John.Sanfilippo@f460.n101.z1.fidonet.org (John Sanfilippo) (04/11/91)
Index Number: 14681
[This is from the Blink Talk Conference]
BK> What I like, Isaac, is that I could download to the bns some
BK> file or other that I had on the pc and hadn't taken the time to
BK> read. That's the part I especial{y want to{check out.
Hi again, Bill,
2 things:
1. Be concerned with how large the PC file is. A file larger
than the size of the currently open file will be a headache to
load. I'm not sure that bns can put your pc on hold while you
open a new file to continue the transfer to the bns. I suspect
it DOES, but just be sure to make room for what you are about to
load.
I've never tried this, but a file of 180k should fit into the
memory of the bns which has one file containing 45 pages.
2. I wanted to read on the subway this way. I had to give that
idea up, too much noise distraction. Writing on the subway is
fine, but reading is a pain. We gotta find inexpensive
Refreshable Tactile Display!
jjcs
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Internet: John.Sanfilippo@f460.n101.z1.fidonet.orgWilliam.Wilson@f89.n129.z1.fidonet.org (William Wilson) (04/25/91)
Index Number: 15180
[This is from the Blink Talk Conference]
DG> I know that I am replying to an old message, but, being a
DG> Braille n speak user, I couldn't resist. The tutorial you have
DG> is for the March 1988 revision, which makes it outdated for the
DG> july 1 update.
David,
I'm half afraid to mention this here, as Doug Wakefield hasn't
exactly been getting the kindest of treatment since the Newsbits price
increase, but hey, this is at least worth mentioning...
Talking Computers Inc., phone 703-241-8224, produces a Braille 'n
Speak tutorial that helped me quite a bit! I forget the price right
now, but yes, it isn't cheap, but it is, like the other talking
tutorials offered by TCI, quite professionally done and worth the money,
or at least it was to me.
Also, for all you that are no longer getting Newsbits, I just
listened to the March 1991 issue, and I enjoyed it much more than most
of the issues as of late. This may just be due to my particular
interest in the topics discussed, but it included a story on a service
being offered to supply a human reader via the use of facs machines, an
interview with Steve and Cynthia of Omnichron, the producers of Flipper,
and the first installment of a series of stories on training centers
across the country, this one being an interview with the director of the
Caroll Center.
Finally, it ended with Doug doing a demo of a recipe program being
offered by Ann Morris Enterprises, but he did mention the fact that many
recipe programs are available via bulletin boards, so he is acknowliging
the fact there are alternatives to the program he showed.
I just thought some of you may be interested, so there you have
it!
Willie
... BlinkTalk, Dr. Deb and Silver in Pittsburgh!
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Internet: William.Wilson@f89.n129.z1.fidonet.orgLloyd.Rasmussen@f432.n109.z1.fidonet.org (Lloyd Rasmussen) (05/06/91)
Index Number: 15400
[This is from the Blink Talk Conference]
Diana: I upload stuff which my wife writes on the BNS all the time.
For print output: Set "Append linefeeds on" so your carriage returns
(4-6 chord) will be sent with linefeeds after them. Set your line
length to something compatible with your word processor default
margins (I use left margin 0, right margin 78). I set page length 0
and no top or bottom margin.
Now write the file in grade 2, with double returns wherever you
want paragraphs (you could use single returns and some spaces of
indentation, since every space in the braille file is reproduced in
the back translated file).
Now to read all this stuff: There is a Windows command, W-chord.
It asks "windows, lines or sentences". By default, it reads lines,
which is the best thing when dealing with the help file. For some
purposes, sentence mode is good (reading BBS messages from a
downloaded file is one example). For editing your own work, use the
Windows choice. You will be reading through your document by windows,
which is a group of characters of user-defined length. To set the
window length, use the status menu (st chord), or type p-chord w, and
answer with a number between 20 and 80. This number is the number of
characters in a window, and I haven't settled on the best value for
it.
About the only things you can't do with this setup is center the
line, right justify it, or add print enhancements. Actually, I use
PC-Write for my word processor, and the ASCII control codes for bold-
facing, underlining, etc. are not hard to enter from a BNS.
Hope this information helps. My wife Judy really doesn't like
typing stuff much, and has had bad experiences with me teaching her
how to run the computer with Vocal-Eyes. But she is a braille person,
and the BNS command structure was logical enough that she's really
going to town on it these days, writing grant proposals, meeting
minutes, etc. She even lets me use it sometimes.
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Internet: Lloyd.Rasmussen@f432.n109.z1.fidonet.orgDiana.Dawne@f432.n109.z1.fidonet.org (Diana Dawne) (05/06/91)
Index Number: 15409
[This is from the Blink Talk Conference]
I just used the disk drive for the BNS for the first time today, and I
have to say I am really jazzed.
You may recall that I had put in carriage returns so that if I needed to
read back, it would be easier. Well, it wasn't easier when I uploaded
the file to the disk. I immediately put it on my word processor and
what a terrible mess.
For the most part it worked all right but the problem was when I had
made corrections, I had all these broken lines that didn't make much
sense so I went back and deleted all the carriage returns except for the
paragraph and I had put in line feeds there. It was a large document
and I got lots of practice but I did it. I remember reading in the
manual that if you don't put in returns the BNS would put in soft ones.
Once I removed the carriage returns, it looked really fine. Then I read
your message and appended the line feeds but couldn't see any real
difference.
Perhaps what I should do is try putting in the returns again but this
time when I upload append the line feeds.
I am really empressed with the little thing. Thanks for your interest
Regards,
Diana
PS have you used a modem with yours, I don't think I am ready for that
yet.
* EZ 1.30 *
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Uucp: ..!{decvax,oliveb}!bunker!hcap!hnews!109!432!Diana.Dawne
Internet: Diana.Dawne@f432.n109.z1.fidonet.orgEric.Bohlman@p1.f778.n115.z1.fidonet.org (Eric Bohlman) (05/06/91)
Index Number: 15419
[This is from the Blink Talk Conference]
NF> OK, it seems to me that when the NS firstt came out the purchaser
NF> simply bought a set of instructions, purchased the required parts,
NF> and assembled it himself/herself. Is this still true or does
NF> Blazie construct them for you now? Am I thinking of a different
That was the Pocket Braille, which was a public domain design for a Braille
keyboard/speech output device. There was also the PortaBraille, which had a
single-line refreshable display. If I remember right, APH published the
designs. The terms of the publication allowed others to make proprietary
products based on improvements to the published designs, and that's where the
BNS came in. Blazie sells assembled units.
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Internet: Eric.Bohlman@p1.f778.n115.z1.fidonet.org