Transcription or design? The most common misconception about braille origination is that it is simply a matter of pressing a button and letting the braille transcription software do its work. The complexity of the original text and braille convention means that the work doesn't start and end there. Here are some of the things we do at Pia when we originate a document .
Before we start …
Headings: We check the headings throughout the print document to see how many levels of heading exist, i.e. the hierarchy. This helps us decide how to apply headings in the braille document to meet with braille convention.
Contents: Sometimes, the braille version of a document will need a contents page even if there isn't one in the print version. We assess the document to decide this before transcription.
Print page numbers: We assess the purpose of the document and decide whether the braille reader needs the print page numbers shown in the braille version, for example, when the document is to be used in a communal situation or when there is an extensive index. Diagrams: Diagrams in the print version are not always necessary to understanding the text, so we assess each diagram. We then advise the customer either about words to replace the diagram or about providing a tactile diagram in the braille version.
Tables: We assess each table in the print version and decide how it should be presented in the braille version.
As we're doing …
Page headers: We insert page headers matching the headings on the contents page.
Notes: We look out for any asterisks in the print or footnotes at the bottom of pages and edit them appropriately.
Speech marks: If the print version has only single speech marks throughout, braille convention is to use double speech marks.
Special coding: Website and email addresses and mathematical symbols require special braille coding – we identify these in the print version and ensure that the special coding is correct.
Emphasis: Print documents often use various methods to emphasise particular words or phrases. We assess the use of emphasis in the document and the different types used and then use appropriate methods in the braille version where necessary.
Non-standard or ambiguous coding: There are many instances where software cannot interpret the print accurately. One example is the abbreviation of compact disc, 'CD'. Without intervention, the braille is transcribed as 'COULD'. Another example is, 'IT' for information technology. This is transcribed as the capitalised word 'it' without intervention. We check for these and many other cases of non-standard or ambiguous coding.
Formatting: We edit the document to ensure that paragraph indentations and numbering and bullets conform to braille convention.
Individual letters: Where individual letters have more than one interpretation (e.g., 'a' is either the letter 'a' or the word 'a' and these are shown differently in braille, or the letter 'i' can be used as just the letter or as a Roman numeral), we edit the braille according to the meaning in the print.
Modify language: We take lots of care about modifying text that is inappropriate for braille users. For instance, where a leaflet contains a form to be completed.
Telephone numbers: We intervene to ensure that telephone numbers are brailled with number signs instead of blank spaces.
And finally … Page breaks: We make sure that braille page breaks appear in appropriate places. Page numbers: We insert the correct braille page number in the contents page. Page referencing: Where there are page references in the text, we ensure that they refer to the correct page. All of this ensures that we supply the best quality braille documents possible. But is it transcription or design…?
|