Project report status - Free bird listening device for veter

[Yzordderrex]

The project is well underway with first round of parts on order. This phase of the project is considered pre-breadboard

To recap; THIS IS NOT A HEARING AID. Hearing aids are most likely highly regulated by some gubbament kommitti in charge of such matters. This device is solely intended to enhance bird listening and IS IN NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM intended to be any type of hearing aid. Or else it it to be used for educational purposes only.

My purchasing department has ordered the adafruit microfone paddywhack. link below. I will instruct my project manger to connect microphone paddywhack to boss audio equalizer for mobile applications. Eq will then drive headphones or earbuds. This setup will fit into fannypack for field testing of the bird listening prototype.

https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/downloads/pdf/adafruit-agc-electret-microphone-amplifier-max9814.pdf

 

[Winfield Hill]

Yzordderrex wrote...

The project is well underway with first round of parts on order.
This phase of the project is considered pre-breadboard. [snip]

My purchasing department has ordered the adafruit microfone
paddywhack. [snips] - adafruit - max9814.pdf

Bah, humbug. Get this 4mm electret, used two each in my
beehive monitor. Smaller, lower-power, higher output.
Amazon: uxcell 4mm-dia electret 10pcs - $0.38 each China,
a14061800ux0615 $0.63 each, 2-day shipment Amazon PRIME.
Straight from uxcell in China, 26 cents if you're brave.


--
Thanks,
- Win

 

[Winfield Hill]

Winfield Hill wrote...

Yzordderrex wrote...

The project is well underway with first round of parts on order.
This phase of the project is considered pre-breadboard. [snip]

My purchasing department has ordered the adafruit microfone
paddywhack. [snips] - adafruit - max9814.pdf

Bah, humbug. Get this 4mm electret, used two each in my
beehive monitor. Smaller, lower-power, higher output.
Amazon: uxcell 4mm-dia electret 10pcs - $0.38 each China,
a14061800ux0615 $0.63 each, 2-day shipment Amazon PRIME.
Straight from uxcell in China, 26 cents if you're brave.

BTW, hunter's have best class of low-cost hearing-aids.
https://cartbig.com/best-hearing-amplifier-for-hunting/


--
Thanks,
- Win

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sat, 4 May 2019 04:04:08 -0700 (PDT), Yzordderrex
<powersupplyguy@netzero.net> wrote:

To recap; THIS IS NOT A HEARING AID. Hearing aids are most
likely highly regulated by some gubbament kommitti in charge
of such matters. This device is solely intended to enhance
bird listening and IS IN NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM intended to
be any type of hearing aid. Or else it it to be used for
educational purposes only.

If you plan to sell it, you might want to have your legal department
look into the validity of your disclaimer. What you're trying to
describe is a PSAP (Personal Sound Amplification Product). Besides
the intended use, I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP. The applicable laws also vary by State.

Something on PSAP's:
Not Ready for a Hearing Aid But Need a Little Help?
Personal amplifiers are inexpensive and powerful.
Just don't call them a hearing aid.

<https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2015/hearing-amplifiers-psaps.html>

I've had good luck in setting up several friends with rechargeable
PSAP's purchased on eBay for about $10/ea:
<https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mini-Size-Rechargeable-Plastic-Hearing-Aid-Sound-Voice-Amplifier-P9D8/132762994607>
Build quality sucks, but spares are cheap. Biggest problem seems to
be ear wax clogging the sound tube. Biggest complaint is too much
background noise.

Incidentally, in California, the "gubbament kommitti in charge of such
matters" is:
The Department of Consumer Affairs, Speech-Language Pathology
& Audiology & Hearing Aid Dispensers Board.
<https://www.speechandhearing.ca.gov>

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[dcaster@krl.org]

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 1:56:55 PM UTC-4, Jeff Liebermann wrote:

If you plan to sell it, you might want to have your legal department
look into the validity of your disclaimer. What you're trying to
describe is a PSAP (Personal Sound Amplification Product). Besides
the intended use, I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP. The applicable laws also vary by State.

Most Hi-Fi amplifiers have bass and treble controls, and you can buy equalizers too. So you might be okay as long as you do not claim the device is for correcting hearing losses.

Dan

Something on PSAP's:
Not Ready for a Hearing Aid But Need a Little Help?
Personal amplifiers are inexpensive and powerful.
Just don't call them a hearing aid.

https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2015/hearing-amplifiers-psaps.html
I've had good luck in setting up several friends with rechargeable

I
e
--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
1

 

[amdx]

On 5/4/2019 12:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
I believe the legal distinction is whether the

device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP.

Well that sucks! My hearing goes downhill after 4kHz in both ears.
At least you saved me buying something that had little chance of helping.

Recently at a family gathering, discussing politics with a nephew,
Me, "oh, I forgot what I was going to say". Nephew, "that's a sign of
old age". Me, "What?". Nephew, "that's a sign of old age". Me, "what?
Nephew, "now you're just screwing with me!" Me, "no, no, I didn't hear
you said!

Funny, but not.

Mikek

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sat, 4 May 2019 14:58:44 -0500, amdx <nojunk@knology.net> wrote:

On 5/4/2019 12:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP.

Well that sucks! My hearing goes downhill after 4kHz in both ears.
At least you saved me buying something that had little chance of helping.

A PSAP (Personal Sound Amplification Product) will sorta work, but not
very well. There are all kinds of features in real hearing aid that
make life more tolerable.
<https://www.maximintegrated.com/en/app-notes/index.mvp/id/4691>
Things like custom fitting, gain compression, loud bang limiting, low
level noise squelch, multiple equalization and gain settings, wireless
remote control, BlueGoof interface for phones, frequency shift to
eliminate feedback, noise reduction, custom compensation for hearing
loss, etc. The cheap PSAP have none of these features.

One of my impoverished friends needed hearing aids but couldn't afford
the real thing. So, I bought him a pair of the absolute cheapest PSAP
from eBay. They worked, but he complained about the fit, sound
quality, background noise, difficult to use with a phone, crappy
controls, and most important, cost of the non-rechargeable batteries.
After he destroyed two pairs of these earphones, I elected to buy him
two behind the ear rechargeable devices. Much better and cheaper to
operate, but the sound quality still stunk.

Then, we got lucky and were given a pair of Siemens (Rexton Costco
Kirkland Sivantos Signia) hearing aids by a mutual friend.
<https://fccid.io/SGI-WL002BTE>
<https://fccid.io/SGI-WL002BTE/Internal-Photos/Internal-Photos-2986454>
After some testing and tinkering, I got both of them working. Even
though the 4 preset settings were optimized for another persons
hearing, the difference in audio quality was obvious. The background
noise was mostly gone, they were comfortable to wear, the remote
control made them easy to adjust, zero feedback, and the rechargeable
NiMH batteries were cheaper than the disposable Zinc-Air batteries.
I'll probably get stuck with buying my impoverished friend a proper
hearing test and paying Costco to tweak the presets.

Recently at a family gathering, discussing politics with a nephew,
Me, "oh, I forgot what I was going to say". Nephew, "that's a sign of
old age". Me, "What?". Nephew, "that's a sign of old age". Me, "what?
Nephew, "now you're just screwing with me!" Me, "no, no, I didn't hear
you said!

Funny, but not.

One of my friends told me of a similar problem that he had with his
grand-brats. At their young age, the concept of getting old is beyond
their understanding. So, I suggested a bit of artificial empathy.
Cram a cotton ball in each ear, and offer them some manner of bribe to
leave the cotton in place for a few hours. You can tell that it's
working by the number of "what??" that they add to their
conversations.

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sat, 4 May 2019 12:06:12 -0700 (PDT), "dcaster@krl.org"
<dcaster@krl.org> wrote:

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 1:56:55 PM UTC-4, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
Besides
the intended use, I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP. The applicable laws also vary by State.

Most Hi-Fi amplifiers have bass and treble controls, and you
can buy equalizers too. So you might be okay as long as you do not
claim the device is for correcting hearing losses.
Dan

Nobody is going to drag around a Hi-Fi amplifier, microphones, and
earphones in place of a proper hearing aid. Even if they did, the
adjustable base and treble are not suitable for correcting loss of
high frequency hearing. A half-octave equalizer would probably work
better, but still does not provide noise suppression, overload
limiting, feedback elimination via frequency shifting, BlueGoof phone
interface, etc. Even if you added a PCB to your Hi-Fi that provides
the missing features, I suspect that a potential customer would not
consider it a suitable hearing aid. The state board would probably
consider it more amusing than a threat to their monopoly on hearing
aids.

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[amdx]

On 5/4/2019 4:22 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:

On Sat, 4 May 2019 14:58:44 -0500, amdx <nojunk@knology.net> wrote:

On 5/4/2019 12:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP.

Well that sucks! My hearing goes downhill after 4kHz in both ears.
At least you saved me buying something that had little chance of helping.

A PSAP (Personal Sound Amplification Product) will sorta work, but not
very well. There are all kinds of features in real hearing aid that
make life more tolerable.
https://www.maximintegrated.com/en/app-notes/index.mvp/id/4691
Things like custom fitting, gain compression, loud bang limiting, low
level noise squelch, multiple equalization and gain settings, wireless
remote control, BlueGoof interface for phones, frequency shift to
eliminate feedback, noise reduction, custom compensation for hearing
loss, etc. The cheap PSAP have none of these features.

One of my impoverished friends needed hearing aids but couldn't afford
the real thing. So, I bought him a pair of the absolute cheapest PSAP
from eBay. They worked, but he complained about the fit, sound
quality, background noise, difficult to use with a phone, crappy
controls, and most important, cost of the non-rechargeable batteries.
After he destroyed two pairs of these earphones, I elected to buy him
two behind the ear rechargeable devices. Much better and cheaper to
operate, but the sound quality still stunk.

Then, we got lucky and were given a pair of Siemens (Rexton Costco
Kirkland Sivantos Signia) hearing aids by a mutual friend.
https://fccid.io/SGI-WL002BTE
https://fccid.io/SGI-WL002BTE/Internal-Photos/Internal-Photos-2986454
After some testing and tinkering, I got both of them working. Even
though the 4 preset settings were optimized for another persons
hearing, the difference in audio quality was obvious. The background
noise was mostly gone, they were comfortable to wear, the remote
control made them easy to adjust, zero feedback, and the rechargeable
NiMH batteries were cheaper than the disposable Zinc-Air batteries.
I'll probably get stuck with buying my impoverished friend a proper
hearing test and paying Costco to tweak the presets.

Recently at a family gathering, discussing politics with a nephew,
Me, "oh, I forgot what I was going to say". Nephew, "that's a sign of
old age". Me, "What?". Nephew, "that's a sign of old age". Me, "what?
Nephew, "now you're just screwing with me!" Me, "no, no, I didn't hear
you said!

Funny, but not.

One of my friends told me of a similar problem that he had with his
grand-brats. At their young age, the concept of getting old is beyond
their understanding. So, I suggested a bit of artificial empathy.
Cram a cotton ball in each ear, and offer them some manner of bribe to
leave the cotton in place for a few hours. You can tell that it's
working by the number of "what??" that they add to their
conversations.

Cotton may not highlight your point, I've been installing a metal roof
and had to cut some pieces with a skil saw, it was very loud, so after
the first time, I wore 3M express ear plugs. I see the rating is MMR
25db. Not the best, but probably better then cotton. What I noticed,
they knocked down the saw noise a lot, but I didn't need to remove them
to talk with the wife or my neighbor. Maybe because I only hear lower
frequencies anyway and don't miss the high frequencies they attenuate.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/10-Pair-3M-E-A-R-Express-Pod-Plugs-FREE-SHIPPING/153451755315?epid=1700143555&hash=item23ba6ff733:g:R-cAAOSwVVlcs5zd

At the same family diner was a 5 year old unknown to me girl that
took a liking to me, but I had great difficulty understanding her high
pitched voice.
Mikek

 

[dcaster@krl.org]

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 5:31:00 PM UTC-4, Jeff Liebermann wrote:

On Sat, 4 May 2019 12:06:12 -0700 (PDT), "dcaster@krl.org"
dcaster@krl.org> wrote:

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 1:56:55 PM UTC-4, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
Besides
the intended use, I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP. The applicable laws also vary by State.

Most Hi-Fi amplifiers have bass and treble controls, and you
can buy equalizers too. So you might be okay as long as you do not
claim the device is for correcting hearing losses.
Dan

Nobody is going to drag around a Hi-Fi amplifier, microphones, and
earphones in place of a proper hearing aid. Even if they did, the
adjustable base and treble are not suitable for correcting loss of
high frequency hearing. A half-octave equalizer would probably work
better, but still does not provide noise suppression, overload
limiting, feedback elimination via frequency shifting, BlueGoof phone
interface, etc. Even if you added a PCB to your Hi-Fi that provides
the missing features, I suspect that a potential customer would not
consider it a suitable hearing aid. The state board would probably
consider it more amusing than a threat to their monopoly on hearing
aids.

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

I was not suggesting carrying around a Hi-Fi amp. Merely suggesting that a Hi-Fi amp was capable of changing the frequency amplitude to suit the listener. And therefore showing that being able to suit the listener was not sufficient to say a device is a hearing aid.

Dan

 

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 3:58:41 PM UTC-4, amdx wrote:

On 5/4/2019 12:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP.

Well that sucks! My hearing goes downhill after 4kHz in both ears.
At least you saved me buying something that had little chance of helping.

Recently at a family gathering, discussing politics with a nephew,
Me, "oh, I forgot what I was going to say". Nephew, "that's a sign of
old age". Me, "What?". Nephew, "that's a sign of old age". Me, "what?
Nephew, "now you're just screwing with me!" Me, "no, no, I didn't hear
you said!

Funny, but not.

You're not hard of hearing. Young people just mumble.

--

Rick C.

- Get a 1,000 miles of free Supercharging
- Tesla referral code - https://ts.la/richard11209

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sat, 4 May 2019 18:49:52 -0500, amdx <nojunk@knology.net> wrote:

On 5/4/2019 4:22 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
One of my friends told me of a similar problem that he had with his
grand-brats. At their young age, the concept of getting old is beyond
their understanding. So, I suggested a bit of artificial empathy.
Cram a cotton ball in each ear, and offer them some manner of bribe to
leave the cotton in place for a few hours. You can tell that it's
working by the number of "what??" that they add to their
conversations.

Cotton may not highlight your point, I've been installing a metal roof
and had to cut some pieces with a skil saw, it was very loud, so after
the first time, I wore 3M express ear plugs. I see the rating is MMR
25db. Not the best, but probably better then cotton. What I noticed,
they knocked down the saw noise a lot, but I didn't need to remove them
to talk with the wife or my neighbor. Maybe because I only hear lower
frequencies anyway and don't miss the high frequencies they attenuate.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/10-Pair-3M-E-A-R-Express-Pod-Plugs-FREE-SHIPPING/153451755315

Been there. Trying to find child size hearing protection is a bit
difficult. With cotton, one size fits all. There's also foam, but we
didn't have any handy:
<https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&q=foam+ear+plugs>

At the same family diner was a 5 year old unknown to me girl that
took a liking to me, but I had great difficulty understanding her high
pitched voice.
Mikek

Most DSP based hearing aids have a frequency lowering and frequency
compression feature, which moves the high pitched female voice down in
frequency to where you can hear and understand them. It's weird
listening to a female talking with a male voice, but that's what it
takes to fix the problem:
<https://www.boystownhospital.org/knowledgeCenter/articles/hearing/Pages/HearingAidsforHighFrequencyHearing.aspx>
<https://www.hearingtracker.com/blog/what-is-frequency-compression-lowering-in-hearing-aids/>
<https://www.audiologyonline.com/articles/20q-frequency-lowering-ten-years-18040>
More:
<https://www.google.com/search?q=hearing+aid+frequency+lowering>
If you listen to someone talking on a SSB (single side-band) radio and
tune the receiver so that the audio is shifted down in frequency, you
can get a rough idea of what it will sound like. There are also
features in PC audio programs that provide the same effect.
<https://manual.audacityteam.org/man/change_pitch.html>
or:
<https://forum.audacityteam.org/viewtopic.php?t=91406>

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Tom Gardner]

On 05/05/19 02:05, dcaster@krl.org wrote:

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 5:31:00 PM UTC-4, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
On Sat, 4 May 2019 12:06:12 -0700 (PDT), "dcaster@krl.org"
dcaster@krl.org> wrote:

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 1:56:55 PM UTC-4, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
Besides the intended use, I believe the legal distinction is whether
the device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user,
which would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response,
with would be a PSAP. The applicable laws also vary by State.

Most Hi-Fi amplifiers have bass and treble controls, and you can buy
equalizers too. So you might be okay as long as you do not claim the
device is for correcting hearing losses. Dan

Nobody is going to drag around a Hi-Fi amplifier, microphones, and
earphones in place of a proper hearing aid. Even if they did, the
adjustable base and treble are not suitable for correcting loss of high
frequency hearing. A half-octave equalizer would probably work better, but
still does not provide noise suppression, overload limiting, feedback
elimination via frequency shifting, BlueGoof phone interface, etc. Even if
you added a PCB to your Hi-Fi that provides the missing features, I suspect
that a potential customer would not consider it a suitable hearing aid.
The state board would probably consider it more amusing than a threat to
their monopoly on hearing aids.

-- Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com 150 Felker St #D
http://www.LearnByDestroying.com Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

I was not suggesting carrying around a Hi-Fi amp. Merely suggesting that a
Hi-Fi amp was capable of changing the frequency amplitude to suit the
listener. And therefore showing that being able to suit the listener was
not sufficient to say a device is a hearing aid.

I wonder if the OP understands the difference between
base/treble controls and loudness controls - and why
that can be so important to the deaf.

 

[amdx]

On 5/4/2019 8:39 PM, gnuarm.deletethisbit@gmail.com wrote:

On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 3:58:41 PM UTC-4, amdx wrote:
On 5/4/2019 12:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP.

Well that sucks! My hearing goes downhill after 4kHz in both ears.
At least you saved me buying something that had little chance of helping.

Recently at a family gathering, discussing politics with a nephew,
Me, "oh, I forgot what I was going to say". Nephew, "that's a sign of
old age". Me, "What?". Nephew, "that's a sign of old age". Me, "what?
Nephew, "now you're just screwing with me!" Me, "no, no, I didn't hear
you said!

Funny, but not.

You're not hard of hearing. Young people just mumble.

And I can see just fine, they're just making the print too small!

Mikek

 

[Martin Brown]

On 04/05/2019 20:58, amdx wrote:

On 5/4/2019 12:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
 I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP.

Well that sucks! My hearing goes downhill after 4kHz in both ears.
At least you saved me buying something that had little chance of helping.

You actually want a digital hearing aid with the right adjustments made
for your hearing losses. I cannot understand why these are not available
to US military veterans. I thought one of the few things that they could
rely on after having served their country was decent free medical care.

   Recently at a family gathering, discussing politics with a nephew,
Me, "oh, I forgot what I was going to say". Nephew, "that's a sign of
old age". Me, "What?". Nephew, "that's a sign of old age". Me, "what?
Nephew, "now you're just screwing with me!" Me, "no, no, I didn't hear
you said!

 Funny, but not.

Definitely get a decent quality digital hearing aid (or possibly a
pair). Progress in digital technology pretty much kept pace with my
father's failing hearing. He fired AA guns a lot during WWII.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

 

[Tom Gardner]

On 05/05/19 17:41, amdx wrote:

On 5/4/2019 8:39 PM, gnuarm.deletethisbit@gmail.com wrote:
On Saturday, May 4, 2019 at 3:58:41 PM UTC-4, amdx wrote:
On 5/4/2019 12:56 PM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:
   I believe the legal distinction is whether the
device can be adjusted for the frequency response of the user, which
would make it a hearing aid, or has a fixed frequency response, with
would be a PSAP.

Well that sucks! My hearing goes downhill after 4kHz in both ears.
At least you saved me buying something that had little chance of helping.

     Recently at a family gathering, discussing politics with a nephew,
Me, "oh, I forgot what I was going to say". Nephew, "that's a sign of
old age". Me, "What?". Nephew, "that's a sign of old age". Me, "what?
Nephew, "now you're just screwing with me!" Me, "no, no, I didn't hear
you said!

   Funny, but not.

You're not hard of hearing.  Young people just mumble.

 And I can see just fine, they're just making the print too small!

I /am/ hard of hearing (to say the least). I try not
to make it other people's problem.

I don't mind small print, but what I do mind is 2mm
light yellow glyphs on a darker yellow, or thin
40% gray glyphs on white.

For the former, I've whined to a supermarket about the
labeling on their own brand pasta - to no visible effect.

For the latter, see too many (trendy) websites.

As I get older, no doubt I'll complain about how difficult
it is to get into bottles/packets/etc.

Victor Meldrew is my hero; others feel the same.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Foot_in_the_Grave
and no doubt on yootoob.

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sun, 5 May 2019 17:51:54 +0100, Tom Gardner
<spamjunk@blueyonder.co.uk> wrote:

I don't mind small print, but what I do mind is 2mm
light yellow glyphs on a darker yellow, or thin
40% gray glyphs on white.

Likewise. I see quite a bit of that. 65,000 colors available and the
web designer uses all of them. To get around that, I use "reader
view" in Firefox on sites that support it.
<https://support.mozilla.org/sw/kb/firefox-reader-view-clutter-free-web-pages>
On the keyboard, it's <alt>V followed by <alt>R.

For other web browsers:
<https://www.maketecheasier.com/tools-make-websites-easier-read/>

However, many cluttered and badly designed web piles don't support
reader view. There are some add-ons that allegedly will force reader
view mode, but I hadn't tried them:
"Is There a Way to Force-Enable Reader View in Mozilla Firefox?"
<https://www.howtogeek.com/268116/is-there-a-way-to-force-enable-reader-view-in-mozilla-firefox/>

You can also use the "mobile" version of the web pile, which is
optimized for use on smartphones and tablets with small screens. For
example, <http://m.cnn.com> is far more visible than the regular web
pile. However, you may need to force your browser to identify itself
as a smartphone. There are add-ons for that:
<https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/uaswitcher/>

For the former, I've whined to a supermarket about the
labeling on their own brand pasta - to no visible effect.

I don't have that problem at the markets that I frequent. This is a
more common problem:
<http://www.learnbydestroying.com/jeffl/pics/drivel/you-save.jpg>

>For the latter, see too many (trendy) websites.

Yep. It's the old form versus function, or style versus content
battles. As the internet becomes more consumerized, style seems to be
winning.

As I get older, no doubt I'll complain about how difficult
it is to get into bottles/packets/etc.

Victor Meldrew is my hero; others feel the same.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Foot_in_the_Grave
and no doubt on yootoob.

I could tell that I was getting old when I began to enjoy watching
Midsomer Murders:
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsomer_Murders>


--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sun, 5 May 2019 17:33:21 +0100, Martin Brown
<'''newspam'''@nezumi.demon.co.uk> wrote:

You actually want a digital hearing aid with the right adjustments made
for your hearing losses. I cannot understand why these are not available
to US military veterans. I thought one of the few things that they could
rely on after having served their country was decent free medical care.

Definitely get a decent quality digital hearing aid (or possibly a
pair). Progress in digital technology pretty much kept pace with my
father's failing hearing. He fired AA guns a lot during WWII.

They're available for free after an ordeal process that requires one
prove to the VA (US Veterans Administration) that the desired features
are needed and preferably that the hearing loss is service related:
<https://www.prosthetics.va.gov/psas/Hearing_Aids.asp>
<https://www.healthyhearing.com/help/hearing-aids/va>

The hearing aids supplied by the VA are top of the line:
<https://www.hearingtracker.com/ask/what-types-of-hearing-aids-does-the-va-offer>


--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Winfield Hill]

Jeff Liebermann wrote...

I could tell that I was getting old when I began
to enjoy watching Midsomer Murders:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsomer_Murders

How do you watch great British stuff in the USA?


--
Thanks,
- Win

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On 5 May 2019 12:35:55 -0700, Winfield Hill <hill@rowland.harvard.edu>
wrote:

Jeff Liebermann wrote...

I could tell that I was getting old when I began
to enjoy watching Midsomer Murders:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midsomer_Murders

How do you watch great British stuff in the USA?

YouTube, Netflix, Acorn TV, and Amazon Prime streaming on a Roku 3
player. Mostly Netflix. Acorn TV is all British movies and TV.
However, not all episodes are available, and typically cost $50 to
$100/year for each service. I do ok with YouTube and Netflix on my
slow 1.5Mbit/sec DSL internet. However, the others require more
bandwidth. There are also some not-so-legal ways of obtaining the
movies, but I don't want to discuss those in a public forum.

Some random streaming links:

Foyle's War:
<https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=ELdm5pI4ACacJuSVk6zEvCYA>
<https://acorn.tv/foyleswar>

Midsomer Murders:
<https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=EL43UciEFr_ylGP5R4GHa_2w>
<https://www.netflix.com/search?=midsomer%20murders>
<https://acorn.tv/midsomermurders>

Amazon:
<https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B07CVHFT1Q>

Britbox:
<https://www.britbox.com/us/season/Midsomer_Murders_Season_20_17799>
<https://channelstore.roku.com/search/britbox>

Roku channels:
<https://channelstore.roku.com/search/acorn+tv>

etc.

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558