A new version of the firmware in the digital talking book machines offered
by your local talking book library has just been released.
Q: What is firmware?
A: Firmware is the programming that tells your player what to do when you
press buttons or insert or remove a cartridge or flash drive.
Q: Why should I care that the firmware has been updated? My player works
just fine already.
A: The update includes several new features that you might find helpful.
Q: What are these features?
A: Here is a list of the features we think most people will find the most
helpful.
More flash drives should work with the player. In the past, NLS used a
power-saving mode so your player would play as long as possible on battery
whether you used a cartridge designed for the player or a standard flash
drive. Unfortunately, many flash drives aren't compatible with this
power-saving mode, as we mentioned in a previous post. So this mode has
been
switched off for flash drives that you connect to the Assistive Technology
(AT) port on the side of your player. Most drives, as well as SD cards in
card readers, should now work just fine with your player. The down side is
that your player will work on battery about 2/3 as long as it does when
you
use a cartridge inserted into the cartridge slot. Since this means you'll
still be able to use your player on battery for 20 hours or more on a
fresh
charge, this shouldn't pose a problem in most situations. If you need the
longer battery life, however, use a cartridge designed to work with the
player.
Books are now sorted alphabetically on your cartridge or flash drive. If
you
put each book in its own folder and copy that folder to your cartridge or
flash drive, you'll find that all the books are sorted alphabetically
based
on the names of the book folders. This means that you can control the
order
in which books are displayed on the bookshelf by changing the folder
names.
For example, you could put a 1 at the beginning of the folder name for the
book you want to play first. You can also categorize books into folders,
such as fiction and nonfiction. If you do this, you won't see the names
"Fiction" and "Nonfiction" when you move through the bookshelf, but all
the
fiction books will be listed first in alphabetical order, followed by all
the nonfiction books, also in alphabetical order. Note that folder names
starting with numbers appear first, then those beginning with upper-case
letters. Those beginning with lower-case letters are listed last.
If you have books on your cartridge or flash drive that are in DAISY 2.02
format, such as books from Learning Ally (formerly Recording for the Blind
and Dyslexic), those books will be listed before books you download from
BARD. If you have an Audio+Podcasts folder containing MP3 files, that
folder
will be treated as a book and will be the last item listed on your
bookshelf.
If you have a lot of books on your cartridge or flash drive and you've
entered the bookshelf, you can hold down the Fast Forward button to move
to
the last book, or hold down the Rewind button to move to the first one.
You can reduce the amount the player says (verbosity) when you are
rewinding
or fast forwarding through a book. If you'd like your player to speak less
as you move through a book with these keys, make sure no cartridge or
flash
drive is attached, and hold down the Fast Forward and Speed Down buttons
together until the player says, "Reduced verbosity." If you try this mode
and decide you don't like it, remove all cartridges and flash drives and
hold down the Fast Forward and Speed Up buttons together until the player
says, "Normal verbosity."
The key describer and user guide now include detailed information about
how
to use Bookshelf mode. To hear the key describer message about this mode,
make sure no cartridge or flash drive is attached, and press the Play
button. After describing how this button starts and stops book playback,
the
player will tell you how to use Bookshelf mode. There is also detailed
information about this mode in section 3.16 of the built-in user guide.
This firmware update includes many other more technical changes as well.
You
can read about them at
http://www.loc.gov/nls/DTBM/index.html
Q: Why did you refer to the USB port on the side of the player as an AT
port?
A: This port was built into the machine so that patrons who don't have the
physical ability to use the player's standard controls can operate the
machine by attaching accessories such as a remote control device
(currently
under development). Additionally, it was provided in order to make it
easier
for technicians to service the player. Fortunately, this port can also be
used for attaching flash drives.
Q: How do I get the update?
A: You can download it from
http://www.loc.gov/nls/DTBM/index.html
Another way to find it is to log into BARD and choose the link called
"Latest DTBM firmware and installation instructions."
As the installation instructions indicate, you should unzip the file you
download, much as you would unzip a book. When you do, you will find a
folder called "Upgrade." Copy this folder to the root of a cartridge or
flash drive. In other words, don't put it in a folder on the drive. Then
insert the cartridge or connect the flash drive, and turn on the player.
You
will be told that the player's firmware is being upgraded, and the player
will beep every few seconds until the update is done. Don't turn off your
player while it's upgrading; your player will turn off automatically when
the upgrade is complete. Note that if you leave the Upgrade folder on your
cartridge or flash drive, your player won't try to update itself again; it
will ignore the folder from then on.
Q: This sounds complicated. Is there any other way to get the update?
A: You can ask your library to send you a cartridge that has the upgrade
folder on it. Eventually, libraries will add this folder to all the books
they send out, so if you order books from your library, your player will
get
updated eventually even if you do nothing.
That's about it. We hope you found this information helpful and will enjoy
the update.
Sincerely,
The BARD Technical Support Team
NLS BARD Technical Support
e-mail: [email protected]
Read the BARD FAQ at: https://nlsbard.loc.gov/NLS/FAQ.html=
_______________________________________________
ATI (Adaptive Technology Inc.)
A special interest affiliate of the Missouri Council of the Blind
http://moblind.org/membership/affiliates/adaptive_technology
