🚀 go-pugleaf

                            THE BLIND NEWS DIGEST

                                 Issue # 1044

                            Tuesday, May 31, 1994

Today's Topics:


                                ******


                         Looking for John Faircloth
                             microbraillle slate
                          Textbooks For The Blind??
                        Re:  Blind News Digest # 1043
                  Artic Transport configuration for Telnet?


                                ******


To subscribe to the Blind News Digest mailing list or have your
thoughts in the next issue, please send electronic mail to
Bill McGarry at any of the following addresses:


UUCP:       uunet!bunker!wtm
INTERNET:   wtm@bunker.afd.olivetti.com
BITNET:     blindnws@ndsuvm1.bitnet
Fidonet:    The Handicap News BBS (141/420)   1-203-926-6168
            (300 - 14,400 baud, 24 hours)
NVN:        ABILITY
Compuserve: 73170,1064

                              Bill McGarry (Moderator)
                              (203) 926-6187



------



Subject: Looking for John Faircloth
From: plebeau@umassd.edu (Paul)
Organization: UMASS DARTMOUTH, NO. DARTMOUTH, MA.

Hello, friends!

        Some weeks back I responded to a posting on this BBS sent in
by John Faircloth (JFAIRCLOTH@DELPHI.COM).  We corresponded
successfully for about two weeks, but for the last three weeks or so
my mail to him keeps getting bounced back.  If you are reading this,
Hohn, please contact me; otherwise, if anyone else has heard from
John, please let me know.  This is no emergency, by any means, but I
am curious and a bit frustrated.  Thanks in advance.

Paul...PLEBEAU@UMASSD.EDU





------



Subject: microbraillle slate
From: dashiell@nadc.navy.mil (Jude DaShiell)


that's not microbraille that's normal size braille.
microbraille is 2/3 the size of regular braille.
A regular pocket slate should do nicely if you know
how to braille on dymo tape.
If not read on since the dymo tape gun
manufacturers are going to want to shoot me
after what I write here.
If you peel the back off a length of dymo tape and position the
sticky side on the top leaf of your slate directly covering a line of
cells and then close the slate you can braille on that tape.
It's best to use either line 2 or line 3 for this purpose since the
slate pins don't get in the way.  You need to make the tape stick to the
top leaf before you braille and if you have the tape lined up
properly you'll get good braille.  Also use a regular stylus since the braille
will be more durable once made.  If you are making a label count back from
the last cell on the slate enough cells to write the line.
this way you don't waste tape.  For example if you have a label that
needs 15 characters to write you start your label in cell 14 of
the line not in cell 1 this assumes a 28 cell slate.
Push down with good pressure and you'll have good braille on that tape.
The one advantage of not using a gun is you can use all symbols and
contractions while not all guns make provision for 63 symbols and a space
your slate does.

jude <dashiell@nadc.nadc.navy.mil>




------



Subject: Textbooks For The Blind??
From: pjh@pjh.jvnc.net (Pete Holsberg)
Organization: The House On This Side Of U.S. 1

Where can I get information about textbooks for the blind? I'm interested in
knowing if there is an organization that produces them, whether they are
special in any way (eg., page references), etc.

I'm particularly interested in knowing how technical texts are produced.

Thanks,
Pete

---
Prof. Peter J. Holsberg      Mercer County Community College
Voice: 609-586-4800          Technology, Computers and Math
FAX:   609-586-2318          1200 Old Trenton Road, Trenton, NJ 08690
Internet: pjh@mccc.edu       Trenton Computer Festival: April 22-23, 1995
     and: pjh@pjh.jvnc.net




------



Subject: Re:  Blind News Digest # 1043
From: kemp@scpdrtc.bhp.com.au (Ian P Kemp)


Dear Francois,

A note in reply to your post on the blind news digest recently -
sorry it's taken a while to reply.  I was very interested when I
saw your post as I too am interested in computer braille.  I wrote
a system some years ago called Dotma- master to do grade 2 english
& welsh language braille, from formatted text - to output formatted
braille as an extra option to formatted text.  I made the software
available to a couple of groups in the UK (for nothing, don't see
why they should have to pay hundreds/thousands of dollars for
systems such as Duxbury).  I am now developing the package again,
with the NSW Royal Blind Sociie ty, gratis again, as they have to
employ someone to do the text formatting with their Duxbury
system.

RBS also have an urgent need for (good) braille music
transcription, as they only have a few (elderly) qualified
transcribers.  I have considered writing a music module for
DotMaster, but have so far been put off a bit by the compl- exity
of the music code.  I have a music system on my computer, so could
input music in notation or via midi keyboard then feed the midi
file into the braille compiler.  My question - is this the kind of
project you are working on?  If so I'd be v. interested in
obtaining a copy or collaborating / swapping source code.

I am not aware if the various braille codes are available on
computer - although I have several codes (English, US english,
Welsh, Russian, Music, Mathematics, Chemistry, Music, French) on
paper.  If you want we could compile a directory & post it.

In regard to the ascii --> braille mapping, unfortunately there is
no universal standard code.  I made up my own to suit my braille
teacher who picked letters with some sort of neumonic,
alternatively you could use the European Braille Computer Code or
the 'BRF' code used by DuxBury, which are as follows:

Character (English)  dots   DotMaster    EBCC     Duxbury
   and              1234.6     A          &          &
   for              123456     F          0          =
   of               123.56     O          {          (
   the              .234.6     T          @          !
   with             .23456     W          }          )
   ch               1....6     \          1          *
   gh               12...6     (          2          <
   sh               1..4.6     Z          3          %
   th               1..456     X          4          ?
   wh               1...56     C          5          :
   ed               12.4.6     D          6          $
   er               12.456     R          7          ]
   ou               12..56     }          8          \
   ow               .2.4.6     {          9          {
   ea               .2....    " ,         ,          1
   be               .23...     ;          ;          2
   con              .2..5.     :          :          3
   full stop        .2..56     .          .          4
   en               .2...6     [          ?          5
   to               .23.5.     !          +          6
   gg               .23.56    G B         =          7
   quote            .23..6    < ?         <          8
   in               ..3.5.     ]          *          9
   unquote          ..3.56     >          >          0
   st               ..34..     /          /          /
   ing              ..34.6     I          _          +
   ble              ..3456     N          !          #
   ar               ..345.     )          )          >
   dot-3            ..3...     #          '          '
   com              ..3..6     -          -          -
   dot-4            ...4..     $          "          @
   dot-45           ...45.     =          (          ^
   dot-456          ...456     +          $          _
   dot-5            ....5.     %          |          "
   dot-46           ...4.6     ~          %          .
   dot-56           ....56     |          #          ;
   dot-6            .....6     &          ~          ,
   1..0 = a..j; a..z = a..z.

  _-_|\      Ian Kemp.
 /     \
 \_.-. X <-- Wollongong, Australia.
      ~      email: Kemp@scpdrtc.bhp.com.au






------



Subject: Artic Transport configuration for Telnet?
From: thingles@disserv.stu.umn.edu (Jamie Thingelstad)
Organization: University of Minnesota, Disability Services

Does anyone have a configuration file for the Artic Transport
(BusinessVision software) that is set up for general use with NCSA's
telnet for DOS package?

If you do, could you please mail it to me. Thanks much.

--
= WWW http://disserv.stu.umn.edu/~thingles ============= Jamie Thingelstad
 612.626.7846 (Desk)   612.625.5572 (Fax)            Technical Coordinator
 101 Pleasant St SE, 12 Johnston, Mpls, MN 55455       Disability Services
= thingles@disserv.stu.umn.edu == AOL: Thingles == University of Minnesota




------






                                ******

                 End of Issue # 1044 of the Blind News Digest

                                ******