[Athen] Alternate format textbook sources

[Tristen Breitenfeldt (Wipro Ltd.)]

Hi,
While I was a student, I checked a couple different sources for accessible
textbook formats before approaching the DRC at my college. 
I checked the following places:
iBooks (from Apple)
Kindle (from Amazon)
BARD (from the National Library Service for the Blind)
Audible.com
BookShare

These are all accessible sources for books.  Sometimes my books were
available and sometimes not. Sometimes I could get the right book in the
wrong edition, which meant getting approval from my instructor.
Yes, these are sources that Alternative Formats offices can also
investigate, but I am a strong believer in encouraging students to exhaust
the available options, doing some "leg work" on their own first.  It is a
little extra work for students to investigate these avenues on their own,
but believe it or not having the ability to find my own accessible materials
was extremely empowering and provided me with skills that have helped me in
my career.  I'm pretty sure that most students would feel similarly after
finding their own books.
I'm not saying that the Alt Formats office was unnecessary; quite the
opposite in fact, because I frequently relied on them as my backup plan if I
couldn't find the books I needed in an accessible format, or if I needed
certain parts of a book in another format such as braille or tactile
graphics.  I also depended on the nudging and encouragement from my DRC
counselor encouraging me to explore these other options, even when it was
easier for me to get all my books from the Alt Formats office.

Have a great day!

Tristen Breitenfeldt
Accessibility Tester/Trainer
Wipro/Microsoft


-----Original Message-----
From: athen-list <athen-list-bounces at mailman12.u.washington.edu> On Behalf
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Message: 1
Date: Sun, 2 Sep 2018 12:43:05 -0700
From: Shelley Haven <ShelleyHaven at techpotential.net>
To: ATHEN <athen-list at u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Athen] Alternate format textbook sources
Message-ID: <6B753ABB-AD87-4082-B3A6-C423FFF69A7C at techpotential.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Check CAST?s webpage on ?Digital Content & Media Sources? (part of their
extensive AEM section) for other sources you might want to add to your list:

http://aem.cast.org/navigating/digital-content-media-sources.html#.W4w63y2UV
0o
<http://aem.cast.org/navigating/digital-content-media-sources.html#.W4w63y2U
V0o>

Best,
  Shelley

_____________________________
Shelley Haven  ATP, RET
Assistive Technology Consultant
www.TechPotential.net



 On Aug 30, 2018, at 10:41 AM, Hegney, Shaun <Shaun.Hegney at sfcc.spokane.edu>
wrote:
 
 Hello all,
  
 I am doing a little research as I am trying to find more sources for
alternate format textbooks as it seems like our college is using less common
or harder to get books. Especially as we add increasingly niche courses.  I
have been sourcing most of my books from Access Text, Book Share and
publishers directly. I have also used the Louis Database (I have found a few
braille books this way).
  
 If you have any other, sources please share your experience. In addition, I
am interested in hearing if anyone has found a membership to the access text
exchange worthwhile.
  
 Thanks,
  
 Shaun Hegney
 Program Specialist 2
 Disability Support Services
 Spokane Falls Community College
 (509)-533-3544
 Shaun.Hegney at sfcc.spokane.edu <mailto:Shaun.Hegney at sfcc.spokane.edu>