BrailleNote GPS EZ
BrailleNote QT
and
VoiceNote QT
(QWERTY Keyboard)
User Guide
V2014



A partnership between:

Sendero Group LLC
&
HumanWare Group

Telephone: (800) 722-3393 

E-mail:  	support@humanware.com
HumanWare Web:     	http://www.humanware.com
Sendero Group Web: 	http://www.senderogroup.com 







COPYRIGHT NOTICES





Trademarks:
All products are trademarks of their respective owners.


Copyright Notice:
Copyright (c) 2002-2014 Sendero Group, LLC. 
Limited Map and POI data copyright (c) TomTom / Here.  
A limited license to reproduce this user guide is given for the purpose of providing copies to people with visual or reading disabilities (including individuals with motor or learning disabilities) for their individual use.  
Note: At the writing of this manual, Australia, New Zealand maps and POIs are provided by NAVTEQ®. Data suppliers may change. See the Sendero site for the latest countries and suppliers.






IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR ALL USERS 
BrailleNote GPS is designed to convey similar information as displayed on commercial GPS receivers and location databases to people with visual disabilities.  However, BrailleNote GPS products have similar limitations as commercial GPS products.  These limitations include:
* Lack of information about the physical road characteristics such as: elevation, overpasses/underpasses, bridges, sidewalks, traffic controls, unsafe neighborhoods, construction and other hazards.
* Map accuracy in newly developed areas.  
* Traffic and weather conditions.
* Loss of GPS signals due to tall buildings or other interference.
* Created Routes may not be safe or possible to follow.  

The individual user is wholly responsible for all issues related to personal safety and mobility.  Sendero Group, HumanWare and its distributors advise all users that GPS is not a substitute for orientation and mobility with a cane or guide dog and recommends that users have good mobility skills before using GPS orientation information to travel.  Extreme caution should be used when operating GPS as a pedestrian and should never be actively used while navigating busy traffic situations. Sendero Group and its distributors assume no liability for accidents or injuries that occur to users while using any GPS product.


Table of Contents
1	Foreword.	
1.1	Scenarios	
2	Getting Started.	
2.1	Installing BrailleNote GPS Software.	
2.1.1	Upgrading KeyMaps to BrailleNote GPS	
2.1.2	Downloading Maps to the BrailleNote	
2.1.3	Installing Sendero Map Manager	
2.1.4	Activating Sendero Map Manager	
2.1.5	“Check for Updates” Feature: Automated Downloading and Installing	
2.1.6	Synchronizing Maps and POIs with GPS Device or external media	
2.1.7	Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote Apex	
2.1.8	Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote mPower	
2.2	Installing GPS Receivers.	
2.3	How to Wear the GPS.	
3	GPS Basics and Accuracy.	
3.1	Use Good Judgment.	
3.2	About GPS Satellites.	
3.3	Signal Blind Spots.	
3.4	General Receiver Information.	
3.5	Accuracy of GPS Announcements.	
3.6	Getting Oriented Using GPS.	
4	BrailleNote GPS Software Basics.	
4.1	Starting GPS.	
4.2	Exiting a GPS Session.	
4.3	Context Sensitive Help.	
4.3.1	Using the GPS Help Menu.	
5	Location Lookup.	
5.1	City Lookup.	
5.2	Zip/Postal Code Lookup.	
5.3	Address Action Menu.	
5.4	Miscellaneous Location Lookup Items.	
5.5	History List.	
5.5.1	Working with the History List.	
5.5.2	History Action Menu.	
5.6	Favorites List.	
5.6.1	Add Favorite from Location Lookup.	
5.6.2	Add Favorite from Point of Interest Search.	
5.6.3	Add Favorite from Current Position.	
5.6.4	Working with the Favorites List.	
5.6.5	Favorites Action Menu.	
5.6.6	Deleting a Favorite.	
6	Routes.	
6.1	Setting a Destination.	
6.2	How to Create an Automatic Route.	
6.2.1	Route Announcement Commands List: R A.	
6.2.2	Frequently Used Route Commands.	
6.3	Naming a Route.	
7	Points of Interest (POIs).	
7.1	General Points of Interest Information.	
7.1.1	Last Point of Interest Announced.	
7.1.2	Point of Interest Categories.	
7.2	Finding Points of Interest
7.2.1	Nearby Points of Interest.	
7.2.2	Simple POI Find.	
7.3	Using Points of Interest.	
7.3.1	Navigating a POI List	
7.3.2	POI Action Menu	
8	Looking Around.	
8.1	Automatic LookAround Mode.	
8.2	Multiple Repeat Mode.	
8.3	Manual LookAround.	
9	Other Functions.	
9.1	Speed Announcement.	
9.2	Heading.	
10	GPS Options Menu.	
10.1	Map and Points of Interest Folder.	
10.2	Units.	
10.3	GPS Receiver.	
10.4	Restore Factory Default Settings.	
10.5	Advanced GPS Options Menu	
10.5.1	Languages.	47
10.5.2	Register Software or New Maps.	
10.5.3	Change POI Author Name.	
BrailleNote QT GPS v2014 Command Summary.	
11	Appendix A: Manually Downloading and Installing BrailleNote GPS	
11.1	Login to the Sendero Download Web Site	
11.2	Downloading  and Installing Sendero Maps software	
11.2.1	Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote Apex	
11.2.2	Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote mPower	
11.3	Downloading Maps	
11.4	Downloading additional User Points of Interest	

1 Foreword.
Welcome to the world of location literacy, the power to know your location and surroundings when you are finding your way.  Before we get into the details of how the many features work, we will take a moment to describe the big picture, offering you access to information about your environment never before available.
GPS satellites and massive location databases combine to create the potential for every square meter on earth to have a label.  Add a portable computing device to this equation and every location label can be accessible.  The GPS satellites can be picked up anywhere in the world.  Commercial maps and databases are being created with millions of points in most developed countries.  Increasing consumer demand for these technologies is driving improvements for more accurate location information.
Here is how the BrailleNote brings this Location Information to you.  Once you are tracking satellites with the GPS receiver, the latitude and longitude for your position is communicated by the receiver to the BrailleNote.  That position can then be compared with the maps and Points of Interest in the BrailleNote.  There are various commands that will give you directions and distances along a route.  This communication between the receiver and the BrailleNote is transparent other than telling you how many satellites are being tracked.
1.1 Scenarios
So, now that you have the Global Positioning System and streets and landmarks loaded on your BrailleNote, what can you do with it?  Here is where the fun begins!

For example:

I am a blind person in a car or bus, with minimal knowledge about the environmental information whizzing by my vehicle.  I turn on my BrailleNote GPS and the Point of Interest “look-around” feature automatically announces Points of Interest when I am traveling.  When I want to look further away, I use the Simple Find command (READ with F) to see where to stop for lunch.   

We have friends visiting and once we finish lunch, we want to do a little sightseeing.  To find out what is in the vicinity of the restaurant, I now use the Nearby Points of Interest command (F) to hear what Points of Interest are near the restaurant.  Everything from museums to recreational horseback riding facilities may show up as I scroll through the list of nearby points.

Once we settle on a place to visit, I create a pedestrian route to guide us to our destination.

My friend, who is blind, likes to get out and about but she has a terrible sense of direction.  She seldom explores on her own because it is so frustrating and embarrassing to be lost.  We set a new destination in an area with which she is familiar and then set out in a car with her acting as the navigator, telling the driver which way to turn in order to reach the destination.  In this way with the BrailleNote on her lap, she can concentrate on the information and directions without worrying about her mobility.    The BrailleNote provides the directions and reassurance my friend needs to travel independently on her own.  She isn’t actually on her own after all, she has Sendero's GPS.

As you can see from reading these scenarios, there are two general ways to use BrailleNote GPS.  The first and probably most popular use of the GPS information is simply to be aware of one’s environment with the automatic announcement of intersections and POIs.  Traditionally, a blind person might get one percent of location information through a “sighted filter.” With BrailleNote GPS, a blind user can independently “look around” and hear what businesses, addresses and intersections are nearby.

The second general use of BrailleNote GPS is to navigate to a specific destination along an automatically planned route.  

BrailleNote GPS provides the opportunity for users to get information beyond the reach of their other senses.  Even visually impaired users will see how valuable it is to know the names on signs they can see but not read.

Information can be discerned far beyond the reach of the visual sense if the user chooses.  The BrailleNote and the continually evolving vast quantity of electronic location information gives the blind user entertaining and valuable access to the environment through which he or she can travel more independently.
2 
Getting Started.
This User Guide is for use with the BrailleNote and VoiceNote QT models.  The keystrokes described are for the QWERTY Type keyboard.

The information in this GPS User Guide covers the items specific to the BrailleNote and VoiceNote GPS software.  General operating instructions for the BrailleNote and VoiceNote are in their respective User Guides.

Details about GPS receivers are in their respective manuals and in the Getting Started document in the 2receivers folder on the storage card.  The latest information about the most recent GPS version can be found in the Read Me document on the Compact Flash card or at www.senderogroup.com.  The terms BrailleNote or BrailleNote GPS will be used from here on to describe the system whether it is on a BrailleNote or a VoiceNote.
2.1 Installing BrailleNote GPS Software.
If you recently purchased your BrailleNote and KeyMaps is listed in the Main Menu, all you will need to do is upgrade your version of KeyMaps to access the program you purchased, see the upgrading KeyMaps Section below.  If you do not have KeyMaps listed in your Main Menu, please refer to Installing Sendero Map Manager section.
2.1.1 Upgrading KeyMaps to BrailleNote GPS
When you upgrade from KeyMaps to BrailleNote GPS, you will be issued an updated license key.  If you do not enter the updated key the program and new maps will not load.  From the Advanced GPS options menu, select Register Software or New Maps and type in the license code.  The code is not case sensitive.  When you press ENTER you will be told the number of map licenses that have been registered.  If you type in an incorrect key you will be notified and returned to the Advanced GPS Options Menu.
You can obtain your product key by logging into your account at http://www.mysendero.com.  Use your BrailleNote’s serial number as the user name.  By default the password is blank.  It is strongly recommended that you change your password after you login for the first time.

2.1.2 Downloading Maps to the BrailleNote
If you have KeySoft version released in 2014 or later, you can download maps directly to the BrailleNote, follow these steps:

1. Make sure your Apex is connected to the internet either wirelessly of via an Ethernet connection. 
2. Load BrailleNote GPS 
3. Press O to get into GPS options menu
4. Press D to Download maps
5. Select the map you wish to download (If you have purchased more than one country you will first be prompted which country you wish to download).  Then you will select from all available maps for the country or region you are licensed for or have previously selected.
6. The software will either start downloading the map right away, or give you an estimate of how long it will take to download and unzip the file first if it will take more than a few minutes and ask if you want to proceed or not.
7. Once the map is downloading you can press HELP which tells you how far along the download is, or Press  ESC to abort the download.
8. After the map has downloaded the software must unzip and install the new map this will take a while to complete, approximately twice as long as it took to download the map.  This time depends on where your maps are located (ie. internal Flash vs. SD card etc.)  While the map is unzipping no percent complete will be provided since there is no way to determine how fast your SD card is to unzip the maps and POIs.  You can press HELP which tells you that it is unzipping and installing the maps, or Press ESC to abort the map installation process.
Once complete the new map will have been downloaded, unzipped and installed into your maps directory and ready for use.

2.1.3 Installing Sendero Map Manager

This section explains how to install the GPS software and data on your BrailleNote using the Sendero Map Manager if you do not have KeyMaps in your Main Menu.  There are separate procedures for installing on the Apex and mPower.  Make sure to follow the instructions for your device.  If you purchased the GPS and BrailleNote at the same time, the GPS software may already be installed for you and it is not necessary to install it, although if you need to reinstall the software for any reason, the GPS installation file should be on the memory card, in the Sendero Map Manager, or is available online when you log into your GoSendero.com account.

If you have purchased the GPS as an accessory, you will need to install the software on your BrailleNote according to the following instructions.

There are two ways to install your BrailleNote GPS Software, using the Sendero Map Manager or using the GoSendero download website.  Using the Sendero Map Manager to install makes the process much easier as installers, license keys maps and POIs are automatically placed in the proper place.  Currently the map manager only runs under Windows, so people using Mac OS X or other operating systems must use the GoSendero.com method.

When your account is set up, you will receive an email from Sendero containing a link to the Sendero Map Manager Install program. In order to install Sendero Map Manager select the link to download and begin installing the program.
 

The installation screens are:
 
1. Welcome screen.  Press TAB to move to the Next button and press ENTER.  
2. License Agreement screen.  You can select I do not agree, at which point the installation will not continue, or I agree.  Once you have selected I agree, select the Next button to proceed to the next screen.  
3. Select Installation Folder location and check disk cost. The program installation folder defaults to C:\Program Files\Sendero Group LLC\SenderoMaps on 32 bit operating systems, or C:\Program Files (x86)\Sendero Group LLC\SenderoMaps on 64 bit operating systems. If you are satisfied with the defaults select the Next button.  If you want to change the Installation folder, select the Browse button and choose where you would like to install the program files.  The installer will always install to a new folder called “SenderoMaps” under the Installation folder.  For example if you install to drive D: the program will be installed to D:\SenderoMaps.
4. Confirm Installation. Select the Next button to install.  Note: If you are running Windows Vista or Windows 7, the User Account Control (UAC) dialog is displayed,  Using Windows Vista, TAB to the allow button and press ENTER, or press ALT-A to allow the installation to continue.  Using Windows 7, TAB to the Yes button and press ENTER, or press ALT-Y to allow the installation to continue.  
5. ReadMe document.  Read the document and select the next button to continue.  
6. Installation Complete. Select the Close button to complete the installation and exit the install program.


2.1.4 Activating Sendero Map Manager

Now that the map manager is installed, you need to activate it. In the same email that gave you the link to download your Sendero Map Manager software, you will also find your Account ID and password.  Once you have this information, you can activate your copy of Sendero Map Manager.  First, start Sendero Map Manager by:  

1) Selecting SenderoMaps from the desktop and press ENTER.  

2) Using the Start Menu, scroll to the Programs menu item or All Programs, depending on your version of Windows and how your Start Menu is configured.  Scroll to SenderoMaps and press ENTER.

3) In Windows Vista or Windows 7, bringing up the start menu and in the search box type in "SenderoMaps" and press ENTER.

Once the program is loaded, you will be prompted for your Account ID.  Type in your Account ID, then press TAB to move to the password field. Type in your password and press ENTER.    

If you have a firewall installed it may prompt you to allow communication with the Internet.  Please allow communication with the internet.  No personal information is sent to the Sendero servers.

After your information has been verified, you are ready to download Maps, Points of Interest and the BrailleNote GPS installation package. 

2.1.5 “Check for Updates” Feature: Automated Downloading and Installing 
Once you have installed your software and activated it, you are ready to use Sendero Maps’ automated, “Check for Updates” feature, to download or update Maps, User Submitted POIs, Install Packages and GTFS Feeds.  

To start the “Check for Updates” feature, from the map manager dialog press TAB to move to the check for updates button and press ENTER. You are presented with a dialog box with the following 11 items:

a. Event Log: This is a read only edit area where you are given the status of what is going on.  You may see the number of updates available, the name of the Map or user submitted POI that is currently being downloaded.

b. Maps: This is a list of all available maps you have access to download.  If you have access to multiple map bundles all countries are listed here.  Use your arrow keys to scroll up and down the list.  Press SPACE to select or unselect multiple Maps. 

c. POIs: This is a list of user submitted POIs.  Use your arrow keys to scroll up and down the list.  Press SPACE to select or unselect one or more POI files. 

d. Install Programs: This is a list of all install programs you have available to you.  Use your arrow keys to scroll up and down the list.  Press SPACE to select or unselect one or more install packages.

e. GTFS POIs: This is a list of transit feeds by Google.  They are additional bus stops for those cities who put their transit bus stops
into the GTFS standard format.  GTFS stands for General Transit Feed Specification which was initiated by Google a few years ago.  Use your arrow keys to scroll up and down the list.  Press SPACE to select or unselect one or more of the offered GTFS feeds.

f. Update: Pressing this button will download and install all selected items. Your screen reader will announce each item as it is being downloaded even when you are working in other programs.  

g. Unselect all: This button will unselect all selected items.

h. Updates: This is a combo box where you can tell SenderoMaps to show you updates only or all files you have access to.  Note: if you check for updates and you have none available, you are automatically switched to show all.  In this way you can download any additional files without changing this item.

i. Account: This is a list of all available accounts you might have access to.  This is good for those that have multiple GPS products.  If you had BrailleNote GPS for the Apex and Sense Navigation you would select each account and the proper install package and license key will be retrieved for you.  If you only have one GPS product, it is safe to ignore this option.

j. Add new account:  If you have multiple GPS products, here is where you can add an additional account.  Pressing this button will prompt for your ID and password.  If you only have one GPS product you can safely ignore this option.

k. Cancel:  Pressing this button will cancel the check for updates function and return you to SenderoMaps.

As you can see from this list, the Check for Updates feature allows you to check all the types of updates: maps, POIs, install packages or GTFS feeds.  The Check for Updates feature does it all.  

After all updates have been downloaded they are automatically moved to the proper location.  In order to update Maps on your GPS device, see the section for synchronizing to card or remote device for details.

2.1.6 Synchronizing Maps and POIs with GPS Device or external media
Now that we have successfully downloaded Maps and POIs, we can synchronize them along with your GPS installation program to a compact flash or SD card in a card reader attached to your computer.  
From the Map manager main screen press TAB to move to the “Synchronize with remote device” button and press ENTER.

If you have multiple GPS products activated with the map manager you will be presented with a list of accounts. Select the account you would like to sync with.  This insures the proper license key and installer is transferred.  For example, if you are authorized for an Apex and you select that account in the list, only the Apex installer and license key will be sent, not the mPower or PK.

Map manager attempts to locate your device or media card by scanning all removable media for specific folders.  If it finds the folders the location is selected for you automatically.  Your License key and favorites are automatically synchronized between your computer and the remote device.

If, however, the map manager is unable to detect the card you are given the opportunity to manually browse to the location containing your SD card, Compact flash or removable media.    
  
Finally the Synchronize dialog appears with the following 9 items:

a. Status area: This is a read only edit box where you can see what is happening.  It might show you how many files are selected to synchronize or it might show you the file that is being sent to the remote device as it might take a while if you are copying large maps.

b. List of files waiting to be synchronized: This is a list of files waiting to be copied.  It may say PC list or remote list.  This depends on the next option.    All files that need updating are automatically selected for you including Maps, user submitted POIs, GTFS feeds and your installer.

c. Synchronize direction: This is a radio button where you can specify the direction that you would like syncing to take place.  For example, if you do not have internet access and a friend has their maps configured you can take the card from your friend and select the remote to PC option.

d. Map Optimization: This is a combo box with two items. 

a. Improve performance by separating Maps. If this item is selected when you synchronize your maps are automatically sorted into predefined folders.  For example, if you are synchronizing California it is automatically placed in a folder named maps1westcoast.  This is recommended for older devices where having a lot of maps could slow down or make the device crash.  
b. None.  No automatic sorting is performed.  If you have all of your maps in one folder on your computer you can send all maps in that folder to the removable media.  This is not recommended but is available if you choose to use it.  Note: Because of the low memory constraints of the PK and mPower, maps will always be sorted and this option is not displayed.  

e. Select all: This is a button where you can select all files if they are currently not selected.

f. Unselect all:  Pressing this button will unselect all selected files.  Perhaps you have 25 files waiting and you only wish to send the installer for your Apex over.  Press this button then move to the list of files, then select the Apex installer by arrowing to it and pressing SPACE.

g. Synchronize: This button will start the process of synchronizing the selected files.

h. Delete selected files: This is an easy way to delete selected files from either the PC or remote device.  Be careful when deleting files and remember to verify the selected direction.

i. Cancel: Pressing this button will cancel the synchronize dialog and return you to the Map manager main area.  You can also press ESCAPE to cancel out of the dialog.

Once you start the process of synchronizing each update may be announced.  You will also hear the background sound while the copying is taking place.  Because announcements are sent directly to your screen reader it is possible to hear announcements while you are in other programs.  When all files have been synchronized a different sound will be heard.

2.1.7 Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote Apex
1. Insert the SD card into the SD slot.  See the Apex manual for details on inserting and removing SD cards.

2. If the Apex is switched on when you insert the SD card you will receive a message informing you to press the reset button to install packages.  The reset button is located behind the on/off switch and is black in color.  You may need to use a pointed object such as the tip of a pen.

3. Press the reset button and wait a few seconds.  After the music plays you will be asked to install GPSInstaller_2014.  Press Y to continue installing BrailleNote GPS or press N to return to the main menu.

4. You are then informed that the installation was successful and are returned to the main menu.  You can start BrailleNote GPS by pressing the letter N from the main menu without having to do any other reset.

2.1.8 Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote mPower
1) If you need to install the GPS software, hold down keys S, D and F on the keyboard.  Press and release RESET and continue holding the keys S, D and F down until you hear the chime.
2) Once you have performed the reset, feel along the back of the BrailleNote and you will find the Compact Flash Card slot.  Insert the card into this slot with the lip oriented away from the machine and down.  It will only go in one way properly.  It takes a little pressure to press it in the last quarter inch or so.  Do not force it. If it does not plug in all the way, flip the card over.  Note: If you wish to use the PC card slot in the right hand side, you will first need to put the Compact Flash card into a PC card adapter and then into the PC card slot.

3) From the Main Menu, press U for Utilities.

4) Press A for Application Program.

5) The prompt: “Run program from which drive?” displays.  Press C for Compact Flash card.  (or P for the PC card slot).

6) You are prompted for the Directory.  Press ENTER for none.

7) Select the GPS program installation file, press ENTER and follow the prompts.  If it says “command line”, just press ENTER.  If you receive any messages about installing over newer files, listen to the prompt and be sure you are not overwriting your custom sounds. Press ENTER to use the default file or ESCAPE to keep your custom file and continue installing.  If you get a message about files being in use, this means the reset did not work properly.  Try it again and make sure to hold the three keys down until the second audio chime, about ten seconds after the reset beep.

8) When the installation is complete, remove any storage cards and do a No Key Reset, by pressing the reset button.  Your GPS software is now ready to go.

If it is necessary to do a Hard Reset, i.e. with Keys J K L held down, some settings may be lost.  If you are using a Bluetooth GPS receiver, you will need to pair and activate it again after a hard reset.  After a normal reset it is only necessary to re-activate your Bluetooth GPS receiver.


2.2 Installing GPS Receivers.
To establish the Bluetooth connection with your BrailleNote go to the 
Main Menu, press SPACE O for Options, C for Connectivity Menu and B for Bluetooth and Y for Yes to Turn Bluetooth on if it isn’t already. Say No to Searching for devices and space through the list until you see the name of your GPS receiver and press ENTER. 
1. Space through the list and press Enter on ActiveSync. 
2. You will see the message, “remove pairing with *receiver name* or activate ActiveSync.  Press A to activate the receiver. Make sure it says ActiveSync Active. 
3. Return to the Main Menu, wait 10 seconds and open the GPS application. 
Note: If you have to do a hard reset, or your BrailleNotes battery goes flat, it will be necessary to search for devices and pair with the receiver. 

For full details and receiver operating instructions, see the “2receivers” Folder on your Compact Flash or SD card.  Choose the file that matches the name of the receiver that came with your GPS package. 
 
2.3 How to Wear the GPS.
For pedestrian travel, the GPS receiver tracks satellites best when located on top of your shoulder facing the sky.  You will find a belt clip on the receiver case to secure your GPS receiver onto the BrailleNote strap (preferably on the sliding shoulder pad).  Which hand you operate the BrailleNote with depends upon which hand is occupied with a cane or dog.  The shoulder strap is reversible so experiment with which configuration feels best for you.  If your right shoulder is through the strap, you would probably put the GPS receiver on your left shoulder and vice versa.  To switch the strap, unclip the shoulder strap from the BrailleNote and reverse it.  If your Bluetooth connection is intermittent, make sure you have the GPS receiver and BrailleNote on the same side of your body. The receiver will probably work fine in a purse or clipped to your belt. 
Note, for operation in a vehicle, you may wish to put the receiver on the back dash of a car or clip it near or on a window.  (Keep it away from the air bag as the receiver could become a missile if the air bag deploys).


3 GPS Basics and Accuracy.
This section covers some of the concepts, issues and background information about the Global Positioning System.  See the GPS Accuracy document in the “3other docs” folder for more background and details.
3.1 Use Good Judgment.
This product is an excellent navigation aid, but it does not replace the need for careful orientation and good judgment.  Never rely solely on GPS or any one device for navigating.
3.2 About GPS Satellites.
The U.S. Government operates the Global Positioning System (GPS) and is solely responsible for the accuracy and maintenance of GPS.  Certain conditions can make the system less accurate.   
There are 24 U.S. military satellites in the Global Positioning System, 12 in each hemisphere and they circuit the earth twice a day.  Although your receiver may be able to pick up as many as 12 satellites, three or more signals are necessary to determine the GPS position.  Some GPS receivers offer additional accuracy through the use of a fixed (geostationary) satellite called WAAS, Wide Area Augmentation System.

It is possible to get a reading of Good with 4 or more satellites or Poor with 5 or more satellites.  A Good reading is better than a Poor reading no matter the number of satellites.  The quality of the satellite signal determines the quality rating announced to you.  The user has no control over the WAAS satellite detection; this feature will automatically turn on and report when it is available from the satellite.

A similar system in Europe called EGNOS is now implemented.  Having WAAS or EGNOS improves the accuracy, so you might hear accuracy distances lower than 16 feet or 5 meters.  However, if all the satellites are coming from the same angle you could have WAAS/EGNOS enabled and still have a poor reading.

3.3 Signal Blind Spots.
Since the GPS receiver detects information from satellites orbiting the earth, the receiver needs to have a relatively unobstructed view of the sky. Large obstructions such as buildings, cliffs and overhangs may interfere with signal reception, reducing accuracy or eliminating tracking altogether.
This is called the “urban canyon effect.” For example, if you were in a city with 50 story buildings on all sides, the satellite signals would be blocked completely.  However, if there is a tall building on one side only, you may still be able to receive enough signals from other satellites to determine a position.
Changing your location by even a few feet can make a difference.  For instance, walking on the outer edge of a sidewalk versus up against the building may help.  Positioning yourself on a corner at an intersection may also help.  There is a better view of satellites while in a car in the street versus up against a building.

The location of the receiver on your body may also make a difference to reception.  If you are among tall buildings or near an overhang, you may begin tracking faster if you hold the receiver up and away from your body.  Face away from the building.  Once the receiver begins tracking, it should continue doing so attached to the BrailleNote shoulder strap.  If you need to have it inside a backpack or enclosed because of rain or snow, the GPS signals should be picked up through clothing or vinyl materials.

It so happens that among tall buildings in big cities, where GPS is less reliable, there are more people to ask for directions.  Out in the open where there are fewer people to ask for directions, the GPS availability and accuracy is best.  Isn’t this convenient?

GPS signals cannot usually be picked up in-doors; however you may be able to pick up signals inside a house with a wooden roof or inside a bus with a fiberglass roof.  You may also be successful in picking up signals with the receiver in the window of a bus or train.  The best location for the receiver is on the dash or window of a car.  (Note: highly tinted and mirrored windows can block satellites.) It is best to secure the receiver as it may become a projectile if you stop suddenly.
 
3.4 General Receiver Information.
See the GPS receiver manual for details and functions not addressed in this user guide.  To get started:

1) Turn the receiver on.  See the Getting Started manual to learn about the receiver controls.

2) Place the receiver in a location open to the sky where you can begin acquiring GPS satellites.  The receiver should have a relatively unobstructed view of the sky.  When you travel to a new area or if the unit has been off for several days, for instance when you first use the receiver, it may take longer to determine a position fix.

Once you have turned the BrailleNote on and selected the BrailleNote GPS application from the main menu you should hear, "X detected".  Where X is the name of the receiver you are using.  That is the indication that your receiver is connected properly.  

Make sure your receiver is on.  If it is unable to connect, you can press CTRL with R to try and reconnect.  You should turn the receiver off when not using the GPS program in order to conserve the receiver’s battery power.


3.5 Accuracy of GPS Announcements.

First, check your accuracy a couple times by pressing the GPS Accuracy command, G.  If you are tracking satellites when you press G, you will hear:

“WAAS (if available), Approximate accuracy distance, Number of satellites being tracked”

For example, you might hear “13 feet, 10 satellites.” If it first says “WAAS,” that indicates the receiver is tracking the extra WAAS satellites, which enhance accuracy. Note that the word WAAS may be heard in countries where the enhanced accuracy is not fully implemented.  If you are tracking more than 3 satellites, the receiver will determine which satellites are more accurate and will use the best signals.  It is not only the number of satellites that determines position quality but also the relative position of the satellites to each other.  Because of atmospheric anomalies, there are times when positions are inaccurate for no obvious reason.  If you are tracking less than 3 satellites when you press G, you will hear:

Searching for satellites and the number found.  For example “Searching for satellites, 2 found”.  

The last way to check how well you are tracking is with the Heading function in the GPS program.  Once you are heading in a given direction of travel, press the Heading command H repeatedly to ensure that you are getting consistent compass heading information.  Bear in mind that you must be tracking satellites for 30 feet (10 meters) or more before your direction of travel can be determined.  This will not only impact your heading but all information relative to your heading such as Points of Interest or your destination.  

3.6 Getting Oriented Using GPS.

You can start walking and get a compass direction from your BrailleNote.
If you do not intuitively know the cardinal compass directions, having a talking or tactile compass can assist you in heading directly to your destination as announced by BrailleNote GPS.  Even if you do not start moving, the absolute position of your destination as announced by BrailleNote GPS should be reliable.  If you have a pedestrian route loaded and walk in the wrong direction for 30 feet (10 meters), you will hear a warning sound.  In a vehicle route, the wrong direction warning comes after being 100 feet (30 meters) off-route.  

If you do not have a route created, you can still work your way to your destination using the “getting warmer” method.  Try to get the destination to be announced ahead of you.  Once you get close to the destination, the announcement starts to move away from the ahead heading.  When it gets to your right or left position, it is time to make a 90-degree turn.  This does not tell you if there is a through street, but it gets you in the vicinity.  You also want the destination distance to steadily decline as you move toward it.  If it suddenly increases, double and triple check the distance so you know you are not getting a bogus reading.  You may very well have veered off track but it is best to make sure.  

4 
BrailleNote GPS Software Basics.
This section covers the basics of the BrailleNote GPS Software.

4.1 Starting GPS.
To start the GPS application, begin from the Main Menu and press SPACE repeatedly until “Navigation” is displayed and then press ENTER.  Alternatively, just press N from the Main Menu to load and start the program.  


If this is the first time running GPS you may be prompted to run the trial, or register your purchased copy.  Press T to run the trial or R to register your software.  Next you will be prompted to accept the license agreement.  Pressing Y will load the license agreement in the book reader, pressing N will exit GPS.  Use standard KeySoft reading commands to read the license agreement.  When finished press ESCAPE to close the book reader and return to GPS.  If you agree with the terms answer yes to continue loading GPS.  In the first step, if you pressed T you will start the timed evaluation, GPS loads.  If you pressed R you might be prompted for a license key, however, this information should transfer if you used Sendero Map Manager.  If prompted, using computer Braille, type in the license key you obtained at time of purchase and press ENTER.  Note: you can view your license key by logging into your account with your serial number and password at http://www.gosendero.com.

After your license key is accepted you hear: "X Maps loaded," where X is the number of maps that were loaded.  You might also be presented with a list of maps that the system automatically detects.  Scroll to the map you would like to load and press ENTER.


4.2 Exiting a GPS Session.
When you exit the GPS application the destination you have set, last GPS position, and mode settings are saved.  When you press ESCAPE from the main GPS application you are prompted to exit GPS.  If you have a modified route open, you are first asked if you wish to save the changes.  Answering Yes will save the changes and exit GPS.  Answering No will not save the changes and exit GPS.  Cancel will not exit GPS and will leave the route open.


4.3 Context Sensitive Help.
Context Sensitive Help is available throughout the GPS application as it is elsewhere in the BrailleNote.  When you press the HELP key, you will hear relevant information for the task you are performing.  If you are not performing any task in the GPS application and you press the HELP key, you will enter the GPS Help Menu.  The complete list of commands organized by category can be accessed from the GPS Help Menu, as outlined in the following section.
4.3.1 Using the GPS Help Menu.

BrailleNote GPS has an easy to use and intuitive menu system.  To access the Interactive Help menu, press the HELP key.  This will list four frequently used commands along with ten help menu items, which are informational as well as allowing you to press ENTER to activate that particular function.  Each item is briefly discussed below:

a. Announce Summary of current location: Activating this command will announce a summary of your current position such as heading, address and GPS status.

b. Location Lookup: Here is where you can select an address search by city, zip/postal code and view your favorites and history.

c. Nearest POI: This command brings you into a list of POIs that are near your location.

d. Find POI: Pressing this command will search for POIs by category, subcategory and name.

e. Where Am I Commands: Find out where you are with information such as address, intersection, city and state.

f. GPS Commands: find out information such as your GPS status, speed, or how to synchronize the time.

g. Destination Commands: How to set a destination.

h. Points of Interest Commands: Commands used to look up POIs.

i. Route Commands: How to create, follow and announce information about a route.

j. Miscellaneous Commands: In this item you will find commands that do not seem to fit into the other categories.

k.  Option Commands: Customize options such as Map and POI folder location or switch unit type.

l. Information Center: Read the Command summary, Users' Manual, and get more information about the program.

m.  Exit Program: Selecting this item will Exit the GPS application.

Next to the menu item, you will see either a hot key or you will be told how to access the menu.  For example, in the "Where am I commands" menu item you see "HELP, W."  This means to quickly access "Where am I commands" you press the HELP key then W.  To access route commands from the main GPS application you can either press HELP then R, or just press R.


5 
Location Lookup.
The location lookup is one of the most commonly used features of BrailleNote GPS.  You will use it, for example, to set your friend’s house as your destination or to create a vehicle or pedestrian route.  You can look up an address in two ways:  (1) Using the name of the city or (2) zip/postal code search.  You can also view your location history list and favorites list for quick access to previously saved locations.  Each way will be discussed in detail in the following sections.    
 
5.1 City Lookup. 
The first way to do a location lookup is by city.  The steps below show how to lookup the address, 10999 Amor Avenue, Cleveland OH 44108, which is one of the locations where Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster created Superman.  


1) From anywhere in the GPS application, press READ with S or the letter L.  
2) You will hear, “Location Lookup. City Lookup: 1 of 4.”  Here is where you choose the type of lookup.  If you press SPACE you will move to the Zip/postal Lookup menu item.  Pressing SPACE a second time moves to the History list menu item.  Pressing SPACE a final time moves to the favorites list.  For this example press ENTER to choose City Lookup.  You will hear “City Lookup chosen.”  Note this selection is remembered the next time you do a location lookup.
3) If you have multiple maps loaded, a list is displayed followed by the index number.  For example, if you have Ohio, Texas, and Utah in your maps folder you would hear, “Ohio: 1 of 3.”  If you only have one map in your maps folder, it is chosen automatically.  Scroll to the desired map and press ENTER.  You will be prompted “Ohio Chosen. City?”
4) Type Cleveland and press ENTER.  Note: At this prompt you can type the full address and skip the next two prompts.  “10999 Amor: Cleveland”.  You must place a colon between the street name and city name or typing the full address will not work.  
5) You will hear “Cleveland chosen.  Address?”  Type 10999 and press ENTER.  Note: you can type the address number and street name, 10999 Amor, and press ENTER.  If you type the address number and street name, the lookup will begin at this point.  
6) After typing in 10999 and pressing ENTER, you are prompted, “street?” type Amo and press ENTER.    
7) You will hear, “Streets found. Amor Avenue: 1 of 5.”  Meaning there are 2 streets beginning with the characters “amo” in the city of Cleveland and 3 additional menu items.  These items conclude every street list, they are: (1) Try exhaustive search.  If the street you are looking for does not begin with the characters you have typed, try this item as it will search the entire street name and not just the beginning.  (2) Back to street address selection.  Select this item if you made a mistake when typing in the address number or street.  (3) Back to city selection.  Select this item if you made a mistake while typing in the city name.
8) Scroll up to the first item Amor Avenue: 1 of 5 and press ENTER.  If the lookup was successful you are advised and placed in the address action menu.  The action menu is a list of 4 items: vehicle route, pedestrian route, destination, and add to favorites. Press SPACE to scroll through the list and press ENTER to make your selection.  The above address is just an example, feel free to use your own address or the address of a friend.  Selecting either vehicle route or pedestrian route will create a route from your current GPS position to the address selected. 

5.2 Zip/Postal Code Lookup. 
The second way to do a location lookup is by Zip/Postal code.  In the previous section, we described in detail how to lookup the address where Superman was created by using the city search.  The steps below show how to lookup the same address, 10999 Amor Avenue, Cleveland OH 44108, by using the zip code 44108. 

1) From anywhere in the GPS application, press READ with S or the letter L.  
2) You will hear, “Location Lookup. City Lookup: 1 of 4.”  Here is where you choose the type of search.  Press SPACE to move to the Zip/postal Lookup menu item.  Pressing SPACE a second time moves to the History list menu item.  Pressing SPACE a final time moves you to the favorites list. When you hear “Zip/postal Lookup: 2 of 4,” press ENTER to search by zip code.  You will hear, “Zip/postal Lookup chosen.”  Note this selection is remembered the next time you perform a location lookup.
3) If you have multiple maps loaded, a list is displayed followed by the index number.  For example, if you had Ohio, Texas, and Utah in your maps folder you would hear, “Ohio: 1 of 3.”  If you only have one map in your maps folder, it is chosen automatically.  Scroll to the desired map and press ENTER.  You will be prompted “Ohio Chosen. Zip/postal?”
4) Type in the zip code 44108 and press ENTER.  Note: At this prompt you can type the full address and skip the next two prompts.  “10999 Amor: 44108.”  You must place a colon between the street name and zip code or typing the full address will not work.
5) You will hear, “44108 chosen.  Address?”  Type 10999 and press ENTER.  Note: you can type the address number and street name, 10999 Amor, and press ENTER.  If you type the address number and street name, the lookup will begin at this point.  
6) After typing in 10999 and pressing ENTER, you will be prompted, “street?” Type “Amo” and press ENTER.  
7) Because Amor Ave is the only street in the zipcode of 44108 you are placed in the address action menu.  You are presented with a list of 4 items: vehicle route, pedestrian route, destination, and add to favorites. Press SPACE to scroll through the list and press ENTER to make your selection. The above address is just an example, feel free to use your own address or the address of a friend.  Selecting either vehicle route or pedestrian route will create a route from your current GPS position to the address selected. Note: If you are presented with a list the city the street is in is also displayed.  This is because a zip/postal code can span multiple cities.  Having this information will ensure you pick the correct street.
5.3 Address Action Menu. 
The Address Action Menu helps you determine your next action once you have entered an address.  In other words, you have entered an address, now what do you want to do with that address.  In the previous sections, we used the City Lookup and Zip/postal Lookup features to search for an address.  With the Address Action Menu, you can set an address as a favorite, as a destination, or create routes.  The previous two sections show how to lookup an address in great detail.  You will find another example below:

1) From the GPS software press READ with S or the letter L or select "destination" from the GPS Help Menu.

2) You are presented in turn with fields for type of search, map, city or zip/postal code, address number and street name. To review the help messages for these fields, press the HELP key. Select the map from the list presented and press ENTER.  Once you have entered the address, the address action menu is displayed.  The items are as follows: 


1. Destination: Sets the address as your destination.
2. Pedestrian Route: Creates a pedestrian route from your current position to the address.
3. Vehicle Route: Creates a vehicle route from your current position to the address.
4. Add to Favorites:  Pressing ENTER on this item adds the selected address to your list of Favorites.  After the favorite is added you are returned to the Address Action menu to make another selection, for example create a pedestrian route.  This saves you from having to lookup the address again.  

You can press the first letter of the menu item you wish to move to or press SPACE to move through the list and then press ENTER on the desired item.

A few pointers for a successful Address Search:

* If you are uncertain as to the spelling of a street name, enter the first few letters of the name and press ENTER.  You will then be presented with a list.  Press DOWN or UP ARROW to scroll through the list until you find the street name.  Then press ENTER to accept.

* If you are not sure if a street is a lane or a court, just enter the name and you are presented with multiple options if there are any.  If you know for sure how the suffix is written, you can type it in for an exact match.  However if the street name is written as Maple Ln, then you must type it in that way rather than as Maple Lane.

* If you are searching for West 8th Street, it must be entered as, “8th St, W.” If you are not 100 percent sure of the proper syntax, just type in “8”  or “8th” and you will be given a list of streets with that basic name.  Then you can choose the one you want and press ENTER.

5.4 Miscellaneous Location Lookup Items. 

This section discusses miscellaneous items for you to keep in mind when doing location lookups.

1)  For the map and city/zip postal fields, you have the option of an exact match, accepting the default from your current position, entering a partial match, or getting an entire list.  You can press ENTER to accept or scroll through the list to see the other choices. 
2) If you choose accept the default from your current position, the system will use your current position to offer suggestions.  For example, if your current position is in Boston Massachusetts, when prompted for the state, Massachusetts is selected, just press ENTER.  If you are doing a city lookup Boston is offered as a suggestion.  Press ENTER to search in the suggested city or type in a new city.  Similarly while performing zip/postal code lookups, your current zip/postal code is suggested.
3) If you leave the address number empty and type in just the street name or the address number is not found, you will be presented with a list of address ranges along the street chosen.  For example, if you type Beach Road, you will hear, “1-199 Beach Road, 200-299 Beach Road” and so on.
4) To obtain a list of cross streets leave the address number blank.  When the list of address ranges is displayed scroll to the cross streets option and press ENTER.  The cross streets are in order from the beginning of the street to the end.  The purpose of this list is so that the user has a choice of potential address ranges or can retrieve a list of cross streets.
5) The street field does not remember the last street name entered. For a list of streets, press ENTER at the street prompt.  
6) To obtain a list of all cities or zip/postal codes, press SPACE then press ENTER at the respective prompt.  The above also applies for a list of streets.
7) If you do not wish to hear index numbers while scrolling through a list, just press the # sign (SHIFT with 3) to toggle them on/off.   If index numbers are on you will hear “New York 3 of 4.”  If they are turned off you will just hear New York.
5.5 History List. 

The history list is a list of your 25 most recently used locations.  Each time you create a route to an address or POI the destination is automatically added to the history list.  Other events are added such as the first time in each session you acquire a GPS fix, set a POI as a destination by searching for it, performing a location lookup and setting the address as your destination.  


5.5.1 Working with the History List. 
The following paragraph demonstrates the power of the history list:  
You decide you wish to go for a walk around your area then create a route home.
1) Each time you load the GPS program and acquire a position your current position is automatically added to the history list.  For example "Initial GPS Position, 123 Main street, Reno."
2) Explore your area for as long as you wish.  When you are ready to return home bring up the history list.  You can accomplish this in two ways.  The first way is to press READ with S or the letter L and select "History List" from the menu or press CONTROL with READ with H.
3) The first item in the history list should be Initial GPS position, Street name, and City name.  In the above example the item would be, "Initial GPS Position, 123 Main Street, Reno."
4) Press ENTER to bring up the history action menu.
5) Scroll to "pedestrian route" and press ENTER.
A route is created from your current position to the initial GPS position guiding you back to your house.  
In the previous paragraphs we discuss the different ways items are added to your history list, from an address search, Point of Interest and using your initial GPS location.  Let’s work with the history list.  Perform a location lookup for your address, set it as your destination then bring up the history list.

 There are two ways to bring up the history list. The first way is to press READ with S or the letter L and select history list from the menu. The second way is to press CONTROL with READ with H.
When you are in the history list you will be placed on the most recently added item.  Press SPACE or BACKSPACE to scroll up and down the list.  You can also press the first letter of the history name in order to jump to it.  You will see the history name, the address number if specified, the street name, city name, distance and direction.  For example 123 Main St., Reno, 753 FT, South.
Press ENTER on the desired item to bring up the History Action Menu.  
5.5.2 History Action Menu. 

The History Action Menu helps you determine your next action once you find an item in the history list.  In the previous section, we used the history list to locate your initial GPS location so that you could create a route back home.  With the History Action Menu, you can also set a history location as a destination or create routes.  The previous section shows how to use the history list in detail.  
Once you press ENTER on the history item, the history action menu is displayed.  The items are as follows: 

1) Destination: Sets the history item as your destination.
2) Pedestrian Route: Creates a pedestrian route from your current position to the history item.
3) Vehicle Route: Creates a vehicle route from your current position to the history item.
4) Add to Favorites:  Pressing ENTER on this item adds the selected history item to your list of Favorites.  After the favorite is added you are returned to the History Action menu to make another selection, for example create a pedestrian route.  This saves you from having to find the item again.  

5.6 Favorites List. 

The Favorites list is a list of locations you may wish to work with at a later time, just like when browsing the Internet on your BrailleNote or PC.  Unlike the history list discussed in the previous section you are not limited to the number of locations you can add.  The different location types are Points of Interest, Location lookups, and your current GPS.  You can also view/edit the details and remove the favorite from the list.  
5.6.1 Add Favorite from Location Lookup. 
To add a favorite by address: first perform a location lookup by pressing READ with S or the letter L.  Choose the type of lookup, i.e. city or Zip/postal lookup.  See sections 5.1 and 5.2 for step by step examples.  At the address action menu scroll to Add to Favorites and press ENTER or press the letter A.  After the address is added you are returned to the Address Action Menu.  This saves from having to look up the address again in order to perform another action.

5.6.2 Add Favorite from Point of Interest Search. 

To add a POI as a favorite, search for the POI by using any of the POI search methods, see Section 7.2 for details and examples.  In the POI search results list scroll to the POI and press ENTER.  From the POI Action Menu scroll to Add to Favorite or press the letter A.  After the POI is added you are returned to the POI action menu.  This saves from having to find the POI again in order to perform another action. 

5.6.3 Add Favorite from Current Position. 

There might be times when you are out and you wish to add your current position to a favorite, perhaps it is a bus stop that you will return to in the future.   Follow the below steps to add your current position as a Favorite:
1. If you wish to add your current GPS position, just press READ with V, You are prompted for a name, type in a name and press ENTER.
2. You can also add a favorite from the favorites list.  There are two ways to bring up the favorites list. The first way is to press READ with S or the letter L and select Favorites list from the menu. The second way is to press CONTROL with 1
3. Press SPACE to scroll to the item "add current location to favorites" and press ENTER.
4. You are prompted for a name, type in a name and press ENTER. 

Note: items are added to the favorites list in ascending order, IE most recent first.  The favorites list is located in a file called favorites.fdb contained within your current maps folder.  If you switch map folders a new favorites list is created.


5.6.4 Working with the Favorites List. 
In the previous sections we discuss how to add a favorite from an address search, Point of Interest and using your current location.  Let’s work with the favorites list.  Using any previously discussed method adds a favorite and then brings up the favorites list.

 There are two ways to bring up the favorites list. The first way is to press READ with S or the letter L and select Favorites list from the menu. The second way is to press CONTROL with 1.
When you are in the favorites list you will be placed on the most recently added favorite.  Press SPACE or BACKSPACE to scroll up and down the list.  You can also press the first letter of the favorite name in order to jump to it.  You will see the favorite name, the address number if specified, the street name, city name, distance and direction.  For example Home, 123 Main St., Reno, 753 FT, South.
Press enter on the desired favorite to bring up the Favorites Action Menu.    

5.6.5 Favorites Action Menu. 
The Favorites Action Menu helps you determine your next action once you have found an item in the favorites list.  You can also view a favorite’s details, set as a destination, or create routes.  The previous section shows how to use the favorites list in detail.  

Once you press ENTER on the favorite, the favorites’ action menu is displayed.  The Favorites Action Menu is a collection of the most common actions associated with favorites.  For example, if you are searching for a restaurant you have saved as a favorite, most likely you will want to create a route to that restaurant.  Additionally, you might want to get the phone number to call that restaurant to make reservations.  To get to the favorites Action Menu, press ENTER from within the list of favorites. Once in the Favorites Action Menu, you can choose from up to five actions, namely:

1) Vehicle route: Creates a vehicle route from your current position to the favorite.
2) Destination: Sets the favorite as your destination.
3) Show /edit Details: Allows you to view and edit the details of the favorite such as address and phone number.  While viewing the details, press CONTROL with 8 to delete the favorite from the list.  
4) Pedestrian route: Creates a pedestrian route from your current position to the favorite.
5) Media Playback:  This item is only displayed when the favorite has additional content such as an audio file or Keyword document.  Pressing enter on this item will run the media player or launch the Book Reader application. If you view the favorite's details you can see the name of the attached media file. 



5.6.6 Deleting a Favorite. 
There might be times when you wish to delete a favorite from your favorites list.  Follow the below steps to delete a favorite.

1) In the favorites list find the favorite you wish to delete.
2) Select Show/edit details.
3) Press CONTROL with 8.  The system asks if you are sure.  Answer yes.  
The favorites list will automatically close after the favorite is deleted.
6 
Routes. 
The first general use of BrailleNote GPS is to navigate to a specific destination along an automatically planned route.  If you would like to create routes between states each state must be loaded.  If you would like to create a route and your destination is two or three states away, you must also have the states your route will travel through loaded.  These routes can of course be used in conjunction with the LookAround information.  See Section 1.1 for examples of the use of routes and LookAround information.

This section will discuss how to create automatic routes using the map information for either pedestrian or vehicle use.

6.1 Setting a Destination.
Once you enter the GPS application, one of the first things to learn is how to set and to announce a destination.  Before you can create an automatic route, you must have a starting position and a destination.

There are two ways to set a destination:

1) by address, or
2) by Point of Interest

Address uses map information to pinpoint a location based on city, street and number.  A Point of Interest destination however comes from the point of interest information, either commercial or user-defined.  This variety of options for setting a destination means it is almost always possible to pinpoint an address, regardless of the information you have with which to work.

An automatic route is created, from the beginning point of your current position to the end point of your specified destination.  If you choose to save this route, it will always open exactly as you have created it.  So if you create a route from home to the bank, it will always open ready to take you from home to the bank.  If you need to reverse the route, so that it will take you from the bank to home, you will need to create a separate route from the bank to home.


6.2 How to Create an Automatic Route.
Search for a destination by doing an address lookup, POI search, using your history or favorites lists. From any action Menu, select either “Vehicle route” or “Pedestrian route.”  You can also use the Route Commands, R then V or R then P to create the route when you already have a destination set.


If you veer off your automatically created route, the BrailleNote will automatically recalculate your route.  To manually recalculate a route press BACKSLASH or SLASH.


* Routes may take many seconds or even minutes to create depending upon the length.  The storage slot and medium being used may also impact the speed of the route creation.  Longer routes will ask to confirm that you want to create your route before the program will continue.  If you know you have a long route to calculate, say 300 miles, it is wise to do the route creation before starting the trip.  

* If you are calculating a route while moving in a vehicle, your direction of travel is taken into account.  If it takes a minute to calculate a 300 mile route, you may be a mile or more past the first Waypoint by the time the route has finished being calculated.  The software will automatically skip to the Waypoint nearest your GPS position when the defaults are set.  You will have more success being able to follow vehicular routes if you finish calculating the route before moving.  If you don’t like the route created for you or if you are at a much different place by the time it finishes calculating, pull over and recalculate by pressing BACKSLASH or SLASH.

6.2.1 Route Announcement Commands List: R A.

Next turn or road transition: T; On top of any route command setting you have chosen, you can also choose to hear the next turn announced.  To do this, press T at any time when following the route.  This T command announces the distance from your current GPS location to the next turn in the form of the distance and direction of the turning point plus the name of the turning street and the direction it travels.  For example, "1 mile to Turning Point 10, proceed right on Market heading West.” It is an announcement only and does not change the current Waypoint.  The T command is followed by the ETA.

Announce Route distance and ETA from current position to end of the route: R, A, E; This command announces the total distance between your GPS position and the end of the route plus it gives you an Estimated Time to Arrival (ETA).  The distance announced is the distance still to be traveled, not "as the crow flies."  The ETA is calculated by comparing your current speed of travel with the distance to a turn or end of route.  Speed is not averaged.  It is up to the user to interpret the ETA.  It is recommended that you request the ETA information when you are traveling at what you believe to be the average speed for your trip.

If you are not moving, an average speed of 2 MPH, 3.2 KMH, will be used for a pedestrian route ETA.  An average of 25 MPH, 40 KMH, applies to vehicle routes when moving less than 5 MPH, (8 KMH).  Once you approach a turning point or end of route, the ETA will say less than a minute.  Remember that this is a very rough estimate.

To obtain an ETA, you must have a route active.  Press R, then A, then E to hear the ETA and distance from your GPS position to the end of the route.  Press T to hear the distance to the next turning point followed by the ETA.
6.2.2 Frequently Used Route Commands.

Create pedestrian route: R then P; Use this setting when automatically creating a route suitable for walking.  The automatic calculations disallow vehicle only roads such as highways and allows for two way travel on a one way street.  If you receive an error message that a route cannot be calculated, it could be because the map data has a street classified as a highway when in fact it may allow pedestrian access in an area where you wish to travel.  You can try calculating a vehicle route to confirm that this is the problem.  As we indicate with the caution notes at the beginning of this manual, you should realize that the data and route calculation can be incorrect and unsafe and you should always use alternate information to ensure safe travel.

Create vehicle route: R then V; Use this setting for automatically creating a route suitable for a car, van or other vehicle.  The calculation includes all road types and respects one-way streets and highway ramps.  If a route cannot be calculated, the data may be classified incorrectly and you can try calculating a pedestrian route to see if this is the problem.  Be aware that a pedestrian route allows going the wrong way on a one-way street.

Open route: R then O; To select an existing route, Press R then O.  You will be asked for a file location as for any other KeySoft file and can open an existing route.  When you open a saved route the system attempts to optimize the route.  It does this by quickly going through the route and comparing features of the road.  You are then asked if you would like to optimize your route, answer yes to recreate the route or answer no to continue loading the route.  If you optimized the route, it is a good idea to save the route as you will be asked to optimize each time the route is loaded.

Note: If you are in an unsaved route and create or open a new route, you will be prompted as to whether you want to save the current route.  Press Y to save, or N to close the route without saving.

Save route: R then S; You can save a route any time by pressing R then S.

Close route: R then C; To close the route you are in, simply press R then C.  If you haven't saved the route, you will be prompted to do so at this point –press Y to save or N to close without saving.  If you decide at the last second that you want to keep the route open after all, press C to cancel closing.


Recalculate route: BACKSLASH or SLASH; The recalculation may not trigger if you are paralleling a route, particularly at high speeds.

After a route is recalculated once, the subsequent time you will be instructed that your target Waypoint is behind you but a recalculation will not happen automatically.  If you get a message saying Waypoints have been skipped, the recalculate option will be enabled again.  Use the recalculate hot key when you feel it is necessary.

6.3 Naming a Route.

Each route must have a unique, meaningful name so that it can be stored and later retrieved by specifying its name.  You can use whatever name you like, with up to 200 characters, including spaces.
If you have several routes with a similar theme, you may find it helpful to put the common part of the name first.  For example, you might have:

    "Bus Route A"
    "Bus Route B".

and so on.  These route names would be grouped together alphabetically for easy location.
Routes can be grouped into folders to make them easier to find.  As an example, the routes just mentioned might all be put into a folder called
“Bus Routes”.  The rules for naming a folder are the same as for naming a route.
Some characters are reserved and you may not use them in a file name.
They are: \ /: ” < > | * and ?  .

7 
Points of Interest (POIs).
There are more than 13,000,000 commercial Points of Interest for the U.S. and Canada.  See the Read Me document for up-to-date POI details for these and other countries.  If a POI goes out of business, it may be deleted.  

7.1 General Points of Interest Information.
This section outlines the basics on Points of Interest (POIs), including basic commands and categories.

7.1.1 Last Point of Interest Announced.
To hear the last POI announced, press P.   To view details of the announced POI, such as address and phone numbers, Press READ with P.  Press SPACE to move through and read each detail. If you want to hear a summary of all the details about this POI, press READ with S.  The summary command eliminates the need to press SPACE repeatedly.  Pressing the letter Q will toggle the reading of field labels on or off.  For example when labels are on you will hear “Cleveland (city)”.  When labels are off you will just hear “Cleveland.”  Press ESCAPE to exit the POI details.

7.1.2 Point of Interest Categories.
There are several POI Categories which make up the Core POIs.  Some have subcategories to help refine your search, some examples from the restaurant category are "barbeque" and "German."  These new points are the equivalent of electronic yellow pages with GPS positions.  The core POIs include everything from automobile, transportation, medical, government services to schools, libraries, restaurants, accommodations, entertainment and tourism.

For a list of the POI categories and sub-categories, go into the GPS program and press READ with F, a dynamic list of categories and sub-categories will be displayed.  For example, there will be more categories and sub-categories in California than in Hawaii.

7.2 Finding Points of Interest.
7.2.1 Nearby Points of Interest.
To view a list of nearby POIs in any category and in any direction press F. The list of POIs is sorted in order of proximity.  Once you change locations, you must exit the list then press F to sort points at your new location.  As you scroll through the POIs you will receive additional information such as its name, the category and sub category if it has one, the street the POI is on, the city the POI is in, heading and distance to the POI from your current location, the side of the street the POI is on if known and the compass direction.  Press F, you will hear “creating POI list”.  You will be placed in a list of points.  Scroll through the list by pressing SPACE or BACKSPACE.  For example “Burger Palace, Restaurant, Main ST, Phoenix, 330 feet ahead, right side, west.”  Notice you are told the street the POI is located on and the city the POI is in.  This is a good way to quickly determine if this is the POI you are looking for without opening its details.  If you are looking for Burger Palace, you can type the first letter, B, to go to the POIs that start with the letter B.  If there are no POIs that start with the letter B, the system beeps. Scroll to the final item in the list “No other POI within X feet, press ENTER to continue searching or ESCAPE to exit.  Where X is the distance the BrailleNote has searched from your current position.  If you press ENTER the BrailleNote searches for 10 seconds and announces if points are found.  The first POI is announced, “Starbucks, restaurant, coffee shop, Desert drv, Phoenix, 900 feet, South.”  Continue to scroll through the POIs or press ESCAPE to close the list.  
In addition to using the F command to list all nearby POIs, you may wish to just list nearby Points of Interest in a specific category and sub-category of your choice.  

7.2.2 Simple POI Find.
You use the simple find feature if you want to search for a POI by name, or category using the command READ with F.  You are asked for the category, subcategory and then the search string.  For example, you want to find a restaurant called Burger Palace that is 10 miles away.
First you would press the Simple Find command, READ with F.

Next, you will be prompted for a category.  Press the letter R to move to "Restaurant" and press ENTER.  If you do not know the exact name of the category, you can scroll through the category list or use the first letter of a category to hop directly to a specific item.  The program remembers the last category used, but defaults to the ALL category every time you enter the GPS program.

You will then be prompted for the subcategory.  Select a subcategory from the list and press ENTER.  Note: you can press the first letter of the subcategory you are interested in to move directly to it.  Finally, you will be prompted for the search string, which refers to the name of the POI that you want to find.  In this case that would be Burger Palace and press ENTER.  If you type 1 or 2 characters in the search string, the software will only find these characters at the beginning of the POI name.  However, if you type three or more characters, the software will look for a match anywhere in the POI name.


When the search begins, you will hear the announcement “creating POI list”.  You will be placed in a list of points.  Scroll through the list by pressing SPACE or BACKSPACE.  For example “Burger Palace, Restaurant, Main ST, Phoenix, 9.5 MI, ahead, south.”  Notice you are told the street the POI is located on and the city the POI is in.  This is a good way to quickly determine if this is the POI you are looking for without opening its details.  Scroll to the final item in the list “No other POI within X feet, press ENTER to continue searching or ESCAPE to exit.”  Where X is the distance of the search from your current position.  If you press ENTER the search lasts for up to 10 seconds and announces if points are found.  The first POI is announced. Press ENTER on the POI to access the POI action menu.  This is a list of up to 6 items you can use to interact with the POI such as, creating a route or viewing details.  Press ESCAPE to exit the list.  The search is then cancelled.  

The search will take longer when the area is densely populated or when you search far away.  A sound will indicate a search is in progress.


7.3 Using Points of Interest.
Now that you know numerous ways to find POIs, it is time to discuss how to efficiently use the POIs that you find.
7.3.1 Navigating a POI List
When your POI search returns a long list of POIs, you can use the following commands to quickly review the POI list:
Go to the top of the list; READ with T or HOME.
Go to the end of the list; READ with B or END.
Move backward through the list one item at a time; UP ARROW.
Move forward through the list one item at a time; DOWN ARROW.
Jump backward 10 items; LEFT ARROW or PG UP.
Jump forward 10 items; RIGHT ARROW or PG DOWN.
7.3.2 POI Action Menu
The POI Action Menu is a collection of the most common actions associated with searching and locating POIs.  For example, if you are searching for a restaurant, most likely you will want to create a route to that restaurant.  Additionally, you might want to get the phone number to call that restaurant to make reservations.  To get to the POI Action Menu, press ENTER from within the list of POIs. Once in the POI Action Menu, you can choose from up to five actions, namely:
1) Vehicle route: Creates a vehicle route from your current position to the POI.
2) Pedestrian route: Creates a pedestrian route from your current position to the POI.
3) Destination: Sets the POI as your destination.
4) Show POI Details: Allows you to view the POI details such as address and phone number. While viewing the details, press CONTROL with 8 to delete the POI.  
5) Add to Favorites:  Pressing ENTER on this item adds the selected POI to your list of Favorites.  After the favorite is added you are returned to the POI Action menu to make another selection, for example create a pedestrian route.  This saves you from having to find the POI again.  

You can press the first letter of the menu item you wish to move to or press SPACE to move through the list and then press ENTER on the desired item.
8 Looking Around.
BrailleNote GPS provides a means of accessing information about your environment, through speech, Braille or both.  This information can be invaluable for getting oriented in a strange, unfamiliar or even familiar environment.

The announcement of nearby Points of Interest (POIs) and street information may let you know you are in a familiar area as well as allowing the opportunity to choose one as a destination.  This is often the way sighted people orient, by using nearby landmarks and signs to know that they are in a familiar or unfamiliar area.  The local maps and Points of Interest databases allow the environment to talk to you through the BrailleNote so a blind person can also orient in this fashion.

You can look around to get oriented to your surroundings in two distinct LookAround modes: Automatic and Manual.  LookAround Mode allows you to get a sense of the environment around your current location.  The information can be very useful indeed in assessing what type of route you wish to create and follow, what type of heading information is going to be best suited to the environment etc. as well as being useful in its own right.

8.1 Automatic LookAround Mode.
Automatic LookAround Mode searches for POIs and intersections in the vicinity and will scan for POIs every 12 seconds.  If no POI or intersection is found, the software looks around again 5 seconds later.  Nothing is announced until it finds a POI or intersection within the trigger distance or direction.  If the same POI or intersection is announced and then found a second time, it will not be repeated.  It can be set to announce nearby POIs and/or intersections.  If you are actively following a route, only intersections are announced.  If you press another command at the same instant as the program is “looking around”, there may be a delayed response.  Note that the nearest point is announced but not all points within the LookAround range.  If you want to hear all the points, press F for a proximity list.  When you approach a turn all LookAround announcements will be switched off for 36 seconds.  
8.2 Multiple Repeat Mode.
The Multiple Repeat key, M, followed by one of several single-letter keys repeats the respective single-letter function every 12 seconds.
The following is a list of multiple repeat commands, which you can access through the menu system.

M then A; Multiple Address Announcement.
M then D; Multiple Destination Announcement.
M then F; Multiple Nearest POI Announcement.
M then H; Multiple Heading Announcement.
M then M; Deactivate all Multiple Repeat Commands.
M then S; Multiple Speed Announcement.
M then T; Multiple Turn Announcement.
M then X; Multiple Intersection Announcements.

You can activate several multiple repeat commands at the same time.  For example, Press M then X for Intersection and M then D for Destination.  They will both repeat one after the other, every 12 seconds.  Press M then M to turn all repeat items off.  Press the item once to turn it on and a second time to turn it off.  For example, M then D turns Destination repeat on and M then D a second time turns it off.  If you get confused as to what is turned on or off, just press M then M to turn all items off.  You can also just press M then scroll down the menu and see the status of each item.
For example, if you have a route loaded, you may wish to turn on the next turn announcement with M then T as well as the destination announcement with M then D.

Note: the items will trigger in a set order, not the order in which you turn them on.
Remember that multiple repeat is disabled in GPS mode when the receiver is searching for satellites.
8.3 Manual LookAround.
Manual LookAround allows you to spot check your location.  You can manually enter the LookAround commands such as:

SPACE for Current Location Summary.  You will hear information such as nearest intersection, next turn and destination of a route is loaded, heading, nearest address including city and GPS status.  This is a great way to get a summary of your current location with one keystroke.

X for Announcing Intersections.  This announces the nearest Intersection name, heading and distance.  The cross street is announced.  If you are moving, X announces the nearest intersection in a 90 degree arc ahead of you i.e.  if ahead is 12 o'clock, between 10:30 and 1:30 o'clock.  If you are not moving, X gives you the nearest intersection, in any direction.  A unique sound differentiates the nearest intersection from the next intersection (no sound).  Map data quality and GPS accuracy impact the preciseness of intersection announcements.  Once you are within 100 feet (30 meters) of the center of the intersection, no distances will be specified and the X key will announce that you are near the intersection.  Remember that the distance to the intersection refers to the center of the intersection, so you might be stopped at the intersection and hear that the intersection is 105 feet away.  If you want more details about your intersection press READ with X.   This command will announce intersection details like direction of travel and the compass orientation of the cross streets.

A for Nearest Street Address.  Query the nearest known street address by pressing the letter A.  If you are on a highway or if the address number is not known, the name only will be announced.  You can also be off the street itself, say in a nearby park and hear the nearest address.  The wider the street, the more likely the address will correspond with the side of the street you are on.  If you are near an intersection, you may receive the address of the cross street and not the one you are physically on.  If you get a message saying the Address is unknown, move a bit and try again.  If you are more then 50 feet from the street you will receive a distance and direction.

C for City, Feature, State.  To hear the current city, Map Feature if there is one and state announced, Press C.  If you get a message saying it is unknown, move and try again.  There may be some small towns which do not have address level data, only street names without house numbers.  If the city name is not found, the nearest township will be announced.  If no township is found either, the county or district may be announced.  If there is a body of water, college campus or other map feature in the database, this will appear after the city and before the state.  You can also have the complete details of any location displayed in a list by pressing READ with C.  Press SPACE to scroll through the list of available options.  These details include the road classification, such as one way, split, tunnel, skyway, bridge etc.  The average speed a car travels on the street, number of lanes, address range on each side of the road, city, borough if there is one, county, country, zip, lat/lon and map name.

P for the nearest POI 

F for all Nearby POIs.  See Section 7.2.1 for more details

9 
Other Functions.
This section covers a range of miscellaneous general functions available while using the GPS.  
9.1 Speed Announcement.
To hear the current speed announced, press S. At speeds under 20 MPH you will hear speeds such as 2.4 or 13.5.

9.2 Heading.
To hear your current heading in terms of a compass reading and degrees, press H. East equals 90 degrees, South 180 degrees, West 270 degrees and North 0 degrees. The average of your heading is calculated to minimize the variations in heading due to GPS fluctuations around 30 feet. The degree reading is an excellent way to understand when you are on a curving road that would otherwise be difficult to detect by feel. It can take up to 10 to 15 seconds at pedestrian speeds to determine your direction of travel.


10 
GPS Options Menu.
You can access the GPS Options Menu either from within the GPS program by pressing O or from the GPS Help Menu by pressing DOWN ARROW repeatedly until you hear “Option Commands” then press ENTER.  To select an option, move through the menu until the desired option is displayed and then press ENTER.  Alternatively, from anywhere in the Options Menu, press the initial letter of your choice.

Once you have accessed the GPS Options Menu by pressing O from within GPS, you will be presented with the General Settings Menu.  At the end of the General Settings Menu you can access the Advanced GPS Options Menu by pressing ENTER on that menu item.  
10.1 Map and Points of Interest Folder.
With this option you can set the folder where the GPS software will look for map and POI data.  You can easily change the Map and POI Folder.  The default folder name is Maps on the Compact Flash card, PC Card, or SD card.

To set the folder, select the Map and POI Folder item. You are presented with a dialog.  The first item shows your list of available maps.  You might see something like California with Washington and Oregon.  If you have multiple maps in a map folder you are given this information.  You might also see New York by itself. This means that New York is the only map within that folder. 

Scroll to the map or group of maps you would like to switch to and press ENTER.  If you switch to a group of maps your virtual position is not on one of those loaded maps, you are presented with a list of maps so that you can set a new virtual position.  This gives you a starting place.  

Below the list of maps you will find one menu item it is called browse to specific map folder.    Select this item if the automatic detection fails.  Select the drive and folder containing the map and POI files in the same manner as selecting any folder on the BrailleNote.  Take note of the confirmation message after you set the folder to make sure the appropriate number of maps and POIs were loaded.  If you pick a folder that does not have any maps in it, the system will search again for the default locations and will inform you that it has chosen this other map directory instead.  If you are in the application and are suddenly getting announcements of “Unknown” addresses and intersections or no POIs are showing up, chances are that the map folder needs to be pointed to the proper map files.

You can check the location of where the system thinks the map files are located just by highlighting the Maps and POIs item in the GPS options menu.


10.2 Units.
This option allows you to change the units of measure; IE reported distance to your next turn.   When you select this option you are presented with a list that includes the following: feet (Imperial), meters (Metric), yards or Nautical Miles (Nautical).  Scroll to the option you wish to change then press ENTER to confirm.  You are then returned to the GPS application.  The default unit is Imperial.
An Imperial mile equals 5280 feet. An example of distance is: 0.80 miles.
A kilometer equals 1000 meters.  An example of distance is: 1.30 kilometers.
A nautical mile equals 6076.215 feet.  An example of distance is: 0.80 nautical miles.
A yard equals 3 feet.  An example of distance is 75 yards.

10.3 GPS Receiver.
In this option you can select the type of GPS receiver you are using.  Select from the menu or press one of the following options B for Bluetooth.  To make it easier Bluetooth receivers are the only receivers supported.  If you have more then one Bluetooth receiver active, you can switch between them by pressing O, G, B, scroll to the receiver and press ENTER.

 
10.4 Restore Factory Default Settings.

If you press O for GPS Options Menu, then R for Restore Factory defaults, this will restore all the BrailleNote GPS settings back to their factory defaults.  

Factory Default Settings are as follows:

Units will be set to Imperial.
GPS Receiver Type will be set to Bluetooth.
Change POI Author Name will be set to none.


10.5 Advanced GPS Options Menu
Press O then A to access the advanced GPS options menu.

10.5.1 Languages.
This item is used to have the program translate prompts into a supported language.  Currently the system supports English or UK English.  For example, when the system is set to English you will hear "On a Railroad."  If the system is set to UK English you will hear "On a Railway." To change the language: press O for the GPS Options menu, scroll to the Advanced menu item and press ENTER.  Scroll to Languages and press ENTER.  You are then prompted: "Language to load?"  Press E for English or U for UK English.  


10.5.2 Register Software or New Maps.
When you purchase a new map you will be issued an updated license key.  If you do not enter the updated key the new maps will not load.  From the Advanced GPS options menu, select Register Software or New Maps and type in the license code.  The code is not case sensitive.  When you press ENTER you will be told the number of map licenses that have been registered.  If you type in an incorrect key you will be notified and returned to the Advanced GPS Options Menu.
You can obtain your product key by logging into your account at http://www.mysendero.com.  Use your BrailleNote’s serial number as the user name.  By default the password is blank.  It is strongly recommended that you change your password after you login for the first time.


10.5.3 Change POI Author Name.
When you create a user POI the Author name is displayed when viewing the POI details.  Some people may use their full name, while others will use their initials.  If you wish to change the author name that is associated with the POIs you create you can do so by selecting this item.  You are told the current author name.  Type in the new name and press ENTER.  The Author name is updated.  The new name will take effect the next time you record a user POI.





BrailleNote QT GPS v2014 Command Summary.

Description
 BT Command
Announce Summary of Current Location
SPACEBAR
Location Lookup
L
Nearest POIs
F
Find POIs
READ with F

Where am I Commands
 HELP then W
Nearest Intersection if you are not Moving, Next Intersection if you are Moving
 X 
Detailed Description of Intersection
 READ with X
Nearest Street Address
 A
Current City
 C
Detailed Description of your Current Location
 READ with C
Heading Compass and Degrees
 H

GPS Commands
HELP then G
Speed
 S
Approximate GPS Distance-Accuracy, and Number of Satellites
 G
Quality and Detailed GPS Accuracy
 Q
Reconnect to Bluetooth GPS Receiver
 BACKSPACE with R 

Destination Commands
 HELP then D
Heading and Distance to Destination
 D
Set Destination by Address
 L

Points of Interest Commands
 HELP then P
Find Nearest Points in All Categories
 F 
Find POIs by Name Specifying a Category in All Directions
 READ with F
Announce Current POI
 P 
Create a User POI at GPS Position
 READ with R
Create User POI by Address
 L
Move to Next POI
 DOWN ARROW
Move to Previous POI
 UP ARROW
Nearest POI
 READ with T or HOME
Furthest POI
 READ with B or END
Jump Forward 10 POIs
 RIGHT ARROW or PG DOWN
Jump Back 10 POIs
 LEFT ARROW or PG UP

Route Commands
 R
Route Announcement Commands List
 R, A
Next Turn or Road Transition
 T 
Total Route Distance
 R, A, D
Announce Route Distance and ETA from Current Position to End of the Route
 R, A, E

Create Pedestrian Route
 R, P
Create Vehicle Route
 R, V
Open Route
 R, O
Save Route
 R, S
Close Route
 R, C
Save Route Directions (text file)
 R, D
Recalculate Route
 BACKSLASH
Reverse Route
 R, R
Route Information
 R, I
Remaining Waypoints in Route List
CONTROL with I

Multiple Repeat Commands
 M
Turn Off All Multiple Repeat Commands
 M, M
Intersections
 M, X
Heading
 M, H
Destination
 M, D
Route Next Turn
 M, T
Speed
 M, S
Address
 M, A

Miscellaneous Commands
 HELP then C
History List
CONTROL with READ with H
Favorites List
CONTROL with 1
Add Current Position to Favorites
READ with V
Lock/Unlock the Keyboard
 CONTROL with L
Spell Name
 CONTROL with K
Repeat Last Announcement
 REPEAT key
Interrupt Speech
 READ with SPACE
Redo Last Command
 ENTER

Option Commands
 O
Map and POI Folder
 O, M
Units
 O, U
Select GPS Receiver
 O, G
Change to XL Mode
 O, E
Restore Factory Default Settings
 O, R

Advanced GPS Options
 O, A
Change POI Author Name
O, A, A
Register Software or New Maps
 O, A, R
Languages
 O, A, L

Information Center
 HELP then I
About GPS
 Help then  I, A
Command Summary
 HELP then I, C
BrailleNote GPS User Guide
 HELP then I, U
License Agreement
 HELP then I, L
Sendero Contact Information
 HELP then I, S

Exit GPS
 ESCAPE11 
Appendix A: Manually Downloading and Installing BrailleNote GPS
This section explains the second way to manually download and install BrailleNote GPS software, Maps and POIs.  We encourage users to install using the Sendero Map Manager described in Section 2, but have included instructions to download manually in case your computer set up requires you to do so manually.
  
11.1 Login to the Sendero Download Web Site

1) When your account is set up, you will receive an email from Sendero Group with your Account ID and password.

2) Go to http://www.GoSendero.com

3) Select the first edit box and enter your Account ID. Do not press Enter yet. 

4) Tab to the Password Edit box and enter your password. 

5) Tab to the Login button and press ENTER. 

You will now be taken to the map download page. If the login fails, close your browser and try again.

  
11.2 Downloading ownloading and Installing Sendero Maps software

When you first log into the Sendero download website, you will see four headings:
a. Points of Interest
b. Conversion Utility
c. Products
d. Maps

Navigate to the heading Products and select the link to download SenderoGPSEZ2014.zip.

Save the file to your PC, making a note of where you save it.  Once the file is downloaded, locate the file unzip it and select Setup_SenderoGPSEZ2014.msi to begin the installation process.  

11.2.1 Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote Apex
1.  Using your PC download the installation package.   An example of the file name is GPSInstaller_2014.HWP.
2.  Copy the file to an SD card.  Note:  the Apex does not have a Compact flash or PCMCIA slot, so any reference to either of these in the manuals should be considered the SD card.
3.  Insert the SD card into the SD slot.  See the Apex manual for details on inserting and removing SD cards.
4.  If the Apex is switched on when you insert the SD card you will receive a message informing you to press the reset button to install packages.  The reset button is located behind the on/off switch and is black in color.  You may need to use a pointed object such as the tip of a pen.
5.  Press the reset button and wait a few seconds.  After the music plays you will be asked to install GPSInstaller_2014.  Press Y to continue installing BrailleNote GPS or press N to return to the main menu.
6.  You are then informed that the installation was successful and are returned to the main menu.  You can start BrailleNote GPS by pressing the letter N from the main menu without having to do any other reset.

11.2.2 Installing BrailleNote GPS on the BrailleNote mPower
9) If you need to install the GPS software, hold down keys S, D and F on the keyboard.  Press and release RESET and continue holding the keys S, D and F down until you hear the chime.
10) Once you have performed the reset, feel along the back of the BrailleNote and you will find the Compact Flash Card slot.  Insert the card into this slot with the lip oriented away from the machine and down.  It will only go in one way properly.  It takes a little pressure to press it in the last quarter inch or so.  Do not force it. If it does not plug in all the way, flip the card over.  Note: If you wish to use the PC card slot in the right hand side, you will first need to put the Compact Flash card into a PC card adapter and then into the PC card slot.

11) From the Main Menu, press U for Utilities.

12) Press A for Application Program.

13) The prompt: “Run program from which drive?” displays.  Press C for Compact Flash card.  (or P for the PC card slot).

14) You are prompted for the Directory.  Press ENTER for none.

15) Select the GPS program installation file, press ENTER and follow the prompts.  If it says “command line”, just press ENTER.  If you receive any messages about installing over newer files, listen to the prompt and be sure you are not overwriting your custom sounds. Press ENTER to use the default file or ESCAPE to keep your custom file and continue installing.  If you get a message about files being in use, this means the reset did not work properly.  Try it again and make sure to hold the three keys down until the second audio chime, about ten seconds after the reset beep.

16) When the installation is complete, remove any storage cards and do a No Key Reset, by pressing the reset button.  Your GPS software is now ready to go.

If it is necessary to do a Hard Reset, i.e. with Keys J K L held down, some settings may be lost.  If you are using a Bluetooth GPS receiver, you will need to pair and activate it again after a hard reset.  After a normal reset it is only necessary to re-activate your Bluetooth GPS receiver.

  
11.3 Downloading Maps

Once you have installed the software, you will need to download the necessary maps to use with BrailleNote GPS.  To do this login to your account at GoSendero.com as described above, then navigate to the Maps heading.

1) Select the Combo-box and arrow to the state, province or country you wish to download. 

2) Tab to the "Show Downloads" button and press ENTER.

3) Navigate through the links and press ENTER on the map you wish to download.

4) Tab to the Save button and press ENTER. You are downloading a zip file.  Choose the Save button.  Tab through the Download dialog to select the location of the download folder. A file name is suggested. Press ENTER on the Save button to begin the download. Large maps could take 15 minutes or more to download depending upon the connection speed.

To download additional map files, use the Combo box to highlight the new item and select the "Show Downloads" button again. Repeat the steps above.

Next you will need to unzip the maps and copy them onto your storage card in the Maps folder using Windows Explorer.   
The entire U.S. map data occupies around 13 GB.  These maps are compiled by states for the U.S.  There are at least 3 map files for each state map section.  Some states are broken up into more than one section, for example California is split into 6 sections.  There are 9 map files for California.   When deleting or moving map files manually, be careful that the entire group of files per state or country are selected.   Also, be sure to copy the files directly into the map folder as opposed to having the state as a subfolder.  POIs for each map must also be located in the Maps folder. 

After copying the desired maps to your Maps folder when you load BrailleNote GPS, you hear: "X Maps loaded," where X is the number of maps that were loaded.  If there is a corrupt map file, the map in question will be indicated.  If you get a message saying “unable to initialize map engine”, restart the program.


  
11.4 Downloading additional User Points of Interest

The previous section discussed how to download the necessary map and commercial POI files to run Sendero Maps.  In addition to these core files, you may also choose to download additional User POI files.  Say for example you are a hiking enthusiast or you regularly use public transit, you would download the additional User POI files that include hiking trails or the Google Transit POIs.
 
To start downloading additional User POI files, navigate to the Points of Interest Heading.  There are two links under this heading; User and Other POI content and Google Transit POI databases.  Select either link to view the available files to download.  










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