You don’t have to be a fan of Apple to appreciate what this man helped to accomplish

Tony Fadell has left Apple. For all those Apple lovers, this was the man who gave us the iPod and the iPhone. Of course Steve gets most of the credit, but for all you Apple haters, this man was behind those stunning products that literally leapfrogged competition and earned your grudging respect.

Tony leaves the company with the statement – My primary focus will be helping the environment by working with consumer green-tech companies,” he said. “I’m determined to tell my kids and grandkids amazing stories beyond my iPod and iPhone ones.

So long Tony and thanks for all the fish.

you can read the article about tony leaving on http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/29/godfather-of-ipod-severs-final-ties-with-apple/?src=twt&twt=nytimesbits and his short bio at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Fadell

Anant

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On the Front Foot

On the Front Foot, is the name of George Abraham’s blog. George Abraham or Georgebhai as he is popularly is one of most well known visually impaired persons in India. A trail blazer in the true sense, George set up the Eyeway Project to “Inform, Inspire and Include” millions of visually impaired in the country. An Ashoka fellow, a brilliant debater,  a career in advertising, an athlete with a passion for cricket, George has donned multiple hats.

I  met George at Techshare, and we had a great chat where he shared his experiences in advertising and his passion for cricket.  A visit to Dehradun’s National Institute for the Visually Handicapped led George to experience the blind playing cricket.  He realized that cricket would instill confidence amongst the blind, and also enable society to see a non-stereotypical image of blind people which is positive and action oriented.

In March 1990 Abraham wrote to noted cricketer Sunil Gavaskar informing of his plan to hold the first national cricket tournament for the blind. Gavaskar responded immediately saying that he would help in anyway he could. By December 1990, George launched the first cricket tournament for the blind,  which then became an annual event. And in 1998, under his leadership, the inaugural Blind Cricket World Cup was held in New Delhi!

I was just amazed about his passion and enthusiasm for the game. Our conversation then moved to IPL 3, and I told him about the tell all audio book on cricket, which is due to hit Inclusive Planet during IPL. George will be helping us spread the word about the book to blind cricketing fraternity across the world. To make the IPL even merrier for the planeteers, George had an idea, he volunteered to take time out from his busy schedule and write a guest column about the IPL matches.  Now thats a double treat this IPL season!

You can catch George’s reviews of the IPL matches on the channel ” On the Front Foot” on Inclusive Planet.  You can also read them on his blog http://georgebhai.blogspot.com

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Vodafone… get blind pedestrians back on track!

Released in April 2007, Wayfinder Access was the first GPS application that was accessible for blind and low vision users on their mobile phone. A breakthrough! an affordable product that made blind persons more independent by informing them about their surroundings and allowing them to walk any route they wanted.

Vodafone recently bought Wayfinder Systems and discontinued Wayfinder Access. Most blind users don’t have an alternative, so they will lose access to all the freedom GPS navigation can offer them.

The few alternatives to Wayfinder Access are at least 3 times more expensive and often don’t run on a mobile phone, requiring the user to carry around and maintain a lot of extra expensive equipment.  In many countries, no alternative for Wayfinder is available at all.

As you will see, discontinuing Wayfinder Access would put thousands of blind pedestrians off track!  Please help us make clear to Vodafone that they are heading the wrong way and sign our petition! Please also pass on the link to this page to other persons to ensure we get as many signatures as possible!

Sign the petition

Read the full petition

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