Author: Matthew Horspool

From Duxbury: Announcing DBT 15.1

DBT 15.1 for Windows and DBT 15.1 for Mac are now available.

Please read below for what is new in DBT 15.1:

eBraille Support

  • DBT 15.1 supports export of eBraille files from braille documents.
  • Command line support for eBraille conversion is included, using a new /ebrl command line switch.

Other Exporter Improvements

  • Formatted braille files may be saved in Unicode Braille Patterns encoding.

Accessibility

  • JAWS voicing of the translated line while editing large braille files is better-synchronized to what is shown on a connected braille display.

Importers

  • An arbitrary size limitation within DBT has been lifted, allowing for importing larger .docx files.
  • The .docx importer now adds a hard space after the function name for a math function.
  • The .docx importer will now recognize both old and new definitions of Red, as well as similar custom colors.
  • Problems placing images using TactileView 3 have been corrected.

Editing and User Interface

  • When hiding codes on the translated line, DBT will hide even codes at the end of the line.
  • The status line display is more reliable about leaving sufficient width to show text.
  • Several codes have been added to the Codes List dialog.

Language Support

  • The English/Unified (UEB) print-to-braille translation table (file enuncp.btb, now version 16;4 260707) has been updated to suppress the contraction “con” in the word “cons” in most instances, excepting only certain cases where the immediate context makes clear that “cons” is a formal or informal abbreviation of a longer word where “con” would be contracted, e.g. “ex-cons” (short for “ex-convicts”). This is an effort to more commonly comply with RUEB 2024 section 10.6.4.
  • DBT now includes an updated version of the BANA Template for Microsoft® Word™: BANA Braille 2026. Both >English (UEB) – BANA DBT templates and the style map file for them are updated as well.
  • The Urdu (Pakistan) print-to-braille translation table (file urdpcp.btb, now version 5;3 260310) has been updated to fix some reported errors.

Full details of DBT release history are available on the Duxbury Systems website.

To check if you are eligible for a free update to DBT 15.1 or to see an estimated update price quote please open your current DBT version and go to Help/Check for Updates in the menus.

To get an official price quote please contact [email protected] or your AT dealer.

From APH: Announcing BrailleBlaster 3.2.3

I am pleased to announce the release of BrailleBlaster 3.2.3. For most users BrailleBlaster should update to this latest version. Should you find BrailleBlaster does not auto-update for you, then as usual you may download this release at the brailleblaster.org website. Below is a copy of the release notes outlining what has changed in this release.

BrailleBlaster 3.2.3 Release Notes

Welcome to Brailleblaster 3.2.3. This release has improvement to the ASCII Math Hub and a couple other bug fixes and improvements

Bug Fixes and Improvements
  • Improved NIMAS file loading.
  • Braille changes made in the ASCII Math Hub guided by user feedback.
  • Able to apply emphasis with the cursor in the middle of a word using keystrokes CTRL+B, CTRL+U, CTRL+I, and SHIFT+ALT+S.

From MAWINGU: Tactile Screen NVDA Add-on

This addon mirrors the computer screen on a DotPad graphical area.

Copyright and License

This add-on is copyright (C) 2026 MAWINGU. This add-on is licensed under the GNU General Public License version 2. The image processing is based on the DotPad prototype add-on created by Michael curran [email protected].

Key Commands

  • control+NVDA+f8: Open connection dialog.
  • NVDA+f8: Displays the screen at the upper left corner of the navigator object, pressed twice will track the navigator object.
  • shift+NvDA+f8: Displays the screen around the mouse pointer, pressed twice will track the mouse pointer.
  • NVDA+Escape: Stops tracking and automatic refresh.

Image processing details

The add-on captures the part of the screen that matches the current zoom level and the coordinates of the navigator object, mouse pointer or the current panned position. The size of the view viewport is a multiple of the graphical area of the connected device. If the image is expected to be black on white, it tries to keep black pixels at the expense of white pixels, and the opposite for white on black. this ensures that thin lines are not removed when shrinking. As the dotpad can only show a monochrome image (I.e. raised dots for white, no dots for black), a suitable threshold must be found to choose how bright something should be to be classed as white. this add-on currently uses a very basic local mean threshold approach where by the average brightness is calculated for a block of 7 by 7 pixels around the pixel in question, and then this value is used as the threshold. this approach ensures that changes can be shown even if lighting changes across the image.

Visit the GitHub repository

From AT Guys: Braille Apps 0.9 for Dot Pad and the Web

Added the 23 Bricks game. Thanks to Ka Li for the idea.

Added a vibration test to Hardware Test.

Expanded difficulty choices to Easy, Medium, and Expert across Chess, Checkers, Connect 4, Tic Tac Toe, and Minesweeper.

Corrected chess square notation and improved tactile piece alignment.

Unified browser and Dot Pad help content and renamed shortcut help to Commands.

Improved the timing and stability of Blingo result sounds.

Visit Braille Apps on the AT Guys website

Extra Braille Bar Today

Due to unforeseen circumstances, we are offering an additional Braille Bar session this week in lieu of a Masterclass.

No question is too small, from kit to code – just ask and our experts will assist you!

Register for the Braille Bar

Or, to join by phone, use these details:

  • Phone number: 0131 460 1196
  • Meeting ID: 880 3508 8878
  • Passcode: 123456

The Global Braille Survey is now open!

We are delighted to announce that the Global Braille Survey is now open!

As part of the Global Braille Literacy Campaign – More Braille: More Empowerment – the survey provides an important opportunity for people around the world to share their experiences and perspectives on braille literacy.

Led by the International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment (ICEVI), the World Blind Union (WBU), and collaborating organisations and individuals, this global research initiative aims to strengthen our understanding of how braille is learned, taught, accessed and used – and of the factors that enable or create barriers to braille literacy.

Who can participate?

We warmly invite responses from:

  • Adults aged 18 years and over who are blind, have low vision, or are deafblind;
  • Parents and guardians of children of any age who are blind, have low vision, or are deafblind;
  • Teachers and other professionals involved in braille education; and
  • Braille transcribers.

Share your experience – Take the Global Braille Survey:

tiny.cc/braillesurvey

When you follow the above link, you will first be invited to select your preferred language, then review the informed consent information, and then complete a short set of questions to determine which survey or surveys are relevant to you.

If you are eligible for more than one survey – for example, if you are both an adult braille user and a braille transcriber – you are welcome to contribute from each perspective. Simply complete one survey and then return to the link when you are ready to complete another.

The survey is available in multiple languages

We are delighted that the Global Braille Survey is already available in a growing range of languages, helping to make it possible for more people around the world to participate.

The survey is currently available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Hindi, Hungarian, Russian, Slovak, and Spanish.

Italian and Portuguese translations are awaiting verification, and we hope to make these languages available in the near future.

We also warmly welcome offers to assist with translations into additional languages so that the survey can reach an even wider range of countries, communities and language groups. If you have any questions about the survey, or would like to offer assistance with an additional language translation, please contact [email protected].

Why does your participation matter?

Every response adds to our global understanding of braille literacy. The findings will help build a stronger evidence base to inform advocacy, policy, research, resources and practice, and to support efforts to strengthen access to braille literacy around the world.

Please help us spread the word

We want to hear from people across countries, regions, languages and communities.

Please share the Global Braille Survey widely through your organisations, professional and community networks, and directly with braille users, families, educators, professionals and transcribers who may wish to participate.

By sharing the survey widely – including with communities using the languages in which the survey is now available – you can help us hear from as broad and diverse a range of participants as possible.

Every experience matters. Every perspective adds to the evidence. Every voice can help strengthen the future of braille literacy.

Thank you for being part of this important global effort.

Global Braille Survey Update, 31 August 2026 – More Than 1000 Responses and Growing

We are delighted to share an encouraging update on the survey, which is a major initiative of the Global Braille Literacy Campaign – More Braille: More Empowerment.

More than 1000 surveys have now been completed!

This is a wonderful early response. We extend our sincere thanks to everyone who has already participated in the survey and to those who have helped promote it through their organisations, networks and braille communities.

A detailed snapshot taken on 25 August, when 637 surveys had been completed, demonstrates the growing global reach of the initiative:

  • Respondents represented 49 countries and territories.
  • Surveys had been completed in nine languages: English, Spanish, Slovak, German, Russian, French, Hungarian, Simplified Chinese and Hindi.
  • 442 responses (69.4%) were from adults who are blind, have low vision, or are deafblind.
  • 107 responses (16.8%) were from teachers and educational professionals.
  • 74 responses (11.6%) were from braille transcribers.
  • 14 responses (2.2%) were from parents and caregivers.

While we are greatly encouraged by this response, we want to hear from many more people, across many more countries and communities. We particularly welcome your help in reaching braille users, families, educators, professionals and transcribers whose experiences and perspectives may not yet be represented.

Who can participate?

The Global Braille Survey welcomes responses from:

  • Adults aged 18 and over who are blind, have low vision, or are deafblind;
  • Parents and guardians of children of any age who are blind, have low vision, or are deafblind;
  • Teachers and other professionals involved in braille education, including retired professionals who have taught braille; and
  • Braille transcribers.

Take the Global Braille Survey

https://tiny.cc/braillesurvey

The survey is currently available in Arabic, Czech, Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Hindi, Hungarian, Italian, Nepali Unicode, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak and Spanish.

For people who have difficulty accessing or completing the online survey because of poor internet connectivity, alternative arrangements are available. Please contact [email protected] or [email protected].

Watch and share the Global Braille Survey launch webinar

The recording of our August 2026 webinar introducing the survey and explaining its purpose is available on YouTube:

You can also share our Instagram post promoting the survey:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DckyMFMNuCa/?igsi=MWNoMmZ6dzdzb2s1dw==

We would greatly appreciate your continued support in sharing the survey and webinar recording through your organisations, professional networks and braille communities.

Every response helps us build a stronger global evidence base about how braille is learned, taught, accessed and used, as well as the factors that enable braille literacy or create barriers to it. The findings will help inform future advocacy, policy, research, resources and practice.

Every experience matters. Every perspective adds to the evidence. Every voice can help strengthen the future of braille literacy.

Thank you for helping us build a truly global picture of braille literacy.