[nfbcs] JAVA TEXT

Tue Mar 20 18:19:27 UTC 2012

I learnd from the Deitel and Deitel book - Programming Java - How to.  I read the 6th edition (for Java 2 Versions 1.6).  It's a pretty good book.  As with most books, it has code examples and "tips" liberally sprinkled throughout the book.  A totally blind person would need to have these in a text form of course.  Then there are the diagrams that illustrate the relationship of objects in a specific example ... that might be difficult for a blind person to get ... unless they had some kind of tactile graphic. or a very good person who could describe the heck out of the diagram.  These pictures of course are rectangles with text inside of them with arrows connecting to the box and pointing to another box.  The arrow of course, depending on where it's pointing is significant and might show a relationship of some sort.  Diagrams are where I could see a real problem.

And since we're on this subject, how do blind people deal with textbooks?  Especially those, like programming books, that have diagrams?  I'm guessing on Bookshare or other service, the text is electronic and you can just read it on a Braille display (Jaws in my mind just wouldn't cut it in all situations.. just reading the text to you ... since you might not get the syntax when a computer is reading it to you and it's really complicated ... but Braille would cut through all of that as I see it).  Also, let's say that you're reading and you have a 30 or 40 line sample code section you have to read but you only have a one line braille display.  How do you remember something that was defined back on line 3 but is referenced on line 34?  Does a blind person just have to have a superior memory so he or she remembers everything he reads?  I could see getting down to line 34 and a variable is referenced and you say ... "now how was that initialized on line 3??"  and have to scroll back up and read it again, then scroll back down.  That could be a real pain, and it could really impact your productivity unless you were taking notes as you were reading the code ... especially in real-world programs like the application I'm working on in Visual Basic where the thing is over 100,000 lines of code.  Only being able to reference line of braille could make it challenging to say the least.

Last question.  How do these textbooks make it to BookShare in the first place?  I'm going to assume they are in electronic format?  Does the publisher supply an electronic copy of the textook and Bookshare simply puts it in it's library and that's it?  That would make it too easy and I'm going to guess that's not the case.  Or, are there transcribers that have to be in place that transcribe the book?  And what is the supply of transcribers, especially in technical fields such as science, math, or technical books such as the programming books?  If there aren't a sufficient number of transcribers available, then I could really see how that could put a damper on being able to get a needed textbook in a timely manner.  I ask this last question because I've been kicking around the idea of getting certified as a transcriber ... a technical transcriber to be exact ... and helping produce the technical materials so blind people have what they need.  But I wanted to know if there are enough transcribers already and there's already a glut of them.  Certainly doing that would be a big learning curve but if it would help others, I think it would be worth it.

---- William Ritchhart <william.ritchhart at sbcglobal.net> wrote: 
> All,
> 
> Our entire team at work is starting to learn java.  The text that we are
> using is called, "Head First into Java."  My sighted team-leader and I are
> not very pleased with how it presents the material.  It assumes that we all
> learn from pictures.  So my question is for those of you who have learned or
> are learning java, what text did/are you using?  Tips on what was helpful
> would also be welcome.
> 
> I am a totally blind guy.  So I am particularly interested in information
> from those of you who do not have usable sight. 
>  
> 
> Thanks, William
> 
> 
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