through the integration of a web-conferencing utility called tcConference, visitors to this online event can participate in interactive online presentations, visit exhibitors “booths,” visit the “Café,” and even attend nightly entertainment. The conference is scheduled for June 8-11, and is found at www.ocusource.com/expo/expo.cfm.

“The OcuSource EXPO fulfils the needs of the vision impairment industry in numerous ways” states Dr. Lou Lipschultz, CEO of OcuSource.com. “So, there are somewhere between 12 to 14 million individuals who have some form of vision loss in the United States. Yet, we estimate that only 10,000 visually impaired persons attend the five major vision impairment tradeshows. There is obviously a significant access issue here,” stated Lipschultz, a low vision specialist and former executive of one of the manufacturers of technology for the visually impaired. “Lack of awareness, transportation, and financial constraints contribute to poor attendance at “physical” visual impairment conferences. OcuSource is now bringing conference to the attendee, rather than the attendee having to go to the conference, and doing it all through an accessible, interactive online venue.”

The “conference center” has easy-to-navigate “presentation halls” and “exhibit halls” allowing the visitor to find his or her way to the topic of interest. Presentation topics include macular degeneration, living with vision loss, new products, and presentations for vision care professionals. Exhibit halls are filled with “booths” staffed by manufacturers, vendors, agencies, organizations, and other entities eager to share information about their services and products. The key component in each conference booth is the ability to speak to the company’s representative. Each booth has its own online voice-chat and presentation room called tcConference, supplied by Talking Communities, a web-conferencing solutions provider. Exhibitors are free to schedule presentations within their booths regarding their services or products. Visitors who are unable to attend the live portion of the conference can still experience all the benefits through archived streaming videos of the presentations available for 14 days after the close of the live portion of the event. Any time, day or night, from around the world, visitors can view the information from each of these exhibitors, request information, and in some instances, enter a voice-chat room and ask questions of the representative.

Attendees have access to the other resources found on the OcuSource portal. In addition to the many searchable resources such as doctors, agencies and not-for-profit organizations, corporate purchasers such as schools and rehabilitation organizations have immediate access to OcuSource’s e-procurement service, OcuBid. If a product or service is desired, the purchaser can create a bidding opportunity, also called an RFB or RFP (request for bids or proposals) which is immediately distributed to hundreds of vendors to obtain competitive pricing. Visitors may also browse auctions of used devices like magnifiers and Braille products.

“Our greatest challenge is spreading the word to the seniors of North America. We’re hoping for distribution throughout the network of senior-oriented websites, as well as from the many senior organizations. The expo is now accepting applications for exhibitors, presentations, and sponsors, all of which are available online at www.ocusource.com/expo/expo.cfm.

About OcuSource

California based OcuSource.com, LLC is the owner and operator of www.ocusource.com , an internet portal dedicated to assisting the low vision and blindness industry with essential online resources. OcuSource’s mission is to enhance access to products, information, and services to individuals with vision impairment, as well as the professionals who assist them, through a set of integrated web-based resources. OcuSource provides vision impairment-specific resources such as auctions of adaptive products and accessories, search tools to find local and national resources like doctors and agencies, as well as other tools useful to eye care and rehabilitation professionals. The privately held company was founded in 2003, and is headquartered in Placentia, California.

About Talking Communities

Michigan based Talking Communities (www.talkingcommunities.com) creates interactive synchronous web conferencing tools which provide customers numerous capabilities in both their business and personal lives at a very affordable rate. Live voice-over-internet conference rooms are suitable for public or private business meetings, employee training and support, family get-togethers, educational purposes, public and private interactive events, live broadcasts, and web presentations. The company entered the market with its Audio Tips resource located at www.audio-tips.com. Audio-Tips is a family-oriented voice-chat community open to anyone seeking friends, support, fun, and learning.

Contact information: Louis Lipschultz, OD President & CEO – OcuSource.com, LLC Email: loul@ocusource.com Website: www.ocusource.com Phone: 888-299-6657 ext 701

Contact information: George Buys President & CEO – Talking Communities Email: buys@audio-tips.com Website: www.talkingcommunities.com Phone: (810)667-3043

CSUN 2005 Conference in Los Angeles

If you are interested in the low vision and blindness resources available worldwide, CSUN Conference in Los Angeles is one of the best events worldwide to attend.

OcuSource CEO Lou Lipschultz interviewed exhibitors live on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday during the 2005 event.

To listen to these archived interviews please visit:
http://www.ocusource.com/ocusource/index.cfm?page=csunlive

Welcome to the OcuSource Blog

This is the first message to the OcuSource Blog. Here we go!