Grade 1 Symbol Indicator vs. Grade 1 Word Indicator

[crichardson]

Aaaggg, this is driving me nuts. I keep searching for an easy way to understand and explain the use of grade 1 indicators.

The UK Association for Accessible Formats, Unified English Braille (UEB): Summary of changes for ordinary braille describes the use of the grade 1 symbol, word, and passage indicators as used in the same manner as the capital symbol, word, and passage indicators. Wow, that's what I thought. But, wait. When I apply the rules, I'm wrong.

My questions concern the lessons in the certification manual.

Lesson 12, 12.1c. "Use a grade 1 symbol indicator before a group of letters that is standing alone and could be mistaken for a shortform."  Why would the grade 1 symbol be used and not a grade 1 word indicator for a group of letters? Doesn't the grade 1 symbol indicator indicate that only the following character is uncontracted, as in single letters? Just like a capital indicator?

In the following Drill 29, Sentence 10.  Imm     The answer uses a grade 1 symbol indicator. Why wouldn't a grade 1 word indicator be correct?   Shouldn't the whole word be indicated as uncontracted?

Sentence 11.  Hm, him    Again a grade 1 symbol indicator is used with Hm, yet it's a word.

I just can't figure this out.

Thank you,

Candace Richardson

 

 

 

[claurent]

See UEB 5.7.2.  What you are really doing is ensuring that a letters sequence is not incorrectly read as a word in braille.  So with Hm you aren't uncontracting the word, you are making sure that the letter sequence Hm is not read in braille as the word Him.  For that purpose, the grade 1 symbol indicator is sufficient and takes less space.  This applies to CD, LLC, the al in al dente, and so on.

Does that help?

Cindi

 

[crichardson]

Can I think of it this way?

The grade 1 symbol indicator is for groups of letters, such as alt, hm, imm that could be read as a shortform and single letters such as :e to be read as an e and not every.

The grade 1 word indicator is for actual words or symbols-sequences such as ::u-n-t-i-d-y.

Thank you again,

Candace Richardson

[claurent]

Yes, although I am not going to say that it will ALWAYS work 🙂  It does sound right though - and if that helps you remember how they are used then that is what matters.

Cindi

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