Extract text from Boardmaker activity files (BKR)
To convert BKR activity files to another format, you need Boardmaker or other Page Layout software.
To convert other file formats to the "Educational Communication Board" file type, you need software like Boardmaker or a similar tool.
The .BKR file format is a proprietary document type created by Boardmaker, a specialized software originally developed by Mayer-Johnson and now part of Tobii Dynavox. These files store interactive or printable activity boards, which heavily feature Picture Communication Symbols (PCS) used globally in special education and augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). A typical .BKR file contains complex grid layouts, embedded symbol images, text labels, and interaction settings.
Because the .BKR format is entirely closed and proprietary, users face severe limitations. It is impossible to natively open a .BKR file without an active, often expensive subscription to the Boardmaker platform. The files are not supported by web browsers, standard image viewers, or word processors like Microsoft Word. Sharing these raw files with parents, therapists, or teachers who lack the licensed software is a major real-world bottleneck.
To share an activity board universally, the ideal target format is PDF. Converting a .BKR file to PDF preserves the precise grid layout and symbol clarity necessary for printing physical communication aids. Alternatively, converting to JPG or PNG works well if you need to embed a single communication board into an email or presentation. However, exporting to these standard formats usually requires access to the original authoring software.
Because this is a strictly closed format, standard online converters consistently fail to process it. Just drag and drop your .BKR file onto convert.guru to identify the format, view it, and convert it when possible. Emphasize that often only the original Boardmaker software can properly read or export the structured layout data. convert.guru can still identify the file format, inspect the file, and show text or internal content. If our analysis detects a supported underlying or embedded format, such as unencrypted raw text or image assets, viewing or conversion may still be possible.
Convert.Guru analyzes your BKR file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
If you want to convert BKR file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use Boardmaker or similar software from the "Educational Activity Board Storage" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to BKR, try Boardmaker or another comparable tool in the "Educational Activity Board Storage" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our BKR converter.