Our Servers Protect Your TapToTalk

We recently upgraded the servers that run TapToTalk Designer. We had to beef them up to keep ahead of the amazing growth of the TapToTalk community. We've grown faster than anticipated, and more and more users means we need more bandwidth, more memory and more storage.

We also wanted to improve the security of our backup. One of the great things about the way TapToTalk works is that your albums are stored on our servers. This means that even if you lose the device(s) you use to run TapToTalk, you can just get a new device and start running TapToTalk again. Nothing is lost.

We store your albums even if you let your TapToTalk Designer subscription expire. That means your child can still use TapToTalk. And those albums are right there when you renew your Designer subscription to make changes to your TapToTalk.

So it was important to us to improve our off-site backup. We have a lot of TapToTalks to take care of, and you and your kids count on them being there. We take that responsibility very seriously.

If you have a TapToTalk idea or story you'd like us to share with other TapToTalk users, please email us at blog@taptotalk.com. The TapToTalk Team www.taptotalk.com blog@taptotalk.com

Tammy Lessick: Blogger, Mom and Champion of Autism Awareness

TapToTalk was recently invited to write a guest blog post on Tammy Lessick's AutismLearningFelt blog. Tammy was one of the first users of TapToTalk and we were honored to write the post.

Tammy, a blogger and a mom with an autistic son, writes about her son, about autism-related topics and other issues that she feels would be of interest to her readers. She has a forum for members where parents of autistic children can communicate with each other. She even has a "giveaways" area. Tammy has written about her experience with TapToTalk so others could benefit from it. We thank her for her support and are happy to see her moving forward with her well-read blog.

We have been reading other blogs for families dealing with autism, apraxia, Down Syndrome and other special needs. These blogs provide a valuable information and community-building service to those with special needs kids. We salute Tammy and her fellow bloggers who perform this important service.

You can take a look at the TapToTalk post and other interesting posts on the AutismLearningFelt blog.

If you have a TapToTalk idea or story you'd like us to share with other TapToTalk users, please email us at blog@taptotalk.com.The TapToTalk Teamwww.taptotalk.comblog@taptotalk.com

A TapToTalk Happy Meal, Hold the Lettuce, Hold the Pickle

One of the things that TapToTalk Mom's tell us makes them especially happy is when their child tells them what they want on their TapToTalk. After all, the point is for your child to communicate what they are thinking and feeling. Often this seems to start with food. Here are some recent examples:

@moiraeve1 posted on twitter: "Made pad thai, took picture, now its a food choice in my kid's #TaptoTalk."

We bet mom was happy when her child loved the pad thai!

Caroline Curran posted on our Facebook page: "Emel (daughter) told me she wants me to make her a McDonalds album for her TapToTalk so she can order her own food. That's my job for tomorow. She just loves her TapToTalk."

So there's one more small way Emel has gained self-reliance. A nice project for Caroline.

What we find great is that non-verbal kids are somehow communicating to mom what they want to be able to say. And together, mother and child can make it happen.

Communicating is what TapToTalk is all about.

If you have a TapToTalk idea or story you'd like us to share with other TapToTalk users, please email us at blog@taptotalk.com. The TapToTalk Team www.taptotalk.com blog@taptotalk.com

Introducing The TapToTalk Customer Zone, Built Just for You!

If you are a TapToTalk user, the Customer Zone is a section of the TapToTalk web site just for you.

Enter the customer zone, and you will find these handy links:

A link directly to TapToTalk Designer for Home and Pro users (Agency users, please instead use the special url your TapToTalk Agency supervisor gave you; it is unique to your organization)

A link to Product News, so you can stay up-to-date on TapToTalk improvements

A link to the TapToTalk Picture Library page

A link you can use to submit Product Suggestions (we love these)

A link to our Subscriber Store, where you can add TapToTalks to your subscription, renew, or upgrade it

A link to the Agency Edition Overview, for TapToTalk Agency users

A link to Frequently Asked Questions

A link to Support Center, where you'll find a link to get support issues resolved, as well as the same information you can access in the TapToTalk Designer help system

You'll find the Customer Zone link at the bottom of any page on www.taptotalk.com. Just look for the information (exclamation point) icon.

If you have a TapToTalk idea or story you'd like us to share with other TapToTalk users, please email us at blog@taptotalk.com.

The TapToTalk Team
http://www.taptotalk.com/
blog@taptotalk.com

Happy Mother's Day to TapToTalk Moms

Dear TapToTalk Mom,

It has been a privilege to get to know hundreds of you over the last year. A few face-to-face, more over the phone, and even more in email conversations, mom blogs and on Facebook. Nine out of ten of the parents we have contact with are moms.

You told us that when you found out you had a special needs child, your life changed in ways you'd never imagined. You found the strength and courage to carry on, to figure out how to get your child's needs met in a world that often did not seem to be able to respond, or even want to. Love is indeed a powerful force.

When we designed TapToTalk, you and your child were on our minds. We wanted to give you a tool to help your child communicate that was affordable and that your child would want to use. Now, we hear from you all the time. You tell us what we are doing right and what we need to improve. Your voice is heard in every one of our meetings, as we make decisions. We call it the TapToTalk Mom Test: “How will this work for the moms?”

Some of you told us that "you aren't good at computers," yet you wasted no time figuring out how to use TapToTalk Designer. You added pictures of your family and your child's favorite foods. You learned and worked hard for your child.

You have stunned us with your creativity in the ways you use TapToTalk to meet your child's needs. You bring smiles to our faces, and very often tears to our eyes, when you tell us how TapToTalk has helped you, your child, and your family.

You make what we do feel incredibly worthwhile every day. Please keep your feedback coming. We, and especially your child, could not do it without you.

Sincerely,
Lenny Greenberg and Phil Bookman
CTO and CEO of Assistyx, the TapToTalk Company


If you have a TapToTalk idea or story you'd like us to share with other TapToTalk users, please email us at blog@taptotalk.com.

The TapToTalk Team
www.taptotalk.com
blog@taptotalk.com