2019-01-07 11:47:47

Hi!
So, I was thinking about using penfriend to label cards of various card games... Things like Cards Against Umanity and Sushi go, well, not exactly those specific games, but just to give you an idea of the complexity of the games I have in mind. I've used braille before, but my friends say that the pattern of the points is recognizable from behind the card and that spoils the fan a bit, because, with some practice, they can recognize the cards people are holding by looking at their back. I could put braille on some paper labels and stick them on the card's front so not to ruin it's back, i've done it too, but I'm limited in the characters I can type and, if I don't play a game for some time, it's hard to remember all the abbreviations I've used for cards with a lot of text.

To summarize, here are what I think could be the advantages of an audiolabel:
1 I can record a long message, ideal for cards with lot of text
2 The back of the card will remain clear
3 It would be very easy to pick up a game I've not played for a bit and play it without asking my friends explanations on some details of the card I don't remember.

I know that PenFriend offers the possibility to plug in hearphones and that it works with normal batteries, and the labels seems affordable.

So, what do you think about this solution? Do you see any potential drawbacks or problems? For example, i've not seen an actual label yet, and I'm afraid that it could cover some important part of the card making it unreadable by sighted people...
I hope I've been enough clear.
Thanks in advance for your opinions.

2019-01-09 00:22:45

Hmm. That's an interesting idea. Never messed with one myself, so can't say that I can give you a good list of pros and cons, though. For now, my current idea is to put the card in a brailled sleeve, then using a larger sleeve to sleeve over the brailled sleeve. It prevents the cards from seeming marked, anyways. The downside is I have to pull the card out of the outer sleeve to read it clearly, though. Then again, this is for TCGs such as magic, but you could use a similar system if you don't mind having bulky cards...Yeah, you know what, your idea already sounds better than mine. Ah well.

I have a website now.
"C: God's Programming Language
C++: The object-oriented programming language of a pagan deity" -- The Red Book
"There, but for the grace of God go I"

2019-01-09 07:15:50

I've got a penfriend but haven't tried this out, though interestingly enough I do believe there is a company who make braille sleeves etc for games see http://www.64ouncegames.com/ShopCart/ for details (they do have several versions of cards against humanity). 

As to the idea generally though, the only major problem I see is that firstly the penfriend does need to be a bit precisely placed to read the label, and secondly that it has an annoying habbit of turning itself off if not used (this is something I've sometimes found a miner pain myself when labelling a lot of cds).

If you can get around those two problems things should be okay, though personally being lazy I'd probably check whether 64 oz games have what your looking for first off big_smile.

I'd actually be interested in some of these myself accept that  at the moment my lady and I aren't really around many people who play those sorts of games much, which is a miner inconvenience, though if this situation changes its something we'd have in mind for the future.

With our dreaming and singing, Ceaseless and sorrowless we! The glory about us clinging Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing; O men! It must ever be
That we dwell in our dreaming and singing, A little apart from ye. (Arthur O'Shaughnessy 1873.)

2019-01-09 17:29:56

Hi!
At Dark: thanks for the 64ouncegames page. I don't think I'll buy from them, mostly because I come from Italy and not all the people I play with can understand english. However, I noticed that they use qr codes to convey the longest texts, and that reinforces my idea of using PenFriend. I'd use a normal qr code myself, but my iPhone is having issues with the battery after the last update, so I don't want to overuse it.
At Jaseoffire: wow, you play magic! I've never considered it because of the many cards and the fact that I can mark only my decks and not the adversary ones, but lots of my friends play it. How easily do you manage it? Have you ever taken part in drafts or other tournaments?
As always, thanks so much for your help!

2019-01-09 18:52:13

As of now, I do not manage as well as I would like. I have to have someone reading my cards to me. Though, now that I have a bit of time to work on a new system, I hopefully will bring an end to that. I have taken part in a casual draft, but of course, this brailling system would not be helpful in a draft. It only solves my issues with requiring a reader for constructed matches. As for the opponent's cards, I've found it to be sufficient to request the information I need from my opponent.

I have a website now.
"C: God's Programming Language
C++: The object-oriented programming language of a pagan deity" -- The Red Book
"There, but for the grace of God go I"

2019-01-09 19:23:26

Jaseoffire: thanks for the answer. I have to start experimenting with TCGs. I've actually played Summoner Wars and liked it a lot, but it has an easier structure: premade decks, less cards to remember etc.
At Dark: in my last post, I forgot to ask you how long do the PenFriend's batteries last? And do you think the labels would resist well, considering that I'd have to touch them more than if, say, they where on a medicine box?