How different is a Braille embosser than a Dymo? They are very similar in size and mode of operation. Both of them position the letters in a circular moveable piece to allow for easy identification and selection of the right letter, both visually and tactilely. Tactility is a way of comprehending the world, just as visuality is, but the way tactile letters are found in the Braille embosser demands a different kind of involvement from the user. That is the first difference between both objects: they look similar, but are used very differently. Yet, their mechanisms are comparable. This poses the question of whether one of them should be radically different in form to the other, since their users operate in radically different ways. Perhaps having the letters in relief is not enough to make the Braille embosser a well-designed tool. That seems to be the other important difference between both objects: the Dymo embosser is an object, while the Braille embosser is a tool. The first one is much less necessary to its user than the other, since labeling for a visually impaired individual is a way of way finding rather than a method of organizing. A good friend and colleague spent three days blindfolded to experience how the world is comprehended tactilely. He assured me that the test entirely changed his understanding of design. A Braille embosser might be an essential object for its users, although its form might not show it.
