[Athen] Texthelp no longer support Post secondary

[Dan Comden]

I agree with Michael on this. TextHelp makes some decent products but in my
experience they repeatedly demonstrate either ignorance or apathy about the
needs of higher education.

This is demonstrated by their license plans for their products, in
particular EquatIO which could be a powerful tool for alt text shops at
many schools, but can't be utilized at many places due to the company's
inflexible license options. It is less expensive to pay for hundreds of
student worker hours to convert a couple of math courses every year than to
purchase a license for EquatIO for even a moderately sized campus.

We gave up on TextHelp R&W Gold years ago after experiencing excessive
difficulty rolling out and maintaining that software in our labs. On top of
that, the overwhelming majority of students in my experience want a simple
TTS tool and ignore all the additional features wrapped into the reading
product. So ... we stopped purchasing it. There was zero negative feedback
from students.

It shines in a supported environment like K-12. Not so much in higher ed.

A student's need to read effectively doesn't change once they complete
college. In my interactions with students over decades, they show no
inclination to purchase expensive TTS tools on their own after they
graduate. I think we serve students more effectively by showing them how to
use free and inexpensive reading software that fit their needs both in
school and after they complete their educational programs. Let TextHelp
concentrate on K-12 and we can ignore their products until they come up
with a better solution for higher education.

-*- Dan

On Wed, Mar 9, 2022 at 9:26 AM Michael Canale <canale at umbc.edu> wrote:


> They recently decided without notification that they will only support

> K-12 educators with support and free demo licenses. I explained that I have

> used the software to demonstrate their product and encourage students and

> parents to consider using it. Now with this new policy, I am unable to demo

> their product without purchasing my own license. If I worked for a K-12

> they would continue to provide me a free account. Why would I purchase a

> license to generate business for them?

>

> In addition, they changed their minimum number of licenses that prohibit

> most small to medium size Universities to utilize all they pay for. Whereas

> K-12 has an entire district. It's all about money and has nothing to do

> with supporting students it's a real shame.

>

>

>

> On Wed, Mar 9, 2022 at 12:01 PM Romack, Justin <

> justinr at disability.tamu.edu> wrote:

>

>> Howdy!

>>

>>

>>

>> Glad to get your message and hear your perspective!

>>

>>

>>

>> Because I feel out of the loop… What Texthelp policy are you referring to

>> and how do they demonstrate they don’t care about postsecondary

>> institutions?

>>

>>

>>

>> We’re up for renewal and the quote has drastically increased in price. I

>> have several options to explore in responding, but I wanted more context on

>> how others have approached changes with Texthelp (and also clarifying if

>> what you’re referring to is related to the concern I have).

>>

>>

>>

>> Hoping you’re well,

>>

>> J

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>> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

>>

>>

>>

>> *Justin Romack*  | Assistive Technology Coordinator

>>

>> Disability Resources | Texas A&M University

>>

>> 1224 TAMU | College Station, TX 77843-1224

>>

>>

>>

>> ph: 979.845.1637 | justinr at disability.tamu.edu | disability.tamu.edu

>>

>> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

>>

>> *DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS *| One Division. One Mission.

>>

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>>

>> *From:* athen-list <athen-list-bounces at mailman12.u.washington.edu> *On

>> Behalf Of *Michael Canale

>> *Sent:* Wednesday, March 9, 2022 10:01 AM

>> *To:* athen-list at u.washington.edu

>> *Subject:* Re: [Athen] athen-list Digest, Vol 194, Issue 7

>>

>>

>>

>> For at least 5 years I have had a free account with Read Write in order

>> to show students and parents how to use AT for their studies.  Texthelp

>> decided we in post-secondary are not important enough to support. I call

>> all colleagues to call ZjQcmQRYFpfptBannerStart

>>

>> This Message Is From an External Sender

>>

>> This message came from outside your organization.

>>

>> ZjQcmQRYFpfptBannerEnd

>>

>> For at least 5 years I have had a free account with Read Write in order

>> to show students and parents how to use AT for their studies.

>>

>>

>>

>> Texthelp decided we in post-secondary are not important enough to

>> support. I call all colleagues to call upon Texthelp of this change in

>> policy is ridiculous. I decided to no longer support or endorse Texthelp

>> products. Instead, I will endorse Natural Reader.

>>

>>

>>

>> I know many of you use them, however, we should not support a

>> company that doesn't support us.

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>> [image: Image removed by sender.]

>>

>> Office of Student Disability Services

>>

>> University of Maryland, Baltimore County

>>

>> 225 Math/Psychology Building

>>

>>

>>

>> Desk: 410-455-6358

>>

>> Mobile: 410-688-5088 (Text, FaceTime)

>>

>> VP: 443-410-4773

>>

>> Email:  canale at umbc.edu

>>

>> Web: sds.umbc.edu

>> <https://urldefense.com/v3/__http:/sss.umbc.edu__;!!KwNVnqRv!RBamRIRg7x6RSJXPVzuMBERipygOMwlkwbpMC_MQu3T68ULBdl7hkyB-HRu6Ah4w2kNca7lN$>

>>

>>

>>

>> *Once in a while you get shown the light, In the strangest of places if

>> you look at it right.  - J. Garcia, R Hunter*

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>

> --

> Michael Canale

> Assistant Director, SDS

> Coordinator Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services,

> Sensory Impairment, and ASD

>

> Office of Student Disability Services

> University of Maryland, Baltimore County

> 225 Math/Psychology Building

>

> Desk: 410-455-6358

> Mobile: 410-688-5088 (Text, FaceTime)

> VP: 443-410-4773

> Email:  canale at umbc.edu

> Web: sds.umbc.edu <http://sss.umbc.edu>

>

> *Once in a while you get shown the light, In the strangest of places if

> you look at it right.  - J. Garcia, R Hunter*

>

>

>

>

>

> _______________________________________________

> athen-list mailing list

> athen-list at mailman12.u.washington.edu

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>



-- 
-*- Dan Comden                       danc at uw.edu <danc at washington.edu>
    Access Technology Center   www.uw.edu/itconnect/accessibility/atl/
    University of Washington      UW Information Technology
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