Just to answer the questions below: The braille output is controlled by whatever screen reader is in use, and screen readers are specific to each operating system. There is no output available until the screen reader is loaded (it's the same with text to speech in that respect). I recall an effort to integrate braille support into Grub, so that one could access the Grub menus independently. I can't remember how far that progressed, but I know where to ask.
There's one possible option for enabling me to read BIOS/UEFI menus, namely remote administration facilities. The Lenovo P51 laptop, for example, has Intel Management Engine installed, though not presently configured. If it supports a serial console or similar, I could access it from another machine. I haven't investigated the details, but I'm interested. -----Original Message----- From: Mark Trickett <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, January 23, 2019 4:33 AM To: Jason White <[email protected]>; luv-main <[email protected]> Subject: Re: Contemplating a complex UEFI-based Linux installation Hello Jason, On 1/23/19, Jason White via luv-main <[email protected]> wrote: > I have a Lenovo P51 laptop here (currently running Microsoft Windows > 10) on which I'm contemplating installing Linux - probably Arch Linux, > or perhaps Debian Testing - or another distribution that is kept fairly up to > date. > Arch > is of interest in that the packages are kept fairly close to upstream, > which could be useful for some of my purposes (e.g., reporting bugs on > accessibility-related tools such as braille display software and > screen readers, and compiling development versions thereof). Thank you for being involved in such ways. I know another blind computer user, but in the USA, who is effectively tied to Microsoft, and loathes it. As a diabetic, braille output is not an option, and should the screen reader not work, the computer is unusable, and very difficult to fix, they have "sighted minions" who are far from computer literate. As such the BIOS screens are unavailable. > I need to keep Microsoft Windows around for work purposes, due to > compatibility issues. I'm contemplating a dual-boot configuration. I > would rather not turn off Microsoft's virtualization-based security, > which requires Secure Boot to be enabled; unfortunately, there are too > many vulnerabilities and plenty of Windows malware is circulating. I can understand and sympathize. Requiring the use of Microsoft software says someone is not competent. That is not you. > On the Windows side, I have enabled Device Guard and Credential Guard > in local group policy, set to require "secure boot with UEFI lock". I > don't know whether this will complicate Linux installation, or whether > it will need to be disabled, even temporarily. > > At this point, neither an Arch ISO image (written to a USB drive with > dd) nor a GRML64 image will boot. I suspect Secure Boot is > responsible, unless of course this system cannot boot from these > prepared ISO images. Were I any way close, I would like to offer to be your eyes for the BIOS and the like before the OS comes up. Whether it comes up on the braille output, it may miss out on some characters outside the standard ASCII set. That may be significant. > I've read documentation on the Arch wiki and elsewhere about UEFI and > Secure Boot, most of which is not very clear or somewhat incomplete. > There are several boot loaders from which to choose, for example, as > well as complications with Secure Boot. I've installed Arch before > (and Debian more than once), but only on BIOS-based systems and never > with another operating system also present. Further, there are various > reports of mixed success with Linux on this particular laptop model. > It isn't clear what information is up to date. > > Also, I want to avoid corrupting the UEFI firmware or data in ways > that would necessitate board replacement; I've had to deal with > unrelated hardware issues recently and definitely don't want to have > to go through the pain of that experience again, if I can avoid it. > > So, what would be my best source of advice at this point on how to proceed? > Suggestions and links would be welcome. I'm also willing to discuss it > with someone who knows UEFI well, if necessary. Knowing UEFI is the start, being there and seeing what messages flash up on the monitor, and then disappear is also important. I suspect that partial and poor implementations of UEFI may well be adding to the confusion and misinformation you see. To finish, some questions. When you browse a website, does the braille output include all the HTML, or just the text, or can you toggle between how much you get? Does the braille output work with the BIOS?UEFI screens? Is there a braille output device that also "speaks" the output? Regards, Mark Trickett _______________________________________________ luv-main mailing list [email protected] https://lists.luv.asn.au/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/luv-main
