Tapgram makes sending simple messages to your loved ones easier than ever. Once you’re set up, you won’t need to touch a keyboard to send messages to the people that you love. You will need a phone, tablet, or a computer with a connection, and, of course a free tapgram account.
We’ve put together a handy quick start guide.
After my mom had a severe stroke, keyboards and computers became almost impossible for her to use. Aside from the loss of motor function (her right side is paralyzed), the stroke also left her with Aphasia, which is an impairment in her ability to use language.
Mom uses a lot of assistive communication programs to help her with therapy and during the course of her day. But some of these are costly and only work when you are in the room with the person. While we talk daily, I wanted an easy way for us to check in with each other. I didn’t just want assistive communication. I wanted assistive messaging. With family members and friends spread around the world, getting mom wired became the side project that took over my life.
I explored a variety of interfaces and systems for generating simple messages including my Kinecticate project, as well as Iconicate, an Arduino-powered device I showed at this year’s New York Maker Faire. This web application is the result of a lot of tinkering, exploring, and having fun. As my mom played around with these prototypes, it was great to feel more in touch about the basics of each other’s day. My kids - just getting comfortable with keyboards themselves - enjoyed exchanging tapgrams with Grandma and each other. My sister in the UK can send and receive messages with Mom.
Then mom’s friends wanted in on the fun. So, I created tapgram as a tablet friendly web application. We’ve just opened up the beta. There’s a bunch of new functionality we’ll be incorporating in the coming weeks and months. And, we’ll certainly adjust the current site as we go along. Please don’t hesitate to let us know tapgram is working for you.
You can email us at info@tapgram.com or connect with us here:
Thanks for tapping!