Personally, I doubt the bn will work very well for this sort of thing and I do not expect that to change in the near future. You have a few options, though: 1. Get a pc, plus Jaws or Window Eyes. This is probably the most expensive option. 2. Since you do not know jaws already, you could also get a Macintosh laptop instead (starting at $1000 for the 11-inch model). All Macs come with a very good screen reader already, and your Apex (or mPower) could act as a braille display for this screen reader with no problems. I believe you could even type in braille using the bn. Jaws does not yet support the Apex and it is temperamental with other bn models, however I have no first-hand experience with a Mac so cannot comment directly. I have heard it is easy, though. 3. Get an iPad or iPod. The advantage here is the touch screen, allowing you to feel the screen and have the Mac screen reader (yes, even on an iPod) tell you what is where as you touch it. The Apex can act as a wireless display/keyboard here as well, though older models, such as the mPower, cannot. 4. Get a pc, but use the free screen reader NVDA (http://www.nvda-project.org). The speech this program comes with is somewhat annoying at first, but you do not have to pay anything for the software and you get pretty good access to your machine. However, I have not yet had any luck using my apex as a braille display. Well, it works as a display, but not an input device. 5. Find some local computer geeks you trust and have them build you a pc. You still need NVDA or another screen reader, but I have found that ordering the parts online and then building the pc myself is usually cheaper than buying a system from a store or a company like Dell. This will not work with a laptop, though; if you plan to get a laptop, you must get it from a company (Lenovo, Gateway, Dell, Macintosh, and so on).
If you have any questions, let me know. Whichever way you go, I think you will be happiest, in the long run, with a second system (desktop or laptop) instead of always waiting on Humanware to implement something and fighting with the bn's inherent slowness. After all, the bn family are intended as pc assistants / suplements, not full-fledged computers in their own right. On 11/11/10, David Meador <[email protected]> wrote: > Feelings at this end are getting frayed and desperate. As an > eight-year user of braille keyboard Voice Note, currently mPower > 8.0 (build 20,) I need to start marketing my home-based business > through Twitter, Face Book and Linkedin. Can Humanware help me > do this any time soon? Or do I need to clutter up my desk and my > head with JAWS and a PC? > > Please respond, as a marketing consultant friend of mine is > driving over to see my wife and I tomorrow. > > Concerned about which road to take. > > David > > > > Beyond Vision > 1804 Cedar Lane > Nashville, TN 37212 > 615-385-0784 > [email protected] > www.davidmeador.com > > ___ > Replies to this message will go directly to the sender. > If your reply would be useful to the list, please send a > copy to the list as well. > > To leave the BrailleNote list, send a blank message to > [email protected] > To view the list archives or change your preferences, visit > http://list.humanware.com/mailman/listinfo/braillenote > > -- Have a great day, Alex (msg sent from GMail website) [email protected]; http://www.facebook.com/mehgcap ___ Replies to this message will go directly to the sender. If your reply would be useful to the list, please send a copy to the list as well. To leave the BrailleNote list, send a blank message to [email protected] To view the list archives or change your preferences, visit http://list.humanware.com/mailman/listinfo/braillenote
