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Hi everyone. You've no doubt been wondering where in the world I have been. Well, let me attempt to satisfy everybody's curiosity. I got my new computer a little less than a month ago, and my dad set it up in my apartment. At the time the computer was plugged into an outlet which had previously gone haywire. However, everything seemed OK for a few days so we thought we'd leave things be. But the outlet did end up going out again, and that of course meant my computer went as well. So we rearranged some things in the apartment, but I have no online access. Therefore, I am typing this entry from a remote location. My life skills tutor was kind enough to move my apartment phone from the living room into my bedroom, and it seems to be working much better. This problem is currently under investigation, but I think we have narrowed it down. Meanwhile, I would like to talk VISTA. My new computer has Windows Vista on it, and I have therefore started using it. I am happy to report very positive results with Windows VISTA thus far. It seems to be very stable, and it has some rather nice features. One thing I like about it is that Microsoft has included several accessibility features which were not present in earlier versions of Windows. For one thing Narrator, the little utility that acts as a watered-down screen reader, has from what I can tell undergone a somewhat major facelift. Microsoft Mary, Mike, and Sam are out and Anna is in. Anna seems to have been built on the Microsoft Mary foundation, but Anna seems to be a bit clearer and not as robotic. She is my only choice, but I think there are other Microsoft voices available perhaps in other versions of VISTA. Also new is the Ease of Access Center, which lets users with disabilities adjust a whole myriad of settings that make the computer easier to use. The virus protection software on my computer is something from Trend Micro, and it seems to be quite accessible with JAWS. I haven't had as much time with VISTA as I would've liked to due to the electrical problem in my apartment, but I think Microsoft has done a wonderful job with this release. I also hope to try out Windows VISTA with other screen readers. I've already tried it with NVDA, but sadly I found that the two don't quite get along. My ex-roommate told me a few days ago that Windows VISTA will work on Mac computers too. He saw this in a TV commercial. As you all can probably imagine, I've been spending a lot of time preparing for the holidays. My dad set up a Christmas tree in my apartment, and I already have the gift for my Secret Santa. I'm confident this person will love my gift.