Category Archives: Ask Dr. Z

Happy Holidays–15 Days of ZVRS! (1st Gift of 15) (My Phone Number)

Dr. Z has a surprise for his loyal readers…we know the song–“12 Days of Christmas” and we know that the Jewish folks celebrate 8 Days of Hanukkah—Dr. Z has come up with another version focusing on 15 “gifts” from ZVRS and he will be doing that until December 25th!

Here’s the first one from ZVRS…

The first gift is “My Phone Number”–when ZVRS gives you a phone number for your device…it is yours…it is yours to give to your friends, family and others to reach you. You “own” the phone number and it is how the world reaches you. Hold on to it for dear life…do not let others take the phone number away from you.

“My Phone Number”–one of the things that make up your “Z Life”!

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (Philip W. Bravin) is an employee with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Marketing.

Frustrated with Many Phone Numbers-1Number from ZVRS is for You!

Dr. Z has several phones–he has a Z-20, iPad2, iPod, iPhone and a webcam built into his Mac–he has another Z-20 in his office in Florida–thats a total of 7 phones with 3 numbers. It can make one crazy, but Dr. Z is not getting crazy or frustrated, thanks to 1Number from ZVRS!

How does that work?

The Z4 has the same number for his Apple stuff (iPhone, iPod, iPad and Mac)–you can have the same number for all those devices.

When he is working from his office in Vermont, he uses his Z-20–when he works from his office in Clearwater, Florida he uses his Z-20 down there.

When anyone calls Dr. Z when he is in Vermont, the Apple device he is using and his Z-20 rings. When anyone calls Dr. Z when he is in Florida, the Apple device he is using and his Z-20 down there rings. How is that possible? 1Number from Z!

He just goes into his profile on the ZVRS website and tells it which phone he wants to ring by a simple drag and drop and it takes care of it automatically.

Like Sean Berdy says, Get a Z Life! and Be Connected–see his video on YouTube!

Click here to download Z4 Mobile.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (Philip W. Bravin) is an employee with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Marketing.

Z4 Mobile for Apple iOS-A New Version from the Z!

Sean Berdy, star of “Switched at Birth” said it on Z’s YouTube video–“Get a Z Life!” (link to video)

Why? The new version of Z4 Mobile for iOS is a whopper! It does almost everything–from making VRS calls, point to point calls to other VP including the VP-200, changing your profile, changing your contacts, setting up 1Number, viewing ZVRS’ YouTube videos and more! All on a mobile device. Also, this software supports the iPad2 as well. It holds contacts from both your device as well as the ZVRS “My Contacts.”

You have to try it to better understand where Dr. Z is coming from. This is a complete app for the mobile world. When you open the app up, you get right to the dialer screen and dial a call right from there, or you can dial from a contact list.

Like Sean Berdy says, Get a Z Life! and Be Connected!

Click here to download Z4 Mobile.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (Philip W. Bravin) is an employee with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Marketing.

Editorial #98: Is New Technology Accessible for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing?

There are technology developments that make communication accessible such as VRS—but there is also technology that does not make things accessible such as voice recognition.

Voice recognition is when someone speaks to a device and the device understands what is spoken into it. It seems cool, but many of us deaf people do not have perfect speech and those devices won’t be able to understand us and then would not be useful.

There are some cool software products out there but to use it you have to be able to speak. Then we deaf people cannot use such products because some of us cannot speak as clearly as others.

Technology can go both ways–it can make life easier, and it can limit our lives. So we need to be on the lookout for such things and raise our voice when such things limit our ability to use those devices.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclaimer: Dr. Z (Philip Bravin) is currently the Vice-President of Marketing at CSDVRS, LLC.

Editorial #96: What Should You Look for in a Video Interpreter?

We often forget the role of a video interpreter (VI) when making VRS calls, and sometimes take them for granted.

Dr. Z wants to remind each and everyone of you to remember they are the key messengers (or facilitators) for all calls we make through a relay service.

They have a difficult job because they do not know what kind of calls come up the moment a call comes in–it can be anything from a simple pizza order to sharing news of a birth of a baby to handling a 911 call–all as part of their work schedule and to do it every working day.

They need to maintain their composure in difficult situations and remain as “neutral” as possible.

They have to be able to handle spelling of names and geographic locations which they may not be familiar with.

They have to be able to handle differences in regional signs–the sign for “circus” or “birthday” differs in all parts of the country.

They have to be able to handle differing communication styles of deaf and hard of hearing people.

They sometimes have to handle difficult consumers who make calls.

And to do it every day, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

Let’s show our appreciation for them by saying “Thank you” with a smile at the end of every call.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclaimer: Dr. Z (Philip Bravin) is currently the Vice-President of Marketing at CSDVRS, LLC.

Editorial #94: Dr. Z Cares About You–Please Do NOT VP While Driving!

There has been some “chatter” on social media about people carrying a video conversation while driving.

We already know that texting while driving causes accidents and things like that. A tree or a telephone pole does not move; and another car may be in your way before you know it. It requires a few seconds to respond.

Talking on video while driving is dangerous and while Dr. Z is not a medical doctor, he is prescribing you not to do that–it is not safe and can cause accidents.

If you need to talk on video while you are on the road, pull over to a shoulder, enter a service area or a parking lot. This is much safer and the few minutes the trip may take longer adds to your margin of safety.

Again, please do not VP while driving for everyone’s peace of mind.

Thank you for listening.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclaimer: Dr. Z (Philip Bravin) is currently the Vice-President of Marketing at CSDVRS, LLC.

Editorial #90-Sorenson–Please Watch What Your Trainer in The Pacific Northwest Said About 911 Calls from the Z

Dr. Z takes 911 issues seriously, so does the FCC.

Here, we have received reliable information that a Sorenson trainer in the Pacific Northwest area indicated that Z phones would not be able to make 911 calls. That is NOT true! From day 1, ZVRS takes 911 calls seriously and we process dozens of 911 calls every day.

Our website says that in plain english with this link:

http://zvrs.com/company/fcc/911

This webpage has been on our website for over a year now. It has been there since the FCC required all VRS providers to handle 911 calls. All VRS providers are required by the FCC to handle 911 calls.

Sorenson, kindly think twice before assuming anything…ZVRS is proud of whom we are and we stand behind our products and services, including 911 calls.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclaimer: Dr. Z is currently the Vice-President of Marketing at CSDVRS, LLC.

Editorial #89-Sorenson–Please Fix Your VP-200 or nTouch to Comply with Industry Standards

Dr. Z has been receiving comments that Sorenson’s VP-200 or nTouch does not always work with other units that do not belong to Sorenson. Sorenson trainers usually point their finger at the other providers. Dr. Z is asking those trainers to point their finger at a mirror.

The fact of the matter is there are industry standards that are published and most technology providers design their units to comply with such standards. ZVRS and other providers make every effort to comply with industry standards for video communication. The VP-200 and the nTouch do not necessarily follow such standards to the letter and that explains why we sometimes do not see videophones connecting with one another.

The solution may be to port your Sorenson unit to providers such as ZVRS so you know you comply with standards and communicate well with other videophones. Try it, you will be surprised at the difference.

Dr. Z takes interopoerability issues seriously and this is one example of Sorenson not placing emphasis on interoperability with other provider’s units/software, choosing to take care of its own.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclaimer: Dr. Z is currently the Vice-President of Marketing at CSDVRS, LLC.

Going on Vacation this Summer? Tips for Using Your Videophone from Dr. Z

Summertime is around us — July 4th is the official start of vacation season…

Vacation takes many forms–driving on the road, hopping from one place to another–or you would go to one specific destination, staying at a beach house, or a hotel, or a rented house.

What videophone should you use? The ideal one would be the iPad2, followed by the iPhone, iPod Touch or the various Android models you see on our website (www.zvrs.com.)

The key to successful video calls while on the road is a good wifi connection. This is not guaranteed. One McDonalds may have it good while the next one won’t. One Marriott Courtyard may have it good while the next one won’t. It is hard to predict. A good video communication setup requires a good and robust wifi connection. You can test it with our bandwidth tool. Here is the link to it. If its low, then the video won’t look that good or may not work. Some wifi is free, some wifi you would have to pay.

If you are renting a beach house or a vacation house, most residential wifi connections are good. But some homes do not have wifi, so check in advance.

Dr. Z wishes you all a happy summer vacation. Drive carefully and safely.

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z is a employee with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Marketing.

Dr. Z at Deaf Nation in Riverside

Dr. Z was at Deaf Nation in Riverside last Friday and Saturday. What an event that was–over 6,000 people attended both days and Dr. Z used his trusty iPad2 to demonstrate the wonderful capabilities it had, including it being a videophone.

The following pictures say it all…the first picture was taken with an iPad2 and the second picture came from Deaf Nation.

Kids are our future…they loved the iPad2!

Dr. Z cares about your communication access.

Disclosure: Dr. Z is a employee with CSDVRS, currently its Vice-President of Marketing.