[accessibleimage] Re: Fwd: New TTT Authoring Tool

Denise, thanks for your comments.  Of course, you won't need to buy a new
TTT to use the new version of the Authoring Tool. 

 

I have been thinking about incorporating some activity on screen when
different things are pressed on teacher-made TTT sheets. When we first
designed the program, we tried to avoid having things happen on screen,
because we felt that might distract a low vision user, and we wanted to
encourage them to focus on the tactile image.  But, maybe it would be a good
idea to incorporate some screen action in the new version, as a way of
adding interest for some users.  For example, objects could change color
while they were being pressed.  This could be turned off, I suppose, if it
was too distracting, by the author. 

 

Any other comments would be welcome right now as begin work....

 

Steve

 

  _____  

From: Denise Ferrin [mailto:DFerrin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx] 
Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 12:49 AM
To: accessibleimage@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [accessibleimage] Re: Fwd: New TTT Authoring Tool

 

All those changes sound acceptable, as long as I don't have to buy another
TTT.

 

Aside:

I have tried the TTT and two home-made sheets with one low vision
3-year-old.  She kept looking at the screen of my laptop, expecting all the
action to happen there, and wanted something to move on the screen when she
heard the sounds the TTT was making.  She kept laying her forearm on the TTT
and didn't understand to just touch it with her fingers, so she kept hearing
the same "hot spot" repeatedly.

 

I haven't yet tried it with the blind 3-year-old.

 

Denise Ferrin

Teacher of the Visually Impaired,

Orientation and Mobility Specialist, and

Assistive Technology Specialist

Calaveras County Office of Education

P.O. Box 760, Angels Camp, CA  95221

message phone: (209) 736-6041

cell (209) 663-5615

fax: (209) 736-6048

 <mailto:dferrin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> dferrin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

 

  _____  

From: accessibleimage-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx on behalf of Lisa Yayla
Sent: Tue 4/10/2007 7:17 AM
To: accessibleimage@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [accessibleimage] Fwd: New TTT Authoring Tool Commands and Menu
Structure Outline

Hi,
Forwarding from Steven Landau.
Best,
Lisa

----- Original Message -----

                6. april 2007 00:25:27

Hi,

I am sending this message to people who have familiarity with the TTT
Authoring Tool, and who might have an interest in weighing in on proposed
major changes that we are about to start work on.  The new program will be
completely different from the existing one from the point of view of how
sheets are created and stored.  The new version will have many new
features and capabilities, and will be a much more "professional" product.
 The attached document is preliminary.  I would appreciate any and all
responses and comments as we begin to build and test the application.
 There are a few very important things to pay attention to as you read
this, as they represent significant changes from the current version of
the program.  Most notably:

1.      The Authoring Tool Sheets will work from the TTT Launcher (rather
from
a separate, non-interoperable program), and you will be able to switch
directly to another TTT application without going back to the desktop.
 2.     You will not be able to run sheets created in the old version of the
Authoring Tool program on the new system; however, if a sheet is placed on
the TTT, the new version will recognize and convert it.  Once converted
and saved, the sheet will then be fully editable and viewable using the
new program. 
 3.     There will be no separate Picture Viewer program.  An author will
"Lock" a file when he or she is ready to give a sheet to a student,
essentially making it "Read Only".  This means that the Main Menu
structure presented to the student will change, so that the student does
not get the menu options associated with creating objects, layers, etc.
  The Viewer Main Menu is outlined at the end of the attached document.
 To "Unlock" the file and continuing Authoring, an author would choose
"Unlock" from the Viewer Menu, and you would have to enter a password;
then the menus would switch back to Author Mode, and you could make any
changes.
 4.     When saving a new sheet, the Author will have the choice of
accepting
the default location for storing the sheet, or choosing a different
location. In the current version, that decision is made automatically, and
some people have complained.  Also, the author will now have the choice of
selecting any (legal) ID Combination, or accepting one suggested by the
program.  As with any computer file, if the Author chooses his or her own
ID combo, there might already be an existing one with that name, and they
will have to choose to overwrite the existing one or choose a different
ID. 
 5.     Files for one sheet will be stored in a folder that is named for
that
sheet. The name of the folder will be, for example "My TTT Sheet (1-2-3)",
where "My TTT Sheet" is the title of the sheet (can't exceed 248
characters), and the "(1-2-3)" is the ID Combination.  The reason that we
have to use a folder for each sheet is that sounds will now be stored as
external files, so any digitized sounds that are associated with a given
sheet need to be kept together with the "*.ttt" file that contains all of
the definitions of hotspots, etc.  This could be seen as cumbersome,
because it complicates the process of transferring a sheet to a different
computer or folder, in that the entire folder has to be brought, not just
one file, like with a Word document.  But I can't see any way around it.
There will be a "Transfer" command that will zip up the folder and save it
to a CD, USB drive, or to another computer on the network or to send it as
an email attachment.
 6.     It will now be possible to work right on screen and a mouse, without
using the TTT, for the Authoring Process. This will not be accessible, but
many sighted authors have said that they would prefer it.  Of course the
Authoring process will still be fully accessible using the TTT.  One big
advantage of offering this option is that the Authoring Tool becomes a
drawing tool, too.  Currently, you have to create a picture using some
other process, and the Authoring Tool is only used for attaching the
sounds. However, it might be really good if you could, say, import a
bitmap image and then trace directly over it to create a picture.  Then,
you could click "Emboss", and the picture would be sent to an embosser,
which would generate the entire sheet, with the ID Bars in place.
Alternatively, you could click "Emboss Remotely", and the file would go to
our office, and we would produce the sheet and send it back in a couple of
days by snail mail.  Sheets produced this way would be ready to use.  Many
people would love this.  Alternatively, you could select "Print", and, if
you loaded your printer with swell paper, that would also make a very easy
way to product sheets. 


These are the main differences.  I want to get started right away with
this, so your quick response will be greatly appreciated.  I hope to
complete work by June, and we will then make an announcement and offer the
new version at no charge to any current TTT owner.

Steve

Other related posts: