Pairing a Bluetooth Device on Linux =================================== You need to "pair" your device with the host on which you wish to use it. You can pair a device with more than one host, but you can usually only use it with one host at a time. Pairing a Bluetooth device on Linux is relatively easy if you're comfortable working within the graphical (X) environment. All you need to do is to run "bluetooth-applet" and follow the steps it presents to you. It's a little trickier to pair a Bluetooth device via the command line, but it can be done. One way to do it is as follows: You need to find out your host's Bluetooth Device Address (referred to later in this document as ). To do this, run the command "hciconfig hci0". Look for the (indented) line which begins with "BD Address:". The very next "word" on that line is your host's Bluetooth Device Address. It'll be six two-digit hexadecimal numbers separated by colons (:). Examples in this document use the value "01:23:45:67:89:AB". You need to find out your device's Bluetooth Device Address (referred to later in this document as ). To do this, run the command "hcitool scan". This command can take a while to complete as it gives devices a fair bit of time to respond. Each device which responds creates one two-column output line. The first column is its Bluetooth Device Address (examples in this document use the value "12:34:56:78:9A:BC"), and the second column is its current name. Manufacturers usually set a device's initial name to its product name and model number so that it's easy to spot within the scan output. If your device allows you to change its name, it's okay to do so even after you've paired it. A device needs to be "visible" in order for the scan to find it. Most devices are "invisible" by default, but have a way to be made temporarily visible. You should check your device's manual to find out how to do this. In many cases there's either a button which needs to be pressed or a menu item which needs to be selected. Since both the device's temporary visibility and the host's scan time out, Make your device visible just before you initiate the scan. You need to know what PIN (password) your device is expecting. Your device's documentation should contain this information. Many devices allow you to set the PIN, in which case they'll have a menu which allows you to do this. Examples in this document use the value "1234". Go into the directory "/var/lib/bluetooth/. In there (create if necessary) is the file "pincodes". Each line in this file associates a device with its PIN. It has two fields separated by space. The first field is the device's Bluetooth Device Address and the second field is its PIN. The Bluetooth Device Address must be in uppercase. For example: cat /var/lib/bluetooth/01:23:45:67:89:AB/pincodes 12:34:56:78:9A:BC 1234 Using a Bluetooth Device with BRLTTY ==================================== After your device has been paired with your host, it's ready to be used by BRLTTY. You can tell BRLTTY to use your Bluetooth device either via the -d (or --braille-device=) command line option or via the braille-device line in the file "/etc/brltty.conf". The device should be specified as the word "bluetooth", a colon (:), and the device's Bluetooth Device Address. For example: brltty -d bluetooth:12:34:56:78:9A:BC or cat /etc/brltty.conf braille-device bluetooth:12:34:56:78:9A:BC