Re: What's this AppleIIGS card?

[joko@crl.com (Joe Kohn)]

 >Adaptive Firmware Card
 >
 >Don Johnson still sells this . . . . . . for $485. Just got a new
 >catalog two days ago.

I'm glad to hear that. If I remember correctly, they used to cost nearly
$1,000. Which of course sounds lot a lot of money, but isn't...considering
what an Adaptive Firmware Card can do for a person with severe disabilities.

When I wrote the first of two article for inCider/A+ about how people
with disabilities use Apple II computers, I visited a day treatment
center for people with cerebral palsy. What I saw there was simply
unbelievable, bordering on the miraculous. I met someone who was in his
30s who'd never really been able to communicate with other people...until
the center got an AFC. With a speech synthesizer connected to the GS, I
was able to talk with the person at great length. He responded to me by
tapping his adaptive keyboard with a mouth-stick, using AppleWorks
Classic. It really was something to see.

I've likewise visited the local Alliance For Technology Access workshop,
and they had AFCs on all the GSes they had. It was heart warming to see
kids with severe disabilities enjoying the same computer games I do.

The Apple II has really done a lot to make life better for people with 
disabilities. 

Joe Kohn
Publisher, Shareware Solutions II

         (e-mail or finger joko@crl.com for subscription info)
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