Technologies Humanware Inc. APBT320 Manuel D’Utilisation
BrailleNote Apex QT User Guide
14-308
14.1
Understanding Connectivity
Concepts.
Concepts.
The world of connectivity is a world of communication between, or among, devices of all kinds.
Just as in the world of human beings, where there are those who speak our language and those who
don't, not all devices can talk to all other devices, they have to share a method of communication.
And again, just as sometimes people don't like what each other are saying, or don't agree, or
misunderstand; in the world of connectivity, even when devices share the same methods of
connecting, they don't always manage to connect the first time.
Just as in the world of human beings, where there are those who speak our language and those who
don't, not all devices can talk to all other devices, they have to share a method of communication.
And again, just as sometimes people don't like what each other are saying, or don't agree, or
misunderstand; in the world of connectivity, even when devices share the same methods of
connecting, they don't always manage to connect the first time.
Why is this? Firstly, because electronic and computerized devices are "dumb". They only know
what they know, and if a device offers another device a setting even slightly different to what it is
expecting, it will ignore it. And while there are industry standards, with so many different
companies manufacturing devices that are trying to talk to each other, there is bound to be the odd
miscommunication, where theory collides with practice. Then there is the business of which device
initiates the connection.
what they know, and if a device offers another device a setting even slightly different to what it is
expecting, it will ignore it. And while there are industry standards, with so many different
companies manufacturing devices that are trying to talk to each other, there is bound to be the odd
miscommunication, where theory collides with practice. Then there is the business of which device
initiates the connection.
With cableless connectivity options such as wireless networking, this gets even more interesting
again. When you use cables, you actually plug the cable in between two devices, so there is no
ambiguity as to which devices are supposed to be communicating. However, cableless devices have
to broadcast their availability to all other devices within range, and then there is a stage of
identifying which device goes with which, not to mention security levels etc., before anything else
can happen.
again. When you use cables, you actually plug the cable in between two devices, so there is no
ambiguity as to which devices are supposed to be communicating. However, cableless devices have
to broadcast their availability to all other devices within range, and then there is a stage of
identifying which device goes with which, not to mention security levels etc., before anything else
can happen.
In the face of all these possibilities, initiating a connection can take some patience, some tweaking,
but most of all, following the instructions.
but most of all, following the instructions.
The BrailleNote QT has been designed to make this as straightforward as possible. There is just one
important rule to remember - that the BrailleNote QT initiates all connections. A special case
among tens of millions of PC's, laptops and PDA's, it knows best what it needs from other devices,
and is set up to initiate connections.
important rule to remember - that the BrailleNote QT initiates all connections. A special case
among tens of millions of PC's, laptops and PDA's, it knows best what it needs from other devices,
and is set up to initiate connections.
14.2
Connection Configurations.
A connection configuration is a record of the settings required in order to be able to use a particular
type of connectivity, such as wireless networking or a phoneline, with a particular device. Because
each type of connectivity is different, their configuration needs to be different.
type of connectivity, such as wireless networking or a phoneline, with a particular device. Because
each type of connectivity is different, their configuration needs to be different.
You may also find that you will need to set up different configurations for the same kind of
connectivity, such as a network configuration for work, and one for home.
connectivity, such as a network configuration for work, and one for home.
The same connection configuration can be available for a range of uses, such as e-mail, browsing
the web, and local network access.
the web, and local network access.
In this section we discuss the devices available to connect your BrailleNote QT with other devices.