Interview
Q- Were you born with this disability?
A- No, actually I was involved in a car accident on the M1 which left me paralysed from the waist down.
Q- How did it make you paralysed?
A- The doctors said I had damaged the nerves in my lumbar spine and that I would not be able to walk again. Doctors call this a spinal chord injury, two of my vertebrae had been damaged and they damaged the nerves inside them.
Q- How did you feel after this?
A- I spent quite a long time feeling very depressed, and could not do the job I liked and could not do many of the things I used to enjoy so much. My wife Jane persuaded me to us the money I received from the company and accident insurance to start my own mail order company. Until that time I had never really liked using computers and did not really know much about how to go about choosing one that would do what I wanted. Fortunately one of my friends owned a company who supplied computers and he built me one that lasted for 5 years.
Lugano electric wheelchair – Mr James most important piece of technology. It enables him to move around instead of sitting in a chair. It contains a mounted right arm joystick which he uses to control his wheel chair. His wheel chair enables him to go out socially to meet friends but most importantly to meet people for his business.
Vauxhall Meriva – he uses his cars mainly for mobility. He uses his car to go to the shops or to get to his business. He could also use his car for social reasons such as meeting friends and family. This is a huge advantage because you can not get around easily.
8MG Demon Internet Connection/LOVEFiLM – Mr James uses his 8MG demon internet connections for all three reasons. He can use the internet to speak on chat rooms to friends and family. He can use the internet to purchase food and purchase special tickets to venues he would like to go to. This saves him from the hassle of getting into his wheelchair, getting into his car and going to down to a place and wait in a long cue. He can also use the internet to check his online Natwest bank account. He can also rent DVD’s from websites such as LOVEFiLM.com, and he can purchase holidays. This means he doesn’t have to go through the hassle of getting into his chair, getting in to his car, driving to that place and getting back.
PC – he uses his pc for personal use and business use. He uses his computer for his business so that he can keep logs and information about customers. He uses programmes such as Microsoft word and Excel. He can keep all of his information on his computer which enables him not to use filing cabinets. Mr James doesn’t use filing cabinets because he can not reach them. This makes him feel uncomfortably asking his wife to get him files.
Sony HD LCD TV/ Subwoofer/Blu-Ray DVDS – Mr James has trouble going to the cinema because he cannot access the seats. This means that he hast to sit at the back of the cinema and not get the best view he can because people keep walking up the aisles and blocking his view. To solve this problem he purchased a 46” HD TV with surround sound and subwoofer to get the cinematic feeling in his own home. He also gets the best quality graphics from his Blue-Ray DVDs. This benefits Mr James because he does not have to go through the hassle of getting into his wheelchair, getting into his car, getting into the cinema and back. It also enables him to get the best view in his own home because if you’re in a wheelchair and you go to the cinema they put you at the back of the cinema.
Digital answer machine – This plays a huge roll in Mr James life. It enables him to continue his business without answering the phone. If he was in another room he would not get to the phone in time because he would have to get of the sofa to get into his chair, he would then have to get into the room where the answering machine is and answer it. He can find out who called him and ring them back. This means that he does not miss out on business and lose out on money. He can also use the answering machine to play back the message over and over again so he does not forget what he needs to get.
Sky + Box – Mr James uses his Sky + box to watch his favourite programmes. He can also invite friends and family around to watch programmes. He can also use his Sky + box to record programmes. This means he does not have miss out on a programme whilst he goes out. He can simply record them.
Yamaha digital keyboard – This piece of technology keeps him entertained because he can use it for his music. This suites him because it keeps him entertained whilst making music. It also good because he has a disability which stops him from getting up to use things such as a keyboard. It means that he can sit on the settee and play his keyboard for entertainment.
Sony camera / cannon Lexus with printers - Mr James uses his cameras for reasons such as social or business. He can invite friends or family around to his has and have a party. During the party if he decides to take a photo to remember the experience. Once he has taken the photos he can upload them from his computer and send them to his printer. This suites him because he doesn’t have to get into his wheel chair get into his car and get his wife to drive him to a place that prints his pictures. He can print pictures in the comfort of his own home.
Evaluation of Technology
The technologies Mr James use help him a lot and save him time. Online shopping for instance, Mr James can use it to order products such as food and supplies and his order is delivered to him without any physical effort from him, however this service may not be as cheap as going down to the shops and getting the things himself, due to the delivery costs, and if he remembers something he needed after he has placed the order, he has to place another order for it which will cost more money. Aside from this, if he did go down to the local supermarket he could pick the best of the products he is buying, such as large fruits and non dented tins, online, however, they will just be picked up without any thought. Mr James also uses online banking to pay for things such as the online shopping mentioned above, and he can view his statement, however if he sees an anomaly in his statement he has to travel down to the bank to get an accurate response, he must also go down to the bank to get any money out of his account, this is awkward because he is in a wheelchair and has limited movement. He could use the cashpoint but these are usually only free of charge to transactions when they are located outside of a bank, it saves him the hassle of having to wait in a queue in the bank but he may have to wait in a queue for the cashpoint. ATM machines are considered to render personal banking account information unsafe due to the easily viewable screen which shows the account information for the person using it at the time, and someone could look at their pin number, then steal their card and have access to all the money in that persons account. The internet is also useful, it allows Mr James to access online banking and online shopping, and can offer a whole lot more, email for example. Email is very good because it means a message can get to a person instantly, and it can be viewed as soon as they power up their computer. They can view not only the message sent, but the sender, exact time and date it was sent, and you can download any file attached. Emailing is secure because it doesn’t use any physical objects such as a credit card, so nothing can be stolen from it, and it isn’t easy to guess a password with infinite possibilities. Emails do not have to be sorted by the post office, and do not have to have a stamp, they also do not have to be delivered by the post office, they get to the recipient instantaneously without using any paper, making it superior to snail mail, the only downside is that you need a computer, access to the internet and a power supply to send an email. The internet is full of both good and bad things, programs that can be bought directly online that may help Mr James with his catalogue, and instant messaging, making it possible to talk to a person as if they were sitting in the same room, however, the internet also contains many viruses of all sorts and people who like to access files on your computer without permission, called hackers. The internet can be accessed through devices other than a PC, such as a number of mobile phones. Mr James has a Samsung D900 Mobile Phone which allows him internet access at almost any location due to its advanced bandwidth system while at the same time showing it on a QVGA 240 x 320 pixels ‘262,114 Colours TFT Screen all within a tiny 103.5 by 51 by 12.9mm size and weighing only 89g, this is very useful as he can call his friends, family and anyone associated with his business and can access the internet from anywhere in the world at any time, using only a tiny 85g device. The only downsides are that you have to keep the battery charged and it costs quite a bit of money, making it a valuable item and a target for people looking to steal phones, however, if the phone is stolen they can get it locked so that the person who stole it cannot use it.
