On 2013-04-09 17:06 +0100, Pranav Lal wrote:
Is it possible to use Braille labels in inkscape? Is there a way to import Braille fonts? I have vector diagrams that I need to Braille label. See an example at https://dl.dropbox.com/u/3688386/drawing%207.svg
Inkscape includes an extension to convert (ASCII) letters (A-Z, a-z) to Braille ASCII: http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/Extensions-Text.html#Extensions-ConvertToBraille
*** Note: unfortunately the version shipping with Inkscape 0.48.3.1 and 0.48.4 is broken - 0.48.5 will include a fix, as do current development builds.
If converting ASCII text to Braille ASCII is sufficient for your needs, you can replace the broken python file in your Inkscape installation [2] with the attached updated version (it includes the fix, as well as the remaining Braille ASCII glyphs not included in the original version).
I'm also attaching a sample SVG file with all glyphs available in Braille ASCII [1]: the Braille version of the text has been converted to paths (to not depend on fonts available on your system) - for better readability, I did use the font 'Apple Braille', which shows empty circles to indicate dots that are not punched.
Note: on Windows, you'll need to install a font which includes the Braille Unicode Glyphs, e.g. DejaVu Sans [3], and use that font for the text to be shown in Braille. On other systems (Linux, OS X), font substitution will work in case the font of the text does not include the Unicode Braille glyphs, and substitute the Braille glyphs from a matching (fallback) font.
hth, ~suv
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braille_ASCII#Braille_ASCII_values [2] On Windows, the shared extensions are installed in 'share\extensions' inside Inkscape's program folder [3] http://dejavu-fonts.org/
