Accessible Christmas Carols

Christmas comes but once a year, and it never fails, someone will invite you to go caroling! You're blind, so naturally, you know how to sing and you have perfect pitch, right?

We've all heard the same Christmas carols for years, but we don't always know the words. How embarrassing it is to be in a crowd of friends and not know the words! Even worse, having to ask someone to write them out in a Word document so you can braille them before you leave.

At Christmas-Carols.net, you'll not only find the lyrics to your favorite Christmas carols, but each page has a midi of the song so that you can sing a-long! Copy and paste the words into a document for later braille translating and do a little practice before your friends arive.

Some of the pages have an iPod Nano ad on them that has sound, but if you click the Sound Off button in the right corner of the ad, you can listen to your music with no interruptions. With well over 50 Christmas carols, it is well worth it!

I hope you enjoy these Christmas carols as much as I did. This is a great way to sing Christmas carols with your family all gathered around you this holiday season. Enjoy!

Click this link to visit http://www.christmas-carols.net.

Christmas Music on the Web

What if you could have an endless supply of great holiday music all day long without having to change a CD or cue up a playlist? Thanks to the Internet and AccurRadio, you can! There are several channels that stream music to fill your home with the festivities of the season.

To get to AccuRadio's Holiday music, click this link: http://accuradio.com/holiday. You will be greeted with a choice of holiday music genres. You can pick everything from Jazz to Christian to Pop and more. I started out with "Old Fashioned," to bring back the memories of my parents Dean Martin Christmas albums. I think my favorite section, though, is the one called "Seasons Greetings." This is the main channel and features the best music from all of the other channels. With each channel, you can deselect artists that you would like to avoid. So if Burl Ives annoys you, just delete him from the list.

To get your holiday music started, just click on your favorite section. An ad will pop up before your music loads. Clicking on the add will support the website but not affect your music.

For those who use screen readers, there are some graphics at the top of the page, just arrow down and you'll find the links you need to start listening to the various stations. When you choose a station, a new window will open and the stream will start. While the stream is active, the links to control what's playing are at the bottom of the page.

Christmas Traditions Around the World

An annotated guide to numerous sites detailing international Christmas traditions. Teachers and librarians may especially be inspired by an elementary school's internet scavenger hunt.

Click this link to learn Christmas Traditions Around the World.

The Christmas Story in Art [Metropolitan Museum of Art]

"The birth of Jesus Christ and the events surrounding it are the subject of many beautiful works of art in the Metropolitan Museum. We present a few of them here, accompanied by the sacred texts that inspired them." You can read the text, or listen to the audio as the Flash animation is updated to show the art.

Click this link to experience The Christmas Story in Art.

Tips On How to Scent Your Home for a Holiday Party

Christmas smells are enticing, and chances are between the piney smell of the tree and the aroma of the food, you won't need to add much - especially if you're mulling wine or spicing cider. But if your kitchen reeks of garlic - or if your party's being catered and your nose is underwhelmed - try this.

1. Fill a large saucepan halfway with water - about 8 cups - and set on a hot burner to boil quickly.
   
   
2. Gather some yummy scented things: citrus (fresh lemon, lime or orange - or use dried fruit peels), cinnamon sticks, nutmeg, allspice, juniper berries and bay leaves.
   
   
3. Toss in anything else you can find that smells good - herbal tea bags, rose water, dried fruits, lavender or rosemary or a snippet of redwood from the garden, a vanilla bean or a few drops of vanilla extract.
   
   
4. Bring to a boil and then turn down to simmer.
   
   
5. Leave the pot to simmer uncovered.

Strain out ingredients and toss (and pour out the water) before guests arrive to make sure no one assumes you've prepared a particularly original holiday punch - and, of course, to make them think you've been baking all day!

Practice combinations beforehand, so the night of the party, you don't end up with things smelling bad when they're placed together. Find a mixture you like.

Another Great Idea

Cut apples into slices and place them on a cookie sheet. Overlapping is fine since you're not going to eat the apples. Sprinkle the apples with some cinnamon and bake them for about 30 minutes at 250-300 degrees. Turn the oven off and enjoy the rest of the day. You can leave the apples in the oven for a couple of days and reheat them if you want to. Not only will you have a great smelling house, but now you have dried apples to make garland!

How to Organize a White Elephant Gift Exchange

A white elephant gift exchange is a lighthearted way to have fun with your friends, family or work colleagues. White elephant gifts are traditionally gifts considered extremely tacky, or that do not fit the tastes of the recipient, and that are given by a friend or close relative and therefore cannot be returned or exchanged at the store without potentially offending the giver. The thought behind a white elephant gift exchange is to give everyone a chance to rid themselves of these tacky gifts--and invariably gaining a new one! This is also known as a Yankee Swap, Dirty Santa, or Pirate Gift Exchange.

1. Organize the event. Give everyone invitations, along with a description of what a white elephant gift exchange is. Tell them to bring along the tackiest, most useless, and least fitting gift they've ever gotten stuck with, and to wrap it up or put it in a gift bag.
   
   
2. Keep gifts anonymous. Put all the gifts in an area where it will be hard for others to see who brought what. In other words, don't have your guest walk through the party crowd with gift in hand before you get to the pile of gifts. The idea is for people to not know who the gift is coming from.
   
   
3. Start the picking! Select who will open a gift first. You can have people draw slips of paper with numbers on them, roll dice, go by age, go alphabetically by name, or in a circle starting with who ever is closest to the door. In any event, figure out your system and have the first person choose a gift to unwrap. Feel free to crack jokes and make fun of the gift, since it'll probably be something no one would put on their Christmas list.
   
   
4. Have the next person choose and open a gift. Now this is where it gets interesting. The person has a choice of whether to keep the gift they opened, or to "steal" an already opened gift from a previous person. If they steal a gift, they take that gift and give their unwanted gift to the person they stole from. That person then gets the option of stealing from someone else, and this continues until somebody decides to stick with their gift.
   
   
5. Go to the next person in order and repeat. The exchange continues until every gift has been opened and the last person keeps their gift.

A gift that has been stolen three times is considered "frozen" or "locked" and cannot be stolen a fourth time. No one can steal back the gift that was just stolen from them.

While it is acceptable to re-gift an unwanted trinket, in practice many people end up purchasing new tacky items just for the party. The goal is to choose wacky, funny or entertaining gifts. If you're really stumped, just pay a visit to your local dollar store. Some ideas for white elephant gifts include:

• Hideous jewelry
  
• Perfume or lotion with an unpleasant scent
  
• Cheap, ugly statues or other decorative knick knacks
  
• Weird art
  
• An obnoxious T-shirt or tie
  
• A poorly made, straight to video/DVD movie, preferably with the star being at the center of public ridicule
  
• An obscure or outdated book

Many variations of these rules exist. For example, many people playing the game do not intentionally choose gag gifts. On the contrary, many set a price limit (e.g., $10) and ask that people bring gifts with broad appeal -- a calendar for the upcoming year, candles, a card game, or chocolates, for example.

Another variation is that the next person in turn does not automatically choose an unopened gift and decide whether or not to keep it, but whether to choose a new gift or to steal one that was already opened. If they choose to steal, the person from whom they stole must make the same decision. This continues until someone chooses to open a new gift. This way, it is always a gamble when you choose to open a new gift, because you may get something no one else will want, and you'll be stuck with it. However, this variation can move the game along faster.

Many families also use this to buy nice gifts such as fire pits for the back yard, artwork for the house, etc. It's a great way to get laughs and nice things you will actually use and not save for next year's white elephant.

Parents and teachers can use this variation for children's holiday parties as a lesson in thoughtful re-use: Children bring a gently used toy, wrapped as a gift. The children may take a gift from another child, but it is not described as "stealing." All of the children leave with a gift that is new to them, there is no money spent in the process, and children learn both the fun of giving and how not to get too attached to a particular toy they may have their eye on throughout the gift exchange.

Recycling Egg Cartons for Christmas

Start saving up your egg cartons now. You will be needing them at Christmas.

I know it sounds strange at first, but I had this friend who loved glass ball ornaments on her tree. She had all kinds and in every size imaginable. I asked her how she stored them throughout the year, and she said that she used egg cartons!

Open them up and place your fragile ornaments into the egg cups. When it is full, simply close it and place it in your storage box.

Your ornaments will be more protected now, and you don't have to worry about dropping one because it got hung up on another wrapper.

Tips On How to Care for a Poinsettia

The poinsettia is the plant you love to hate. It wouldn't be Christmas without the poinsettia's bold red (or other colors), but you keep your fingers crossed and pray that the plant will make it through the long holiday season. Here are a few tips on keeping this temperamental and temporary houseguest happy.

1. Place your poinsettia in a sunny window. These plants require bright light - the more, the better.
   
   
2. Keep soil evenly moist at all times. Even a day without adequate moisture is enough to make poinsettias drop their leaves.
   
   
3. Provide a constant source of humidity by filling the overflow saucer with gravel. Water seeping through the pot will evaporate from the gravel.
   
   
4. Turn up the heat. Poinsettias are native to Mexico, where it is hot during the winter.
   
   
5. Keep the temperature as close to constant as you can, day and night. Decreasing temperatures cause leaves to drop.
   
   
6. Fertilize weekly with half-strength liquid houseplant fertilizer, or use a slow-release food when you first bring your poinsettia home.
   
   

If leaves begin to drop, increase humidity and reduce water.

Poinsettias make wonderful compost at the end of the holiday season.

How to Keep a Poinsettia Going After Christmas

If your poinsettia is still alive past New Years Day, it has passed through the shock of being moved from the greenhouse into your home. Odds are good that it will continue to grow for next year's holiday celebration. Here's what you need to do.

1. Continue to water your poinsettia, keeping the soil moist, but not wet, at all times. Keep the plant away from drafts caused by opening doors or heater vents.
   
   
2. Set the poinsettia outdoors once night temperatures average 55 degrees F or above.
   
   
3. Transplant the poinsettia into a larger pot. Use fast-draining potting soil rich in organic matter.
   
   
4. Cut the poinsettia back to about 8 inches in height in late March or early April. By the end of May you should see vigorous new growth.
   
   
5. Prune during the summer to keep the plant bushy and compact. Do not prune after September 1.
   
   
6. Keep the plant in indirect light or filtered sun.
   
   
7. Fertilize every 2 to 3 weeks with a complete fertilizer.
   
   
8. Move the plant into a closet each night, starting in October, for 14 hours, making sure it receives no light at all; move it into the light each morning for a maximum of 10 hours. Poinsettias bloom only when they experience long nights.
   
   
9. Continue this procedure every day for 10 weeks and you can have poinsettia blossoms for next Christmas.

The secret to growing poinsettias is to provide constant moisture to the roots. Don't, however, allow the plant to sit in water.

Putting the plant in a thick (or doubled) paper bag and closing it tightly produces the same results as putting it away in a closet. Keep the bag in a darker corner or hallway when it's "bagged", just to be sure it remains in the dark.

Tips for Wrapping Gifts

Adhesive Gift Wrap

Self-adhesive Gift Wrap is now available. A first-of-its-kind product coated on one side with a low-tack adhesive formulated by Hallmark, which sticks firmly to packages, creating a beautifully-wrapped gift with a cleaner presentation, and apparently, a lot less fuss. Essentially, if you can operate a sticky note, you can wrap like a pro with Adhesive Gift Wrap. Apart from the saving of time, I've read that ribbons aren't required. I know it all sounds a bit devoid of the joy-of-giving ethos, so scoff if you must, but the exclusive Hallmark Adhesive Gift Wrap is the result of requests from consumers who want the act of gift wrapping to be more convenient for their busy lifestyles.

Hallmark has a provisional patent on the product's low-tack adhesion, which is sticky enough to create clean lines and crisp folds without leaving any residue on the gift. There is no backing to peel off, so Adhesive Gift Wrap sticks to itself when rolled up, making storage simple.

There are currently forteen different Adhesive Gift Wrap designs, including designs for baby, weddings and kids, as well as everyday designs. The Adhesive Gift Wrap is available exclusively at Hallmark Gold Crown stores in the United States. The suggested retail price is US$5 per roll.

Make a Ribbon Organizer

Here's a problem, ribbons can quickly get out of hand and become a big tangled mess, something you don't need while trying to wrap a gift. If you are blind, how do you keep the end of the ribbon around so its easy to find again when you need it?

Well, if you can find them, you can purchase ribbon organizers that cost quite a bit, or why not save money and make your own?

This ribbon organizer project calls for the following materials:

• A plastic box with a lid. (Check the dollar store or your local craft store for these boxes. I have found them for 50 cents each.
  
• A 3/8th inch dowel
  
• Your rolls of ribbon
  
• A drill or nail driver that can drill or punch a hole that is 3/8th inch
  
• A small saw
  
• Sandpaper
  
• A magic marker or braille stylus, depending on the amount of vision you have

Here is how you put it all together:

1. Take the lid off of the box and orient the box so that one of the short ends faces you.
   
2. Measure three inches from either side and mark the measurement with either the magic marker or braille stylus.
   
3. Repeat for the opposite side of the box, so you wind up with four marks for hole, two on each short end of the box.
   
4. Drill or punch the four holes and finish them by sanding the rough edges with some sandpaper.
   
5. Take your dowel and cut two pieces from it, each the length of the box plus about two inches. Most plastic boxes will require lengths of about 16 inches long, but check this against your own box.
   
6. After cutting, sand the rough edges of the dowels.
   
7. Assembling each dowel, one at a time, slide the dowel through one hole. Then thread the spools of ribbon through the dowel before sliding the dowel through the hole at the opposite end. Do the same for the remaining dowel.
   
8. Place the lid on the box, and you are done!

Roll Buddy: Your Christmas paper roll holder

Hold, dispense, and store paper - without tape or rubber bands. Snap the plastic wrap clip onto your roll of paper. Pull out the length you need to do the job. Paper is stabilized while you're wrapping. Sets of 3. 3 1/8" x 1 3/4" diameter.

I realize it's meant for Christmas wrapping paper, but that wouldn't stop me from using it for other purposes. Like organizing drawings, plans, posters, large photocopies, tablecloths and other stuff that are best stored rolled up.

Click this link to purchase the Roll Buddy from the Miles Kimball website.

A Playlist for Any Situation

Even though I have thousands (and I do mean thousands) of songs on an external hard drive, I sometimes get sick of them - or maybe I just need to stop listening to the same songs over and over again. Whatever the case, I like to mix it up every so often, and a site called Playlist Now is making it that much easier to satisfy my musical tastes.

Just type in what you're doing, and Playlist Now will whip up a list of playlist suggestions. I tested everything from "I am at work on my laptop," to "I am cleaning my home office" and it didn't disappoint with its recommended playlists. Just try it out for yourself, you'll be hooked.

Click this link to visit http://www.playlistnow.fm.

One Track Mind

OTM features a new song every day from a new artist, and uploads the track for your listening, and legal downloading pleasure (all the tracks are distributed by record labels and PR firms, so download away). You are then encouraged to jump into the community discussion, adding your commentary about the song, and browse past picks. It's a great way to add to your already-expanding music library, and find new artists you don't necessarily have access to on the radio. But my favorite day is Sunday, where OTM posts a batch of new music all at once, which creates a sort of "Sunday morning playlist" to get me going.

Click this link to discover new music on http://one-track-mind.com.

Zoom into Any Screen on Your iPhone

Here's an iPhone feature that could have completely slipped your radar: zooming in and out of your screen.

The zoom feature, which can be turned on in the Settings menu, uses a three-finger tapping system to zoom in on any screen. Just double tap with three fingers to zoom. To move around when zoomed in, drag three fingers around the screen. And to change the zoom farther or closer, double-tap and drag three fingers up or down.

This feature only works with the iPhone 3GS and new iPod Touch, not older models. To activate the zoom feature, tap Settings, General, and then Accessibility.

Christmas is for Me

by Donna J. Jodhan

I have had the good fortune to enjoy many wonderful Christmases; with and without vision and it does not matter! Christmas is for me. The smells and the sounds, the laughter and the merry making.

When I had enough sight, I used to enjoy going out to window shop. To see the bright colorful lights, the flickering candles in the Church, Santa's bright red suit, and streets crowded with throngs of folks of all ages. I also loved to smell the scent of rich pine, cakes and goodies baking in ovens, and taste the various Christmas foods and drinks. I also loved to walk in the snow and watch those big white snowflakes race each other to the ground but most of all, I loved to ice skate around those huge outdoor rinks decorated with Christmas lights.

That was then and this is now but not much has changed for me. True it is that I can no longer see the flickering candles, the colorful Christmas lights, and the big fat snowflakes, but this does not prevent me from enjoying this special time of the year. My sense of smell is still in tact along with my sense of taste and I use my memories of years gone by to help me along. I focus on the times when I could see and inter mingle those memories with the now. I am blessed! I am lucky! With or without sight, Christmas is for me! I am a kid at heart, playing with my talking games, playing my electronic keyboard, and my Christmas CDs.

Merry Christmas, happy holidays, Joyeux Noèl, and Feliz Navidad to you all!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, an accessibility and special needs business consultant wishing you a terrific day. If you'd like to learn more about me, then you can visit some of my blog spots at:
Donna Jodhan! Advocating accessibility for all: http://www.donnajodhan.blogspot.com
Weekly Saturday postings on issues of accessibility: http://www.sterlingcreations.ca/blog/blog.html
blogs on various issues and answers to consumers concerns: http://www.sterlingcreations.com/businessdesk.htm

Yoga Mat for the Blind or Visually Impaired

VIYM is designed to enable those who are blind, partially blind or who may face physical challenges due to age or disability to practice yoga safely and confidently. The mats can be used by young people and adults in physical education classes, in rehabilitation facilities, community centers, at home or in a yoga studio. Thicker than a traditional mat, they can still be rolled or loosely folded to transport to school, a studio or stored at home. They are easily transportable, coming with their own handy carrying strap, or a specially designed VIYM carrying bag can be purchased.

VIYM is designed in three dimensions, with raised and depressed features called ’stations’ strategically placed to help the challenged yoga student feel where their hands, feet and head should be placed for all 24 basic yoga postures. These intuitive tactile feedback features also help him/her to feel their location and direction on the mat, helping the student to obtain the all important body alignment during a yoga posture sequence. It is ¼” thick, 68 inches long and 24 inches wide. Designed for the average sized person (5′ 5″), it easily accommodates those shorter or taller who need only to adjust their stride for a comfortable fit.

Prior to VIYM, visually or physically challenged aspiring yoga students faced some discouraging challenges. They often had trouble detecting the location of their body and the direction in which they were facing on a mat. Balancing in yoga postures was awkward: students had a hard time sensing and reaching optimal, ideal body alignment without any visual cues.

Instructors faced similar challenges as they tried to articulate posture instructions or give body directions in ways that made sense without any eye contact or visual cues.

Click this link to purchase the VIYM Yoga Mat.

Yoga

Watch and listen to Yoga Instructor Cindy Rogers as she explains the benefits and reasons to practice yoga. She provides tips that help persons with blindness learn yoga asanas safely. Practicing yoga improves balance and stamina.

Whether sighted or visually impaired, yoga should be learned and practiced with the guidance of a qualified teacher. If your local yoga studio is not comfortable teaching you yoga, introduce them to Cindy’s videos on YouTube.

Seeing From the Heart Yoga Part 1

Seeing From the Heart Yoga Part 2

Cindy demonstrates Sukhasana, commonly called the Easy Pose or the Simple Cross-legged Pose. Her hands are in anjali mudra or prayer position of the heart.

PupilTube: Learning through Video

PupilTube is a source of user-generated how-to videos. The site hosts videos in thirteen categories. Some of the videos visitors to PupilTube can find include how to calculate compound interest, how to learn common Spanish phrases and how to protect yourself from credit card fraud. So far the catalog of videos is relatively limited, but as the catalog expands, PupilTube could become a useful resource.

I'm not sure that I would turn a whole class loose on PupilTube, but it could be a good place for you to find select videos to share with your students.

Click this link to start learning with http://www.pupiltube.com.

Talking Electronic Meteorologist

This is the electronic weather station that literally tells you the weather conditions in a clear voice. At the press of a button, it streams the current audio weather forecast you’ve selected from one of 60,000 locations through the display’s dual speakers. It’s ideal for staying informed while getting dressed or performing some other activity without turning on a television or computer. No subscription fee is required.

The base station wirelessly receives National Weather Service data (updated four times a day) up to 330′ away from a “weather gateway” that plugs into your existing network router (requires high-speed Internet connection). A four-day forecast, computer-updated time, date, and a scrolling text display are presented on the unit’s 4 1/2″ square LCD panel, as well as the temperature sent by an included wireless outdoor transmitter.

The Gateway itself is plugged into a power outlet via its AC adapter, while the Base station and transmitter runs on a trio C and a couple of AA batteries. Not sure if the selection of your location is spoken during setup.

Click this link to purchase The Talking Electronic Meteorologist from Hammacher Schlemmer.

Finding, Researching and Downloading Books, Dictionaries and Encyclopedias on the Net

As technology advances, we're seeing more and more libraries offering digital downloads of their catalogs. Online libraries of material have become more popular as sighted folks discover iPods and electronic book readers and search engines now offer the ability to search printed texts and even download electronic versions of the texts. Online dictionaries and encyclopedias are making it possible for people who are blind or visually impaired to independently search for reference material.

As a result, I am going to combine several Fred's Head records into one large resource document that will help you find and download books from a variety of search engines and websites. I encourage you to visit the Fred's Head Database or the Fred's Head Companion blog and search for the word "book" to see other resources. I will also reference many online dictionaries and encyclopedias that are free and accessible.

Louis Database of Accessible Materials for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired

Produced and maintained by the American Printing House for the Blind (APH), the Louis Database of Accessible Materials for People Who are Blind or Visually Impaired contains complete bibliographic and location information for more than 163,000 titles of accessible materials from over 200 agencies throughout the United States. These items include books in braille, large print, sound recording, and computer file; braille music; and American Printing House for the Blind (APH) products.

Louis is updated daily and is searchable free via the APH website. Persons without Internet access who require reference assistance can contact APH using its toll free number.

American Printing House for the Blind, Inc.
1839 Frankfort Avenue
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 6085
Louisville, Kentucky 40206-0085
Toll Free: 800-223-1839
Phone: 502-895-2405
Fax: 502-899-2274
E-mail: info@aph.org
Web site: http://www.aph.org
APH Shopping Home: http://shop.aph.org

STEPP

The STudent E-rent Pilot Project (STEPP) is an eTextbook rental program offering cost-effective textbooks that "all" students can read.

• Cost-Effective: Save an average of 50% or more off the retail cost of a new hardcopy textbook purchase.
  
• Convenient: Access eTextbooks on almost any device, anytime, anywhere.
  
• Conscious Choice: Practice environmental stewardship; save our trees.
  
• Accessible textbooks for the blind and visually impaired.

STEPP was launched by the Alternative Media Access Center, in partnership with CourseSmart and the AccessText Network, through a grant from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), U.S. Department of Education (DoEd). This program is designed to meet the textbook rental needs of any postsecondary student and aims to help improve low-cost access to higher education textbooks for all students, including those with print-related disabilities.

STEPP leverages the expertise of its three collaborative partners to offer a national solution to promote cost savings for students while eliminating traditional barriers to textbook access. Click this link to "STEPP" towards universal access: http://stepp.gatech.edu.

The Free Library

The Free Library offers full-text versions of classic literary works from hundreds of celebrated authors. It also includes a massive collection of periodicals from hundreds of leading publications covering many areas.

Click this link to visit http://www.thefreelibrary.com.

Search Your Library with WorldCat

I love discovering new ways to search the Internet. Not only is it entirely helpful in finding cool Websites to share with all of you, but I just love the developments that are being made to make searching more fun! Today, I found a search engine that allows you to search libraries near you for books, media, etc.

Simply type a title, subject or person into the search field and click the Search button. Want more options? Then click the Advanced Search link underneath the search field. In the advanced search, you have more options, such as looking by author, keyword, ISBN, ISSN or OCLC number. You can also limit your searches by language, format and publication date.

If you register for a free account, which took no time at all for me to do, you can make your own list of items the library has that you want to check out over time. You can also share these lists with friends or family.

To register, click the link at the top of the page and then fill out the following information: username, password, e-mail address, agree to the terms of use and then click "I Agree." Next, confirm that you requested the account in the verification email that comes to the email address you provided. Once you're logged in, you can use the sections under the My WorldCat tab, which will give you access to edit your profile, change your password, etc.

You also have the option to put WorldCat on your own Website so that others can discover it from your page. Or, you can add it to your browser's toolbar with an easy and quick download.

What other features do I love? Well, Ask a Librarian is a very nifty option. It allows you to get help from a librarian in your search results. You can also review materials and rate them. Or, you can get information on the Details section of an item in a Wiki type style.

I hope you'll get a lot of use out of this search engine. I mean, how else can you stay in touch with libraries all around you with the simple use of a search field? Enjoy it! Click this link to visit http://www.worldcat.org.

Finding eBooks On the Internet

In the last decade the Internet has rapidly become one of the most important ways of accessing information for people who are blind and visually impaired. As the Internet has grown in size and popularity, so has the availability of accessible electronic books in a number of different formats.

Today, we know that there are thousands of eBooks that can be accessed. but how do we go about finding specific titles? And once we find them, how do we download them? And how do we read the different formats?

Finding eBooks on the Internet tells you how. Finding eBooks on the Internet is a publication of the National Braille Press. This book shows you the step-by-step process of how to obtain public domain books from sources like Project Gutenberg and the eText Spider, how to acquire commercially available accessible books from companies like Baen, and how to go about getting books in accessible formats from sites like Web-Braille and Bookshare.org.

What makes this a unique book is that it is written by Anna Dresner, who uses assistive technology herself. The book includes keyboard commands for both JAWS and Window-Eyes. This publication is available in braille and large print.

Finding eBooks on the Internet by Anna Dresner
National Braille Press
Toll Free: 888-965-8965
Email: orders@nbp.org
Web: http://www.nbp.org

Etext Archives, Academic Resources, & Linguistic Links

Welcome to Camera Obscura's meta-index of academic and scholarly resources. All of the archives and resources indexed in this document are either easily navigatable with speech or have been extensively re-indexed so that the information they contain is easily and immediately accessible via speech-synthesis and/or text-based access. This document also contains speech-friendly submission forms for many standard reference works, as well as telephone and address directories and resources which are easily navigated using speech-synthesis and a text-based browser.

The purpose of this meta-index is to facillitate easy and immediate access to the wealth of etextual resources on the internet to blind and visually impaired individuals using speech-synthesis and/or refreshable braille.

Click this link to visit Camera Obscura's meta-index of academic and scholarly resources.

Find Books with Google

The Google Book Search is a feature you can use to search the Internet for copies of books. You can search among various subjects that interest you and when you're done, you can also find out where you can borrow them or even buy them. The book search works just like a search engine. You type your area of interest into the search box and in a matter of seconds, you will see lists and lists of books that fall under that category.

When you do a book search, you will see that under each listing, there is an "About this book" link. This gives you basic information on the book, including the title, author, publication date and the length. Some of the books also have some additional information, such as key terms, phrases, references, chapter titles and even a list of related books with the same subject.

It's important to note that not every book will come in the full text version. Each book is assigned a different preview length and these are displayed clearly for each listing in your book search. Each book will either have a full view, a limited view, a snippet view or there may be no preview available. The full view option is usually active when the book is out of its copyright date or if the publisher gave permission to allow viewers to read the book in its entirety. If this is the case, you can read it as many times as you'd like.

If the book is a limited view copy, you can only see certain parts of the book. With this feature, the publishers of the book has joined Google's Partner Program and they allow you to see a few of the pages from the book but there is a limit to what you can see online.

In the snippet view, you can do special searches for information within the book. >From those results, up to three snippets of the text will be shown. If the book you have found has no preview available, you won't be able to see any parts of the book, but you can read the information provided under the "About this book" link.

Every book you find with the Google Book Search has links included that will take you to places where you can buy or borrow the book. There will be listings for book sellers if you want to buy the book or you might be able to find it in a library. If you're really interested in a certain book, you'll definitely want to check that out. Now, you may be wondering where the books come from to make this search possible. Well, they mainly come from the book publishers and from libraries.

Click this link to start searching http://books.google.com.

Books Should Be Free

Books Should Be Free hosts hundreds of free audio books in a wide range of genres. All of the audio books in the collection are either public domain or Creative Commons works. All of the audio books can be downloaded directly from the website or from iTunes.

One of the aspects of Books Should Be Free that I think some students will really appreciate is the large display of book covers that they'll see when browsing by genre. It's true that we should teach students not to judge a book by its cover, yet at the same time a good cover might get students interested in books they would otherwise ignore.

If you have a student in need of an audio book to support their reading, Books Should Be Free could be a good place to start your search.

Click this link to visit http://www.BooksShouldBeFree.com.

New Free Books

Here's a website filled with links to free, legal, complete eBooks still covered by copyright. Novels, mystery, romance, saga, self-help, history, and more. They are legal, in most cases from the author's own website.

Click this link to visit http://newfreebooks.com.

Alex Catalogue of Electronic Texts

This site has about 14,000 classic public domain documents from American and English literature as well as Western philosophy.

Click this link to visit the Alex Catalogue of Electronic Texts.

The Etext Archives

Home to electronic texts of all kinds, from the sacred to the profane, from the political to the personal

Click this link to visit the The Etext Archives.

The Dusty Library

This website is filled with public domain books, poems and short stories. All books are screen reader friendly and the site's font size can be changed for people with low vision.

Click this link to visit the Dusty Library at http://www.dustylibrary.com.

500,000 Free E-Texts at the Internet Archive

The Internet Archive is home to more than one million digital resources. More than half of the digital resources on the Internet Archive are e-texts. There are seven sub-categories of e-texts. I spent some time exploring the "American Libraries" sub-category and found quite a few texts that could be used with a United States History class for example. I also found a number of resources that would be appropriate for use in an American Literature course.

The Internet Archive is a great place for students and teachers to find digital resources that can be used under a Creative Commons license. The e-texts are especially valuable as supplementary materials for a variety of courses. The e-texts are available as PDF files to save and use on your local computer. In the more than 500,000 e-texts in the Internet Archive there is bound to be something for almost everyone.

Click this link to visit the Text Archive section of the Archive website.

Find Books with Microsoft

Microsoft's version of a book search engine is called Live Search Books and they are going up against their competitor, Google. The concept of the book search goes along the same lines as the Windows Live Search in how it searches the Internet for information. The Live Search Books uses the same process when scanning the Internet for books.

This program goes hand-in-hand with Microsoft's book scanning project that they have been working on for some time now. Users can search for books by using a regular search engine. When someone performs a search, keywords are used to filter out the results. The search only includes the books that have been scanned via the scanning project.

Live Search Books has a feature called "Search inside a book," which gives the users the opportunity to search the full text of the books. Right now, the search includes books that have no copyright date and only books that have been scanned from the collections of the British Library, the University of California and the University of Toronto. Other locations, such as the New York Public Library, Cornell University and the American Museum of Veterinary Medicine, are said to be included in the very near future. Other copyright books from publishers who have given permission will also join the search soon.

The one big difference between Microsoft's and Google's book searches is that Microsoft only offers the full text of the books. They can be downloaded onto your computer in the PDF format, so if you would like to search for books yourself, be sure to have the Adobe Acrobat Reader installed before you begin.

Click this link to start searching with Microsoft.

Specific Sites for Books

The following is a list of independent company websites that offer books for download. These books may be text or audio.

Free Book Resources

The Story Home

notaland.com's The Story Home is a collection of classic and original children’s audio stories.  Every other week a new story is added by storyteller Alan.  All audio stories are FREE!! 

The stories can be listened to right from The Story Home website or by subscribing to The Story Home on iTunes podcast. Students will love listening to audio stories on The Story Home.  Set up a listening center in your classroom where students can listen to stories.  As they listen, they could practice various comprehension strategies. If you have an iPod program at your school, load up the iPods with stories that students can listen to at home.  Find stories that correspond with your classroom curriculum and introduce new concepts with an audio story.

Click this link to visit http://thestoryhome.com.

ReadPrint

The ReadPrint website is a free library of online books for students, teachers, and the classic enthusiast. Thousands of novels, poems, stories and easy to read books are online.

Click this link to visit http://www.readprint.com.

Fantastic Fiction

Fantastic Fiction allows the user to look up books by author, for example, and learn all the titles the person has written. It lists a series in chronological order. It also lists the author's book recommendations.

Click this link to visit http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk.

Learn Outloud

Here's another valuable source. They do sell books, but they also have a large collection of audio and video presentations for free download. Every Friday they provide a free downloadable book; and every month, they have a free book of the month. Each Wednesday, they recommend a free podcast.

Click this link to visit http://www.learnoutloud.com.

Repeat After Us

From the site:

"Created by a high school student, RepeatAfterUs is an award-winning online library with the best collection of copyright-free English texts and scripted recordings. Our free audio clips provide an excellent resource for students and literature lovers of all ages.

Click this link to visit Repeat After Us at http://www.repeatafterus.com.

Planet eBook

Planet eBook is a free service where teachers and students can find classic literature titles available as free downloads. Planet eBook adds new titles at regular intervals. Subscribe to the Planet eBook blog or newsletter to keep track of the latest additions to the collection. For browsing purposes, Planet eBook offers previews of titles through the Issuu pdf publishing service. Using the previews students can get an overview of a title without committing to downloading the entire ebook.

Click this link to visit http://www.PlanetEbook.com.
Classic Reader is another great site for free and accessible books: http://www.classicreader.com.

Literal Systems

Literal Systems is another great resource for free, downloadable audio books. You'll find that the navigation is simple with the menu on the right side of the page, for those of you with some vision. There you will find the following sections:

• Download Audio: Here you will find the titles that are currently available to listen to on the site. Choose a title and you'll be taken to its page. There you will find the links you need in order to listen to it under the Download section. The credits for it are shown above it as well. There is only a small selection of titles at the moment, but I have every hope that the list will grow and grow as time goes by. These performances are truly enjoyable to listen to. I was impressed by the quality of sound and of the ability of those reading them.
  
  
• Home Page: This will take you back to the main page of the website.
  
  
• The People: Here you can learn about the people behind the recordings on both the technical and performance end. I think it is nice to be able to see the face behind the vocal talent, as well as, the people who make it all happen!
  
  
• Contacting Us: You'll find contact information here with a phone number and an e-mail form.
  
  
• Auditions: Here you can find information about the auditions they are holding. I'm guessing they're for voice talent.
  
  
• Volunteers: Here you will find information on what they are looking for in volunteers to help make the site more interesting and keeping it up to date.
  
  
• F.A.Q.: Here you will find the most frequently asked questions submitted to the site. I suggest checking it out if any questions pop into your head while you're visiting.

I truly enjoyed listening to the offerings here and I hope you will too. Check out Literal Systems by clicking this link: http://www.literalsystems.org/abooks.
Here's a site that they link to that may also have some audio files of interest: http://www.LoudLit.org.

Baen Books Offers Free Downloads

For several years, Baen Books: http://baen.com has provided fantasy and science fiction titles for download in unecrypted formats, including RTF, at reasonable prices. Now the company is offering all its electronic titles free to people who are blind, dyslexic, paralyzed, or are amputees. Disability must be documented. Read this article to learn more.

Talking Pages

Talking Pages is a non-profit web-based lending library that lends audio books to those who are blind or visually impaired.

You can select the audio books you want to borrow from their catalog. They will then ship you the audio books you select, along with a return label and postage. There is no fee for using the service; the costs are covered through donations.

Users of Talking Pages must sign up for library cards that permit users to borrow audio books and also check the status of what books they have currently on loan.

Please note that this service is available only to persons living in the United States.

Click this link to visit the Talking Pages website at http://www.talkingpages.org.

Listen To Spoken Word Internet Radio Station

I discovered a free radio station dedicated to broadcasting stories, drama, poetry and interviews. They broadcast popular audio books by best-selling authors, as well as promoting new and unsigned writers from around the world.

• Easily listen to radio online from work or home
  
• Free non-music entertainment for the more discerning listener
  
• Listen to popular audio books narrated by professional actors
  
• » View the week's programme schedule to see the great variety of choice offered

The Audio Book Radio Email Newsletter is a way to keep you up to date on programming information, news about the radio station and providing access to audio books free download clips of the latest audio books and forthcoming titles heard on the station.

Click this link to visit the Spoken Word Internet Radio Station: http://www.audiobookradio.net/index.php.

The Online Books Page

Aman Singer emailed Fred's Head with this site. Besides listing and searching Project Gutenberg, several government and religious sites, and a variety of other resources, this site provides direct links to smaller resources like The Calibration of Women Writers and Banned Books Online. The search and browse functionality are both excellent and the page as a whole lists over 25000 books on the web.

Click this link to visit The Online Books Page: http://digital.library.upenn.edu/books/.

Books for the Blind Online Library

In 2005, this service went live with a few dozen books in e-text format for reading by screen-reader or e-braille or screen-magnifier. It now has nearly a thousand titles. Recently, a lot of work has been done with the SpeakOn program to make it easy to get books and have the computer read them to you almost instantly.

A user said, "I've been playing with the system using an infra-red numeric keypad and can sit away from the PC and get a book in a few seconds. SpeakOn turns the computer into a sort of Talking Book machine - I'm using the Daniel voice which is pretty good".

Library membership is restricted to the visually impaired who are also UK or EU residents. Click this link to learn more about this online library for the blind: http://www.seeingear.org.

Read Free Full Text Books Online

Here's a site with thousands of books that are easy to read online, or save to your computer or portible reading device. The books are listed in alphabetical order and would be great if you're looking for something different, maybe for a book report?

Click this link to visit http://www.FullBooks.com.

World eBook Library Consortia

Housed in World eBook Library Multi-Terabyte server network is the world's largest digital archive of PDF eBooks and eDocuments. This collection hosts more than 250,000+ PDF eBooks and eDocuments. As a member you can have complete access to the entire collection. The collection is constantly growing.

• More than 250,000+ unabridged original single file PDF eBooks by the original authors
  
• Adobe PDF eBooks Included Software Reads Books To You
  
• Fully Searchable, Quotable Text, & Bookmarking Capability
  
• It's like having over 250,000+ Books in your living room
  
• Enough for several Lifetime's Worth of Reading

Click this link to visit the World eBook Library Consortia: http://worldlibrary.net.

Legends

Growing up some of my favorite stories were those of Robin Hood, King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, not to mention pirates, fairy tales, and such. Now at Legends you can explore these stories that have not only lasted through time but have inspired people enough that we still enjoy them.

Explore Robin Hood, King Arthur, Beowulf, Pirates and Privateers, Ballads and Broadsides, Swashbucklers and Fops, Fairy Tales, Shakespeare's Stories, Sagas & Sea Kings, Paladins and Princes, Poets and Painters, and Erin and Alba.

I was so happy I found more stories that I could explore than I already knew. Like Sigurd the Dragon Slayer, old ballads, and poetry even.

Then you can also check out Legendary Resources, Search Legends, What's New, and Notes on the Illustrations.

"Search Legends" is a Google based search engine that will search both the site, and the World Wide Web if you want it to. It's a very nice search engine.

I found the Notes on the Illustrations section to be interesting and informative.

I hope you enjoy these adventures as much as I did. Click this link to visit the Legends web site: http://www.legends.dm.net/.

Wired For Books

In order to use this site you need to have RealPlayer which is a free download, you will find the link to download Real Player near the top of their page.

Why would you want to have Real Player for this site? Well because you get to listen to famous, and not so famous, people read works of literature.

In the "Kid's Corner" you can listen to the tale of Peter Rabbit, and right next door you could listen to Alice 's Adventure's in Wonderland. Not to forget great literary works like Macbeth, The Illiad or the The Aeneid.

There is also poetry from "classic English poems, including poetry by Blake, Burns, Byron, Donne, Herbert, Hunt, Keats, and Shakespeare," to the "Den of Lions" poems, and the poetry of Emily Dickinson.

Not to mention all the wonderful non-fiction and fiction that you can listen to! This site gets an A++ in my opinion for being so diverse, and for bringing so many wonderful poems, and stories together in one place for people to listen to.
Click this link to visit the Wired For Books website: http://wiredforbooks.org/

Free Classic AudioBooks

This site has MP3 and M4B files of books that are out of copyright, a great resource for struggling readers! Most titles are for secondary students, including Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, Picture of Dorian Gray, and Romeo and Juliet (the only Shakespeare title so far). Check back often for new titles.

Click this link to visit http://freeclassicaudiobooks.com.

Project Gutenberg

The philosophy of Project Gutenberg is to make information, books and other materials available to the general public in forms a vast majority of the computers, programs and people can easily read, use, quote, and search.

Included in the materials are U.S. Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the whole US Constitution, the Bible, Shakespeare, literature, reference resources and general works.

Click this link to visit the Project Gutenberg home page: http://www.gutenberg.net. Don't forget to check their section of books that have been converted to audio at http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/categories/2.

Another way to access the books in this library is to point your browser to manybooks.net: http://www.manybooks.net where books can be converted to other formats.

Audio Books From Librivox

Here's a worthwhile project you may wish to participate in: "LibriVox wants all books in the public domain to be available, for free, in audio format, on the internet. We ask volunteers to record chapters of books in the public domain, and release them into the public domain."

They also have books that you can receive through their podcasts, how cool is that?

Click this link to visit the LibriVox website: http://librivox.org.

Bibliomania - Free Online Literature and Study Guides

• Free Online Literature with more than 2000 Classic Texts
  
• Literature Book Notes, Author Biographies, Book Summaries and Reference Books
  
• Read Classic Fiction, Drama, Poetry, Short Stories and Contemporary Articles and Interviews
  
• Study Guides to the most read books and Help for Teachers
  
• Research their Reference Books, Dictionaries, Quotations, Classic Non-fiction, Biographies and Religious Texts
  
• Buy the books personally read and recommended by Bibliomania

Click this link to visit Bibliomania: http://www.bibliomania.com.

FREE computer books and Internet books online with hard copy buying options

Here's a great collection of computer ebooks for your reading pleasure.

Click this link to find hundreds of computer and technology related books: http://hogan-productions.com/books/webbooks.html.

Doctor Who E-Books

In the 1950s kids hid behind the sofa when Professor Bernard Quatermass battled aliens on the BBC whilst ITV gave us Pathfinders in Space - the brainchild of Canadian Sydney Newman.

Fast forward to 1962 and Newman, now promoted to Head of BBC Drama, needed a new Saturday night family series to fit snugly between Grandstand and Juke Box Jury.

Concepts pitched for the show included telepathy, flying saucers, scientific trouble-shooters from the future - and a time machine. We all know who won.

The main stars of the show would be a couple of school teachers - the square-jawed Ian Chesterton and the improbably bouffant Barbara Wright. The teen audience could identify with Susan Foreman, one of their pupils. Even if she was an alien.

Finally, a mysterious anti-hero in the mould of Conan-Doyle's Professor Challenger would complete the line-up. He would be known only as 'The Doctor'. Doctor Who?

Travelling in their time and space machine, the TARDIS, the Doctor and co. began their adventures on November 23rd 1963 by voyaging 100,000 years into Earth's past to help some slightly dim cavemen discover fire.

That's how it all began, and the series is still alive and well today. The BBC has created a site where you can read the continuing adventures of Doctor Who. All e-books feature brand new artwork and extensive notes by the original authors. If you are a fan of this cult classic show, this is the site for you.

Click here to visit the BBC Doctor Who page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/doctorwho/ebooks/index.shtml

Books in a Podcast

Here are some sites that podcast audiobooks:

• Open Culture: Audiobook Podcast Collection: http://www.oculture.com/weblog/2006/10/audio_book_podc.html
  
• http://www.podiobooks.com
  
• http://www.bmw-audiobooks.com
  
• http://www.silentuniverse.com
  
• http://www.darkerprojects.com

Subscription Services

Bookshare.org

Even though braille and recorded books have existed for decades, supply is limited, production costs are high and using them can be cumbersome.

Many sight-impaired people use inexpensive scanners to prepare their own reading material for computer-synthesized speech. The page-by- page process often takes two to three hours per book.

The high-speed machine used by Bookshare.org can scan an entire book in 10 minutes. The technology can scan both sides of a page simultaneously after a book's binding has been removed.

With Bookshare.org, members submit their own scanned books for the collection and download as many as they like for use with Braille printers, computer-synthesized speech programs or other reading aids. Members pay a $25 initial setup fee and annual $50 dues.

To join Bookshare.org, members must send a letter from a doctor or other professional that attests to their disability. After paying the fees, they get a copy of Victor Reader Soft software that translates digital files into computer-synthesized speech.

Word about Bookshare.org has spread to students and teachers who prompted the organization to add a staff member dedicated to working with schools.

About 95 percent of Bookshare.org members are legally blind or dyslexic, while the remainder live with physical disabilities that prevent them from turning the pages of a book.

Driven by member submissions, the popular collection leans toward romance and science fiction. Volunteers search the files for errors and add titles, like the complete set of Pulitzer Prize winners or college reading lists.

Some Bookshare.org members even convert files to the MP3 format so they can load them onto an iPod.

The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Disabled, operated by the U.S. Library of Congress, has offered Braille and recorded books since the 1930s, but it often takes two to three years for a best-seller to be made available to the public via that service.

While the service distributes books to a network of libraries around the United States, users can face a months-long waiting list to receive a book. Bookshare.org offers quicker satisfaction.

Another advantage over recorded books is the ability to skip chapters or search for keywords, especially helpful with textbooks, news or nonfiction material.

The organization has appealed to publishers to donate digital copies to Bookshare.org when books are released, in keeping with the 1996 federal law that requires digital textbooks to be made available to disabled students at the same time as print versions.

Click this link to visit the bookshare.org website.

Diesel eBooks

Search and download over 35,000 titles, including 750 free downloads.

Click this link to visit the Diesel eBooks website: http://www.diesel-ebooks.com

Jiggerbug

jiggerbug.com an online audio book rental service, delivers their extensive collection of best-selling audio book titles to subscribers - digitally!

Based on the Netflix model, current Jiggerbug subscribers enjoy quick and simple mail service delivery of their favorite book titles on either CD-ROM or cassette tape. A newer service gives Jiggerbug subscribers the option to instantly download their favorite titles in an easy-to-use, take-it-with-you digital format. Powered by OverDrive technology, digital delivery is ideal for commuters, frequent gym goers or anyone who wants to create more time in their day by multitasking with an entertaining best-seller, self-help title or any of the thousands of book options available.

Growing time demands make it difficult for many to enjoy the latest "must-read" titles. To bridge the gap between time and desire, Jiggerbug's audio books offer a solution - allowing people to listen to their favorite book or subject during times that may otherwise be wasted ( lengthy bus commutes, gym time, etc. ). By freeing-up the hands, Jiggerbug is freeing-up time for busy executives, multitasking moms and housewives or anyone who wants to make more efficient use of their day. Audio books ( available on tape, CD or Instant Download ) are also the ideal answer for the elderly, beginning readers, or anyone with sight restrictions. With the Digital Download service option, ordering is as easy as:

1. choose a title and checkout
   
2. instantly download the title for immediate playback
3. at the end of the loan, the title is automatically returned to the collection - with nothing more to do.

Powered by OverDrive, audio titles will be available in the industry standard WMA format for easy playback on your home computer or on hundreds of portable devices, including MP3 players. The OverDrive Audio Book technology contains advanced accessibility features that make it easy for blind and visually impaired listeners to enjoy titles. Users simply choose their favorite book from Jiggerbug's expansive collection of titles, download the book for instant, on-the-go playback using an audio device or listen offline on the subscribers PC.

For more information, click this link to visit www.jiggerbug.com.

Pay Per Listen: An Electronic Download Service of Audiobooks.com

PayPerListen, a service of Audiobooks.com delivers an extensive selection of audiobooks in an electronically downloadable format at approximately 75-80% less than the cost of typical CD's and cassettes.

The PayPerListen.comSM and MediaTunnel.com SM combined services employ state of the art electronic ordering, file transfer technology, and encrypted security to bring to you a downloaded title which is immediately available and there is no delay or additional cost for shipping regardless of where you may be throughout the world!

They call their titles "Electronically Downloadable Audiobooks," and the selection is great. There are also some helpful articles to help with the download process.

SoundsGood.com, a Consumer Shopping Service for Audio Entertainment

SoundsGood.com is a premier audio download and traditional media service providing consumers with an easy way to access thousands of best selling audio books, classic radio shows, theatre performances, and a growing collection of audio newspapers, magazines, lectures, self help and wellness courses, modern day radio shows and other spoken word entertainment.

SoundsGood.com is a unique one-stop shop that provides customers with both digital downloads for immediate listening as well as the ability to purchase CDs and audio cassettes for those more comfortable with traditional media.

SoundsGood supports digital downloads that are compatible with MP3 players, CD players, PCs and some high-end smart phones that support the Windows Media audio format.

SoundsGood offers a wide range of audiobook titles ranging from New York Times best-sellers to the obscure.

SoundsGood.com incorporates software designed by OverDrive, an audio playback technology designed for enhanced audiobook listening in combination with the Windows Media Player. Benefits of the OverDrive system include the ability to bookmark audio points, utilize visual chapter marks to more easily jump between chapters, and to audibly slow down or speed up the reader's pace of the story playback. Such features will allow the consumer to very simply mark where they are in an audiobook, find their way back to the point, and skip ahead or back if necessary. The system is also fully enabled to provide ease of use for the visually impaired and blind community.

Click this link to visit SoundsGood.com.

Ebooks in Spanish and German

Those looking for electronic books in Spanish, German and to a lesser degree in other languages can explore Tiflolibros, a growing library from Argentina. Their German collection is growing very rapidly! Here is the English information page, with links to the main page in Spanish.

Online Dictionaries and encyclopedias

The Internet is a rich source for dictionary and other reference materials. If you have screen access software and an Internet connection, there are a number of sites that you may want to check out.

Before we go too far, let me suggest that you take some time to read this great page called How to use Dictionaries.

Acronym Finder: http://www.acronymfinder.com has more than 480,000 human-edited entries, Acronym Finder is the world's largest and most comprehensive dictionary of acronyms, abbreviations, and initialisms. Combined with the Acronym Attic, Acronym Finder contains more than 3 million acronyms and abbreviations.

Do you need a dictionary in a foreign language? If so, then you need to search Dictionaries > By Language in the Yahoo! Directory: http://dir.yahoo.com/Reference/dictionaries/language/.

http://www.yourdictionary.com has links to over 500 dictionaries so you're sure to find what you're looking for!

Are you trying to keep up with the latest slang terms? If so, then you need to search Slang Dictionaries in the Yahoo! Directory: http://dir.yahoo.com/Reference/dictionaries/slang/.

“…translate and learn words in their original context.” The mission of lingro.com is to create an on-line environment that allows anyone learning a language to quickly look up and learn the vocabulary most important to them.” In addition to dictionaries in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Polish and Swedish, you can put in a URL and all the words on that page become clickable with definitions popping up everywhere!

Wikipedia is a multilingual, Web-based, free-content encyclopedia written collaboratively by volunteers and operated by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation based in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Wikipedia began as a complement to the expert-written Nupedia on January 15, 2001. It has steadily risen in popularity, and has since spawned several sister projects, such as Wiktionary, Wikibooks, and Wikinews. It is edited by volunteers with wiki software, meaning articles are subject to change by nearly anyone. Wikipedia's volunteers attempt to uphold a policy of "neutral point of view" under which views presented by notable persons or literature are summarized without an attempt to determine an objective truth. Due to its open nature, vandalism and inaccuracy are constant problems in Wikipedia.

Wiktionary is a sister project to Wikipedia, intended to be a free wiki dictionary (including thesaurus and lexicon) in every language. It was set up on December 12, 2002.

Bartleby.com: http://www.bartleby.com gives you access to the American Heritage Dictionary, the Columbia Encyclopedia, the Roget's Thesauri, Quotations, English Usage, Modern Usage, Strunk Style, Cambridge History, the King James Bible, Oxford Shakespeare, Gray's Anatomy, Farmer's Cook Book, Host Etiquette, Brewer's Phrase and Fable, and other interesting books.

The Merriam-Webster online Dictionary: http://www.m-w.com, gives you access to definitions from the Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary and Thesaurus. This Web site also features the "Word of the day," "Word games," and "Word for the Wise."

The Free Dictionary: http://www.thefreedictionary.com was featured in the Rvers Computer Help Newsletter. It has a dictionary and other related services.

Dictionary.com: http://www.dictionary.com is a unique site. When you type a word to be looked up, dictionary.com retrieves and displays definitions from different sources at once. For instance, the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, the Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, WordNet 1.6, and Acronym Finder.

The Internet is also a great resource for more specialized reference materials. To find these materials just go to your favorite search engine --Google, Yahoo, Altavista, etc. and do a search on the word "dictionary". You will find resources ranging from technical terminology like Webopedia.com: >http://www.webopedia.com, an on-line dictionary for computer and internet terms, to Dinodictionary.com: http://www.dinodictionary.com, the most complete dinosaur dictionary on the web. You can also find books for medical terminology, law, measurement conversion, foreign languages, biology, semantics and more.

Most Web reference materials are free and easy to use. Just type a word or words in an "Edit box" and do a search. The results will be displayed in an HTML format. The main disadvantage that free Web materials have over the commercially available software is the amount of unwanted information within the results page, such as advertisements and navigation links. If you plan to use these reference materials frequently, you will be better off purchasing the CD-ROM, or subscribing to their service in order to get a clean version and save time searching. However, if you just want to search these materials occasionally, take a look at your screen access manual. Your software should have useful tips and features that will allow you to navigate a Web page efficiently by skipping unwanted information.

The Encyclopedia Britannica

Since its first publication in 1768, The Encyclopædia Britannica has been considered the world's most comprehensive reference product. Unfortunately, for more than 200 years this reference material was not accessible in its entirety to people who were blind or visually impaired.

With the advances in the field of technology and the power of the Internet, this research tool is now available to blind computer users.

Encyclopedia Britannica Online includes the complete encyclopedia, the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary and the Britannica Book of the Year. The Encyclopedia Britannica Online can be used to search an Internet directory that includes more than 130,000 links to Web sites selected, rated, and reviewed by Britannica editors.

Through this service, one can find more than 72,000 articles, updated and revised by EB editors and contributors. The Encyclopedia contains over 10,000 illustrations, including photographs, drawings, maps, and flags. The Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary contains more than 75,000 definitions, including pronunciation guides and word histories.

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The Canadian Encyclopedia

Search or browse by broad topic for almost any aspect of Canadian history and culture. You can also explore a timeline of Canadian history, the 100 greatest events in Canadian history, interactive resources, or quizzes that test your knowledge of Canada. The site also includes the full text of the Encyclopedia of Music in Canada.

Click this link to visit the Canadian Encyclopedia: http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com.

Answers.com

Using Answers.com is fun, easy, and with free, instant access to reliable facts, definitions and information on over a million topics, it's sure to keep you coming back for more learning, not searching!

Click this link to visit http://www.teachers.answers.com.

Flags of the World

Want to learn about flags? If you answer yes this site is for you. I had no idea the number of flags found in the United States. Even cities have flags! You can also view maps of various places as well. Click this link to visit Flags of the World.

We got this comment on another article and I wanted to add it to this one because its another great resource.

Hello,,

While searching the web for ideas on what to do this 4th of July, I came across your blog, The Fred's Head Companion. I really liked your 4th of July post and I would like to share with you a site that I found helpful. Http://www.accessmylibrary.com is a free online searchable library with thousands of articles you only need a library card to access. I went there and searched for "4th of July" and came up with dozens of articles on 4th of July activities.

Click this link to search http://www.accessmylibrary.com. You may want to add it to your favorite links or mention it in your blog; I think your readers would find it very useful. Thank you for the blog and Happy 4th!

Sincerely,

Sarah Deak

SCIFIPEDIA

Welcome to Scifipedia! This is where you can find almost anything about the Science Fiction genre. And even better, if what you're looking for isn't here, you can easily add the information yourself.

I was absolutely thrilled by how much there was to explore. There are over 3,000 entries here and the collection is growing daily.

• Today's Featured Article: The site features a different article about something in the genre.
  
• This Day in SCI FI: Where you'll find out about the birth and deaths of people who've worked in the genre in some way or another.
  
• Did You Know? Here you can get a dose of SCI FI trivia.
  
• Hot Topics: These are some of the most popular topics on the site at the moment. When I was there, Fanguage was one of them. It explained some of the languages used by fans of SCI FI.
  
• Editor's Journal: Here you can find an entry from one of the editors about something SCI FI.
  
• Shout Outs: Here is where the editors thank fans for their hard work in making this site more complete. It is a big public thank you to the people who put forth their efforts.

Now, that's just the information on the main page. On the side menu, you will find links to the many different forms of media that Science Fiction has found a home in and the articles that fit into each category. You'll also find, if you scroll down a little bit, the most recent additions to the database, as well as, an FAQ section and a helpful Tutorial feature.

Click this link to visit SCIFIPEDIA at http://scifipedia.scifi.com/index.php/Main_Page.

Double Tongued Dictionary

Welcome to the Double Tongue Word Wrester Dictionary where you will find slang, jargon and less frequently used terms defined for you. For a full explanation of what is included in this dictionary, check out the About section, which is where you will also find information about the author of the site.

On the main page, you will find the newest entry defined near the top. You will also find a listing of the newest entries so you can easily check out what was recently added. You will also see that there is an Alpha Index on the side of the page and beneath the newest entries, a listing of newest citations.

There is a menu bar with these options: About, Categories, Citations, Cohort, Word-a-Day, Entries, Feeds, Login and Search. Let's look at each one of these options in more detail.

Categories: This is another way for you to browse the entries on the site. Only here, you'll do it by finding the words that relate to the name of the category. So, if you wanted to see advertising slang or jargon, you could do so by clicking on the Advertising link in the category section. You will also be able to check out Register, Language and Class as a way to view words just beneath the categories section. Register deals with certain types of words like colloquial, derogatory, euphemism, jargon, slang, etc. Language is where you can check out words from the many different languages around the world. Class is a section devoted to abbreviations, acronyms and eponyms.

Citations: Here you can check out the citation queue for recently added words. The most recent will be on this page to go back further. Either click the numbered links just under the citation queue area or click the Last link for the last page of entries.

Cohort: Here you will find links to sites in different languages and the option to nominate sites to be listed.

Word-a-Day: You can sign up to get the daily email from this site. It contains a definition or several definitions and comes directly to your Inbox each day. To find out more about it and how to sign up, check out this section.

Entries: This is another way for you to view the words that are added here. The newest entries are shown on this page, as well as the option to check out the ones that were added previously. It uses the same navigation system as the Citations section.

Feeds: If you are into RSS feeds (and who isn't) you can find four from this site that you can subscribe to. Entry Feed gives you the 10 most recent entries. Complete Feed gives you the 10 most recent dictionary entries. Citation Feed gives you the last 20 citations that haven't been fully developed yet and the last is a feed to the author's blog.

Search: Here you will find the search engine that offers you several ways to search the site. It even offers advanced search options to really help you find what you're looking for.

Click this link to learn some new words from the Double Tongued Dictionary: http://www.doubletongued.org.

Babiloo

Babiloo is a program developed to read offline dictionaries. Supports SDictionary and StarDict formats. HTML displaying for supported dictionaries. Download more dictionaries within the application.

Click this link to learn more about Babiloo: http://babiloo-project.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page.

eBooksRead.com

We found another site offering a large collection of electronic books. eBooksRead.com offers largely public domain books from nearly 100,000 authors. It's a bit cluttered with ads, but worth a visit, especially if you're looking for an obscure classic.

Click this link to visit http://www.eBooksRead.com.

How about that for research? If you know of any sites that I've left out, please click here to email me at fredshead@aph.org and tell me about them.

Shoot Da Me!

Shoot Da Me is an arcade style game similar to Bop-It. When you hear the sound on the left, hit left arrow key, same goes for the right. When you hear the sound in the middle, press the up arrow key! There are many terrific modes, such as a 3D game, a side scroller, opposite mode in which you shoot the opposite direction you hear, as well as a clumsy assistant who can do all kinds of crazy things.  Great for the entire family!

Features

• Cool sounds and backround music
  
• Over 21 Levels of gun fire, plus a mini-side scroller AND 3d Game!!
  
• Many hours of fun, for the entire family.
  
• A reverse mini game.
  
• A text file generated of all your scores and stats for every time you play
  
• A full menu system
  
• Speaker Test- Calibrate your speakers!
  
• Score Posting (to challenge your friends!)
  
• Sighted Player Support (Changes Caption On Top To Left, Middle, Right in real time)
  
• Advanced Sighted Player Support (Full Description of game. A sighted person with no speakers can play this game
  
• Auto-Save. Automatically saves your game every copter, and you can re-load your game easily!
  
• An assistant who can shoot, miss, get in the line of fire, and who knows what else!

Click this link to download Shoot Da Me from the RS Games website: http://www.x-sight-interactive.net/rsgames/sdm.html.

ScannedPDFtoWord: Document Conversion Website

Here's an effective free option for turning scanned text into digital text that can then be used with a wide range of programs and tools,  including text-to-speech. 

Normally, creating useful digital text from the PDF files  made with standard flatbed scanners and their OCR software have yielded disappointing results.  The results with ScannedPDFtoWord aren’t perfect, but they are very very good.

ScannedPDFtoWord does exactly what its name implies.  It converts scanned PDF documents to Microsoft Word (.doc) files.  The online conversion is quick, and the quality of the text is excellent when opened in Word.  The conversion process couldn't be easier, and registration isn’t required.

Simply upload the scanned PDF file and give an email address where you can download the converted file. Although the graphics were missing, once I opened in MS Word, the converted files retained original formatting.

Click this link to visit http://www.scannedpdftoword.com.

Free Nuance PDF Converter

Nuance has released a free PDF reader that can convert PDF's to word and Excel, click this link to download the program.

Finally, Posted Notes for the Visually Impaired

How many of you have received a document at work or school with one of those little posted notes attached? How do the sighted folks write on those little things? How do they read them? I always wished they had posted notes in a size that I could write on them and keep the print letters big enough so I could actually read them. Someone has heard my cry!

Clocking in a a mere 36 times larger than a standard Post-It note, if the note’s recipient doesn’t thank you, the lumber industry certainly will. A thousand and one uses around the home or office (cheap wallpaper for the kid’s room, gag gift for the boss). Comes 80 sheets to a pad. Accessible posted notes, I love it!

Click this link to purchase a Jumbo StickIt Pad.

Balabolka: Free Text-to-Speech for Windows

I'm always excited to find another screen reader, especially when they are free. Actually, I can't take credit for this find, BlindBargains.com was the first one I saw talking about it.

Balabolka is a Russian word, meaning "chatterer". Now, it's also a free text-to-speech program for Windows with both installable and portable USB versions.

Due to its design, the program may be more ideal for low-vision users who need text read to them from time to time. Text on the clipboard or in a document can be saved to a WAV, MP3, or OGG file, for example, for later reading. It uses your installed SAPI engines such as Microsoft Mike or the Neospeech voices. Several languages are available, and development is ongoing.

Click this link to download Balabolka from the Softpedia website.

Waterproof Shower Speaker with iPod Dock Transmitter

If you don’t like to keep your iPod or electronic book reader in the shower with you, this dock is a better option.  It’ll allow for you to listen to your music or that great book in the shower while your player is tucked safely away in a much dryer spot within your bathroom.  Actually, since it has a range of 150 feet, you could even put it in the room next to you. For those of you who aren’t a big iPod fan, you won’t have to worry, the device will work with other MP3 players.

The signal is said to be powerful enough to play through walls and deliver great sound. Just plug in your MP3 player through the standard 3.5mm audio output and you’re ready to go.  The speaker itself is a 900Mhz speaker and is fully waterproof.  Which means it’ll survive the light spraying from your shower.

Click this link to purchase the Wireless Waterproof Shower Speaker With Dock Transmitter from Amazon.com.

Illuminating Book Cover

Love reading when there's a slot of time available? Then you might want to check out what Hammacher has with the Illuminating Book Cover.

This is the patented book cover that illuminates your reading material anywhere without requiring a separate book light. A light built into the cover’s spine turns on automatically when it is pulled out and turns off when it is retracted. Its dual LEDs cast bright light across both pages and its head can be precisely adjusted so as not to disturb airplane seatmates or a dozing spouse. The cover is durable yet pliable .8 mm black leatherette that won’t split or crack and protects against dirt and spills. Includes an attached cloth bookmark. Requires three AA batteries that provide 40 hours of illumination.

Click this link to purchase The Illuminating Book Cover from Hammacher Schlemmer.

Stay On Your Feet with These Winter Products

I'm not a fan of winter. All that ice and snow. Constantly worrying about slipping and falling. Even the simplest walk can become dangerous. Here are a few products to help you stay upright on the ice and snow this year.

This ice carpet is one of the most ingenious Things I've ever seen for winter weather. You can put it on the thickest blanket of snow and it will prevent you--or others--from slipping, skidding or falling on your front walk or sidewalk. It's made of a unique combination of non-skid material and tough layered fibers to provide traction for you and to hold itself in place. There's no installation, you just lay it down and it stays where you put it. They come in a set of two, so you can lay them end-to-end or side-by-side on any area where you need to ensure no one slips and falls after an ice or snow storm. If it snows after you lay your ice carpet down, you just sweep it off with a broom! This could be great around your dog's releaf area.

Click this link to purchase an Ice Carpet Set for your home.

For personal traction wherever you go in the snow, the Yaktrax is just the Thing. When you walk or run with Yaktrax, every step puts over 450 biting edges in direct contact with the ice. The patented Skidlock coil system gives you traction like never before. Each tiny coil embeds itself into the ice and hundreds of Skidlock surfaces squeeze into the ice, providing you with stability in all directions -- forward, backward, and side to side. Unlike snowshoes, there's no cumbersome device attached to your foot. When you lift your foot, the Yaktrax stays firmly in place on the sole of your shoe. The Yaktrax has no spikes or sharp edges, so it won't damage indoor floors. Each device weighs less than three ounces!

Click this link to purchase the Yaktrax Traction Device.

Artwiculation in the Classroom

Plenty of creative uses for Twitter have emerged over the past year. One of the most creative, perhaps, is the use of bots to create customized games on Twitter. Here's two that BlindBargains.com found to entertain, amuse, and perhaps lower your productivity.

Perhaps one of the most educating and interesting games they found on Twitter is this "word of the day" program called Artwiculate. Each day, a word is given, for instance, Evanescent. All you have to do is use the word in a sentence in one of your tweets. Users can go to the website to vote on their favorites, and the most popular word wins. Follow artwiculate on Twitter to see the latest words and make it on the leaderboard. This could be a great way to use Twitter in the classroom!

There's nothing like a fun game of trivia. This one could actually win you real prizes, as answering the daily question correctly gets you an entry into a prize draw on the company's website. Click this link to follow Trwivia to play.

Hey Twitbrain, Can You Beat-My-Tweet?

Plenty of creative uses for Twitter have emerged over the past year. One of the most creative, perhaps, is the use of bots to create customized games on Twitter. Here's two that BlindBargains.com found to entertain, amuse, and perhaps lower your productivity.

First, let me ask you, do you enjoy answering math problems in your spare time so you can show off to your online friends? Well I certainly don't, but if you're not like me, you may like Twitbrain. What is 311 plus 75 plus 88? Tweet the correct answer to the Twitbrain Twitter account.

Perhaps words are more your thing. Beat-My-Tweet is perhaps a bit more challenging. Every half hour, a new word or phrase is posted to the BeatMyTweet Twitter account for you to unscramble. Win points for being the first to unscramble the word or phrase, and perhaps see your name on the leaderboard.

Tweetstones: an Accessible Game on Twitter

Plenty of creative uses for Twitter have emerged over the past year. One of the most creative, perhaps, is the use of bots to create customized games on Twitter. Here's one that BlindBargains.com found to entertain, amuse, and perhaps lower your productivity.

Direct from Sean Randall comes this version of the classic thinking game, where you must remove the last stone to win. Three piles of stones are laid down, and you and your Twitter adversary take turns removing them from the pile. It's all done via direct messages, and the winner is posted to the Tweetstones Twitter account.

50 Free Online Documentaries You Need to See

Documentaries provide us with some of the most effective learning methods of all. Though often biased, documentaries give us first-hand accounts of the people and situations that drive our culture, and allow us inside access to some of the most remote and exclusive places on the planet, from the drug wars in Colombia to the White House. These 50 fascinating documentaries are free to watch and address all sorts of issues and topics in history, science, and beyond.

History and Politics

From ancient times to the wars that dictated the terms of modern times, these history and political documentaries will teach you about Egypt, the Cuban Missile Crisis, 9/11, the Great Wall of China, and more.

1. Egypt’s Golden Empire: The Last Great Pharaoh: Learn about Ramses II, Egypt’s last great pharaoh who ruled for 67 years.
2. The Fog of War: Study the Cuban Missile Crisis and the participation of Robert McNamara and John F. Kennedy when you watch this documentary.
3. Spin: This intriguing film follows politicians during the 1992 presidential election to document the new powerful media that began emerging at the time.
4. History’s Turning Points: Here you’ll find 7 of 13 episodes documenting some of the most significant battles and conflicts in world history, including The Black Death, Conquest of the Incas, and more.
5. Secrets of the First Emperor: You’ll learn about the first Chinese emperor, Qin Shi Huang, who built the Great Wall and other monuments.
6. Spying on the Home Front: This 2007 documentary considers how the government monitors terrorists and everyday citizens.
7. Copenhagen Fall Out: Here you’ll learn about the efforts of a German physicist and a Danish man to build an atomic bomb during World War II.
8. The Road to Guantanamo: This film won the Silver Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival and gives the world an inside look at those wrongly accused and sent to the military prison for terrorists at Guantanamo.
9. Plan Colombia: Watch this documentary to better understand the war on drugs and the U.S.’ involvement in Colombia’s civil unrest.
10. Seven Wonders of Ancient Greece: Find out why structures like the Palace of Knossos and Temple at Delphi are still regarded as significant monuments today.
11. The Revolution Will Not Be Televised: This documentary covers "the world’s first media coup," when Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was overthrown.
12. Cracking the Maya Code: Archaeologist Tatiana Proskouriakoff studies Mayan hieroglyphics and tries to prove that the monuments from that era serve as history books.
13. The Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.: You’ll get a history lesson in the civil rights movement while watching this moving documentary about MLK’s assassination and legacy.
14. What the Ancients Did for Us – The Indians: This documentary takes a look at how ancient India set the standards for modern civilization, science, fitness, games, and more.
15. The Trials of Henry Kissinger: This filmmaker considers Henry Kissinger as a war criminal and includes footage and interviews with top historical figures in American history.
16. Legacy: the Origins of Civilization: Film host Michael Wood discusses the rise of Asian and Western civilizations — including Iraq, India, China, the Barbarian West, Central America and Egypt — in this documentary to remind us of our past and where we could be headed tomorrow.

Science and Exploration

These documentaries ask us to consider new ideas when studying space, the environment, and our own past.

17. The Four-Winged Dinosaur: This documentary covers the 2002 discovery of a fossil that could indicate the beginnings of flight.
18. Hubble: 15 Years of Discovery: NASA, NewScientist and other groups supported the making of this documentary about the significant discoveries made from using the Hubble Telescope.
19. Car of the Future: Car of the Future is a 1-hour documentary about the sporty, environmentally conscious cars of the future.
20. Neanderthal: Scientists consider the habits, environment and evolution of Neanderthals that walked the Earth eighty thousand years ago.
21. Supermassive Black Holes: Scientists discuss a supermassive black hole that is 2.6 million times larger than the sun.
22. The Drugging of Our Children: This film asks us if we’re too quick to medicate children with attention deficit disorders.
23. The Quantum Revolution: Dr. Michio Kaku challenges modern scientists to become a generation of masters, rather than discoverers.
24. The 11th Hour: Leonardo DiCaprio narrates this beautifully shot documentary about the importance of saving even tiny ecosystems.
25. The Ape That Took Over the World: The 3 1/2 million-year-old Lucy is discussed and studied in this documentary.
26. Why are We Here?: This scientist believes Darwin’s theory of evolution may point out exactly what our purpose is.
27. A War on Science: Is intelligent design a reasonable counter to Darwin’s theory of evolution, or is it just a religious campaign in disguise?
28. Mapping Stem Cell Research: Terra Incognita: Find out what’s really going on in the world of stem cell research here.
29. Nikola Tesla: The Genius Who Lit the World: Get the story of the man who worked with Thomas Edison to harness the power of electricity.

Society and Culture

You’ll learn how to critically analyze the conflicts, trends and people who influence our culture, from Woodstock to our eating habits to our obsession with money.

30. Super Size Me: This popular documentary shocked Americans when filmmaker Morgan Spurlock showed what actually happens to your body if you attempt to survive on fast food.
31. Inside Iran: Inside Iran can help those living in Western societies understand what it’s really like to live a "normal" life in the troubled, historic nation.
32. Islam: Empire of Faith: Ben Kingsley narrates this documentary that will teach you about the origins and legacy of Islam.
33. Maxed Out: This heartbreaking documentary emphasizes the gap between poor, Hurricane Katrina-ravaged New Orleans and the excess wealth enjoyed by others in the U.S.
34. Secret Rulers of the World: Can a secret, elite organization really exist in today’s society? This documentary follows the controversial Bilderberg Group.
35. Orwell Rolls in His Grave: Consider the new age of media and whether or not lies are blindly accepted by the public.
36. Bowling for Columbine: Michael Moore’s powerful and controversial commentary considers our culture’s obsession with guns and violence.
37. Century of Self: This series takes a look at how our culture is a mass consumer-driven culture of people obsessed with pleasing themselves.
38. Woodstock – 3 Days of Peace and Music: Woodstock happened over 30 years ago, but it’s still considered one of the greatest music events in history. Find out why it was such a success when you watch this documentary.
39. The Age of AIDS: This film was made on the 25th anniversary of the beginning of the AIDS epidemic and considers how far we’ve come, and how much more we need to do to treat disadvantaged populations.
40. Merchants of Cool: Consider how the purchasing power of teens is exploited by big businesses.

Biographies

Get behind-the-scenes stories about some of the most important and brilliant people in world history, from Gandhi to Napoleon to Spartacus.

41. Spartacus – Behind the Myth: Find out what Spartacus really did in the year 73 BC that has historians still excited today.
42. Pythagoras: Pythagoras is regarded as one of the most important scientists in world history, and here you can learn about his earlier life.
43. Empires – Napoleon: This biography of Napoleon focuses on his years building his empire.
44. Genghis Khan: Watch the story of one of the most powerful and barbaric figures in world history, Genghis Khan.
45. Adolf Hitler – After mein kampf: Find out what drove Adolf Hitler to become such a powerful, terrifying figure.
46. Albert Einstein: This biography of Albert Einstein hopes to uncover the real story of the genius we still study today.
47. Ho Chi Minh: Vietnam’s Enigma: Watch this video to gain better understanding of how Vietnam succumbed to Communism, then crashed.
48. Beneath the Veil: This 2001 documentary focuses on the world coverage of a story of a burka-clad woman who was shot in the middle of a football stadium in Afghanistan, and what could have saved her life.
49. The Men Who Made the Movies: Alfred Hitchcock: Alfred Hitchcock wasn’t just a filmmaker: he influenced the entire entertainment industry and used his movies to comment on the turbulent mood swings of his generation.
50. Mahatma: Life of Gandhi: This filmmaker asks the audience to consider how various instances in Gandhi’s life led to his teachings and legacy.

Article Source:
http://onlineschool.net/2009/12/13/50-free-online-documentaries-you-need-to-see