i am considering purchasing a Mac laptop. how does the mac app for bookshare work? is it just for downloading the books, or can you read the books using VoiceOver and a Braille display? Thank you.
After you have unzipped the downloaded book from Bookshare, these are the steps to take on your own computer:
Open Firefox. Use the File>Open File command and open up the XML file in the Bookshare book's folder.
In Firefox, select File>Save Page As. Navigate to your preferred folder (I created one called eBooks for this purpose), rename the file to the book's title with the extension ".html" and in the Save As drop down box, select Web Page, Complete.
You can read the XML files in Safari, the default web browser for the Mac, if you set up Safari to show the "Develop" menu in the menubar, and then navigate to the "Develop" menu to make sure that "Disable local file restrictions" is not checked. This is a one-time setup operation.
1. In Safari, press Command-Comma to bring up your preferences window
2. Press Control-F5 to move to the preferences window title bar
3. Right arrow to the "Advanced" button and press it (either with VO-Space or by simultaneously pressing your up and down arrow keys)
4. Tab to the "Show develop menu" checkbox, and make sure this is checked
5. Close your preferences window with Command-W
6. Quit and then restart Safari. (There should now be a "Develop" menu on your menu bar)
7. Press Control-F2 to navigate to the menu bar, then press "d" to move to the "Develop" menu.
8. Arrow down into the "Develop" menu and uncheck the box for "Disable local file restrictions" if it is checked.
Now, you can use Spotlight on your Mac to find your XML files. Press Command-Space and type in a few letters of the title along with "xml" to find your Bookshare XML files. Press return to open the file you want in the resulting list, and it will open in Safari. The keyboard action to check/uncheck boxes or activate selections on the Mac is just the same as for your iPhone -- either simultaneously press the up and down arrow keys, if QuickNav mode is active, or press VO-Space (i.e., Control-Option-Space).
Hi. bookshare also now has a web reader. I have read a book this way and it seemed to work just fine. So now there is more than one option on how to read books. I hope this helps.
HI. I have done the steps mentioned above. Thanks for the great detail, by the way.
Now when I try to open a .xml file, my Mac opens Microsoft Word. Yes, I have cluttered up my beautiful Mac with a few MS products. I know. What was I thinking?
Anyway, is there anything else I can try to open my .xml's in Safari? Why is Word opening?
Comments
you have to unpack the books next
Read the XML files for your Bookshare books in Safari
reading books on the mac
.can't open xml files
HI. I have done the steps mentioned above. Thanks for the great detail, by the way.
Now when I try to open a .xml file, my Mac opens Microsoft Word. Yes, I have cluttered up my beautiful Mac with a few MS products. I know. What was I thinking?
Anyway, is there anything else I can try to open my .xml's in Safari? Why is Word opening?