[nabs-l] Braille Printer and Dux Bury Program

Dan Burke dburke at cocenter.org
Thu May 2 14:54:11 UTC 2013


If I may offer some information even though I'm not a student ...  I worked
for a Ds office for many years, and for the last number of years I
supervised the alternate formats aspect of the office.

First, have you signed up for Bookshare? There are lots of text books
available in electronic formats that your Braille note can read, or that can
be read on your iPhone or with JAWS.

Next Helga, if Bookshare doesn't have your texts your DS office may need to
give you a better format.  They would need to do that f Braille is your
preferred format and there is a compelling reason that PDF isn't good
enough.  That English is your second language and that your major requires
reading and comprehending complex literature (and what major doesn't?), is a
compelling argument in my opinion.  You need to make that clear to the DS
office, but you will very likely have to push it if you really want it.
They can easily give you a MS Word format, for example, if the text is not
available at Bookshare.  But you will have a good bit of work ahead of you
turning a PDF into any kind of Braille document.

Personally, I think that PDF is a terrible format for just about anything.

With a Word file, you can do a couple of things.  Of course you could read
it with your note taker's refreshable Braille display.  It is likely that
the DS office will stand their ground on that and not offer paper Braille.
With a Word file you could also use Duxbury and print your own paper
Braille, which you have obviously thought about.  But you may need to press
the DS office by looking at campus options for due process - in other words,
a complaint - if they don't agree to provide you with a format other than
PDF.

And the other thing is that Voc Rehab's excuse that embossers are expensive
just isn't good enough.  Your reasons for having one are pretty good.  If
they are to deny this bit of technology, they need to do so on the basis
that it isn't related to your vocational goal.  They can't say it's too
expensive once you are already in an Individualized Plan for Employment.
Again, you will likely have to push this.  You can start by asking your VR
counselor for information on your rights to appeal. This is something they
are required to provide.

Good luck!

Best,

Dan

-----Original Message-----
From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Helga
Sent: Wednesday, May 01, 2013 8:50 PM
To: nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Subject: [nabs-l] Braille Printer and Dux Bury Program

Hi all, this is Helga. I just
would like to ask you guys, Do you know where can I get a Dux Bury program
and a Braille printer that is compatible with the BrailleNote apex for a
cheap price? The Reason I'm asking is because I like to read Braille because
is my prefer way of reading especially when I'm reading stories that are
hard to understand the wording. I'm actually doing an English major where I
need to take Literature classes that involve a lot of reading. Actually,
this semester I took American Literature before 1865, and it was very
challenging for me because the only accessable format of the Book  that DSS
provided me was PDF format, and and I got a audio cd from Learning Ally. It
was helpful, but not enough to understand the stories since my first
Language is not English, even though I speak it, I'm still working on my
comprehension of words. I also talked to my DBS counceler about this and she
told me that she would not buy me the Braille printer because is very
expensive. I really Think a Braille paper copy of a reading will really help
me a lot since I'm thinking in taking American Literature after 1865 in the
Fall semester. 
Thank you guys for listening to me. I really appreciate it. God bless! :)
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