Manual Pages for UNIX Operating System command usage for man brltty

The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



NAME
     brltty - refreshable braille display driver for Linux/Unix

SYNOPSIS
     brltty [option ...]

DESCRIPTION
     brltty is  a  background  process  (daemon)  which  provides
     access to the console screen (when in text mode) for a blind
     person using a refreshable braille display.  It  drives  the
     braille  display,  and provides complete screen review func-
     tionality.  Some speech  capability  has  also  been  incor-
     porated.

OPTIONS
     Options can be passed to brltty in a number of  ways.   From
     most to least influential, these are:

     1.  Command Line Options

     2.  Boot Parameters

     3.  Environment  Variables  (if   the   -E   (--environment-
         variables) option is in effect)

     4.  The Configuration File

     5.  Built-in Defaults

  Command Line Options
     The options are processed sequentially from left  to  right.
     If  an  option  is specified more than once, or in case of a
     conflict, the rightmost specification takes precedence.

     The following options are supported:

     -a table (--attributes-table=)
          The path to the attributes translation table.  Relative
          paths are anchored at /etc/brltty/.  The .atb extension
          is optional.  The built-in default is attributes.atb.

     -b driver,...|auto (--braille-driver=)
          The driver for the braille display (see Driver Specifi-
          cation).  The built-in default is auto.

     -c table (--contraction-table=)
          The path to the contraction table.  Relative paths  are
          anchored   at  /etc/brltty/.   The  .ctb  extension  is
          optional.

     -d device,... (--braille-device=)
          The device to which the braille display  is  connected.



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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



          The built-in default is usb:.

          The general form of a braille device  specification  is
          qualifier:data.   For  backward compatibility with ear-
          lier releases, if the qualifier is omitted then serial:
          is assumed.  The following device types are supported:

          Bluetooth
               For a  bluetooth  device,  specify  bluez:address.
               The  address  must  be  six  two-digit hexadecimal
               numbers     separated     by     colons,      e.g.
               01:23:45:67:89:AB.

          Serial
               For      a      serial       device,       specify
               serial:/path/to/device.   The serial: qualifier is
               optional (for backward compatibility).  If a rela-
               tive  path  is  given  then it's anchored at /dev/
               (the usual location where devices are defined on a
               Unix-like  system).  The following device specifi-
               cations all refer to the  primary  serial  device:
               serial:/dev/ttya, serial:ttya, /dev/ttya, ttya.

          USB  For a  USB  device,  specify  usb:.   brltty  will
               search  for the first USB device which matches the
               braille display driver being  used.   If  this  is
               inadequate,  e.g.  if  you  have more than one USB
               braille display which requires  the  same  driver,
               then  you  can  refine the device specification by
               appending the serial number of the display to  it,
               e.g.   usb:12345.   N.B.:   The "identification by
               serial  number"  feature  doesn't  work  for  some
               models because some manufacturers either don't set
               the USB serial number descriptor at all or do  set
               it but not to a unique value.

          A comma-delimited list of braille devices may be speci-
          fied.   If this is done then autodetection is performed
          on each listed device in  sequence.   This  feature  is
          particularly  useful if you have a braille display with
          more than one interrface, e.g. both a serial and a  USB
          port.

     -e (--standard-error)
          Write logs to standard error rather than to the  system
          log (useful for debugging).

     -f file (--configuration-file=)
          The path to the configuration file.  Relative paths are
          anchored  at the current working directory.  The built-
          in default is /etc/brltty.conf.




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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



     -h (--help)
          Print a command line usage summary and then exit.

     -l level (--log-level=)
          The minimum severity level for messages written to  the
          log.  Any of the following numbers, or any abbreviation
          of their corresponding names, may be specified:

          0   emergency

          1   alert

          2   critical

          3   error

          4   warning

          5   notice

          6   information

          7   debug

     The built-in default is notice.

     -m device (--midi-device=)
          The device to use for the  Musical  Instrument  Digital
          Interface.   For  ALSA it's client:port, where each may
          be either a number or a case-sensitive substring of its
          name.   For  other  interfaces it's the full path to an
          appropriate system device.  The built-in default is:

          Linux/ALSA  the first available MIDI output port

          Linux/OSS   /dev/sequencer

     -n (--no-daemon)
          Remain in the foreground (useful for debugging).

     -p device (--pcm-device=)
          The device to use for digital  audio.   For  ALSA  it's
          name[:argument,...].   For  other  interfaces  it's the
          full path to an appropriate system device.  The  built-
          in default is:

          FreeBSD     /dev/dsp

          Linux/ALSA  hw:0,0

          Linux/OSS   /dev/dsp




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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



          NetBSD      /dev/audio

          OpenBSD     /dev/audio

          Qnx         the preferred PCM output device

          Solaris     /dev/audio

     -q (--quiet)
          Suppress the start-up messages.  This is done by reduc-
          ing  the  default  log level (see the -l (--log-level=)
          option) to warning (information if either -v (--verify)
          or -V (--version) is also specified).

     -r (--release-device)
          Release the device to which the braille display is con-
          nected when the current screen or window can't be read.

     -s driver,...|auto (--speech-driver=)
          The driver  for  the  speech  synthesizer  (see  Driver
          Specification).  The built-in default is auto.

     -t table (--text-table=)
          The path to the text translation table.  Relative paths
          are  anchored  at  /etc/brltty/.  The .ttb extension is
          optional.  The built-in default is nabcc.ttb (the North
          American Braille Computer Code).

     -v (--verify)
          Print the start-up messages and then exit.  This always
          includes the versions of brltty itself, the server side
          of its application programming interface, and  each  of
          the  selected braille and speech drivers.  If the -q (-
          -quiet)  option  isn't  also  specified  then  it  also
          includes  the  values  of the options after all sources
          have been considered.  If more than one braille  driver
          and/or  more than one braille device has been specified
          then braille display autodetection  is  performed.   If
          more  than  one  speech  driver has been specified then
          speech synthesizer autodetection is performed.

     -x driver (--screen-driver=)
          The screen driver.  The built-in default  is  operating
          system appropriate.

     -A name=value,... (--api-parameters=)
          Parameters for the application  programming  interface.
          If  the same parameter is specified more than once then
          the rightmost specification is used.   Parameter  names
          may be abbreviated.

     -B [driver:]name=value,... (--braille-parameters=)



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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



          Parameters for the braille display driver.  If the same
          parameter  is  specified more than once then the right-
          most specification is used.   Parameter  names  may  be
          abbreviated.   If  a  parameter assignment is qualified
          with a driver identification code then it's  only  pro-
          cessed if that braille display driver is being used.

     -E (--environment-variables)
          Recognize environment variables.

     -F fifo (--speech-fifo=)
          The FIFO  which  gives  other  applications  access  to
          brltty's  speech  driver.  It's created at start-up and
          removed at termination.  Relative paths are anchored at
          /etc/brltty/.   The built-in default is that no FIFO is
          created.

     -I (--install-service)
          (Windows only) Install brltty as the BrlAPI service  so
          that  it  will be automatically started when the system
          is booted and so that  applications  can  know  that  a
          BrlAPI server is running.

     -M csecs (--message-delay=)
          The message hold time in hundredths of a  second.   The
          built-in default is 400 (4 seconds).

     -N (--no-api)
          Don't start the application programming interface.

     -P file (--pid-file=)
          The full path to the process identifier file.  If  this
          option  is supplied, brltty writes its process identif-
          ier (pid) into the specified  file  at  start-up.   The
          file is removed when brltty terminates.

     -R (--remove-service)
          (Windows only) Remove the BrlAPI service so that brltty
          will  not  be  automatically started when the system is
          booted and so that applications can know that no BrlAPI
          server is running.

     -S [driver:]name=value,... (--speech-parameters=)
          Parameters for the speech synthesizer driver.   If  the
          same  parameter  is  specified  more than once then the
          rightmost specification is used.  Parameter  names  may
          be abbreviated.  If a parameter assignment is qualified
          with a driver identification code then it's  only  pro-
          cessed if that speech synthesizer driver is being used.

     -U csecs (--update-interval=)
          The braille window update interval in hundredths  of  a



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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



          second.   The  built-in  default  is  4  (25  times per
          second).

     -V (--version)
          Print the versions of brltty itself, the server side of
          its   application   programming  interface,  and  those
          drivers which were configured  in  at  build-time,  and
          then  exit.   If  the  -q  (--quiet)  option isn't also
          specified then also print copyright information.

     -X name=value,... (--screen-parameters=)
          Parameters for the screen driver.  If the same  parame-
          ter  is  specified  more  than  once then the rightmost
          specification is used.  Parameter names may be abbrevi-
          ated.

  Environment Variables
     The following environment variables are recognized if the -E
     (--environment-variables) option is specified:

     BRLTTY_API_PARAMETERS=name=value,...
          Parameters for the application  programming  interface.
          See the -A (--api-parameters=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_ATTRIBUTES_TABLE=table
          The attributes  translation  table.   See  the  -a  (--
          attributes-table=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_BRAILLE_DEVICE=device,...
          The device to which the braille display  is  connected.
          See the -d (--braille-device=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_BRAILLE_DRIVER=driver,...|auto
          The driver for the braille display.   See  the  -b  (--
          braille-driver=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_BRAILLE_PARAMETERS=[driver:]name=value,...
          Parameters for the braille display driver.  See the  -B
          (--braille-parameters=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_CONFIGURATION_FILE=file
          The configuration file.  See the  -f  (--configuration-
          file=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_CONTRACTION_TABLE=table
          The contraction  table.   See  the  -c  (--contraction-
          table=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_MIDI_DEVICE=device
          The device to use for the  Musical  Instrument  Digital
          Interface.   See  the  -m  (--midi-device=)  option for
          details.



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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



     BRLTTY_PCM_DEVICE=device
          The device to use for digital audio.  See  the  -p  (--
          pcm-device=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_RELEASE_DEVICE=on|off
          Release the device to which the braille display is con-
          nected when the current screen or window can't be read.
          See the -r (--release-device) option for details.

     BRLTTY_SCREEN_DRIVER=driver
          The  screen  driver.   See  the  -x  (--screen-driver=)
          option for details.

     BRLTTY_SCREEN_PARAMETERS=name=value,...
          Parameters for the  screen  driver.   See  the  -X  (--
          screen-parameters=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_SPEECH_DRIVER=driver,...|auto
          The driver for the speech synthesizer.  See the -s  (--
          speech-driver=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_SPEECH_FIFO=fifo
          The FIFO  which  gives  other  applications  access  to
          brltty's  speech  driver.   See the -F (--speech-fifo=)
          option for details.

     BRLTTY_SPEECH_PARAMETERS=[driver:]name=value,...
          Parameters for the speech synthesizer driver.  See  the
          -S (--speech-parameters=) option for details.

     BRLTTY_TEXT_TABLE=table
          The text translation table.  See the -t (--text-table=)
          option for details.

  The Configuration File
     Blank lines are ignored.  If the character # occurs  on  any
     line then all characters from it to the end of that line are
     treated as a comment.

     The following configuration directives are supported:

     api-parameters name=value,...
          Parameters for the application  programming  interface.
          See the -A (--api-parameters=) option for details.

     attributes-table table
          The attributes  translation  table.   See  the  -a  (--
          attributes-table=) option for details.

     braille-device device,...
          The device to which the braille display  is  connected.
          See the -d (--braille-device=) option for details.



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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



     braille-driver driver,...|auto
          The driver for the braille display.   See  the  -b  (--
          braille-driver=) option for details.

     braille-parameters [driver:]name=value,...
          Parameters for the braille display driver.  See the  -B
          (--braille-parameters=) option for details.

     contraction-table table
          The contraction  table.   See  the  -c  (--contraction-
          table=) option for details.

     midi-device device
          The device to use for the  Musical  Instrument  Digital
          Interface.   See  the  -m  (--midi-device=)  option for
          details.

     pcm-device device
          The device to use for digital audio.  See  the  -p  (--
          pcm-device=) option for details.

     release-device on|off
          Release the device to which the braille display is con-
          nected when the current screen or window can't be read.
          See the -r (--release-device) option for details.

     screen-driver driver
          The  screen  driver.   See  the  -x  (--screen-driver=)
          option for details.

     screen-parameters name=value,...
          Parameters for the  screen  driver.   See  the  -X  (--
          screen-parameters=) option for details.

     speech-driver driver,...|auto
          The driver for the speech synthesizer.  See the -s  (--
          speech-driver=) option for details.

     speech-fifo fifo
          The FIFO  which  gives  other  applications  access  to
          brltty's  speech  driver.   See the -F (--speech-fifo=)
          option for details.

     speech-parameters [driver:]name=value,...
          Parameters for the speech synthesizer driver.  See  the
          -S (--speech-parameters=) option for details.

     text-table table
          The text translation table.  See the -t (--text-table=)
          option for details.





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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



  Driver Specification
     A braille display  or  speech  synthesizer  driver  must  be
     specified via its identification code:

          al  Alva

          at  Albatross

          ba  BrlAPI

          bd  Braudi

          bl  BrailleLite

          bm  Baum

          bn  BrailleNote

          cb  CombiBraille

          ec  EcoBraille

          es  eSpeak

          eu  EuroBraille

          fl  FestivalLite

          fs  FreedomScientific

          fv  Festival

          gs  GenericSay

          hm  HIMS

          ht  HandyTech

          il  IrisLinux

          lb  Libbraille

          lt  LogText

          mb  MultiBraille

          md  MDV

          mn  MiniBraille

          mp  Mikropuhe




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The BRLTTY Project                                      BRLTTY(1)



          mt  Metec

          no  no driver

          pg  Pegasus

          pm  Papenmeier

          sd  SpeechDispatcher

          sk  Seika

          sw  Swift

          th  Theta

          tn  TechniBraille Systems Inc.

          ts  Telesensory Systems Inc.

          tt  TTY

          vd  VideoBraille

          vo  Voyager

          vr  Virtual

          vs  VisioBraille

          vv  ViaVoice

          xs  ExternalSpeech

          xw  XWindow

          A comma-delimited list of drivers may be specified.  If
          this is done then autodetection is performed using each
          listed driver in sequence.  You may need to  experiment
          in  order  to  determine  the most reliable order since
          some drivers autodetect better than others.

          If the single word auto is specified then autodetection
          is  performed  using only those drivers which are known
          to be reliable for this purpose.

SEE ALSO
     For full  documentation,  see  brltty's  on-line  manual  at
     [http://mielke.cc/brltty/doc/Manual-HTML/Manual.html].






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