Bringing eBraille to Everyone with Duxbury

Looking to the future of eBraille on the Monarch, it is impossible to consider the implementation of this new file type without the support of Duxbury Systems. The use of eBraille files on refreshable displays like the Monarch offer an innovative new way to read braille. eBraille files allow users to read text and tactile graphics alongside one another in the same document, fitting seamlessly between display sizes.  

While the transcription of braille is detail oriented and time-consuming, the use of eBraille would eventually allow for remote corrections, and an easy transition between displays. Instead of re-transcribing a textbook for a student because they require a different display size, the same file can be used for any braille reader. Overall, the use of eBraille will not only be able to revolutionize the ease of user experience, but it will cut down significantly on the time to fingertips for braille users.  

Thanks to the support of Duxbury Systems, the switch to eBraille should be simple. “eBraille does not change the rules of braille, the rules of translation and formatting are the same as they’ve always been,” said Willow Free, an APH Technical Product Manager. “Thanks to these changes, if you know how to use Duxbury, you basically know how to make eBraille.” 

Duxbury Systems is the leading braille production software in the world, supported by 180 languages and utilized by most braille publishers in and outside of the United States. Having the opportunity to provide such dynamic files without the need to relearn braille transcription will make it much easier to integrate these files moving forward.  

David Holladay, a creator of braille software and Duxbury employee, was a major supporter of APH’s creation of eBraille from the beginning. Before his passing and because of his passion for braille, David attended meetings from the hospital and worked to further the partnership between Duxbury and APH to ensure eBraille was easily available. His wife, Caryn Navy, also a developer and Duxbury employee, still attends the working group meetings and offers invaluable contributions to the discussions and the specification itself. “If Duxbury hadn’t supported eBraille, we really wouldn’t have had any hope of this standard taking off,” said Willow.  

Duxbury Systems released a beta testing version of their eBraille support this past week and are hoping to release a more complete version later this year. As eBraille becomes publicly available, APH is dedicated to providing training for users in webinars, APH Hive courses, and more.  

To learn more about eBraille, view our other blogs on this topic here.