Tango, cycling, & technology...from a Portlander.

I LOVE TaskPaper, and look forward to the day when the iPhone version is ready. Though I've been struggling with utilizing a new and very valuable feature; online sync.

Why?

Alright...so a friend was giving me well-deserved grief last night about usage of some words & phrases, so to help out those of you whom simply dont live in the techie/geek world:
-phishing: In the field of computer security, phishing is the criminally fraudulent process of attempting to acquire sensitive information.
-haz: slang for has, have, haz ...honestly, I just like cats, and that's an adorable website.

Yea, there's other stuff, but I'm too snarky this morning to dig them up for you. Maybe you should look around yourself <3

Hmm, that's funny; between German and Dutch, geek means crazy freak. Hmph!

The smug little phrase, "Business is business," is often used to raise a false issue and fabricate an escape from duty.

Milton Friedman is known for the phrase, “the business of business is business”. Though, in the 1700's, George Colman the Younger published a play titled "Heir at Law", which coined "...Business is business. Nothing is more important than business and the profit it brings. There's no justification for not putting it first..."

In the twenty-first century, is this still an acceptable business behavior?

What is the business of business? Is it truly still the case that all which really matters is shareholder value? Or, in a world where businesses can yield substantial financial, social and even political power, should it rather be business's business to take responsibility for social issues in their local and national communities?

There remain a few shrinking social classes that subscribe to the philosophy that only money matters; businesses who wish to continue dishonorable practices, or who do not believe that they can make a success with better methods. The other, are certain exponents of culture who aspire to conform to Mathew Arnold's definition of persons who "...know the best that has been thought and said in the world," but possess no desire to expend the energies towards an attempt to beautify industry, and therefore find it convenient to hide behind a duty, by keeping in circulation a fallacy; branding a difficult task as hopeless.

The need for organizations in both public and private sectors to behave in a socially responsible way is becoming a generalized requirement of society. It is shared by the stakeholder groups that are participating in the ISO working group for social responsibility, as they work to develop ISO 26000; an International Standard providing guidelines for social responsibility for consumers, and throughout industry, government, labor groups, nongovernmental organizations and other forms of business world-wide.

The perception of an organization’s social responsibility performance can influence;

Its reputation

Its ability to attract and retain male and female workers and/or members, customers, clients or users;

The maintenance of employees' morale, commitment and productivity;

The view of investors, donors, sponsors and the financial community; and

Its relationship with companies, governments, the media, suppliers, peers, customers and the community in which it operates.

Are you running a socially responsible business? The draft ISO document is already online, grab it while its still free!

Yep, I've finally put my blog back up; got tired of pivot's shortcomings, so after a bit of research...wheeee!!!!

My new task is collecting all public/blog postings from years-past and sticking them here.

See www.metrofi.com, it's now a parked site with GoDaddy.com's ads plastered all over it.

So much for city-wide wireless internet services...maybe next time the city will select the local group/business to do this - instead of yet another corporate nobody that'll just disappear in a few years...

How sad...

My numbers give a final value of a 102.5% loss, making my "value" to society -2.5%

Right: 93dB PTA - 25dB = 68dB x 1.5 = 102% disability
Left: 95dB PTA - 25dB = 70dB x 1.5 = 105% disability

((102 x 5) + 105) / 6 = 102.5% hearing handicap

Guess I just don't fit their molds!

Yep, I'm finally taking blogging seriously. At least as a way to better document ideas and thoughts as the days go by... This site will remain my blogging site for the forseeable future, the old blogger.com setup will be shutdown in a few weeks.

Its been fun, but I'm a SysAdmin, which means I run my own systems/services whenever I start taking that system or service seriously...

My new blog.

Alright, I feel left out; I need an iPhone blog entry.

First, I'm selling my 8GB iPod Nano; it's about 4 months old, and still looks and works great, but it's now redundant. I'll part with it for $175 (OBO), if you're interested, email me: berkholtzNO-UCEgmail.com replace the NO-UCE with an @

While checking out the iPhone, I discovered two things, which of-course finally pushed me to grab one:
1) The iPhone is, by far, the best mobile phone for hearing aid and cochlear implant users.
2) Using a DAI cable is tricky, but doable, and well worth it.


While reading this, keep in mind that most hearing aid and cochlear implant users simply cannot use the headsets, earbuds, and/or hands-free kits available (or even included) with today's portable electronic devices. Largely because the included headsets/earbuds/hands-free kits are simply not compatible, extremely uncomfortable, or are simply ineffective (ie: not loud enough without hearing aids amplifying sound as well). Instead we're forced to purchase expensive Direct Audio Input (DAI) equipment just for "basic" functionality that regular-hearing folks take for granted.

Speaking of costs though, there is a possible way to offset it; see my HSA comment at the bottom of this posting.

To elaborate on the iPhone... When a call comes in, and you have a "headset" connected, the audio is routed into the headset instead of the phone's built-in speakers. For DAI users, that means a DAI audio feed from your cell! The iPhone still uses its built-in mic, but everyone I've talked to can hear me fine even with the phone at chest-level or resting on a table. For DAI users, that means we finally get a hands-free "kit" that works great with our hearing aids and cochlear implants; I don't know of any other phone on the market that does this (I had to hack a cable together for my last phone).

As for using an DAI cable. The Connevans attenuated stereo DAI cable doesn't work too well, though Hearing Loss Help Co's unattenuated stereo DAI cable works great with a slight modification. The modification is not actually necessary, see below for the modification details. See my May 6th entry for more details on these cables, including sources and a review.


As for the headset jack modification. It's now a well-known fact that the iPhone headset jack is recessed, largely to reduce the strain on the headset plug. Though the jack is so recessed, it has the side-effect of:
1) Requiring an adapter (which I hate hauling around/losing)
2) Forcing you to use an "iPod" headset (which simply doesn't work for me - given my profound hearing loss, it simply cannot get loud enough).
3) Encouraging me to modify the headset plug on my DAI cable.

I obviously choose option three, as the other two are simply not options for me. I use a "Hearing Loss Help Co's unattenuated stereo DAI cable", but at first it would not fit into the iPhone. The solution is simple; cut off the excess material, and it fits great. I had to cut off roughly between 1.5mm to 1.75mm. These cables are so well-engineered, that there was no negative effect to cutting the excess material off; its still as sturdy as before, and works just as well.


Sorry for the poor picture, I'll post a better one tonight.

As for HSA account holders:
The standard disclaimer applies; this is not legal advice, do your own research, and consult with your own legal sources before proceeding. Though as for me; my HR rep, and my reading of the IRS publication 502 rules both tell me that some hearing aid accessories can be legally charged to your HSA account. Accessories such as the ELI Bluetooth adapter, and DAI cables that one uses for connecting to a TV, or phone, are possible examples. See page 13 under the sections "Telephone" and "Television" of the IRS 502 rules for details. This effectively means we can purchase our hearing aid accessories with pre-tax dollars (well, those of us in the USA). Personally, I paid ~$132 for my DAI setup (two audio boots - one for each hearing aid, and one "Y" DAI cable). The HSA account usage is a nice way to offset that high cost of "basic" functionality that regular-hearing folks take for granted.

Over the past few months my hearing has profoundly worsened, a fact I was finally able to officially confirm in February. If you have a hearing loss, you're already in touch with how much it can minimize and/or eliminate your ability to engage in causal conversations. Now imagine a loss profound enough to take both most verbal communications away, and your ability to appreciate most music. Hearing can disappear slowly, or overnight, due to an illness, accident, the progression of a birth defect, an ototoxic medication like some antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs, or even listening to an iPod or stereo too loudly for too long.

I'm seeking your assistance to call attention to a bill which has already passed the Oregon State Senate, and will soon be before the House. This bill promises to help me and many others with a profound hearing loss restore a certain level of sound, speech, and music perception. Through support of a medical procedure known as a bilateral (ie: two ear) cochlear implant.

Senator Deckert of Beaverton has sponsored SB 491 (http://landru.leg.state.or.us/07reg/measures/sb0400.dir/sb0491.intro.html). A bill "Relating to insurance coverage of bilateral cochlear implants; creating new provisions; and amending ORS 750.055 and 750.333". I urge you to review the details below, and consider contacting your senator in support of this bill. You can find your legislator here: http://www.leg.state.or.us/findlegsltr/

Further details regarding cochlear implants and SB 491:
1) This bill "...Requires health insurers that provide coverage for cochlear implants to provide coverage of bilateral cochlear implants...".

2) Cochlear implants are essentially a bionic, or implanted, prosthetic substitute for hearing aids which help the profoundly hearing impaired (ie: deaf) hear when regular hearing aids can no longer help. They are a technology which has been in use since 1969, and FDA-approved since 1984 (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochlear_implant ). As a mature technology, with well-established FDA guidelines for use, cochlear implants are the only technology which exists to help the profoundly hearing impaired/deaf hear.

3) Each implant can cost upwards of $80,000, and one is needed for each ear in order to provide the greatest benefit for the patient, many do not have the resources for such essential and expensive medical treatment, so they depend on insurance and government assistance.

4) Many insurance companies only provide coverage for one ear, under the guise that two (ie: bilateral) implants are an experimental procedure. This is akin to telling someone who needs a hip replacement that they'll only have one hip, instead of two, replaced. Bilateral cochlear implantation has been an accepted, mainstreamed medical practice since 1998. Over 3,000 implantations have been performed, including over 1,600 on children. (source: http://advocacy.letthemhear.org/research.php ).

5) Bilateral implants have proven to provide a greater quality of life for thousands, by enabling improved verbal/auditory communication over monaural implants, and by giving the ability of sound localization, and greatly improved speech recognition - things people with normal hearing take for granted.


My personal motivation behind this, is that I now have a profound hearing loss. This congenital sensorineural loss was "steady" between 60-70dB (moderate loss) for roughly 15 years prior to around August of 2006, when it suddenly dropped. In Feburary of 2007 it dropped again (to a 95dB bilateral loss), placing me now in the "profound loss" category (the most severe ranking possible).

Bilateral (two ear) implants are critical for folks like me; While cochlear implants are a mature technology which has been around for over three decades, they're still imperfect. Modern implants have at most 24 electrodes to replace the 16,000 delicate hair cells that are used for normal hearing, and the "sound" of human voices perceived through implants has been compared to robotic voices with laryngitis. Given such "limited" capabilities, bilateral implants would be critical for some folks to restore a reasonable level of speech comprehension; a capability essential for functioning in the "hearing world".

Your time and consideration are greatly appreciated.

I cant even begin to tell you how frustrating it is living in the "hearing world" with a profound hearing loss. Up until recently, my loss was only rated as "moderate", and that's essentially what I grew up with - I think I coped pretty darn well, for someone who can speak without noticeable speech impediments, and is happily 11 years into their chosen career!

Effective around 6-9 months ago, my loss shifted near the profound category, and then shifted clear into "profound" around January of this year. While I thought I "understood" a hearing loss then, boy...let me tell you...that's nothing compared to where I stand today. Now I fully understand why some folks would prefer to be blind than deaf, and while I'd still rather hike in silence than impale myself with a blind-cane as I stumble off a steep trail, living in the "deaf" category is no cake walk.

As with most folks, their livelihood depends on regular verbal communications. Before, this required some extra communication effort on my part that was tiring but manageable, but the now-greater effort exhausts me roughly half-way through the day; I just want to go home and shutdown in silence for a while, thank god for mass transit; at least I can turn it all off on my trip home.

Most verbal communications now require the person speaking to me to repeat themselves at least once; very rarely do I catch what was said the first time around anymore. This has got to be frustrating for some folks, though imagine being on my end! Argh! Take for example, the company party yesterday, it was only about 15 of us, and we're not that noisy, though I could barely understand what anyone said; usually just nodding my head and pretending. You can just see the frustration and irritation on most folks faces, and how often can you interrupt a group discussion before you get shut out...experience has taught me that most folks will give up and avoid talking to you; something I'm seeing more and more of lately.

Sigh... I think I've got a lot to write about. Hearing loss in particular, and how my recent onset of "recruitment" coupled with the "profound" shift is really doing a number on communications. While I'm quite frustrated with my communication issues, I'm still happy about many things - so at least I've got a few other things going for me

Lunch is over, so maybe tomorrow...

Hmm, who knows if I'll keep writing here, but I said I'd try just about anything once - so I suppose this isn't so bad. So, here I sit, eating yet another late lunch, maybe it's time for another bike ride!

This completes another test of the em.....