Every time I pull out my BrailleNote Touch Plus, I’m reminded of how pitifully stagnated blindness-related products are compared to mainstream systems. Turns out I can no longer install Box because HumanWare has backed themselves into a corner and will not be updating past Android 8.1. This would not be a big deal… except for the fact that it’s the only #Braille display I have at the moment, and literally every BRF file I need at Eastman is stored in Box.
#Blind #LowVision #VisuallyImpaired #BlindMasto #BlindMastodon #BlindFedi @mastoblind @main
@NoahCarver @main I agree. This is why I haven’t bought, or used, a blindness related product other than stand-alone braille displays for a bit longer than fifteen years now. It’s almost by the necessity of the case that they will not be upgraded, will cost a huge amount to upgrade, will not work well with newer technology even if they are upgraded… I don’t even blame the manufacturers, they just don’t want to spend the money to keep up and financially, that almost makes sense. I just don’t want the headache anymore and, with braille displays, I don’t get it. There are units from the 90s still working with the latest software. I don’t think you could say the same about note taking/book reading/internet access products.
@mastoblind @main Today, I learned that the BrailleNote Touch Plus also does not support drives formatted as exFAT. Why is this a big deal, you ask? Because the external drive which holds a synchronized copy of my Box folder is formatted as exFAT, and I can’t reformat it as FAT32 without fiddling around in Powershell. Wonderful. Just wonderful. /s
PS: The extreme irony is that the Mantis Q40, which is also manufactured by Humanware, handles this drive with no problems whatsoever.
@NoahCarver @mastoblind @main Wait, it doesn’t support XFAT? Why not? Android 4.4+ supports XFAT. I guess they block them at an OEM level, but that still begs the question, why? KeyWord and such should never have to directly interface with those drivers. The more and more time that goes on, the more tempted I am to attempt to flash a custom rom on mine.
@TheQuinbox @mastoblind @main Unfortunately, I do not have the answers. All I know is that I cannot plug-in an exfat drive. When I plug it in, I’m prompted to format it as fat 32.
@NoahCarver @mastoblind @main That really sucks. It’s totally inexcusable for the device to be stuck on such an old version. You shouldn’t need such workarounds, but is it possible to sideload apps from APK files? One of those third party APK sites might have an older version that supports your OS.
@NoahCarver @main @mastoblind too bad you can’t get the boot loader unlocked
@evilcookies98 @NoahCarver @main @mastoblind Furthermore, the upgrade path from the Apex or older wasn’t smooth to say the least. For example, if you had KWB or KWT documents that you wanted on your Touch, there wasn’t any way to convert them into a mainstream format if you didn’t have access to any of the older BrailleNote models. Also, putting the software on an SD card without providing a way to re image the card if it got corrupted was a frankly stupid decision.
@main @mastoblind @NoahCarver @datajake1999 I am in total agreement. I almost got my hands on an empower recently but the job I thought I got turned out to be a scam, so I couldn’t buy it.
@evilcookies98 @main @mastoblind @NoahCarver That really sucks. The mPower was one of the best BrailleNote models in my opinion.
@datajake1999 @main @mastoblind @NoahCarver I want one of those and a BrailleSense u2. I don’t want them for any practical reason. I just want to play. I’m a nerd at heart and I like to mess around with older gadgets for fun. That would explain the Trekker breeze sitting over here.
@evilcookies98 @main @mastoblind @NoahCarver That is me, otherwise I wouldn’t have 2 mPower’s, a PAC Mate Omni, and a bunch of other random tech I acquired over the years.
@datajake1999 @evilcookies98 @main @mastoblind @NoahCarver there is a set of 3 on ebay right now for $99 total, only one Ac cable, and no info on if they work beyond turning on.
@dhamlinmusic @evilcookies98 @main @mastoblind @NoahCarver That is a great deal, considering how much those units cost when they were new. I wonder what version of KeySoft they are running, and if they contain junk from previous users. Let me tell you, some friends of mine have found some really hilarious things on some of these devices.
