[Nfb-science] Braille Displays

Christine Szostak szostak.1 at osu.edu
Sun Sep 5 06:12:39 UTC 2010


Hi,
  Actually, Dyslexia is more specifically a reading-based rather than 
visual-based disorder, and there are findings that suggest that certain 
braille reading deficits may be a type of developmental dyslexia. For 
information see:

Veispak, E. & Ghesquiere, P. (2010). Could specific braille reading 
difficulties result from developmental dyslexia . Journal of Visual 
Impairment, 
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_6836/is_4_104/ai_n53386478/

Many thanks,
Christine
Christine M. Szostak
Graduate Student
Language Perception Laboratory
Department of Psychology, Cognitive Area
The Ohio State University
Columbus, Ohio
szostak.1 at osu.edu
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "qubit" <lauraeaves at yahoo.com>
To: "NFB Science and Engineering Division List" <nfb-science at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, September 05, 2010 1:25 AM
Subject: Re: [Nfb-science] Braille Displays


> Dear Jewel --
> I take one exception to your claim that a dyslexic would have trouble with 
> a
> braille display.  Dyslexia is a visual phenomenon that affection visual
> perception only, not tactile.  In fact, when I was in college I knew a 
> blind
> student who was considered dict.legally blind because of dyslexia.  His 
> was
> so bad that he had to use a white cane to get around  s when hefrom the 
> west
> coast to the east...
> looked at his feet, he couldn't tell which one was left or right. He had 
> to
> close his eyes and use the cane to identify the left foot.
> Other than that, his vision was good.  To describe the situation to 
> someone
> who didn't understand, he said it was like if he was a witness to a bank
> robbery, he could identify the crooks, but he couldn't say what door they
> came out of..."
> You know, the really funny thing about this guy was that his major was 
> stage
> and set design, so he had to keep track of stage left and stage right... 
> Go
> figure.
> Just thought I'd mention it.
> Happy hacking.
> --le
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Jewel S." <herekittykat2 at gmail.com>
> To: "NFB Science and Engineering Division List" <nfb-science at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Saturday, September 04, 2010 11:52 PM
> Subject: Re: [Nfb-science] Braille Displays
>
>
> You may use audio as you would print, but I can think of several
> We ++ instances in which a refrshable Braille display would be the better
> option and well worth the cost.
>
> The frist instance is an example from my own life. I cannot learn
> audioally. It takes me twice as long to learn from an audio textbook
> what I'd learn from a Brailled textbook. I know this because I have
> taken Hadley classes in both audio and Braille formats and now take
> them exclusively in Braille because I find it very hard to follow the
> text when it is in audio format. Further, I cannot listen to an audio
> clip or tape and something else at the same time (such as a teacher
> talking or someone discussing the text). However, hardcopy Braille is
> not always practical, even if it is available (I have a friend who got
> her high school math book for this year...it is five volumes of
> Braille! I think a digital Braille text would have been a better
> option, especially since their house is full of Braille books in every
> room, so sometimes finding the right volume is not easy, whereas
> digital Braille can be labelled and searched for wih ease).
>
> Another instance in which Braille would be preferable over audio on a
> computer is for people with hearing loss. I have a friend who is
> totally blind since the age of three and reads Braille at
> almost-lightning speed. However, give her something to listen to and
> it takes her at least twice as long to read it because she has to go
> back over it several times. She misses words because she can't hear
> them. She also cannot listen to what is going on in her environment at
> the same time, so listening to an audio textbook or something on her
> computer while in class would a no-no...she'd miss what the teacher
> was saying half the time because she was working with her computer,
> even if all she is doing is listening to herself type so she doesn't
> make typos.
>
> Further, for a deafblind person, a refreshable Braille display can
> mean the difference between having full access to the computer and
> having little or no access. Audio simply isn't a usable resource for a
> deafblind person, but Braille can open alll the doors to
> accessibility.
>
> Another instance in which the refreshable Braille display would be
> preferable over a screenreader is while reading specially formatted
> text. Tables are easier to read in Braille then listen to. Poems in
> special format (all right aligned, some ines left-aligned, some
> right-aligned, and some centered, or all the lines centered) would not
> have the full effect in audio, but with a refreshable Braille dispaly,
> the special formatting would still have its intended effect.
>
> One last example I can think of (that doesn't mean there aren't more,
> it's just that I don't want to go on and on...I think you get the
> picture, or I hope you do) is when the spelling of a word really
> matters. For example, when learning a foreign language or new
> vocabulary that is difficult to spell. Do you think it would be easier
> to learn how to spell omnipotamia if you had it in Braille or listened
> to it? Which would make it faster to check the spelling? In my
> opinion, the Braille display, since you could see the spelling as you
> read it, while with a screenreader, you would have to go back and have
> the screenreader spell it over or go over it character by character.
> In the Harry Potter books, I listened to the first two in audio and
> kept wondering "How do you spell Hermione"? With an "io" or an "Oi"?
> It really bugged me, because I am a geek like that. But what if you
> had to write an essay about a novel you read for school, and you
> misspelled the name of the main character because you listened to the
> book instead of reading it using a Braille display (perhaps because
> you got the book from Bookshare or it's from an online library, or its
> 13 volumes and you dn't want the hassle of carrying around all those
> volumes)? I think the teacher would be certain to correct you, but it
> would be quite embarrassing if the character's name is Maudraline, and
> you spelled it Modraleen or some such...spelling can be important, and
> you can't learn spelling from audio books! When learning a foreign
> language, knowing where the accents are placed or how an odd word is
> spelled is quite important. In Spanish, an accent or the lack thereof
> can make a huge difference. As example, consider the difference etween
> por que and por que (wht an accent on the e). The first means because;
> the second why. When listening to an audio book, you might hear "Por
> que vas al mar" If there is an accent on the e and a question mark, it
> would mean "Why do you go to the sea?" and if there is no accent and a
> period, it would mean "Because you go to the sea."
>
> I agree that for some people, a refreshable Braille display would be a
> waste of money. My boyfriend is one of those people. He not only
> doesn't read Braille well (and only uncontracted Braille), but he is
> dyslexic, so reading the Braille on a refreshable disaply, he would be
> more likely to missepll a word or misunderstand it. His preference is
> for something like the VictorStream Reader, which will read the words,
> but you can also go back and sepell the words. Other people, whether
> dyslexic or simply an audio learner, just learn better when hearing
> something compared to reading it or seeing it. For these people, a
> screenreader would be preferrable.
>
> But that does not mean that a refreshable Braille display is a waste
> of money for everyone. As I hope I demonstrated above, there are many
> instances in which a refreshable Braille display is not only well
> worth the cost, it is also an essential tool. some of the reasons I
> gave above rre those I gave when arguing for a refreshable Braille
> display to be purchased as an essentila accessible technology for
> purchase by Vocational Rehabilitation. I won that argument and will be
> getting a refreshable Braille display, which I think I could not
> succeed completely without. I tried to take a Spanish class without
> access to my book in Braille, but I ended up asking the professor
> every time she wrote something whether there was an accent in the
> words she wrote, and I had trouble remembering accents. I also had to
> read part of a book out loud in a class as part of group participation
> (it was a skit), but had difficulty doing this by listening then
> repeating. If I had had it in Braille, I would have had no trouble
> reading it out loud as my fingers moved over the lines.
>
> I hope that these arguments make sense, and I hope this will add
> positive infoormation to the conversation. Thank you for allowing me
> to ramble about it *grin*
>
>
>
>
> On 9/4/10, Mike Freeman <k7uij at panix.com> wrote:
>> I disagree with Robert in that I don't think
>> Braille displays are worth the money in general although there may be
>> specific employment situations (call centers anyone?) wherein they might
>> be
>> helpful. I believe with a bit of ingenuity, one can largely discern
>> computer
>> programming formats and the like with speech. But then I may be cheating
>> because for many years, I used an Optacon with CRT lens to read the
>> computer
>> screen and do my programming.
>>
>> And yes, I have a braille note-taker so I'm not knocking braille.
>>
>> Mike
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Christine Szostak" <szostak.1 at osu.edu>
>> To: "NFB Science and Engineering Division List" <nfb-science at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Friday, September 03, 2010 8:45 AM
>> Subject: [Nfb-science] Braille Displays
>>
>>
>>> Hi All,
>>>  John's post prompted a question for me.
>>>
>>>  For those who use Braille displays with JAWS, what specifically do you
>>> find them most useful for? Are they worth the investment in your opinion
>>> and if so, is there a particular brand that tends to be highly
>>> recommended?
>>> Many thanks
>>> Christine
>>> Christine M. Szostak
>>> Graduate Student
>>> Language Perception Laboratory
>>> Department of Psychology, Cognitive Area
>>> The Ohio State University
>>> Columbus, Ohio
>>> szostak.1 at osu.edu
>>> _______________________________________________
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>>
>>
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>
>
> -- 
> ~Jewel
> Check out my blog about accessibility for the blind!
> Treasure Chest for the Blind: http://blindtreasurechest.blogspot.com
>
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