Deaf Hiker and the Appalachian Trail

Julio Rodriguez has an ambitious goal of hiking the 3/4 length of the Appalachian Trail from Harper Ferry, West Virginia to Maine.  A travel that is planned to take 4 months traversing part of the 2,146 miles of trails covering in 11 states. It's a test of endurance as well as the mental challenge in hiking alone in total silence with his dog as his only companion makes his hike the more isolating because of his deafness.  Lacking the full communication with hearing people he'll meet along the way will only temporarily break the monotony and solitude of his hike. This is where communication technology comes in handy that breaks the usual surficial but limited chit-chat communication in meeting new people along the way.

His hike began on May 24, 2013 but officially it was May 26 when he finally got going. He is now 2/3 of the way through his hike to Maine with 500 miles to go. You can follow Julio's Appalachian Trail Facebook and see the sights he recorded along the way and the people he met.  For the first 40 days of his hike he communicated using pen and paper the people he met along the way. Though handy but not quite the same communication experience as in communicating with people in real time.  On Day 39 he received a message from Jason Curry, CEO and co-founder of sComm, that he would be sending Julio a new 2nd generation UbiDuo.

Day 39

Arrived Pawling, NY, sleep overnight on the sidewalk by the train- because it was night time when I arrived there. Next day, Jason Curry asked me if we can Skype and he got me a sweet surprise, that he’d send me Ubi Duo 2 that I can use to chat with anyone, oh man, sweet! So, I stayed one more night to pick up my Ubi Duo 2. I washed my clothes and sleep on the bench- by the Laundromat.

On Day 40 he finally got his UbiDuo

Ubi Duo 2 arrived! Yay, I used it to talk to a store- just to show him what Ubi Duo is, wow, it did make him want to chat me more- it really did make everything easier! We chatted very smooth and just wow, I will post video of me using Ubi Duo 2 sometime soon too. You definitely gonna buy one for yourself too, it is not just good for at work or stuff like that, it is our another tool. Something that we must have and carry everyday. You can type your Ubi Duo 2 up to 300 feet in radius. For more info, check it at www.scomm.com. Again, I will video telling you why you need it! Can’t wait to use it to chat with thru hikers by the campfire tonight. Now head back to the trail. Holla

As of today, July 15, he is in his 43rd day of his hike. He's currently near Salisbury, CT with some 500 miles to go.  He has gotten so much use out of his new 2nd generation UbiDuo he was able to chat longer in real time communication, just like talking or signing, with new people he met. He even chatted 4 hours straight with one person only to fall asleep with the UbiDuo on his lap. More on that later.

Be sure to follow Julio's latest adventure and stories of generous people along the way on his Appalachian Facebook page or his personal Facebook page.  And be sure to check out my blog for more stories about Julio and his communication adventures! And check out his first story on his journey with his UbiDuo chatting with a new person he met along the way recently a few days ago.

Out with the Old, In with the New

The old sComm website is now in the history book. The newly revamped and totally reconfigured sComm website with new themes introduces the next generation UbiDuo, the world's most ubiquitous communication device. The next generation UbiDuo face to face communication device is now lighter, sleeker, with touch sensitive screens to navigate functions better and easier. The new UbiDuo automatically turns on for you the moment you open up the 2 in 1 communication device without the need to go through steps in turning it on like the older UbiDuo.  The UbiDuo makes it more enjoyable and easier to communicate face to face between deaf and hearing people. It is 100% one-on-one communication equality with zero bluffing, zero frustration and zero communiphobia.  And the best thing of all? The new generation UbiDuo is engineered and manufactured in the U.S.A. as exclaimed by the CEO of sComm to his audience.

Now, this is what I'm very, very passionate about. The UbiDuo 2 is engineered and manufactured in the USA! That is what I'm fired up about. It's important to my heart. I wanted the UbiDuo 2 to be made in the USA! It's time to give all of the manufacturing business back to America! That is what's important to all of us. 

Scavenger Hunt Part Deux

Watch Part II of a scavenger hunt. A hunt that will be revealed progressively over the next few weeks every Tuesday by sComm, the maker of the UbiDuo Face to Face communication device. A big surprise will be revealed near the end of January this month. What could it be? What is "Project Black"? Where will this scavenger hunt end up at? Be sure to follow this video each week to find out. If you missed Part I video you can watch it first at the bottom of the page.

Part I - The Scavenger Hunt

Project Black - a new year begins

Click on this link to watch a video of a scavenger hunt that will be revealed progressively over the next three weeks every Wednesday by sComm, the maker of the UbiDuo Face to Face communication device. A big surprise will be revealed near the end of January this month. What could it be? What is "Project Black"? Where will this scavenger hunt end up at? Be sure to follow this video each week to find out.

Noah Buchholz's Journey: Part 3 series

Part 2 of series

Part 1 of series

Anytime...anywhere....not afraid to communicate.

On an airplane flight in one of his many business flights and being the only deaf person on board surrounded with hearing travelers certainly was not an excuse for him to keep quiet. Wherever he goes whether at a bar, a convention, or on an airplane there's never a lost opportunity to whip up a discussion with a hearing person anytime, anywhere...no problem. And communicate easily, unimpeded in real time conversations and not miss a beat or a single word. Never knowing that by introducing himself to a hearing person could open up a whole new level of networking. Just like the day on an airplane when he bumped into one of the top sports writer for The Kansas City Star newspaper Joe Posnanski who eventually wrote a story about this deaf man and his good friend, Greg Gunderson back in July of 2006. A story that I was directly responsible in reuniting these two old deaf friends who have not seen each other since the days when they were camp roommates at Boys Town.

Jason and engineers spent three years testing the device, working and reworking the design, and interviewing deaf people for ideas. When the prototype was done, Jason needed some people to test it. He contacted Mike McConnell, perhaps the nation’s best known deaf blogger. Mike said he knew the perfect guy.

He wrote: “Do you know about Greg Gunderson, who is trying to become the first deaf NASCAR driver?"

When Jason came across Greg’s name, he did not recognize it. But when he went to the Web site, he saw a photograph, one he had a hundred times before. It was Greg on a snowmobile. Jason remembered everything. This was his old camp roommate. He was trying for something big. And he needed help.

So, Jason got in touch, and they cried as they remembered. Jason’s Independence-based company sComm bought Greg his fire suit and helmet (with the words “Ubi Duo” prominent on both) and he offered Greg his invention to use on the show. This way, Greg could communicate with fans and media members and the other drivers on the show. This way, Jason’s invention could be seen by America.

See, Jason believes in destiny, too.

“The other day, I had a long chat with my brother-in-law on the Ubi Duo,” Jason wrote. “It was the first in-depth conversation we’d ever had. When I went over to their house, I used to be off to the side, alone. It was hard.

“Now, this device … it will change people’s lives. I know it. It will help deaf people do jobs. It will bring family members together. And it will help my old friend Greg become the first deaf NASCAR driver. I know it.”

Greg knows it, too. The story has to end happily. A few weeks ago, Greg came across a room key and he realized: It was to their room at Boys Town. Greg never knew why he kept that key — he was supposed to give it back at the end of the camp — but he did keep it. And every time he thought of throwing it away, something stopped him. Now he knew. He gave the key to Jason.

“What is the key to?” I type into the Ubi Duo.

“The future,” Greg typed.

Indeed. The future continues to look brighter with each passing day for sComm only because communicating with hearing people using the UbiDuo has proved its worth the weight in gold time and time again.  It's the little bold things like talking next to a hearing passenger sitting next to you while showcasing the face to face communication device to a fellow passenger that led to much bigger things. With the UbiDuo deafness becomes a non-issue anytime, anywhere and never an excuse not to communicate with any hearing person.

So, what's stopping you from communicating with a hearing person sitting next to you?  Your deafness? It certainly did not stop Greg Gunderson or Jason Curry.

How valuable is communication?

You heard the old adage about setting up a successful business and that's "Location, location, location!" But when it comes to ensuring success in everyday lives, especially in the world of business, it's "Communication, communication, communication!" no matter who you are dealing with.

So, how valuable is communication among deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing people? Is it social value? Business value? Personal value? If you're a business entrepreneur or a deaf/hh worker who deal with hearing people on a daily basis how valuable would communication be? If you had a product that ensures a free and open communication with anybody who knows how to type would you use one?

We already saw a glimpse on just how valuable communication is when YouTube (owned by Google) announced their first ever voice to text recognition service on their website enabling greater communication access to potentially millions of people who are deaf and hard of hearing. This is a smart and savvy marketing move. Exactly how valuable is automatic voice-to-text communication when it comes to voice or speech recognition technology? What about voice messages on your phone into text like Google voice as seen in this captioned video? How valuable would it be between two different languages over the phone? Voice recognition technology isn't perfect yet as you can see here in this latest video which is already shown to be extremely error prone (and something I think could in fact turn out to be a PR nightmare for Google/YouTube if it's really that bad).

For deaf and hard of hearing people communication is obviously quite valuable and that technology will be the answer in helping level the playing field. There is already one device that allows face-to-face communication called "UbiDuo" which enabled one Sam's Club employee who is deaf to communicate among his peers, supervisors, and customers and because of that he was able to get himself promoted 3 times.



How valuable is communication when it comes to business? In Sam's Club case the UbiDuo was worth more than its weight in gold because it helped increase productivity and efficiency. The Sam's Club manager as seen in the video realized that it was "Communication, communication, communication!" that made the difference and recommended that a face-to-face communication device ought to be in all retail outlets.

It would definitely help every retail establishment. Any retail establishment that wants to connect with anyone hearing impaired needs something like this product. Because it's very impersonal without it. But with it you can talk to them, you can get their needs, you don't have to guess. You know exactly what they want. And it makes the member or customer feel better because they feel like they have some power now versus before they were kind of hoping they found what they needed and if they didn't, oh weel, they probably didn't ask.

Sometimes it takes a communication product for somebody to realize the importance of just how valuable communication is in the world of people who are deaf and hard of hearing, and doing business with them is all about communication, communication, communication!!

What to look for in a successful deaf-owned company

The biggest aspect of what a successful, deaf-owned company would look like would be the ability to exude a positive outlook with a specific goal in mind without resorting to political correctness. One company fits that profile and that is sComm, Inc, a wholly deaf-owned company, home of the popular UbiDuo face-to-face communication device.

Over five years ago when I first heard about this company I was impressed with the company's founder, Jason Curry, believing that technology is the answer to help level the playing field among those with hearing loss as seen in their mission statement on their main webpage.

Our Mission: To be the premier provider of innovative technology solutions that shatter communication barriers and empower people with the freedom to communicate with anyone, anywhere and at any time.

Note their mission is to become the premier provider of innovative technology solutions. The company is all about innovation. A bootstrapper with the goal in mind to increase that communication freedom with anyone, anywhere and at any time.

Back then I realized just how serious and positive this company was in their goal to succeed I decided to blog about the company's ongoing development and watched it grow starting from 2005. Because I, too, believe that technology is the answer and that us deaf and hard of hearing people are in a better position to determine which kind of technology would be beneficial.

Technology continues to improve and expand to the benefit of those with hearing loss whether the person has a mild hearing loss or is profoundly deaf. When it comes to technology there are very few companies in the United States run by a deaf CEO. Or a company that patent, design, make and distribute their own technology products and at the same time employ deaf, hard of hearing and hearing employees. sComm, Inc fits that bill nicely.

Back in 2007 I spoke at the first ever vlog/blog convention at Gallaudet University with a conviction believing that technology will continue to increase communication access between deaf/hh and hearing people. And it will. You can see a video of my speech in Gallaudet University's video catalog (or click here to watch the video in external mode that comes with a time stamp which I recommend doing so). My speech comes with an ASL interpreter. I am introduced at the 1 minute 54 second time mark along with other bloggers. My speech begins at the 29 minute and 14 seconds time mark and ends at the 45 minute and 35 seconds mark). And a side note about this is that I was the only deaf/hh person to have spoken using my voice and I explained my reason for doing so in my 2007 blog piece. The summary of my technology speech on "Futuristic Classrooms" covered questions like:

• Is it about the ability to interact?

• Is it about communication needs and preferences?

• Is it about accessibility when it comes to the free flow of information whether coming from a computer or human being?

• Is a “futuristic classroom” on campus only?

• How about off campus?

• Is it always about classrooms? What about outside of classrooms? Can learning take place outside of the classrooms?

When it comes to technology for all deaf and hard of hearing people such a technology ought to be seamless and intuitive while providing a completely accessible and transparent communication medium.

One thing to realize about technology is that it is moving faster than ever before. Technology and performance doubles every 2 years. Technology will play a major role in how deaf and hard of hearing people will interact with anyone on and off campus, and any place whether it's for business or pleasure. This can make difference on improving the odds for deaf owned businesses to thrive and compete with anybody since many businesses do not survive past the 5 year mark. For any deaf owned companies in the technology business sector they must plan 2 to 4 years in advance and take into consideration future technology not quite ready for the market but has been demonstrated such as the flat screen panel that’s thick as a playing card you can put up on a wall. Planning ahead is about surviving.

Area of technology that is growing fast.

• More efficient (rather than faster) computer chip such as IBM's Core chips (which are very small parallel processing architectures and that parallel processing does a better job on multitasking).
• More memory for the buck such as flash or thumb drives that can be purchased at the gigabit scale.
• Cell phones such as qwerty phones seen in Blackberry phones with camera lens for video and picture taking.
• Internet connection and the meshing of video, music, and even video phone on demand.
• Voice recognition – it is widely being used today. Many cell phones have voice recognition features built into them.
• ASL or sign language recognition later on down the road.
• The integration of technology that will improve the seamless communication interaction between deaf, hearing, hard of hearing and culturally deaf people

UPDATE: Just wanted to add some additional information about my vlog/blog conference speech by including some video time stamps during a question and answer session. The first one begins at the 1 hour, 15 minute and 10 second mark and ends at the 1:19:09 mark. Another question and answer starts at the 1:23:57 mark and ends at 1:27:45 mark. And the last one at the 1:34:00 mark.