[blindkid] iPads ... Laptops and Notetakers oh MY

Brandy W ballstobooks at gmail.com
Wed May 23 17:55:18 UTC 2012


I used both, and while I think if one has to pick between the 2 then you
need a computer with Braille display I think having a note taker is super
valuable too. I use mine all the time in work and leisure. In school I found
a note taker to be easier to take everywhere, it was easier to start and
shut down quickly, and faster to jot down notes. An Ipad or I touch would
also meet a lot of the goals of a note taker if one has a Braille display.
We all have preferences, and that is the hard part. What one person can't
live without the other person doesn't care one ounce about. I also Braille
about 4 times faster than I type minimum so like taking notes in Braille
better. I've used the same net book as Ariel and really like it. I had it
for 3 years and the power source died. 

Good luck the decisions are only going to get tougher as he and the tech
advances progress. 

Bran
 



"To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is
a spark." 
- Victor Hugo 

Brandy Wojcik  Discovery Toys Educational Consultant and Team leader
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-----Original Message-----
From: blindkid-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindkid-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Penny Duffy
Sent: Tuesday, May 22, 2012 3:30 PM
To: Blind Kid Mailing List, (for parents of blind children)
Subject: [blindkid] iPads ... Laptops and Notetakers oh MY

I wanted to stop hijacking Rosina's thread and since other
have similar questions   I changed the subject to make it tidy.

Ok here is a question. I am trying to wrap my head around making sure my
daughter has the technology she needs.  She is 8 and collage bound.    Does
a child NEED a notetaker.   Could they have a notebook and IPad and share a
braille display?  (the IPad or IPhone for portability) Or is there
something that that makes the Notetaker a must have?   Its my understanding
that even if child has a notetaker they will still need to get PC skills.
 So a PC laptop will still be needed is the Notetaker still needed.  I know
you can share files pretty easy between the IPad and computers (using
dropbox and other programs)


Please help this clueless mom.. I think I just had ahha moment.  I would
love to hear from people who have used both and how they transitioned to
collage.

-Penny

On Tue, May 22, 2012 at 2:08 PM, Penny Duffy <pennyduffy at gmail.com> wrote:

> Like I said it reads the stuff from bookshare (Read2go provides the 
> text
> file) but if someone gives you a braille file I have found no way to 
> get the ipad to bring it up.  If you have found an application that 
> does this Denise I would love to find out. May have been doing 
> something wrong but I could get no application to bring up a .brf file.
Like I said I don't even
> know if this an issue .   I am having this discussion with my daughter
TVI.
> Trying to figure out if a notetaker is a needed technology for her or not.
>
> -Penny
> On May 22, 2012 1:56 PM, "Dr. Denise M Robinson" <deniserob at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Penny
>> Are you talking about read2go with bookshare? Yes, the braille 
>> display will read braille files.
>> Denise
>>
>> On Tue, May 22, 2012 at 10:46 AM, Penny Duffy <pennyduffy at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> > good question Holly..
>> >
>> > Abby uses her Ipad with a refreshable braille display and the 
>> > biggest disadvantage i found is it doesn't read braille files. 
>> > Which I don't
>> know
>> > if its an issue or not.  There is an great bookshare app and it 
>> > reads
>> those
>> > so that is not an issue. It will put on the braille display what 
>> > ever is spoken by voice over.  I am sure there are other issues.  
>> > but so far that's the only one I have found and i don't know how 
>> > many files
>> only
>> > come in braille format.
>> >
>> > On Tue, May 22, 2012 at 1:35 PM, Holly Baker Miller 
>> > <hollym12 at gmail.com
>> > >wrote:
>> >
>> > > Still trying to figure things out for our situation.  New braille
>> user,
>> > > middle school, responsible & tech savy.  Has enough vision that 
>> > > jaws probably isn't going to be a necessity for him.  His issue 
>> > > is not so
>> much
>> > > with seeing but that he fatigues very quickly when reading visually.
>> > >
>> > > It seems as if buying a good netbook or ipad ($500) + bluetooth
>> braille
>> > > display ($2500) such as the Brailliant 32 would be about half the 
>> > > cost
>> > of a
>> > > note taker.
>> > > Aside from the slight downside of having to carry two compact 
>> > > items,
>> why
>> > > does it seem like this is not a popular option for most?
>> > >
>> > > The pluses would be the netbook/ipad could be reasonably replaced
>> every
>> > 2-3
>> > > years as the processors get faster & more powerful making it 
>> > > easier to
>> > keep
>> > > pace with technology.  Sounds like the maintenance plan on a 
>> > > notetaker costs that much.  Even if the display part punks out 
>> > > after a few
>> years, a
>> > > lot less painful to replace that than a full note taker.
>> > >
>> > > Are there other disadvantages I'm not aware of?  Is this 
>> > > something
>> whose
>> > > time has come but it just hasn't quite caught on yet?
>> > > I won't be offended if there's something glaring I haven't thought
of!
>> > >
>> > > Holly
>> > > _______________________________________________
>> > > blindkid mailing list
>> > > blindkid at nfbnet.org
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>> > > To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info 
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>> > > blindkid:
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>> > >
>> >
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindkid_nfbnet.org/pennyduffy%40gm
>> ail.com
>> > >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > --
>> > --Penny
>> > ----------
>> > My Blog - visionfora.blogspot.com
>> >
>> > NH Parents of Blind Children http://www.nhpobc.org/
>> > NHPOBC on facebook   https://www.facebook.com/nhpobc
>> > _______________________________________________
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>> il.com
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> *Denise*
>>
>> Denise M. Robinson, TVI, Ph.D.
>> CEO, TechVision, LLC
>> Specialist in Technology/Training/Teaching for blind/low vision
>> 509-674-1853
>>
>> Website with hundreds of informational articles & lessons on PC, 
>> Office products, Mac, iPad/iTools and more, all done with
>> keystrokes: www.yourtechvision.com
>>
>> "The person who says it cannot be done, shouldn't interrupt the one 
>> who is doing it." --Chinese Proverb
>>
>> Computers are incredibly fast, accurate, and stupid: humans are 
>> incredibly slow, inaccurate and brilliant; together they are powerful 
>> beyond imagination.
>> --Albert Einstein
>>
>> It's kind of fun to do the impossible.
>> --Walt Disney
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>>
>


--
--
--Penny
----------
My Blog - visionfora.blogspot.com

NH Parents of Blind Children http://www.nhpobc.org/
NHPOBC on facebook   https://www.facebook.com/nhpobc
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