TactileView - Look and feel, feel and look.

TactileView program

To participate in this program, you have to be in the possession of TactileView software and to have access to the internet. If you apply we will send you the software by e-mail. This gives you unlimited access to the catalog. You need a Braille printer or swell paper with heater to print images. In the next section, we have added detailed information on the TactileView drawing program.

TactileView: a world of differences- differences in the world

For the blind and partially sighted, there will always be a (small) gap between visual and non-visual perception. The intervention of a translator/ designer who is familiar with a number of preconditions and is willing to register the visual world in a two-dimensional world is of great value.

From image through design to product

Using TactileView, a designer can process a visual, digital image. The resulting image is stored in the catalog and is available to viewers on screen as well as in printable form. The finished product has been achieved when the reader has printed a tactile image that he himselves can read.

Starting off

TactileView software supports users with a number of products:

The manual describes the technical details of the software.
Basic knowledge is needed in order to know which processes are possible or necessary in order to design a meaningful tactile product. A special step-by-step program is available for this purpose to help with designing.
Instructions and advice have been provided to help designers produce the best images possible.
The process of designing can be simplified by using tips and tricks in certain areas

How to use the design program

This section describes a summary of the steps required for the efficient production of a 'meaningful’ design. These steps will be useful to designers and merely provide background information for other readers.

Always consult the catalog first!

Select a design
Translate text labels if necessary
Download an image from the catalog

Copying images from internet

from clipboard (context menu: copy)
PDF file (random picture, cut-out by mouse)
Full screen image: shift-print screen

Images in TactileView

open from file menu
from clipboard

Matching image size, design size and paper size

Reduction and processing using filters

remove specific color (whitening)
black and white, or contours
contrast
line thickness

Touch-up and drawing

erasing
drawing lines, figures, and dots

Enrichment by adding drawing objects, sometimes including texture

Explanation using text labels

Explanation using visual elements (stamps)

Available for all users

storing the design
synchronizing the classification of the catalog
uploading to the internet catalog

Design production

printing on swell paper or Braille paper
ordering
tele-printing

Design software functionality for designer and reader

The main component of the system is the internet catalog. Everyone who has purchased TactileView can print the designs from the catalog. The user can select an image and print it on a Braille printer or swell paper. If the catalog doesn’t contain a certain subject, users can ask a designer to specifically design this image for them.

In the program menus several functions have been brought together to enable designers to process existing images or create new images. Designers can also draw free-hand or include geometrical shapes. No knowledge of Braille is required in order to use this software.

System requirements

The TactileView software runs under Windows 98, 2000 and XP. When compressed, the system uses 3Mb. During installation several folders will be made, including Braille, texture, and stamp files.

Click on Contact to order the program.

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