[bcab] Re: Laptops and Focus Braille displays

hi tim.

I don't know too much about this but there are alternatives to the Small 
Talk Ultra available on the market without a screenreader costing less.  I 
think George Bell mentioned someone who had used one of these tiny PCs 
effectively but can't remember who.

Depending on your precise needs though, using a PDA and Hal is likely to be 
more cost effective at least.

Cheers


Graham
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <tim.pennick@xxxxxx>
To: <bcab@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, September 29, 2006 9:38 AM
Subject: [bcab] Re: Laptops and Focus Braille displays


Hi Steve,

The problem with all of the options I've looked at from the specialist
suppliers is that they don't run fully fledged Windows XP Pro.  (I
believe the Braillenote runs "keysoft" its own proprietary operating
system, though I'd be happy to be proved wrong.).  The exception to this
would have been the Soneil Braille Data  Assistant, but information on
this seems to be scarce to say the least.  I need XP Pro to run the VPN
and Security login system to allow me to access my employer's corporate
intranet.  I have to admit that the variety of choice nowadays, though a
very good thing in itself, is getting very confusing.  My second
favourite option after the Soneil offering is probably the SmallTalk
Ultra, but I don't want to spend extra cash on another screen reader
when I've already got JAWS licenses.  (I must admit that as I write
this, I can't remember whether the machine they use for SmallTalk runs
XP, and this is a symptom of my general confusion and possibly a "middle
aged moment").

I also have the feeling that where devices are interfaced via bluetooth,
you edn up with so many separate chargers that carrying the whole lot to
a meeting where you might be spending the night in a hotel, might end up
more difficult than plugging in a USB lead.  The problem is that until
you've taken delivery of your chosen solution, you don't find out if its
actually the right choice.

Regards,

Tim

-----Original Message-----
From: bcab-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:bcab-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of Plumpton, Steve [BTCS]
Sent: 28 September 2006 15:08
To: bcab@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [bcab] Re: Laptops and Focus Braille displays

Tim

I don't know the price of a Focus, but why not use a BrailleNote PK.
It's a fraction of the size, has a braille keyboard, is probably cheaper
than the Focus/laptop combi and does everything you need.

It's a gorgeous little device, I love it.

Steve

-----Original Message-----
From: bcab-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:bcab-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of tim.pennick@xxxxxx
Sent: Thursday, September 28, 2006 2:49 PM
To: bcab@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [bcab] Laptops and Focus Braille displays

Hi All,

So I've more or less decided to buy a laptop for mobile work use.  I'm
wondering whether if I got hold of a focus 40 Braille display, I'd be
able to more or less just use the keyboard on the focus display for
note-taking, with the laptop running notepad.  What I'm trying to
achieve is a replacement for a Braille lite which can do Wi-Fi, can run
VPN and security software, but is also fairly easy to use for
straightforward Braille note-taking.  It occurred to me that I could
just use the focus display in "typing" mode, i.e. what you type on its
keyboard gets entered as text rather than initiating a function.  I
could then keep the laptop lid down to conserve power, and more or less
use the Focus like a braille-lite, until I want to do something more
complex like run Outlook, in which case I'd open the lid of the laptop
and use the native keyboard.

What I'm not sure of, is whether you can send all the necessary key
combinations from the Focus keyboard e.g. ALT-Tab.  Also the drain on a
battery would be fairly crucial as a factor in deciding whether or not
this was feasible.  I'm thinking about the Toshiba Portage, and would be
interested in any views on whether the battery in this type of machine
would be likely to cope with a few hours running in a meeting
environment driving a Focus display via USB connection.

Can anyone else think of any reason why this is a really bad idea or
wouldn't work?

Regards, and thanks,

Tim

Tim Pennick
tel:    01473 609040
BTnet:  00 1609040
email:  tim.pennick@xxxxxx


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