Editing and Printing Graphics as a Blind User

Mike Sivill is a blind employee here at ViewPlus Technologies. This is what he had to say about how he used a Tiger embosser to see the coloration of his new dog guide! Read along to see how easy it is for a blind person to emboss a graphic!

"I just got my new dog guide about a month ago. The training school sent me her picture so I could show my friends and family what she looks like. I wanted to emboss a copy for myself on my Tiger embosser, so I brought up a new Word document and brought the picture into it via the Insert menu. I checked the dimensions of the picture first to be sure it would fill up the page. I hit shift + left arrow to select it, pressed the key to open the context menu, and arrowed down to "format picture." Next, I arrowed left to the "size" tab and noticed that the dimensions were only 3.35 by 3.99. I didn't want a tiny 4 by 4 inch picture because I wanted it to be as large as possible to feel as much as I could, but I didn't want to warp the dimensions of the picture in the process. To do this, I tabbed down to the edit boxes where height and width are adjustable by percentage and I upped it to 200%. When I shift tabbed back to the dimension they were 6.71" and 7.98", pretty good, for 8-1/2 by 11 paper. Since this was fine I hit OK and went back into the main Word document. When I printed it came out like a giant black square. It felt like a napkin pattern rather than a German Shepherd dog. To solve this issue, I went back to the "format picture" dialog and I changed the contrast on the Format tab to 85%. That was so much better! When I printed it out that time I could feel her big pointy ears, her legs and even the coloration of her head, which, of course, I can't feel on the actual dog. It was exciting to be able to see this part of her with my fingers after hearing about it from other people. Awesome!"

– Mike Sivill

Announcing Everyday Braille Solutions

We have recently introduced our Everyday Braille Solutions. These braille packages include everything from the printer, paper, translation software, and even customized on-site training! The on-site trainings are perfect for any organization because a ViewPlus expert visits your site and custom-tailors the workshop to teach your organization how to make braille graphics and documents fast and easy.

There are four different packages. The first is the "Beginning Braille Aid," and is specific for teachers or employers who have a new blind employee or student. The next package, "Math Made Simple," is for math teachers who need to produce materials in an accessible format. The third package, "Inclusive Tactile Learning," includes the IVEO Hands-on Learning System to make any tactile graphic accessible through touch, sound, and sight. Finally, "Office Production Assistant," provides options for any production job - whether you need double-sided braille, ink and braille only, or both!

The variety of packages offered by ViewPlus will ensure that every braille need is met. To find out everything that is included in each package visit the ViewPlus website!