Comments on: Graphics Formats Holding Back Blind People in Workplace

By: Norman Lilly

Norman Lilly — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 13:35:13 +0000

I can see where John is coming from with the producers of Braille not thinking about the graphic and how it can be made available to the end user. John@ViewPlus make a great product that easily converts Braille and Graphics from standard Windows software. The point is not enough people know about it, what’s the point of writing a great article if you do not talk about what options are available? I know that some would see that as a commercial, but what the hell! I come across so many people who say to me why didn’t I know about this great technology! because not enough people are prepared to shout about it that’s why!

By: Nigel Herring

Nigel Herring — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 08:51:16 +0000

I don’t think John has missed the point. PictureBraille has been availabel since 1990. The current version will, amongst many other things, generate tactile charts and plots on most embossers, simply by entering the data set or equation. You article lays the blame at the lack of tools not the lack of will to implement them. Surely promoting the tools is one answer to the probelm you outline. Perhaps getting producers off their backsides should be the subject of the next article.

By: John Ramm

John Ramm — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 07:56:19 +0000

Thank you for your comment, John Gardner. You’ve posted a great advert for View Plus, but rather missed the point.
Putting aside the abilities or otherwise of particular embossers to produce graphics, what my research shows is that blind people are not getting them. It surely doesn’t matter how much hardware and software is available if transcribers are taking a de facto position that when they come across a graphic in something they are transcribing they produce a verbal description, not an equivalent graphic!
The blind people I interviewed should not need to know or care about how transcribed material is produced. All they want, overwhelmingly, is transcribed material which puts them on a parr with their sighted colleagues.

By: John Gardner

John Gardner — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 19:52:27 +0000

I am surprised by the story “Graphics Formats Holding Back Blind People in Workplace”. A two year study funded by RNIB should have been able to learn that ViewPlus software and embossers can more or less automatically reproduce a wide range of charts and tables in braille. The Tiger Software Suite, bundled with every ViewPlus embosser can transform and emboss an Excel spread sheet or chart in braille with one click. More complex graphics, such as flow charts, can be made audio/touch accessible with ViewPlus IVEO software and a ViewPlus embosser. These products have been on the market for years and are available in the UK from Sight and Sound/Force 10.