Authoring and ProductionTools

Bruno is an application that generates ready-to-record DAISY filesets (a DAISY project) from valid source document input.

After the generation is complete, the DAISY project can be opened in a DAISY production tool and the audio can be recorded.

Bruno bypasses the "project setup wizard" features that exist in a number of DAISY production tools, and at the same time provides a number of benefits to producers:

• Project generation is fast. Less time is actually required to generate a DAISY project for recording.
• It is easy to use. Getting a valid and nicely synchronized DTB does not require mastering complex techniques or multiple process steps. For example, with Bruno, no MDF editing or customizing is required as can be the case in some project generation wizards.
• Fileset integrity and well-formedness are maintained. Both simple and complex markup are handled equally well.

Dwonload Bruno - Fileset Generator

The DAISY Regenerator is a software tool designed to enable organizations to repair and upgrade existing DAISY 2.0 and 2.02 DTBs.

The tool takes a DAISY 2.0 or 2.02 DTB as input, and performs a series of operations on it in order to output a valid DAISY 2.02 DTB.

Features include:

• Conversion of HTML and SMIL files to valid XML
• Fixes of reoccuring errors and inconsistencies that existed in the output of early versions of production tools
• Ability to rename files sequentially (so that they play in order in MP3 players)

Why use the Regenerator?

• Because the elimination of possible errors will yield a better experience for the end user reading the DAISY 2.02 DTB.
• Because a valid DAISY 2.02 DTB is future safe. Only valid DAISY 2.02 DTBs are guaranteed to be upgradeable to the DAISY 3 standard. In this respect, the Regenerator may be regarded as an organization's "Swiss Army knife" of longevity.

The Regenerator works together with the DAISY 2.02 Validator. After regeneration has been done, the DTB can be automatically validated, to ensure that no errors or inconsistencies remain.

Download DAISY 2.02 Regenerator

DAISY Producer was developed by Christian Egli from the Swiss Library for the Blind and Visually Impaired. It is a system for managing the production process of accessible media. It assumes that users are transforming the content from hard copy or any electronic format to DTBook XML. Once users have the DTBook XML, the DAISY Pipeline and liblouis can be used to generate DAISY Talking Books, Large Print and Braille in a fully automated way. Documentation and download are available on the DAISY Producer website.

For more information, please visit the official website for DAISY Producer.

DAISY Spy is available to Members of the DAISY Consortium. It will scan the file-system for DAISY-projects, collecting useful information about each project during this process. The software will maintain a record for each project and can display the "history" of a project. The Spy is a filter for the project display, so that only projects satisfying various criteria will be displayed. Such criteria can be project size, level of completeness, date of last recording, DAISY format, required meta-data, etc.

By using this software, you can get answers to questions such as:

• are there any projects not being narrated during the last week?
• is a specific narrator(s) involved in any projects at the moment?
• are there any projects that could need a clean-up?
• and more.

DAISY Spy also offers a statistics part, giving numbers for average playback time, production time, project size, number of pages, the ratio of production time to playback time etc, etc, for the current productions, or for the projects completed during the last week, month, or year, etc.

DAISY Spy gives you the answers to questions you did not even think to ask. A beta is available for download now, from the DAISY Spy Website. Contact Per Sennels: per.sennels (at) statped.no.

For more information, please visit the official website for DAISY Spy.

DTB Splitter/Merger is a tool for handling (splitting/merging) multi-volume DTBooks (Digital Talking Books) in DAISY 2.02 or DAISY 3 format.

Download DTB Splitter/Merger

DAISY Members Duxbury Systems, Inc. and Design Science, Inc. have collaborated on Duxbury Braille Translator™ (DBT) version 10.7 with support for direct import of Microsoft Word documents containing mathematical equations created with MathType™. This improvement will allow users to author math with MathType in MS Word and then translate those materials to braille via DBT for Windows.

For information on obtaining MathType, see the description of MathType from Design Science.

For more information, please visit the official website for Duxbury Braille Translator (DBT).

LpStudio/Pro is available to Members of the DAISY Consortium. The software is typically used in larger organizations with text production departments and audio recording departments. It is also usable in a singular context as a stand-alone tool, using the included Structure Editor to create NCC-only structures.

The software provides extensive features when producing full text Digital Talking Books using external source documents. The user has extensive functionality and flexibility when working in recording windows. Two recording screen options are available -- Advanced and Simple.

• Output: Can be used to create NCC-only and full text DTBs.
• Scripts for Jaws for Windows and maps for Supernova are available.
• Requires an external synthesizer.

For more information, please use the Contact Us form, selecting the General category.

Dolphin MAP for LpStudio/Pro

Jaws Scripts for LpStudio/Pro

LpStudio/Pro Official Release Candidate

Structure Editor Launcher

Microsoft Silverlight is a cross-browser, cross-platform implementation of the .NET Framework for building and delivering the next generation of media experiences and rich interactive applications (RIA) for the Web. Silverlight unifies the capabilities of the server, the Web, and the desktop, of managed code and dynamic languages, of declarative and traditional programming, and the power of Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF). Accessibility concepts in Silverlight programming and development can be divided into two areas: accessibility for Silverlight application authors who are using existing controls in their application UI, and accessibility for custom control authors. Read more: Silverlight Accessibility Overview.

Obi is a free software application - audio production tool. Obi brings the benefits of DAISY technology to a broader range of consumers. In situations where time and cost constraints limit the use of sophisticated synchronized multimedia production tools (e.g. classroom environment, people and organizations in developing countries), Obi can unlock the potential of producers and consumers (e.g. teachers and students).

PLEXTALK PTR2 replaced the PTR1 and is designed to be a high quality recorder with the ability to create DAISY 2.02 books with audio, headings and pages, as well as music CDs. It can also play DAISY books, music CDs, Audio File CDs and CF cards. It can be used as a CD-RW or memory card drive when connected to a computer. For quicker and easier editing of DAISY content, the PTR2 is supplied with the PLEXTALK Recording Software (PRS). This package provides all the necessary tools to record, edit and finalize audio DAISY 2.02 books. This portable unit has a built-in microphone and an optional external microphone, providing recording versatility.

For more information, please visit the official website for PLEXTALK Portable Recorder (Model: PTR2).

Microsoft's Word Save as DAISY add-in translates Microsoft Word 2003, 2007 and 2010 documents into DAISY.

The Save as DAISY - Microsoft project area provides current information and related communications about the Microsoft Word add-in, as well as links for downloading the latest version. The new version that supports Microsoft Office Word 2010 was released December 15, 2011.

For more information, please visit the official website for Save as DAISY add-in for Microsoft Word.

The Structure Modifier is a tool for adding additional content to the source document for a DAISY 2.02 NCC Only Digital Talking Book. It is especially geared towards skippability, making it easy to add the producer notes, sidebars, and footnotes as described in the DAISY 2.02 specifications.

The output from the Structure Modifier is compliant with the methods and requirements specified in the DAISY 2.02 Skippable Structures Recommendation from the DAISY Consortium (reference the DAISY Skippability Tweaker).

With the Structure Modifier, you can:

• Use the source document created with Structure Editor or another HTML-editor as a starting point.
• Use the Continuation Element Wizard in Structure Modifier to add the continuation elements after headings and page numbers.
• Include additional skippable content wherever you like in the source document.
• Save the modified source document, now complete with skippable content, and compliant with the recommendation.

The Structure Modifier is available free of charge to members of the DAISY Consortium.

For more information, please visit the official website for Structure Modifier.

Studio Recorder from the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) is a digital recording software package with support for conversion to DAISY 3, ANSI/NISO Z39.86 2002 content. Studio Recorder should be used with APH's Book Wizard Producer when working on conversion.

"Originally created by APH to serve as an internal tool for creating direct-to-digital audio recordings, Studio RecorderTM contains many features that make recording, editing, and proof reading audio books easy. It is a powerful digital recording and editing software package geared specifically to making recordings of the spoken word and includes features not found in similar programs primarily designed for music production."

For more information, please visit the official website for Studio Recorder.