The Duxbury Braille Translator Producer’s Manual For the Production of Unified English Braille in Australia and New Zealand (2011) is intended as an accompaniment to the Duxbury Braille Translator (DBT) software application. The manual was been written with specific reference to DBT versions 10.6, 10.7 and 11.1, but much of the content will also be applicable to earlier and later versions of DBT.
DBT is designed to suit the needs of braille publishers worldwide and as such supports a wide variety of languages, translation codes and formatting requirements. Published by the Round Table on Information Access for People with Print Disabilities, this manual has been written specifically for use in Australia and New Zealand, for the production of Unified English Braille, in accordance with our local standards for formatting.
The manual is available as a free download using the links below. Hard copies are available for purchase through the Round Table.
- Print version (pdf 1MB)
- Word version (doc 2MB)
- Large print versions 18pt as text & pdf (zip 2MB)
- Electronic braille BRF files for embossing or to read directly on a braille display (brf zip 75kb)
- Duxbury Braille Translator version (dxp zip 30kb)
Updates
Since the publication of the DBT Producers Manual, Duxbury have released DBT 12.1 and 12.2 is now in beta testing. Please note the following changes to the software and recommendations for its use in Australia.
DBT 12.2
DBT 12.2 and its subsequent service release were launched in in 2017.
This document gives a summary of the most important changes and improvements to how DBT translates files and recommendations for its use for Australian formatting. It is an important addendum to the 2011 DBT Producer’s Manual.
- DBT 12.2 updates – print version (PDF)
- DBT 12.2 updates – braille version (BRF, 32 cells per line)
Please contact us if you are aware of any further changes that have been made or improvements that are required.
Appendix 3 – dashes
Initial style: [vrn~ida] code is no longer functional, meaning that dashes cannot be entered directly in DBT as two hyphens or a hyphen surrounded by two spaces. Instead, a dash can be entered through the code list (F5), then select d for dash. ABA recommends that dashes should be unspaced from the surrounding text.
Appendix 6 – Styles in the English (UEB) – Australian Formatting Template
This updated appendix relates to the English (UEB) – Australian Formatting Template distributed with DBT 12.2 sr1.
- DBT Appendix 6 update – print version (PDF)
- DBT Appendix 6 update – braille version (BRF, 32 cell page width)
ABA workshop on formatting with the Duxbury Braille Translator
2017 Round Table Conference
The Australian Braille Authority’s workshop at the 2017 Round Table Conference focused on how to achieve Australian braille fomatting using the Australian template in the Duxbury Braille Translator. Thanks are extended to Kathy Riessen for running this informative session.
- ABA Workshop 2017 – formatting with DBT (.docx)
- ABA Workshop 2017 – formatting with DBT (PDF)
- ABA Workshop 2017 – formatting with DBT (BRF)
The Australian Braille Authority is a subcommittee of the Round Table on Information Access for People with a Print Disability Inc.