Hi, Could the article's source link be shared? Thanks. On 5/13/15, sanjay <sanjaylpra...@yahoo.co.in> wrote: > taken from the Braille monitor, February 2015. > > Digital Braille Versus Paper Braille > by Christian Coudert > > From the Editor: Christian Coudert is the editor in chief of the > Louis Braille magazine (Paris, France). He has done some interesting > research about the reading of Braille from paper and from refreshable > Braille displays. Some of the findings from his study are surprising and > may provide helpful guidance for those considering whether to purchase a > refreshable display or a Braille notetaker and how many cells it should > have. We have removed parts of the article that describe how to simulate > the tests done in reaching these results and have tried to smooth a few > rough edges that resulted from translation of this article from French to > English. Here is what he says: > > Let me recount how I came up with the idea of writing this article: > since I have had a Braille notetaker, I have gradually given up reading on > paper, preferring electronic Braille. However, without taking the trouble > to check it, I have always been convinced that reading on paper must > unquestionably be much more effective. Indeed, whereas both hands can be > used for reading on paper (the left hand reading the next line while the > right hand ends the current line), this method cannot be applied to > paperless Braille because you have to press a navigation button on the > device to display the text below once you have finished reading the content > of the Braille display. Another preconception has always led me to think > that the more Braille cells we have (up to a point), the faster our reading > speed will be. > In order to check the validity of these assumptions, I decided to > perform an experiment with a panel of volunteer readers. This study does > not claim to be scientific. To have true scientific validity, it would have > been necessary to select a group of readers and have each of them read the > same texts during several timed sessions, assign everyone the same > electronic equipment, and refine the results, taking into account each > reader's age and length of Braille experience. However, the number of > readers involved and the number of reading sessions undertaken enable us to > draw what we believe to be objective conclusions that would likely be > confirmed by other studies. > Before getting into the details of the study, let me make it clear > that I do not write with the purpose of promoting one reading mode over > another. All reading systems are complementary; each person chooses the > system that suits him or her, based on factors such as fixed location or > travelling, the availability of various formats for a given title, > budgetary constraints, and so on. It is also true that a large majority of > sighted readers who use digital tablets do not use them exclusively, seeing > no need to give up paper and generally seeing no need to decide which > method is better-they let the content and other factors determine how they > will read. > There is no doubt that a Braille reader must first master reading on > paper to understand fully the concepts of pages and paragraphs and enjoy > the benefits of the various layouts used in this medium (title centering, > line breaks, paragraphs, lists, and poetry layout). On a Braille display, > where text blocks of eighteen, twenty, or thirty-two cells follow each > other, most of these markers disappear. Hence, learning Braille, like > learning to write, is best done with a solid background in paper Braille. > For our tests we chose to use Braille notetakers rather than > standalone Braille displays because the notetakers are designed for reading > text, whereas standalone Braille displays are designed for displaying the > contents of computer screens and contain more Braille cells. Readers used > their own equipment, and, when they wished, equipment was lent to them. > When we crunched the numbers after each reader went through several > sessions reading from paper, an eighteen-cell display, and a thirty-two- > cell display, we were a little surprised by what the numbers revealed. Half > of the readers had a slightly faster reading speed on paper than on a > Braille display, but the difference was very small, almost to the point of > insignificance. The difference in reading speed for each individual reader > between his or her fastest and slowest speed was rather low, with the > exception of one reader, who had a difference of thirty-four words per > minute between his fastest and slowest speeds. This indicates that the > reading pace is not fundamentally altered by using a device instead of > paper Braille. > > Strengths of Paper > One achieves a high reading speed and comprehension when reading with > both hands because of the ability to begin reading the next line. Blank > lines can be easily skipped, and knowing the boundaries of a page is easy. > The spatial representation of the page communicates the layout and the > importance of empty lines, indented lists, and other formatting is easily > understood. > > Weaknesses of Paper > With paper Braille, fragility (dots get deleted over time) can become > a barrier to rapid reading. The bulkiness of paper requires significant > space for storage. Size can also make finding a large enough reading space > difficult, especially while traveling. > > Strengths of a Notetaker > Braille in a digital format means the reader has a large number of > works available, whether through books prepared for digital Braille or > books with letter-for-letter presentation which are translated by the > notetaker. The notetaker provides a text-search facility, which partially > offsets the difficulty in skipping multiple pages or finding a page by its > number. Of course one also has the advantage of being able to search for a > wanted word or phrase. The compact size of the notetaker means it can be > used where space is limited, and, since books are stored digitally, the > unit can hold many titles. Our readers made the point that these devices > allow one to read anywhere, including standing in the tube [the mass > transit trains in France]. > > Weaknesses of Reading Braille on Refreshable Braille Displays > One can waste time reading if the text is not properly formatted for > Braille or converted by the translation and formatting programs inside the > display. Reading can be hampered when lines are formatted specifically for > print, contain hyphens to indicate the end of print lines where no such > hyphenation is required on the Braille display, and by the presence of > print page numbers that serve little purpose. Some of the information > conveyed in the printed or the paper Braille is lost when using a Braille > display and can interfere with both reading speed and comprehension. The > Braille display can eliminate information essential in the reading of > tables and Braille music, but for literature these formatting > considerations are less critical. > > Our Findings > This study shows that the average reading speed on paper is > equivalent to that obtained on eighteen-cell notetakers (120 words/minute). > It is slightly higher than that on thirty-two-cell devices (4 percent). The > perception we have of our reading speed is distorted by a set of factors we > were not aware of but which were disclosed by this experiment: the dot > quality on piezoelectric displays largely offsets the disadvantages of a > reading process of real two-handed reading on paper. In addition, > electronic Braille frees the reader from the need to turn paper pages, the > problem that arises when Braille is close to the fold of a magazine or > soft- > bound book, and the problem that results when having so little reading > space means one has no place for the opposing page. > In order for reading with a Braille display to be comfortable and > efficient, it is important to be sitting comfortably and find the position > that lessens or eliminates wrist, upper limb, and back fatigue. Placing the > device flat on a table is not always the best solution. It is also > important to set one's Braille notetaker to maximize its ability to display > given types of information. If knowing about blank lines is not important, > turn on the function which suppresses them. If multiple spaces between > words are not required for understanding the document, turn on the feature > to compress the information and make the most of the cells on the display. > We observe that devices with front panel buttons provide the best ergonomic > experience since scrolling the text with the thumbs is more natural than > pressing a button at the end of a display. > Our study shows that using a display with a larger number of cells > does not necessarily increase the reading speed: fatigue is usually greater > on thirty-two-cell equipment than on those with eighteen or twenty cells > because of the greater movement of the hands which is required. > We have not yet mentioned the observations made by those attempting > to use automatic reading. This function, available on all notetakers, > automatically scrolls the display at a speed determined by the user. We > found that the use of this feature significantly decreases reading speed > because scrolling of the display is based on time rather than on the number > of characters displayed. In cases where the display contains a small amount > of text, perhaps as little as one or two words, much time is wasted waiting > for the next forward movement through the text. Manufacturers should > consider improving this function by seeing that each line contains as much > text as it can accommodate and by speeding up the pace of the forward > movement when fewer characters are displayed. > I would like to thank all the readers who agreed to take part in this > experiment. The results speak for themselves and should encourage Braille > producers to offer more digital books in Braille. Braille readers who > currently use paper should consider adopting refreshable Braille displays > because they offer so much access to the written word, ease of transport, > instant access (no delay waiting for parcels to be delivered), easy > navigation when searching a digitized document, the ability to add markers > for bookmarks on places where one needs to return, and archiving books and > magazines without any deterioration over time and without the significant > amount of space required by their bulk. We sincerely hope the price of > equipment will fall significantly so that more readers around the world can > benefit from them. > I extend my warm thanks to Alain and Brian, who made the translation > from French. > > > Register at the dedicated AccessIndia list for discussing accessibility of > mobile phones / Tabs on: > http://mail.accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/mobile.accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > Search for old postings at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ > > To unsubscribe send a message to > accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in > with the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in > > > Disclaimer: > 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the > person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; > > 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails > sent through this mailing list.. >
-- Warm Regards Bhavya Shah Using NVDA (Non Visual Desktop Access) free and open source screen reader for Microsoft Windows To download a copy of the free screen reader NVDA, please visit http://www.nvaccess.org/ Using Google Talkback on Motorolla G second generation Lollipop 5.0.2 Reach me through the following means: Mobile: +91 7506221750 E-mail id: bhavya.shah...@gmail.com Skype id : bhavya.09 Register at the dedicated AccessIndia list for discussing accessibility of mobile phones / Tabs on: http://mail.accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/mobile.accessindia_accessindia.org.in Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ To unsubscribe send a message to accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list..
