[duxuser] Re: specific cases of non-blind-friendliness
- From: "George Bell" <info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <duxuser@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 18 Mar 2004 02:07:08 -0000
Hi Catherine,
I shall try to answer your points, but am I right in thinking that you
use a braille display virtually exclusively? Do you use any speech at
all when you use DBT?
> 1. As you know, braille has no foreground or background. Neither
does speech. Every item on every screen has the same appearance to those
of us using screen access devices. Example: lines of asterisks,
parenthesis and other symbology used to offset different sections of
screen for sighted transcribers have to be read by those of us using
screen access. I wish there were a way to hide these symbols (optional
of course).
I suspect this is more of a screen reader issue. However, I've written
to you privately for more information about your system.
> 2. I would like also to hide the menu bar so that I don't have
to keep reading that either.
I don't understand what you mean. Whose Menu Bar? DBT's?
> 3. I would like a set of hard copy braille menu screens with the
screens described and all options listed with their defaults if any.
Example: I'm clueless as to what results are generated by different
items on the view menu.
This is actually described in Help, The Menus, View. In 10.5 you will
be able to get a braille hard copy.
However, in 10.5, you will also be able to highlight ANY menu item, and
press F1 and get a Help an explanation of that item. (It's called
"Context Sensitive Help" and indeed F1 works in many Windows
applications as it is a Windows standard for Help)
> 4. I hope this does not enter the area of a new feature, but I
would dearly love a way to translate a document that was done via word
processor leaving the spaces intact. In other words, the same way that
we can choose to compress or not compress skipped lines, I would love to
be able to choose ONLY SOMETIMES to show all countable spaces.
Have you studied the Word Importer options? You can "Preserve Skipped
Lines".
However, your point about skipped spaces is an interesting one, but
needs some serious thought. Can you give me an example of where you
would need to do this? Remember that computers don't really have a
brain - "ONLY SOMETIMES" needs someone to make a decision.
> 5. I think the approach of many blind users to document
preparation differs from that of most sighted transcribers. Example:
With the Everest Braille Embosser I can prepare drafts on light paper
and usually do so. By this means I can take in the entire document (or
pages of it). From what you described in an earlier discussion a few
months ago, most transcribers cannot read interpoint braille and
therefore prefer to use the screen as a virtual document. I'd be
interested to know how many others prepare drafts.
I can't recall my exact comments about transcribers, but all I would say
is that here in the UK, sighted teachers find it difficult to proof read
braille by sight. (Often it's really just a case of adjusting the
light)
That said, when DBT displays braille on the screen, that is exactly what
should be produced on the braille embosser. If it is not, then that is
another problem altogether.
And that said also, any proof reader can either hit the Index's
single-sided button, or alter DBT's Global Embosser Setup accordingly.
> Well, I guess I'll stop now. Thanks for your patience. I hope
techno-vision pays well enough to make all this grief worth your while.
If Techno-Vision paid well enough, I'd be writing this, and authoring
the DBT Help files, from some remote island in the Caribbean, waited on
hand and foot by an beautiful army of mermaids.
But ah well! I own the company, so the occasional trip to Boston to
worry the heck out of Duxbury is about my limit right now. (Smile)
Keep the thoughts coming Catherine, and please do reply to my private
message about the braille display issue you mentioned last time.
George Bell.
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