Hi, Just wait for SL. Apple stated recently in a public anouncement that SL will support nice little Bluetooth displays.
Regards, Alex, On 4-Jul-09, at 12:25 PM, Scott Howell wrote: > > You know Eric you got a good point. I want a braille display very > badly. I have a long commute, but headphones on the train is not an > option and I'd love to have a small and compact display I could use to > do some reading. Actually f anyone knows of a good display that would > of course work with Leopard and is reasonably priced (subjective I > know), please advise or at least let me know what you have used. I > might just dig into my pocket and stimulate some ones economy. :) A > really big question for me is I think there are some very small > displays out there and how do folks handle reading with these. I think > they are wide enough to have maybe two or three words displayed at a > time? I assume you just learn to scroll right and read with one hand? > I know it sounds like a silly question, but I have only read braille > books and the like, so a display is kind of foreign to me. > > tnx, > On Jul 4, 2009, at 2:04 PM, erik burggraaf wrote: > >> >> No, you're dead on, smiles. I'm a lazy boy myself, and generally >> speaking I'm just as happy to be read to. There's something about >> braille though. Listening is fine, especially if you have a good >> book >> with a really great narrater. Reading with a speech engine is OK. >> It >> would let me take care of odd chores while I'm listening and still >> get >> access to that book that I can't find in audiobook format. I like >> reading a book in braille once in a while though, and I'm especially >> going to like it if I don't have to be tied down to my computer by a >> usb cable to do it. Reading complements listening and helps keep >> spelling and grammer skills sharp as well as just providing an >> alternative to listening to cheesie speech synthesizers. I can't >> stand the thought of paper braille but there's definitely an >> attraction for me in pulling out my braille connect and going to town >> on a book. I have to run around the city all the time for work and >> the transit system takes a while to get anywhere. So, I can plan to >> be on the road anywere from one hour to 2 or three to get where I >> need >> to be on any given day. Braille books are really handy for that. I >> can take my braille display and read my book and still pay strict >> attention to stop announcements and such. I can even stand on a bus >> or a train with my arm around a pole and the other hand scrubbing the >> display. Kind'a makes me feel like any other guy with a paperback or >> a news paper. >> >> Best, >> >> erik burggraaf >> A+ sertified technician and user support consultant. >> Phone: 888-255-5194 >> Email: [email protected] >> >> On 4-Jul-09, at 1:15 PM, Jenny Kennedy wrote: >> >>> >>> Ah Eric, I think I see your point? >>> It looks as if the CNIB has what the NLS calls web braille. You just >>> want to grab the books that come in the web braille brf format and >>> read them in braille from your mac like people do when they put them >>> on something like a braille note? That's fair enough, some people >>> like reading braille over listening to spoken word. Pointless or >>> not, >>> brf seems to be the file of choice by groups who provide electronic >>> access to their libries for braille content. There's nothing wrong >>> with wanting to read a book in braille via a braille display, note >>> taker or whatever. >>> Having said this though, I've gotta say I'm with Josh and find it >>> faster and just more enjoyable to have whatever it is read to me and >>> wish that the different programs who offer etexts to us would >>> offer a >>> HTML or TXT version along with the BRF version. But then you run >>> into >>> all that copyright stuff so I guess you deal with things as they >>> are. >>> : smile : >>> >>> Am I kind of right? Or have I missed the mark altogether? >>> >>> Best regards >>> Jenny >>> >>> On 7/4/09, Josh de Lioncourt <[email protected]> wrote: >>>> >>>> >>>> With the advent of grade 2 translation in screen readers for >>>> English, >>>> the point of BRF files is basically non-existent. They only were >>>> ever >>>> there because, initially, screen readers didn't translate into >>>> grade >>>> 2, so BRF files were a convenient way to read books without the >>>> painful necessity of reading them in computer Braille, (AKA Grade >>>> 0). >>>> >>>> These days, BRF is convenient on some note taking devices, though >>>> hardlya necessity. It serves now, or so it seems to me, as a sort >>>> of >>>> quasi-DRM. They figure sighted users who might get hold of such >>>> files >>>> won't know how to read them, and therefore will not pirate them. >>>> >>>> If I was so fortunate to be able to afford a ridiculously >>>> overpriced >>>> Braille display, (LOL), I wouldn't bother with BRF at all. I think >>>> they are far more trouble than they are worth. I have always, and >>>> expect I always will, back translate BRF files to read them, >>>> regardless of them method. >>>> >>>> The only other use for BRF files, really, is if you plan on >>>> printing >>>> to a Braille hard copy. But really, who is going to do that? LOL. >>>> >>>> On Jul 4, 2009, at 7:11 AM, erik burggraaf wrote: >>>> >>>>> >>>>> OK ppl. Here's what I'm reading. >>>>> >>>>> If I want to grab a fantasy novel from CNIB library in BRF format >>>>> and >>>>> read the thing, I first have to back translate it. But if Louis >>>>> will >>>>> back translate the thing, won't it just open up nicely and allow >>>>> me to >>>>> read without any palaver? And if you have to back translate to ge >>>>> access to a brf file, then what is the point of having brf files >>>>> in >>>>> the first place? >>>>> >>>>> Maybe I should just stick to doing this on my phone, but I saw a >>>>> friend of mine using his braille display on his mac and it looked >>>>> very >>>>> inspiring. Especially given that snowleppard will support >>>>> bluetooth >>>>> conectivity for braille displays. >>>>> >>>>> Best, >>>>> >>>>> erik burggraaf >>>>> A+ sertified technician and user support consultant. >>>>> Phone: 888-255-5194 >>>>> Email: [email protected] >>>>> >>>>> On 3-Jul-09, at 8:19 PM, Josh de Lioncourt wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> Back translating is really the best way to go. I mean, if you're >>>>>> reading with a braille display, TextEdit or any other text >>>>>> editing >>>>>> program should do the trick for you. If you want the TTS to read >>>>>> it, >>>>>> then what you're looking for is an app to do back translation on >>>>>> the >>>>>> fly. Either way, it amounts to the same. Personally, I'd prefer >>>>>> to >>>>>> just back translate it and get on with the business of reading it >>>>>> normally. That will also allow for easy searching of the text >>>>>> with >>>>>> standard find functions, and such. >>>>>> >>>>>> Louis works great for back translating. >>>>>> >>>>>> On Jul 3, 2009, at 4:06 PM, erik burggraaf wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Well, no, I just want to hit command O on a brf file that I >>>>>>> download >>>>>>> from CNIB and read it. Does anything do that? >>>>>>> >>>>>>> I guess if I had to I would back translate them but that seems >>>>>>> like a >>>>>>> wasted step. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Best, >>>>>>> >>>>>>> erik burggraaf >>>>>>> A+ sertified technician and user support consultant. >>>>>>> Phone: 888-255-5194 >>>>>>> Email: [email protected] >>>>>>> >>>>>>> On 3-Jul-09, at 6:58 PM, Greg Kearney wrote: >>>>>>> >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Do you want to back translate brf files to text? If so Louis >>>>>>>> will >>>>>>>> do >>>>>>>> that for you. >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> Greg Kearney >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> On Sat, Jul 4, 2009 at 1:37 AM, erik burggraaf<e...@erik- >>>>>>>> burggraaf.com> wrote: >>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>> Hi friends, I've just sifted a few pages of google results, >>>>>>>>> but I >>>>>>>>> haven't been able to find a brf reader for Mac OS. Can some >>>>>>>>> one >>>>>>>>> point >>>>>>>>> me to it please? >>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>> Thanks, >>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>> erik burggraaf >>>>>>>>> A+ sertified technician and user support consultant. >>>>>>>>> Phone: 888-255-5194 >>>>>>>>> Email: [email protected] >>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>> -- >>>>>>>> Gregory Kearney >>>>>>>> Manager Accessible Media >>>>>>>> Association for the Blind of Western Australia >>>>>>>> 61 Kitchener Ave. >>>>>>>> Victoria Park 6100 Western Australia >>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>>> >>>> >>>> >>>>> >>>> >>> >>>> >> >> >>> > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. 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