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Verizon Developing New Service to Allow Cell Phone Users to Text Message 911

Telecommunication giant Verizon  has announced that by early 2013, a nation-wide system will be in place that will allow cell phone users to text message 911.This service will be helpful for the deaf or hard of hearing who find voice calls difficult if not impossible.  The service will use existing CDMA and SMS networks, and therefore must be available to all customers once finally rolled out.

Verizon says the following about text to 911’s benefit for the deaf or hard of hearing,

” While consumers should always first try to contact a 911 center by making a voice call, this enhanced SMS service, when deployed, will offer an alternative for customers on the Verizon Wireless network who are deaf or hard of hearing and cannot make voice calls or who could be placed in additional danger by speaking.”

If  you are able to make voice calls to 911 it remains the preferred method. Text to 911 service has not yet been deployed so texts to 911 will not be answered.

The following is from  May 3, 2012 press release.

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., May 3, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Demonstrating its continued commitment to advancing public safety, Verizon Wireless is taking steps toward offering a lot of its customers a brand new approach to communicate with 911 call centers run by public safety officials. The corporate announced today that it has selected TeleCommunication Systems Inc., of Annapolis, Md., to take part in an initiative with the intention to enable customers to send 911 SMS (Short Message Service) texts to the decision centers, that are is named public-service answering points, or PSAPs.

While consumers must always first attempt to contact a 911 center by creating a voice call, this enhanced SMS service, when deployed, will offer an alternate for purchasers at the Verizon Wireless network who’re deaf or hard of hearing and can’t make voice calls or who might be placed in more danger by speaking.

“Verizon is on the forefront of 911 public-safety innovations, and today’s announcement is another step in making SMS-to-911 service available to people who cannot make a voice call to 911,” said Marjorie Hsu, Verizon Wireless vice chairman of technology. “Our company is constant its long-standing commitment to deal with the purposes of public safety and our customers by offering differently to get assist in an emergency by utilizing wireless technology.”

The corporate is operating on plans to make the recent capabilities available to pick out PSAPs by early 2013. Verizon plans to exploit its existing CDMA SMS network for 911 text notifications. The hot service could be offered to Verizon Wireless customers who’ve a text-capable phone and a service plan that features text messaging.

“TeleCommunication Systems has worked closely with the FCC during the last two years to develop its innovative technology for SMS to 911,” said Maurice B. Tose, president and CEO of TCS. “Because the preeminent U.S. supplier of SMS and pioneer in wireless E911, TCS is easily positioned to enable Verizon in advancing its public safety commitment.”

Verizon is operating with others within the communications industry, PSAPs, the Federal Communications Commission and other federal and state agencies within the eventual deployment of this new service geared toward giving consumers new tips on how to communicate with designated public safety agencies.

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TechVision Aids Blind and Visually Impaired/Sighted Individuals

Every now and then I discover a resource that I wonder why I didn’t already know about it.  A recent discovery is TechVision http://www.yourtechvision.com/.

TechVision

Denise M. Robinson, TVI, PhD a teacher of the blind and visually impaired,  founded TechVision to write lessons for teachers, parents and students themselves to enhance their learning through emerging technology. Dr. Robinson can be reached through the contact page and will answer questions. It is also possible to request a specific lesson via the contact page.

Lessons Available for Many Programs and Tools

Although the easy to follow lessons must be purchased, lessons are available to  help  the  blind, the visually impaired and anyone with a reading difficulties learn how to use the Internet, Facebook, Skype, Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Mac/iTools,  Blind tools and more.  Prices vary. There are a few lessons that are free or under $1.00 while others are under $10.00 and some are $50-$60.

What Really Caught my Attention

What really caught my attention however, was not the lessons, but the tips and ideas that are available in the blog post  on the Home page.  I found the post, The List of Chat Acronyms & Text Message Shorthand of interest because I’ve recently had to learn how to us the text message feature on my (very basic) phone.  The list provides lots of acronyms and text message shorthand, so it takes  just a fraction of time to text a message.

The most recent post is a video explaining how to use the  scientific calculator on your PC using talking software.

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The Bully Project

Bullying has been something I’ve been thinking about recently and it all began with two posts at The Antiquarian Librarian. The first was a news story from the ABC affiliate, KCAU, about the efforts of the Sioux City (IA) School district to address the issue of bullying (Sioux City Schools Are Cracking Down on Bullying). One of the items mentioned in this story is the documentary “Bully Project,” partly shot in the Sioux City Community Schools. (At the Bully Project site there are extensive links to resources for kids and parents dealing with bullying and to the “grassroots movement” the film is intended to spur.)

School superintendent Paul Gausman believes the efforts of the district to combat bullying are making a difference and hopes to continue that difference by finding a way to show the documentary within the district schools. (The film may not be shown at some schools in the nation because it received an “R” rating for some of the language students use in the film.) The film opens in select theaters on March 30.

A week later another post about the documentary appeared: Celebrities support lower rating for “Bully” film.

Cyberbullying

If these two posts weren’t enough to prompt me to learn more about bullying, the current issue of a publication that comes to my office periodically, Insight into Diversity, has as its lead story; “The Devastating Effects of Cyberbullying.”  And, a February 27 story in the Lincoln Journal Star announced the launch of the Born This Way Foundation, cofounded by Lady Gaga and her mother. University of Nebraska – Lincoln professor Susan Swearer, a bullying expert is involved with the foundation.

Director Lee Hirsch started filming The Bully Project in 2009 about a year before bullying fully came of age as a high-profile crisis with the launch of what became the It Gets Better project. (That’s not to say that’s when bullying started, obviously — it’s when the current wave of popular media coverage swelled after several awful stories of suicides by bullied kids, many of them gay teens.)

Tyler Clementi

At the collegiate level, the suicide of Rutgers student, Tyler Clementi has ignited a national debate about the prevalence and consequences of cyberbullying and homophobia. Clementi’s suicide led the New Jersey legislature to enact the toughest anti-bullying law in the country. And in that state and elsewhere, institutions are modifying their student codes of conduct to prohibit such behavior. Tyler Clement – Beyond Awkward Silence

Bullying is violence against another, pure and simple. Individuals with disabilities are often an easy target for bullying – or worse. Research has shown that for Americans with developmental disabilities, high rates of violence and abuse are evident in their lives. Violent crimes against them, age 12 or older, are double what they are for people without disabilities. That is a disturbing statistic. An even more disturbing statistic is that the rate of abuse is 3.4 times greater among children with disabilities than for children without disabilities. Those statistics are based on the reported crimes.

There aren’t any suggestions of easy solutions in The Bully Project; it’s more about driving home the need for everybody to keep trying by just standing as a reminder of what’s at stake. Most of the current focus and available information is about bullying of children, frequently within the school system. But, bullying isn’t limited to children and it can happen to nearly anyone – anywhere – it can happen to you, a family member, a coworker – anyone we know who is perceived as different or vulnerable – including individuals with disabilities. It behooves all of us to be aware of what bullying is, how it can shatter lives and families and to do what we can do in our own small sphere of the world.

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