Through a national network of cooperating libraries, NLS administers a free library program of braille and audio materials circulated to eligible borrowers in the United States by postage-free mail.
First of all, I like the website. You don't have to be vision-challenged to appreciate a simple-to-navigate Internet destination that is completely devoid of "enhancements" such as Flash-based menus (phooey), etc. Just scroll up and down and click on links of interest.
"Talking book libraries" have been around for a long time. Undoubtedly, there is one near you, and most NLS services are delivered indirectly, via these locations. Who is eligible for these services? Well, the blind of course, but also folks with other types of handicaps whose disabilities prevent them from using standard printed reading material. This even includes people with certified reading disabilities -- e.g., dyslexia. Services are also available to American citizens living abroad. Find detailed eligibility information here.
Of course there is an OPAC here, which offers a "quick search" form as well as a more advanced Voyager interface. A Kids Catalog search is also available that "will find books for a wide range of ages, pre-school through Grade 8." (The NLS Kids Zone focuses on materials of interest to children.)
Maps for Education: tactile maps showing the general geography of Canada, including thematic maps and the Tactile Atlas of Canada
Maps for Mobility: sample maps to download and print and procedures to make mobility training maps, to help visually impaired persons be more mobile
Maps for Transportation and Tourism: sample maps to download and print and procedures to make maps to help visually impaired persons visiting travel destinations in Canada
Maps for Web-4-All: project of Industry Canada, sample audio-tactile city approach and city core maps to download and print or use online
A family of resources to help information workers be more effective, raise the value of information in their organisations and contribute to success. Read more »
Recently I have found myself cooing over visualisation maps (and heat maps) of health and well being resources. The content rich data is overlayed with mapping technologies, and some interesting themes and patterns are emerging.
A lot of the talk around social media in the last year has been around information overload. Social media has provided us with new and exciting ways to create content. But it has also meant learning new ways to manage and engage with social media tools. Are we teetering on the edge of an information overload precipice?
Information overload is a figment of your imagination. Or a failure of your filter. Or a symptom of your technological submissiveness. Depends on who you ask.
What if you had to sort through 3.5 million articles and social media posts a day and try to pull out the most relevant items for your organisation? What if you then had to cobble it all together into something readable for your top groups and executives in your organisation?
Alacra Compliance saves time by aggregating information from both free and fee-based sources and enabling users to conduct an accurate federated search across these sources (coined “simultaneous search” by Alacra).
FreePint Family
Quilting big data threads
The fallacy of information overload
Information overload: fact, fantasy or filter failure? 
