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12.03 Embosser driver installation

In TactileView, a wide variety of different braille embossers is supported (for an overview of their embossing properties, see Properties of different braille embossers).

It is essential to install the corresponding printer driver for your embosser model in order to produce the correct tactile graphics. The two steps of the ‘Embosser driver installation’ dialog will guide you through the installation of the correct driver.

TactileView driver versus manufacturer supplied driver

Some embossers require installing a driver that is supplied by the manufacturer. For the remaining supported embossers, TactileView supplies a specialised graphics driver.
To install the correct driver for your embosser model, open the dialog by selecting menu File > Install printer driver. In the first step you will be prompted with the list of supported braille embossers. Choose your particular model from the list, then click ‘Next’. In the second step, depending on your embosser type, you can either directly install the TactileView driver, or follow the written instructions to install a driver supplied by the manufacturer.

Option 1 – Driver supplied by TactileView

Some embossers are capable of creating tactile graphics, but are not supplied with a driver that supports this by default. In these cases, TactileView supplies a separate driver that needs to be installed via step 2 of the ‘Embosser driver installation’ dialog.
Please note that some models require additional settings, such as language selection. If required, this will be presented in the dialog.

Option 2 – Driver supplied by manufacturer

For a number of embossers, the driver that is supplied by the manufacturer also supports producing tactile graphics with TactileView. In this case, the driver will not be installed via TactileView, but using an installer file (.exe) that you receive with your embosser or download from the supplier’s website.
You will find complete instructions in step 2 of the ‘Embosser driver installation’ dialog for the installing driver and selecting the embosser in TactileView.

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12.02 Properties of different braille embossers

Below, you will find an overview of the braille embossers that are supported in TactileView. Some embossers on the market are only capable of printing braille texts, whereas these all support printing both text and graphics.

An overview of the installation instructions for all embosser models can be found in the manual section Embosser driver installation.

The embossers from different manufacturers are produced with varying technical specifications. For example, the shape and size of the braille dots varies, as well as the possibilities for dot placement on the paper. This results in differences in the tactile properties of the graphics that can be produced. The specific properties for the selected embosser can be viewed in TactileView by enabling ‘Design mode: dot view’; see: Design mode: dot view/line view.

For a more extensive list of the technical specifications such as printing speed or supported paper sizes, visit the respective websites of the listed manufacturers.

Differences in printing methods: dot matrix vs. floating point

One of the most notable differences between the various embosser models is the way the dots are positioned to create the tactile graphics. The majority of embossers will place the dots in a fixed matrix. Any curves in the image will be built up of small interconnected horizontal and/or vertical line segments. The resolution of this two-dimensional matrix of dots determines the level of detail that can be achieved in the tactile image.

In some cases, the dots are not evenly spaced in the horizontal direction of the dot matrix. This is derived from the positions of the dots in braille characters, where no dots have to be placed in between two characters. This results in a less continuous dot spacing when printing graphics.

Other models are not restricted to a fixed matrix of dots, but instead can freely place dots at any position on the page. This is often called ‘floating point’ graphics. As a result, the images have much more continuous, smooth curves allowing for a relatively high level of detail and accuracy.

Comparison of print techniques: dot matrix (left), non-uniform dot matrix (middle) and floating point graphics (right).

Figure 1. A comparison of different embossing techniques: dot matrix (left), non-uniform dot matrix (middle; note the difference in horizontal and vertical dot placement) and floating point (right).

Embosser manufacturers overview

We support models from diverse manufacturers, such as:
APH, BrailleTec, Enabling, Harpo, HumanWare, Index, Irie AT, Nippon TeleSoft, ViewPlus.
For a comprehensive list of supported models and their properties see our List of Supported Embossers.

Design aspects in TactileView for different embossers

Below, you will find a list of the effects on a TactileView design of the printing properties of the different embossers.

Viewplus

All models support variable dot height, which can be set individually for the lines, surface and texture of all blue objects in TactileView. These dot heights are shown on screen in different shades of blue.
See also: Using variable relief height

The SpotDot (previously called EmPrint) and EmFuse models support printing in braille as well as black or coloured ink. In TactileView, the ‘Design mode: line view’ will show the design as it will be printed in ink, whereas the ‘Design mode: dot view’ will show the tactile output.

Index Braille

The floating point method that is used in the Index embosser models allows for smooth curves and a relatively high level of detail in your designs.

Brailletec

The floating point method that is used in the Brailletec embosser models allows for smooth curves and a relatively high level of detail in your designs.

Enabling Technologies
The following discontinued models are still supported in TactileView: Juliet, Romeo Pro and Romeo Attaché.

For the Juliet (discontinued) and Phoenix embossers, you have the option to select the embossing resolution by selecting ‘Print setup’ from the File menu.

Nippon Telesoft

The dot matrix for the Gemini embosser is based on the positions of the dots in braille text. The matrix therefore has a relatively low resolution and will not be uniform in horizontal direction; keep in mind that this allows you to use a limited level of detail when creating your designs.

Harpo

The dot matrix for the Mountbatten Brailler is based on the positions of the dots in braille text. The matrix therefore has a relatively low resolution and will not be uniform in horizontal direction; keep in mind that this allows you to use a limited level of detail when creating your designs.

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7.06 Text label – Math input

When using mathematical text labels, some knowledge of mathematical notation in braille is required. This is covered in the manual section on mathetics in TactileView. See: Introduction on mathematical notations.

To read all about placing and editing a text label with math input, see: Text label – math input (equation in braille).

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7.04 Text label – Computer keyboard input

To read a tactile diagram with ease, it is very helpful to add text information to the design. For example the different parts of a flower or rooms in a building can be labelled in the design to add descriptive information to the image.

Once the text label is added to your document, it can be edited at any time; see Editing text labels. For the other input methods for text labels, see Text label – Braille keyboard input and Text label – Math input.

Text label placement
To place a text label, click on the ‘Add text label’ icon in the drawing tools, then move the mouse to the desired position in the design and click again. You can start typing right away or use Ctrl+V to paste a copied text.
A text label can be positioned anywhere in the design. Leave enough space around texts labels to ensure the braille dots can be distinguished easily, so make sure that text label are not too close to lines in your design. This way you will maintain optimal tactile usability.

When placing a text label, the width of the text label is automatically adjusted to fit within the sheet of paper or within the alignment frame when this is enabled.

Add Text Label icon:

Text label placement

Figure 1. Click in the design to place a text label.

Precise placement: centre or align (snap)
Two functions in the options toolbar allow for more precise placement of text labels. The ‘Centre’ function will horizontally place the label in the middle of the design.
With ‘Text label alignment’ turned on, text labels can be aligned with previously placed labels. Green dotted lines appear in the design when placing or moving a label close to the vertical or horizontal position of other labels. The text label you are adding or moving will then snap to the green line.

You can also use the braille grid as a layout tool for alignment of text labels throughout the document.

Text label alignment icon:

Centre text label icon:

Green lines indicate text label alignment

Figure 2. Text label alignment with green dotted lines.

Adjusting label dimensions using word wrap length
Word wrap length is the maximum number of characters per line of text in a text label. For example, a word wrap length of 10 will divide a text of 25 braille characters into three lines of text. Line breaks will be placed at the position of spaces to avoid breaking up words. The lines of braille text have a fixed height that matches the standardised height of embossed braille text.
The word wrap length can be adjusted by dragging the sides of a text label. The tooltip will display the value of the word wrap length. Alternatively, select ‘Text and position’ from the properties toolbar or context menu of the selected text label to enter a value for the word wrap length.

Adjusting word wrap length by dragging the sides of the text label

Figure 3. Adjusting the word wrap size by dragging the sides of the text label; the tooltip signifies the word wrap length.

Text label presentation on screen
The text label is presented on screen by a combination of green characters with black dots that represent the braille characters that will be printed on the braille embosser or on swellpaper. With this setup you are able to have an eye on the braille characters. You can change how text labels are displayed on screen by selecting ‘Text label presentation: on screen’ in the toolbar or via the context menu.

Text label presentation on screen icon:

Automatically correct braille: braille tables
The guidelines (so-called braille tables) for how texts are displayed in braille differ internationally. By selecting the correct default braille table via Settings > Braille Tables, the braille in your text labels will automatically be correct. This means that you do not need to have any knowledge of braille to get accurate braille in your designs. For example, braille composition signs for capital letters or numbers are automatically included.

White space behind labels (transparency)
By default, labels have a white space behind and around the braille text to ensure that other design elements do not interfere with the braille. Keep in mind that lines can be covered by the white space if the label is placed too close.
By switching off the white space (making the label transparent) you are able to place the text label on top of lines, but make sure they do not disturb the braille.

‘Add/remove white space’ icon:

Text label transparency

Figure 4. Difference in text label transparency; notice that the line is visible below the top text label, but is covered by the white space of the second label.

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7.05 Text label – Braille keyboard input

There are three input methods for text labels; for the other two input methods, see Text label – Computer keyboard input and Text label – Math input.

The computer keyboard input method is used to enter texts similar to using a Perkins style braille keyboard. This works by simultaneously pressing the keys that represent the 6 or 8 dots of a braille character (see Braille tables – Inherent braille properties).

To place a text label with braille keyboard input, first select ‘Add text label’ from the drawing tools toolbar and choose ‘Text and position: braille keyboard input’ from the properties toolbar or context menu. Next, click on the position in the design where you wish to place the text in braille. You can now type your text directly in your design.

‘Text label: braille keyboard input’ icon:

Entering braille text

When entering the braille text, the letter keys f, d and s correspond to braille dots 1, 2 and 3 respectively; keys j, k and l with dots 4, 5 and 6. Keys a and ; can be used to type dots 7 and 8 when using 8-dot braille. The space bar is used for spaces in braille text as well.

Overview of the keyboard keys used for 6-dot or 8-dot braille input

Figure 1. Overview of which letter keys correspond with the dots in a braille character.

To enter a character, press all letter keys simultaneously, then release them at the same time. For example, to enter the letter n in braille containing dots 1345, press f, s, j and k.

The typed text will appear as black braille characters on screen, but without the visual text characters that are shown for text labels with computer keyboard input. The orange dot in front of the text label signifies that the braille keyboard was used as input.

Once the text label is placed in the design, it cannot be converted to another input method.

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7.03 Braille tables – Inherent braille properties

In braille, many different conventions and variations are used. Below, you will find an overview of the aspects of braille that are supported in TactileView. By using text labels in TactileView with the correct braille table selected, in-depth knowledge of braille to still produce correct braille texts is not required. However, below you will find a list of the most prominent inherent properties of braille script that determine the layout of braille text labels in your designs.

Braille cell size, white space and composition signs

TactileView automatically ensures the braille is sized correctly (following the most commonly used distance of approx. 2,5 mm = 1/10 inch between braille dots) as well as using the correct distance between braille characters (approx. 6 mm) and lines of text (approx. 10 mm). A white space around the braille makes sure that there is enough space between adjacent objects or texts to ensure they can easily be distinguished with your fingertip. The braille grid can be used as a layout tool for alignment using these standard dimensions, see Braille grid (text alignment).

Other aspects that are specific to braille such as braille composition signs (capital letter sign, number sign, symbols, etc.) are also applied automatically. These composition signs are highlighted on screen with a light grey background. Remember that these composition signs differ significantly between different languages and braille tables.

Braille cell sizes visualised: distance between dots within a character (2,5 mm), width between two characters (6 mm) and two lines of braille text (10 mm).

Figure 1. Braille cell sizes.

Figure 2. Capital sings as an example of composition signs; the rules for these signs vary between different languages and braille tables.

Six dots and eight dots

With the introduction of refreshable braille displays, two extra dots were added to form 8-dot braille. This way, using 255 braille characters are available (not including the space character) instead of the regular 63, allows a larger range of characters to be denoted in braille, such as mathematical symbols. Other notable differences with 6-dot braille are found in the braille composition signs.

For more consistency, braille display users that are familiar with reading 8-dot braille can use an 8-dot braille table producing designs from TactileView as well. Text labels (including the white space behind the braille) will automatically be higher to accommodate the addition of the two extra dots.

Figure 3. Comparison between 6-dot and 8-dot braille (example: LibLouis tables en-us-g1.ctb and en-us-comp8.ctb).

Uncontracted (grade 1) versus contracted (grade 2) braille tables

To save space in an embossed braille document, frequently used syllables or entire words can be represented by a shorter combination of braille character or even a single character. This is called contracted braille or grade 2 braille.

As an example, the word ‘the’ would be denoted with three braille characters in uncontracted English braille. In contracted braille however, this is shortened to just a single character.

When using a contracted Liblouis table, these contractions and abbreviations are applied automatically. The reader must be familiar with these conventions to be able to read contracted braille. On screen and when the design is also printed in ink, the font size of the visible text is reduced to match the text position with the braille characters.

Figure 4. Length difference between contracted and uncontracted braille.

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7.02 Settings – Braille tables

With the 6 dots of regular braille, only 63 different combinations can be made (not including the space character). However, the languages from around the world use a far larger amount of letters and punctuation marks. To accommodate these differences using only the 63 available braille characters, each language or country uses a specific braille table (sometimes called rule-set, braille code or mapping).

This way, a braille character in one language can have a different meaning in another. It is crucial, therefore, to select the correct braille table for the visual impaired reader.

Once the braille table is chosen, TactileView will automatically produce the correct braille for text labels according to the inherent properties of braille script.

Braille table settings dialog

Via menu Settings > Braille tables, you can select your braille table of choice. There are three sets of braille tables:

– TactileView braille tables: these tables are currently only used for uploading designs to the TactileView catalog, but will be replaced completely in future releases;
– Liblouis braille tables: an open-source braille translator that contains a large number of languages and braille codes.
– Japanese braille table from Extra: a translator for Japanese braille that can be purchased from Extra.

The selected braille table will be your main braille table, which is used as a default for all new text labels that are placed in your design (including the title label). When you change your main braille table, all labels that are designated as such will be changed to the new table.

Figure 1. Braille tables settings dialog; click on the image to enlarge.

Choosing which braille table to use

The large list of Liblouis braille tables is recommended over the TactileView tables, as they are now only used for uploading designs to the TactileView catalog or in cases where personal adaptations of a braille table are required.

Liblouis is an open-source braille translator containing an extensive list of braille tables for a wide range of countries and languages. For some there is just a single braille table available, whereas others (most notably English) have several alternatives. In general, they use the following elements in the table names to distinguish them:
– g0 or ‘comp’ for computer braille;
– g1 for uncontracted braille (letter by letter transcription);
– g2 for contracted braille (using abbreviations and contractions);
– g3 for non-standardised personal shorthands (rarely used).

Most of the braille tables without a specified grade will either be grade 1, or a specialised braille table such as mathematical braille notation.

The Japanese braille from Extra is only available once this package has been bought separately.

Once you have chosen your preferred braille table, click ‘OK’ confirm to save the selected main braille table. The main table is also recorded in the document when saved.

Using multiple braille tables in one document

By default, your main braille table is selected for new text labels. However, you can choose to use another braille table for individual text labels. This is useful for example when combining regular text with mathematical equations, or texts in different languages in their corresponding braille tables.

There are two ways of changing the braille table for a selected text label:
– From the properties toolbar or context menu, choose ‘Select braille table’ and select your preferred table from the list; you can choose from your main table, the 5 most recent tables or the complete list of Liblouis tables via ‘More braille tables’;
– Choose the braille table from the list of Liblouis table in the ‘Text and position’ dialog.

To get an overview of all the braille tables that are used in the document, first make sure nothing is selected. Next, choose ‘Show used braille tables’ from the properties toolbar; this option can also be found in the context menu that opens when right clicking in an empty part of the design. When this option is selected, the colour of the markers of all text labels in your design will signify the used tables; the legend near the top left corner shows which colour corresponds with which table.

Figure 2. Overview of the braille tables that are used in the design.

Mathematical braille notation

When it comes to mathematical notation in braille, there is a number of additional aspects that come into play. These are also supported in TactileView. For a full overview, read the manual sections ‘Introduction on mathematical notations‘ and ‘Add mathematical label (equation)‘.

Figure 3. Mathematical text label.

Text label representation on screen

By default, the braille characters are shown on screen on top of the entered text to give the designer an idea of the occupied space. For better readability, the braille can also be disabled on screen by selecting ‘Hide braille dots on screen’ from the properties toolbar or context menu of the design or a selected text label. Choose ‘Show braille dots on screen’ to make them visible again. Alternatively, the braille can also be disabled via menu Settings > Text label presentation: on screen. See manual section ‘Editing text labels‘.

‘Hide braille dots on screen’ icon:
‘Show braille dots on screen’ icon:

Opening documents with a different main braille table

When opening a document that was saved using a main table that is different from your current one, you can choose between:
– applying your current braille table to the document;
– use the original braille table in the document;
– use the original braille table and make this your default main braille table.

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TactileView version 2.500 – release notes

In version 2.500, the emphasis lays on new features that will help you to get the best layout in your designs. Below you will find a more technical description of the changes that were made. To understand how these affect the functioning of the software, we recommend you to read the modified, extended and newly added manual sections.

Important technical changes

– A new technique is implemented to ensure the computer identification leads to unique and secure registration. This requires you to re-register. The version indication will change; future versions will have only numbers like 2.50.00.10
– The Liblouis braille table engine 3.17 is implemented. The many braille tables for different languages supported by Liblouis allow for replacing the TactileView braille tables. When registering the software you will be asked to select a Liblouis braille table as your main braille table. Documents created with TactileView braille tables will be converted to use Liblouis equivalent brailletables on opening.

Improvements and extensions

-Images in the TactileView catalog have a unique number referred to as image ID. After download of the image from the catalog, this image ID will be included/printed as part of the design. The default position can be changed in the context menu / design elements.
Entering this image ID on the ‘TellID’ page will bring up the description for the particular image.
For screen reader users the description provides additional information related to the image.
– The portal menu Create map is repaired and works in combination with the newly built Route tactile website (www.routetactile.com)
– The front-end and back-end for the TactileView website has been made more secure by a transition from HTTP to HTTPS protocol including software and website interaction.
– For downloading files from the TactileView website a new method has been implemented, resulting in a more smooth proces.

– The page to download an image from the catalog contains less navigation elements and the download button is combined as part of the image. The selected image will automatically feed into TactileView. For maps from the RouteTactile map creation system a similar mechanism is implemented.
– The motorised drawing arm (MDA) product is supported. See for product information MDA. For a manual see MDA manual.
– A new tool ‘Colour substitute’ is introduced. This tool can change areas with the same colour into textured tactile areas, as configured in custom profiles. It also allows to change colours in alternative coulours or to add audio styles to colours. Custom profiles can be created, modified or deleted in the settings menu. Colour substitution works with bitmap images such as JPG, PNG, TIF and GIF.
– The tools Filters, Detect shape, Colour substitute and Draw graph are extended with a hints section in the toolbars and context menus respectively.
– When launching the software a ‘Blind access’ message will pop up, providing hints on how to operate TactileView using a screenreader.
– The object list is extended. Each object can be provided with an alias/ text description for easy identification for screenreader users via the toolbar/context menu or via the object list. Object properties, including the object alias, are presented in columns which can be sorted. The elements in the object list can be modified via their context menus. Individual objects can be sketched with the MDA to support incremental drawing of an entire design.

– Object markers and label type markers have a transparency setting in menu general to ease aligning objects and textlabels.
– The maximum size of the characters that can be created with the drawing tool Letter and numbers is now set to a higher value of 400 pixels. This works only for fonttypes that allow for scaling.
– Circle objects can have a tactile centre indication, as well as a centre textlabel indicator.
– The draw graph tool is extended with a logarithmic scale type. More example grids have been added and categorised in the respective scale types (linear, logarithmic, degrees and radians) and separated in sub categories design orientation (landscape/portrait).
– The selection tool has an additional function that allows to eliminate the surplus of white space. The selected area will shrink, only the content is retained. It helps to position the content. Once an area is selected, it has to be de-selected before using other tools.
– Tool tips and mouse shapes are optimised.
– The Language reset icon is modified and in the language setting dialogue a button ‘set language to English’ is added in order to reset the software interface to English.
– The texture fill preview now shows the true size of the texture once printed in the selected measurement units (centimeter/inch). The input of the texture size is improved.
– All dialogs containing settings for measurements have the indication of the selected unit of measurement as set in the Settings menu / General (pixel, inch or centimeter)

Lay-out aspects

– This version sees the introduction of the new braille grid and enhanced measurements grid. These are shown in light green on screen and are used for convenient and accurate alignment of braille texts or object in your design. The size of the alignment grids can be limited to a specified area in the design by enabling the alignment frame. See the manual section Alignment frame and grids for more details.

– TactileView supports a wide range of different embossers, resulting in a vast number of different paper sizes and their corresponding printable area for the particular printer. Therefore, when opening a saved file or a design from the TactileView catalog, the design size would not necessarily match the paper size. Moreover, changes in design orientation would also lead to a design that would not match the paper orientation and had to be adjusted manually to make it fit.
In the new release version, the design will be adjusted automatically in all of these cases. When the design is too large in any direction, any excess white space around the edges will now be trimmed automatically; if the design is too small in any direction, the design will be extended to match the paper size. Note that this will not affect the contents of the design.
See also: Changing design orientation and size and Paper size vs. design size.

– The dot view mode has been adapted for better accuracy and reduced delay when editing the design. Colours are depicted in greyscale for ViewPlus to display variable dot height. For Index and Brailletec embossers, the positioning is improved to avoid overlap (less chance of tearing the paper). The unintended overlap of white space behind text labels with adjacent objects has also been solved.
See also: Design mode: dot view/line view.

– Composition signs such as capital signs and number signs are now indicated with a light grey background, to notify the designer of the space these signs occupy. This is especially useful when the braille is hidden on screen, when previously only a blank space would be visible.
See also: Braille tables – Inherent braille properties

– Imported images and figures (‘Import’ option from the left vertical toolbar, previously ‘Add figure’) are no longer placed in the top left corner of the design, but will be placed at the desired position by clicking in the design after selecting the image.
See also: Import (image from file, svg and figure)

– An inserted image can now easily be replaced by selecting ‘Replace with image on clipboard’ from the properties toolbar of a selected image. This will replace the current image with the image file on the clipboard, retaining the original position and corresponding to the size of the original image.

Other improvements

– A new drawing tool for creating curving lines and shapes has been added, which gives you full control to create any desired shape. ‘Draw Path – Curved Shape’ can be found in the left vertical toolbar and incorporates the previous drawing tool ‘Free-hand line’. As this is now used to draw curved objects, the Polygon tool has been simplified to only include straight lines. For a full explanation of this drawing tool, see .

– The latest up-to-date braille tables have been implemented with Version 3.0.0 of the Liblouis braille translator. This new version includes support for UEB. Some of the braille tables have been updated and require you to select a replacing braille table; TactileView will automatically guide you in choosing the correct new table.

– The objects ‘Draw letters and digits’ and ‘Mammoth braille’ can now be edited by double clicking after they have been placed in the design.

– When processing production requests (teleprinting), the original braille table(s) of the document can now be retained. When opening the production request, you will be prompted with a choice between changing text labels to your own main braille table, retaining the original tables or saving the braille table of the document as your main braille table.

– The dialog for entering or editing a text label has been extended with information about the number of braille characters and lines of text. This is especially useful when operating TactileView with a screen reader.

– Tooltips have been added for convenient adjustment of the word wrap (text label width) in the design. The marker allows for dragging the word wrap length to any position before entering text.

– For new text labels, the last used braille table is selected. To avoid confusion, after closing and relaunching TactileView, your main table will now be used for new text labels instead of the last used table in your previous design session.

– Other text label improvements: empty labels are removed automatically; the position in the design is more stable when editing the word wrap length; you can use Ctrl+Home and Ctrl+End to navigate to the beginning and end of a label.

– The purple markers on the corners of the design have been removed, as all functionality is already available with the remaining purple markers on the sides and blue marker on the lower right corner.

– Importing svg images has been improved to extend the range of supported elements.

– The status of the right-up marker (enabled or disabled) will now be saved in TactileView designs.

– The drawing tools in the left vertical toolbar can now be activated with keyboard shortcuts. The list of shortcut keys can also be edited via Settings > Keyboard shortcuts. See: Keyboard shortcuts.

– The Shift key can be used for accurate positioning of objects and text labels by moving them only horizontally or vertically; in the new release, this will also include diagonal movement (i.e. the positioning can thus be restricted to multiples of 45 degrees). This also works for moving individual anchor points in polygon or path objects.

– The table object has been revised, whereby adding or removing rows/columns has been simplified and menu driven design for tables has been improved.

– The line textures for objects have been improved to give better tactile results as well as a more convenient line style dialog.

Printing aspects

– Important: Duxbury Braille Translator (DBT) requires a service update in order to support the Index V4 and V5 with high resolution graphics. Selecting ‘Check for Updates’ from the Help menu in DBT will bring you to the required updates (under Supplemental Downloads).

– Support for the Brailletec Puma, as well as the ViewPlus EmBraille and Columbia embossers has been added.

– Variable relief height has been clarified when a document is opened with an embosser selected that does not support different dot heights.

– Printer driver installation (File > Install braille printer) has been simplified to include clear instructions for all supported embosser models.

– The method of positioning of the braille dots for the range of Index embossers has been revised. The resolution has been doubled (from 50 to 100 DPI) and the algorithm has been enhanced. This has resulted in a higher accuracy for the tactile graphics produced on an Index embosser.

– Paper tearing that occurred with Index embossers has also been addressed. This happened mostly in designs with thicker lines, causing the braille dots to overlap. This weakens the paper and causes it to tear. By revising the dot placement algorithm, this has now been significantly improved.

– Designs were previously rotated unintentionally when printing on 11,5×11 inch paper. This has been fixed in this release by limiting the orientation of designs to portrait for this specific paper size, as the 0.5 inch difference in height and width is negligible.

– The printable area for the 8.5*12 inch paper size has been decreased slightly to avoid the printing of a blank sheet as part of the document.

– Index has released an important new version of the firmware for their V4 embossers; see the Index website for download and instructions. Make sure to update your V4 embosser, as this release solves a number of printing issues that also had their effect in TactileView:
• The printable area for the 8.5*12 inch paper size has been decreased slightly to avoid the printing of a blank sheet as part of the document.
• When printing a design on A4 or , ‘Error 213’ could occur; this has now been solved. TactileView also provides a temporary solution for V4 embossers to avoid this error when the firmware has not been updated yet.

Bug fixes

– Altitude lines in triangles will always be shown, even for obtuse triangles, when selected.

– Empty formula labels are no longer shown above graphs.

– The order of the values along the axis of an empty mathematical grid has been fixed.

– Some problems when launching TactileView without internet access solved.

– Capital sign in title text label is now displayed correctly in a new document.

– When a text label was selected, the right-up marker could not be operated; this has now been fixed.

– You can now correctly select, overwrite and navigate within text when editing a text label in the design. You can also select text by dragging and selecting with the mouse.

– Some issues with placing or moving the caret to edit a text label have been solved.

– Text label transparency is now retained in a saved document.

– The caret position has become more accurate for editing a rotated text label in the document by double clicking. Please keep in mind that not all embossers support rotated braille text retaining the default distance between the braille dots.

– Drawing a polygon has been improved when the polygon is rotated.

– A number of drawing tools, such as circles and triangles, no longer functioned correctly via ‘Menu driven design’ or the Drawing tools menu; these issues have been fixed. All options for drawing a graph are now also available via ‘Menu driven design’.

– Error when applying filters to an image copied from Microsoft Paint (or any other 24 bit image) has been solved.

– When the text label tool was selected, the braille table could be selected prior to placing a new label. For regular text labels, the braille table did not always match the table that was ultimately used for the label. For labels with braille keyboard input and certain input method for mathematical text labels, braille table selection was not applicable and is no longer shown in the respective properties toolbar.

– The drawing tool ‘Detect shape’ has been improved so the properties such as line style or fill style will be preserved when readjusting the detection criteria.

– The registration procedure has become more efficient and intuitive.

– Text label alignment did not function correctly when the title label was deleted.

– Some drawing tools (Filters, Graph and Import) could not be deselected with the Escape key.

– The output on some embossers for the small ticks along the axes of a graph has been improved.

– The size and position of ‘Letters and digits’-objects will no longer be distorted after saving or scaling the design.

– The default green indicators in a triangle that mark the corners, equivalent angles and right angles are no longer fused when the triangle is fused with the bitmap.

– The Select Area tool has been extensively reworked to improve functionality such as copying, cutting, moving and deleting the elements within the selection.

– When the visibility of the line is set to ‘White line’ or ‘None’, a red dashed line now used for all objects to signify their presence.

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5.06 Measurements grid (object alignment)

The measurements grid is composed of a regular grid of squares that visualize the physical dimensions of your design. This can be used for the alignment of objects in your design.

For a comparison with the braille grid, see: Alignment frame and grids or Braille grid (object alignment).

In the ‘Alignment grids’ settings dialog, you can select the size of the grid squares. The grid settings dialog can be opened by clicking on the light green markers on the righthand side of the screen or via menu Settings > Alignment frame and grids. You can choose from a number of convenient the grid square sizes based on your selected units of measurement, which can be selected in menu Settings > General.

When the alignment frame is enabled, the measurements grid will only be shown within this frame.

Figure 1. Measurements grid shown across the entire design.

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5.07 Braille grid (text alignment)

The braille grid is used to align text labels in a regular grid for consistency and to conform to certain layout guidelines for braille documents.

For a comparison with the measurements grid, see: Alignment grids or Measurements grid (object alignment).

Figure 1. Braille grid shown within the (optional) alignment frame.

Aligning text labels

The braille grid is composed of a regular pattern of cells the size of a braille character. This grid can be used to align text labels in this regular pattern throughout your design. This will ensure all characters are aligned above each other and that the lines of text are evenly spaced in the entire document, as is required in some guidelines for braille documents.

By default, text labels are ‘magnetically’ aligned (snapped) to the braille grid by dragging or placing the label with its edges close to the grid lines. Dashed green lines will indicate when the text label is aligned to the grid. You can switch off the alignment in the Alignment grids settings dialog by deselecting ‘Align text labels to grid’ or by disabling alignment in the context menu of a text label. Any text labels that extend beyond the edge of the braille grid are automatically resized to fit within the grid area.

The lines and characters in each line are numbered along the sides of the braille grid. By default, the title label is placed at character 1 of line 1.

Figure 1. Green dashed lines indicate the text label is aligned in the braille grid.

Braille cell size

The size of a braille character has been standardized, but not all braille embossers have a printing resolution that allows text to be embossed exactly matching this standard size. The grid cells on screen will represent the true size of the embossed braille characters. A red exclamation mark at the top left corner of the braille grid will notify you when the size of the embossed braille will differ from the standardized braille size.

The size of the grid cells will also be automatically adjusted when an 8 dot braille table is selected as the main braille table of the document.

Figure 2. A red exclamation mark near the top left corner of the grid signifies the braille cells have a non-standard size.

Additional line spacing

You can choose to use extra line spacing between lines of text throughout the document. For example, a value of 0.5 will add an empty space of half the height of a braille character between two lines of text. This line spacing is visible on screen in the braille grid.

This can be selected by clicking on the light green markers on the left hand side between text lines 2 and 3. Alternatively, the value can be changed in the grid settings dialog or by selecting ‘Additional line spacing’ from the properties toolbar or context menu of a selected text label.

Additional line spacing adds white space between lines of text in the braille grid and text labels.

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