I have never had such a device and there was a time when
it seemed like a very neat thing to have, but I am not sure that
Braille note takers are as necessary as they used to be, given
their rather high prices and specialized application.
How responsive is the iPad with a bluetooth keyboard?
One could use that to take notes plus all the other things we do
with tablet computers. The advantage would be that it is
off-the-shelf technology of the level we only used to dream
about.
Please understand that I am not at all saying that the
note takers are not useful but I am wondering if technology has
leap frogged over them. If the voiceover technology in the iPad
has the Braille support that the Macintosh voiceover does, you
could still interface with a Braille display. It is amazing to
think that we live in a time where we could buy a device in a
normal public technology store that has 90% of the technology
needed to function as a note taker for a person who is blind. If
you don't need the Braille display, it has 100% of the necessary
technology.
When I break down and buy an iPad, it will probably be
for just such applications besides being a book reader and a
whole bunch of other things.
This is all very individualized technology depending a
lot on what you hope to use it for and what your needs are so I
could be way off base. This is just one person's opinion.
Martin
"Mrs. Lynnette Annabel Smith" writes:
> Hello everybody
>
> I'm seriously looking at this situation now. Has anybody used, or does
> anybody use the current generation of BrailleNote note-takers from
> HumanWare? I am asking because, as some of you might know, it looks as
> though Gordon is in line for a job working as, amongst other things, a
> Braille transcriber for a secondary school's Visually Impaired department
> in Middlesbrough. He might also be given the responsibility of acting as
> a liaison officer between parents and the academy in respect of equipment
> and software that students use. Plus, on top o that, they are talking
> about possibly arranging for Gordon to work towards a base level teaching
> qualification which would allow him to participate in the tuition of the
> visually impaired on the subject of I.T. He went for his first
> preliminary informal interview, a tour of the V.I department at the
> academy and a very long chat with the deputy head, (soon to be head of
> department). The interview went better than anybody had dared to hope
> for. and as I say, although they were initially only discussing
> transcription work on a part-time basis, they are now looking seriously
> at creating the other posts within the department as they say Gordon is
> ideally suited for the job and he would be able to hit the ground
> running, which is another huge plus.
>
> I'm sorry for the babbling; but I'm bursting with pride just at the
> moment. Given his situation 6 months ago, everybody is saying that he has
> made terrific progress and is now well on the road to recovery.
>
> Anyway, i'm curious as to whether any members may have comments regarding
> the Humanware or similar note-takers. We think that something like this
> might be necessary equipment for the job, and I want to have something
> concrete so that when he's asked to put together a shopping list to
> submit to "Access To Work" and the other support organisations who are
> already assisting him, we'll have something ready for them.
>
> Open for comment, for better or for worse. ;-)
>
> Lynne
>
>
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