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Funding and governance of library and information services for visually impaired people: international case studies
Part2:Country studies
Denmark
Materials provision
Braille
Original materials supplied: Files from publishers ? mostly. If not there are scanned
Conversion: The converters at DBB
On-demand: Yes, but from books already converted and placed on server. You cannot order any title you may wish
Stock: The decisions are made according to the Library Law. Decisions are made by librarians with ‘a good ear' to patrons' wishes.
Targets for range/depth/speed: There is a yearly quota and terms for delivery (decided by DBB)
Audio - standard cassette and CD
Original materials supplied: Mostly by masters from publishers.
Conversion: Partly DBB and partly publishers
On-demand: No
Stock:The decisions are made according to the Library Law. Decisions are made by librarians with ‘a good ear' to patrons' wishes.
Targets for range/depth/speed: There is a yearly quota and terms for delivery (decided by DBB)
Audio Daisy
Original materials supplied: Mostly by masters/files from publishers.
Conversion: DBB
On-demand: No
Stock: The decisions are made according to the Library Law. Decisions are made by librarians with "a good ear" to patrons' wishes.
Targets for range/depth/speed: There is a yearly quota and terms for delivery (decided by DBB)
Daisy text and audio
Original materials supplied: Mostly by masters/files from publishers.
Conversion: DBB
On-demand: No
Stock: The decisions are made according to the Library Law. Decisions are made by librarians with ‘a good ear' to patrons' wishes.
Targets for range/depth/speed: There is a yearly quota and terms for delivery (decided by DBB)
Audio books
DBB's audio books are of all different genres recited unabridged by professional readers. Primarily they are recorded on tapes and copied onto cassettes and packed in boxes. DBB produces books, magazines, newspapers etc. as audio books. Users with jobs can have the material they need to conduct their business produced as audio material.
The current collection of analogue audio books consists of approximately 12,000 titles.
In 2000 DBB began the production of digital audio books in the DAISY standard. DBB produces highly structured digital talking books, which enables the user to navigate within the book.
In 2002 DBB began converting the analogue audio books to digital audio books with structure and now has about 14,000 digital audio titles.
Books in Braille
DBB converts books and other printed materials into Braille. DBB produces books, magazines, newspapers etc. in Braille. Users with jobs can have the material they need to conduct their business produced in Braille or as electronic texts.
The current collection of Braille books consists of approximately 4,200 titles. Braille books have been distributed on a print on demand basis since 2002; the user gets the book a few days after ordering and can keep it or discard it as wished, saving administrative and manual work handling returns.
E-books
DBB produces e-books which at present means books or other printed material as computer files (in HTML and ASCII formats). The e-books are sent to the users by mail on diskettes, by e-mail or they can be downloaded directly from the DBB homepage. The e-books can be used in various ways. Some people print the text out on Braille printers, others use screen readers and synthetic speech on the personal computer and others again use a digital Braille display. Further the e-books can be converted into large print.
All books published in Braille are also released as e-books.
Approximately 2000 e-books are downloadable from the e17 portal.
Braille music
DBB's music library is one of the world's leading producers of Braille music. Music notes is converted to Braille by music teachers and musicians, often in a close partnership with the person who has ordered the piece of music at DBB. The Braille notes are specially arranged for blind users.
The current collection of Braille music notes consists of approximately 6000 titles. There is a project to digitise the collection by 2008.
Magazines
DBB produces almost 90 different magazines and newspapers on audio tapes or in Braille. People can borrow (old issues) or subscribe. A subscription costs the same as the printed version.
Leaflets
DBB produces leaflets continuously, dealing with various subjects and information of relevance to the public service sector. The leaflets are available on audio tapes, in Braille and as e-books and as normally printed text.