Re: On the Optacon buzz + some venting
- From: "Sharlene Wills" <tenagra@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <optacon-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 19 Oct 2006 20:10:37 -0700
Actually, Linda, foreign language braille has more than just special
symbols. The same six dots are used but, except for the stand-alone
alphabet letters (and even there, there is some change) all contractions,
etc, denote different words, combinations of letters etc. So, if you wanted
to learn Portugese and Portugese braille, you would, in effect, be learning
two languages, or, at least one language and another shorthand. And you're
right; most transcribers, here, at least, wouldn't know the Portugese
braille.
I taught myself a lot of German braille by reading fairytales. You start
with the standard, "Once upon a time" or its equivalent and go from there.
It was tedious but do-able. It wasn't until I had a good headstart that I
got a German braille workbook. And this is off topic, so to legitimize, as
it were, this email, I'll just say (as I have, once before) that I was given
private Optacon lessons by one of TSI's licensed instructors. She came to
my home, and I remember the tears roling down my face in joy, as I read my
first page! I even cried when I read an address and phone number from the
telephone directory!
Sharlene.
P.S. I don't believe I've ever had a brand-new optacon, although I could be
wrong. I bought my first from a guy I'd known since nursery school. He was
working for NASA at the time, but couldn't work with the optacon at all (he
never read braille very well, either, but that, I think, was due more to the
fact that he always had sighted readers than anything else). Anyway, he
gave me a very good deal on his optacon, which was barely used, and I still
have it.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Linda Gehres" <ljgehres@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <optacon-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thursday, October 19, 2006 12:11 PM
Subject: Re: On the Optacon buzz + some venting
> Hi Fran,
>
> Best of luck with your class in Portugese. I would imagine that there are
> special Braille signs in each language, and that few transcribers would
know
> how to accurately braille foreign languages ... but perhaps that's where a
> computer program such as Duxbury would come into play. I used to write
> print notes in school all the time ... that is, notes to sighted friends.
> The only handwriting I can do is my name, but at one time I could write
both
> uppercase and lower case print letters very well. I've not had a need to
do
> it in years, though, so I am out of practice. Like anything else, the
> memorization of the print shapes and the ability to write with pen or
pencil
> takes practice.
>
> Linda G.
>
>
>
>
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