Hi all,
Below I have pasted the summary from tonight's presentation on
ks9.1. I do not know anything beyond what is there already. I
can try to clear things up, but I am pretty sure I did not leave
anything out. Here is the text:
Monday, January 24, 2011 2000 EST
After a brief intro, Matthew started off the presentation. The
first surprise was that it will be released in February and will
be free, but still require a free download of a license file.
Greg then started with the feature set. He said that the first
priority was improved MS Word support. To partially quote him:
"You may have a document with strange formatting ... bullets,
headings ... It was kind of inconsistent [word support] ...
[now] you can virtually open any .doc file ..." This includes
advanced formatting; bullets, numbering, indents, bold, italic,
character fonts, page orientation, spacing, even tables. The
keyword tables will look very similar to keyweb tables.
Greg then demoed a file with headings, indents, auto-numbered and
bulleted lists... To hear tables best, the punctuation level
should be at 3; below that, formatting will not be spoken (so
table headers will not be spoken). The first line of the file
was centered, then an auto-numbered list with indents. Below
that was a bulleted list, all read correctly. Note that these
were lists created in Word, not lists that were actually typed
out, but lists inserted and dynamically read. Then came a table.
Once in a table, use space-m to get to "table reading mode", like
in keyweb; you now have the usual table navigation commands.
Braille symbols are also given, like $tc1 for table cell 1.
The last feature was link support: if a link appears in a
document, you can activate it. Links can be either standard web
links (launch keyweb automatically), or mailto links (launches
keymail with the address filled in for you).
Matthew then talked about the next major feature: new audio book
support. More specifically, NLS books are now supported in
Keybook. NLS must authorize the Apex, a process done through
NLS, not Humanware. After "about two days", Humanware receives
the key from NLS, puts it into a license file, and emails it to
you. Put the hwl file onto an sd card and, like any license, it
will install.
Matthew loaded up an NLS book downloaded on the pc to an sd card.
Interestingly, even though he went to the None folder, the DTBs
showed up; he did not need to select the folder. I gather that
this is standard for all models, since they all use the Victor
Reader engine. Anyway, he loaded the book just like any DAISY
book, offering the usual navigation, reading, and speed commands.
Keybook now also supports EPUB books and Audible Enhanced format.
You can go to http://www.audible.com/humanware for a trial
account with a free book.
Greg then took over for the third feature of 9.1: "optimizing the
interface". Greg talked about how the interface is very simple.
In 9.1, wireless interfacing was improved: you no longer need to
know dhcp, encryption type, and so forth. First, the name is
auto-filled with the network name; you no longer need to think of
a name to call the connection configuration, though you can
change it if you want. The next item is the encryption key, with
the type already set; no ssid, no device, none of that. Ethernet
is the same: no creating an account, you just plug in ethernet,
wait a second, and you're off.
Another simplification is that you are no longer prompted for a
network to use with keymail or keyweb; it automatically uses
whatever is active. To change this, if you need to, just go to
the Connectivity Menu and select the first option: "connect using
existing configuration". Keymail will do the same (lack of
prompting) if you only have one keymail account.
KS9.1 also supports WPA2 and WPA2 Enterprise. It offers faster
wifi connectivity as well. He also mentioned the "disable
scripting" option in the internet options as this can help on
sites such as Web Braille. This feature is new as of ks9.01, but
it can help a lot.
Finally, the size of downloaded files has been increased. For
example, Greg downloaded a 158mb file in "20 to 30 minutes". Oh,
and the problems with slow connections for some users of certain
ISPs are now fixed.
File Manager: you can now zip and unzip files and folders. This
is no longer done by using keybook; the options are right in file
manager and folder manager. This feature supports passwords; you
can even set a password on zip files when you create them.
Matthew then talked about the next item: password-protecting your
Apex. Go to utilities, then the Security Menu. Select the
"enable password protection" item, hit y, and type in an
alphanumeric password between 6 and 8 characters. You then
re-type it and hit enter, and you are done. Whenever the bn
turns on, a password prompt pops up and you are locked out of the
bn until you enter that password. This even happens after a
reset. If you forget the password, you can contact Humanware and
you will be given an unlock file after providing identification
and proof that you own the unit. No mention was made of just how
this authentication is done or what information is needed.
Greg came back to present: improvements to the braille terminal.
You can now use the Apex to completely control the keyboard. I
gather that this is very similar to the mPower's support for
input (press space-i in terminal), but no drivers or anything are
required. The spacebar, for example, advances Powerpoint slides.
Greg also mentioned that Keysync has been re-done and now works
with Windows 7 64-bit.
Finally, Matthew talked about upgrading an Apex. When 9.1 is
posted, you will need that license file (free). Visit the new
download site, select Apex, enter the last 6 digits of the serial
number, and enter your email address. The license file will then
download; put it into the root of an sd card, reset when
prompted, and the license will install. Once that is done,
download and put the full 9.1 file onto an sd card, connect the
ac adapter, put in the card, and reset when prompted. Speech and
braille will talk you through the process; just sit back and
watch, and (Greg is pretty sure) in less than 3 minutes you will
have 9.1.
Then it was Question Time...
1. Will wordprocessing problems, such as moving between pc and
bn or files opening blank, be fixed?
Yes. Extensive testing has shown no problems yet.
2. Will braille control support all screen readers? 64 bit?
Yes to 64-bit. It will work with JAWS12 and WE7. NVDA will not
be supported yet since there is no driver.
3. What is the Keysync version that works with Windows 7?
the version is 4.... something. He is not sure exactly.
4. Will application errors that the Apex has be fixed?
Significan improvements regarding the bugs Humanware is aware of
have been addressed, such as locking up issues. Hopefully this
particular bug will go away with the upgrade.
5. Will more internet radio stations work?
With the file download restrictions now gone, downloading media
should not be a problem. This is not to say that more formats of
streams are supported, but large files combined with disabling
scripting can let you download a lot more.
6. Will .docx (Word 2007/2010 files) be workable?
At this point, only .doc formats will work. Humanware wanted the
.doc standard to be a solid foundation and .doc files to work
completely. The .docx format is definitely on the list, though.
7. Will 9.1 support the "Remember Me" feature on Bookshare?
This is a setting not being cached; the setting clears after a
reset. They are still working with Bookshare on this.
8. Will the Apex work with 64-bit JAWS?
Yes. You will need a 64-bit driver for a USB connection, though
this driver is for both 32- and 64-bit so it is just one file.
9. Will 9.1 support AES encryption for WPA2?
Yes.
10. Will you be able to click a URL in an email to launch
Keyweb?
No, not at this time. The foundation for applications being
connected, such as links in documents, is there, so that sort of
functionality is being worked on for keymail "down the road", as
Greg said.
11. Will the famous "find and replace" bug be fixed?
Yes; it is working fine
in testing.
12. Will the problem of USB drives not being powered be fixed?
There is not much Humanware can do because of the power
requirements of the drives. All drives that come with external
power, or ones that can draw from two USB ports at once, work, at
least the ones that were tested.
13. Will links now work in Keychat? What about group chats?
Keychat has not been altered, and this topic strays from the
subject tonight, so no future developments can be discussed.
14. Are the USB drivers for JAWS already available?
For WE and as a visual display (using Keyview): yes. The JAWS
driver will be released when 9.1 is released. This will be
demonstrated at ATIA 2011.
15. Can NLS books be downloaded and unzipped right on the Apex?
`Not at release time". One remaining issue is still there, and
solving it would hold up the release. You can unzip on the Apex,
just not download from the NLS BARD site. The issue is minor and
is expected to be a temporary setback. I imagine a maintenance
release to fix this, but that is just me.
Have a great day,
Alex (msg sent from BrailleNote
[email protected]; http://www.facebook.com/mehgcap
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