In the June issue of AccessWorld, we took a look at Dolphin Guide, a screen reading solution for those who might not be able to easily use a computer in the conventional manner due to neurological, cognitive, and/or physical impairment. In the July issue, we looked at Leasey, a set of JAWS scripts from Hartgen Consultancy that benefit everyone from the beginning computer user to the power user who wishes to increase productivity at the keyboard. In this article, we will consider yet another approach to assisting the novice computer user who is visually impaired: the Speak Easy Media System from New Designs Unlimited(NDU). NDU is a small company that is operated solely by Matt Hill, and is based just outside of Detroit, Michigan. Android users will be familiar with the Darwin Reader and Darwin Wallet apps for reading books and identifying money, respectively. Both of these apps are designed by NDU.

The Speak Easy Media System consists of software that can be installed on any Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 2000, Windows 7, or Windows 8 computer. In addition to this software, NDU will provide a turnkey solution for anyone who wishes to purchase a full system. This includes a laptop computer with Speak Easy already installed, a portable audio player, and a flatbed scanner. Although the recipient of the Speak Easy Media System will need to have sighted assistance to set up the Internet at their location, NDU will set up a GMail account on the system if requested to do so.

Obtaining and Installing the Speak Easy Software

When I first visited the New Designs Unlimited website, I did not immediately find a downloadable demonstration copy of Speak Easy. I later found the file located on the site's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page, but I still needed to call the company to obtain an authorization code for the 30-day evaluation of the software. The first couple times I called the phone number provided on the NDU homepage, I was sent to voice mail and my calls were not returned. I did not realize at the time that the company was a one-man operation. On my third attempt, I was able to speak with Matt Hill who was friendly and courteous throughout the entire conversation. Matt e-mailed me a link to the Speak Easy setup file and provided a 30-day evaluation code for me to use so that I could test drive the product. He also included a PDF version of the user manual, also available from the company's website.

I loaded NVDA during the installation of the Speak Easy software, and NVDA spoke throughout the install process. I was not given the opportunity to tell Speak Easy to not load when Windows restarted, and I was unable to successfully change this option in Speak Easy's preferences. I later learned that this is a known issue with my Windows 7 computer.

After the Speak Easy software was installed, NVDA went away and the voice of Microsoft Anna took over. Speak Easy launched a very basic tutorial that would be suitable for anyone who has never touched a computer in their life. This tutorial launches when a preconfigured computer running the Speak Easy Media System launches for the first time. I was told to press the Down Arrow key first. I received no feedback when I intentionally pressed the wrong key. I did receive a "nice work" prompt when the correct key was pressed. Next, the Up Arrow, Right Arrow, and Left Arrow keys were introduced. A detailed description of the position of each key on the keyboard and its purpose were provided. Next, I was given an explanation of menus, and the use of the Control key in conjunction with the arrow keys. The F1 key is the help key, and gives detailed instructions on the use of Speak Easy in various areas of the program. It is possible to Arrow Up and Down to choices mentioned in help, and act on them by pressing the Enter key. You can exit help mode by pressing F1 again, or pressing the escape key. F2 acts as a describer mode of sorts, allowing you to press keys such as the Up, Down, Right, and Left Arrow keys to learn what they do without performing an action. Keys on the QWERTY keyboard are not described. Pressing escape does not exit out of this mode; you must press F2 again to leave describer mode. F3 opens a history of previously spoken text, which can be reviewed using the Up and Down Arrow keys. As with the F1 key, it is possible to press F3 again to leave this mode, or you can simply press the Escape key.

I did not see an obvious way to skip the tutorial on the first launch of the software, but it takes about five minutes to complete, and is probably a must for the beginning computer user.

After completing the tutorial, I registered the software. Instructions were simple and easy to follow. I was told to type my name and press Enter. Then I was told to enter the registration code and press Enter. Speak Easy alerted me to the fact that it had loaded with a short musical phrase, and then I lost speech completely. I was able to load NVDA, restart my computer, and things went well from that point.

Setting Up Speak Easy

When Speak Easy loads, the user is presented with a simple menu of nine numbered choices plus a few others that are not numbered. As you Arrow down, you hear descending tones. Arrowing up yields higher tones. Menus wrap, but the tones tell you that you have gone from the top item in a menu to the bottom, or vice versa. The main menu contains an option to shut down Speak Easy and return to Windows. NVDA automatically loads at this point. It is also possible to shut down your computer from the Speak Easy main menu. Speaking of Windows functions, it is worth mentioning here that the Speak Easy user manual recommends not performing Windows updates. The Speak Easy software is updated over the Internet, and includes Windows updates.

After I finished installing Speak Easy and rebooted my computer, I went to the preferences menu, which is number nine in the main menu. It is possible to press a number on the keyboard to jump to a menu item, or you can simply use the arrow keys. When you first enter a menu, you must press the down arrow key to hear the first item in that menu. Speak Easy does not read the first item automatically.

I went to Voice Preferences and changed the SAPI 5 voice or "speaker name" as it is referred to in Speak Easy lingo to VW James, a SAPI 5 voice that was already on my system. The voice rates that were available to me were Slowest, Slower, Normal, Fast, Faster, and Fastest. I found myself occasionally put off by the vague terminology used by Speak Easy. The previous example is just one of several I could cite. I would have preferred to hear numbers or percentages. I had to frequently remind myself that Speak Easy is geared toward the person who has absolutely no computer experience whatsoever. I chose the Faster voice rate, and left the setting alone for the duration of my trial. When working with Speak Easy preferences, the user is always told that a preference has "not been changed," or that the new preference has been saved. I adjusted several preferences all at once, but we will talk about them as they become important later in our examination of the Speak Easy software. There are several preferences including settings for low vision users that we will not have time to discuss in this article. Suffice it to say that Speak Easy is quite configurable.

The Speak Easy Entertainment Category

Each time I loaded Speak Easy after it had been shut down, I was greeted with a message such as "Good morning, Jamie Pauls. Your Speak Easy is ready to use." I suspect that many new users will find this greeting comforting as they begin to explore their new Speak Easy media system.

I decided to begin by exploring the Speak Easy Entertainment Category, which is the first entry on the main menu. Speak Easy gives a nice summary of the contents of each category before you even enter it. This is a nice touch and again will be of great benefit to the novice user.

DAISY Book Audio CD and Audio CD Player

I didn't have a DAISY audio CD handy, so I popped a Garth Brooks CD into my computer's CD-ROM drive. I was able to move from track to track using the Arrow keys. The Enter key starts and stops audio playback, while the Down Arrow key pauses and resumes audio playback. The Right and Left Arrow keys moved me through the track, although this process was not smooth, but rather choppy. Control plus the Arrow keys moved me from track to track. Speak Easy did not recognize the CD title or track names, but this may have been a problem on my end. I was unable to recognize CD info using Winamp, and needed to use Foobar 2000 instead. Finally, I did not appear to be given the option to change the volume of the music I was listening to in Speak Easy.

Podcast Audio Shows

When I took a look at the various podcasts available using Speak Easy, I needed to choose a "source." Sources included Comedy, Poetry and Prose, Business, Entertainment, NPR, CBC Radio, CNN News, Fox News, Educational, and Visually Impaired Podcasts. The Visually Impaired Podcasts genre included NFB Presidential Releases (which was misspelled and thus incorrectly announced by Speak Easy), Blind Access Journal, and, oddly enough, Blind Cool Tech. The now-defunct Blind Cool Tech podcast yielded errors when I tried to play any listed episodes. I had better luck with the NFB Presidential Releases podcast. The audio began to play immediately, and I was told when the podcast had finished downloading. The Enter key and the Down Arrow key behaved in the podcast audio as they did when I was playing a CD. Right and Left Arrow keys moved by a few seconds in the podcast, and adding the Control key to the Arrow keys took a "bigger jump" in Speak Easy parlance. Again, the rather vague and informal style of presenting information here was a bit disconcerting to me.

Audio Books On Tape

The rather oddly labeled Audio Books On Tape category brought me to a search box where I was asked to type the name of a book I wished to read. I typed "Tom Sawyer," and was presented with a list of seven books. These included The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Tom Sawyer Abroad. I chose the first selection, and was presented with a list of 17 chapters. The first item, labeled Chapter 01–02, began playing instantly when I pressed the Enter key. I discovered that this, and presumably all of the books in this category, are LibriVox recordings, which are free, public domain audio books.

Audio Books Read by Your Speak Easy

Perusing this category of books, I found many categories including "Recently Added." Each item in the list of results includes the book title, author, year of publication, and a good description of the book. I chose Ladder of Babel, a detective novel by Doug Buckley published in 2015. Pressing Enter on this title retrieved a list of 58 volumes. Volumes in this instance appear to be various levels of a DAISY book, including the cover (which was blank), the title page, and the main sections of the book. Each volume must be closed, and the next volume must be selected and opened manually. These books are read by the voice that you have configured in Speak Easy.

Music Stations

This category presents a list of Internet radio stations from all over the world. Included is a decent list of police scanner feeds, which I enjoyed checking out. Ctrl + Enter allows you to set stations as favorites, although I was unable to get this to work.

The Speak Easy Productivity Category

E-mail

Setting up my e-mail in Speak Easy needed to be done in Preferences. I was required to fill in the standard information for a POP3 account. After doing this, Speak Easy retrieved my e-mail with no problem. I was able to Arrow Up and Down through the list of messages in my inbox, and receive pertinent information such as sender, subject, and date received. Pressing Enter on a message read the body of the e-mail instantly. I was able to delete messages from within the body of the e-mail or from the list of messages simply by pressing the Delete key. Single letter commands such as W to write an e-mail, R to reply to a message, and Ctrl + Enter to send a message make this area of Speak Easy a breeze to use. Beginning computer users should find e-mail to be very satisfying when using Speak Easy.

Address Book

When entering contacts into the Speak Easy address book, I found it necessary to hit Enter after completing each field of the available contact information. This wouldn't be a problem, except that I needed to Arrow down through the list of fields that I had just completed in order to get to the one I wished to update. All in all, this should work well for the new user who simply needs to store information about contacts. I did not see a way to generate a new e-mail from the contact list.

Notes

The Notes program is as straightforward as one might imagine. After composing a note, it is possible to save a note to your computer, or to the portable player which you can purchase from New Designs Unlimited (more about this later). You are required to type a title for your note and press Enter before you can begin typing text in the body of the note. Speak Easy reads characters as you type, confirms selected or deleted characters, and pretty much everything else you would expect from a screen reader using a simple, Notepad-type application.

Calculator

Most baffling of all the applications I used in Speak Easy was the calculator. It is possible to type using the keyboard, or select items from a menu. To type 4 + 4 = 8, type "4" on the keyboard. To type the plus sign, use the number row at the top of the keyboard as you normally would. Here is where things get tricky. In order to insert the plus sign, you must press the Enter key. Press "4" again, and then you need to Arrow up to the equals sign and press enter to get the desired result of your calculation. It might be easiest for the new user to only use the menu to perform calculations, rather than using the keyboard.

Calendar

The Calendar app in Speak Easy is very easy to use, and should be intuitive for the beginner. It is easy to set reminders for appointments, which are heard as a series of beeps when it is time for the reminder to sound.

Talking Clock

Although it would be nice to have a hotkey to check the time in Speak Easy, hearing the current time as well as setting and configuring alarms and timers is very easy to do and works as expected. Again, this most important activity of daily life is handled well in Speak Easy.

The Speak Easy Scan and Read Category

Speak Easy does a nice job of handling the scanning and reading of documents. It is possible to magnify scanned documents without using speech, to use magnification and speech together, or to simply scan and read using the Speak Easy voice. Surprisingly, Speak Easy does not begin reading documents automatically after they have been scanned, even when appending new pages to a document. I did not try storing a scanned document on my computer.

Other Features of Speak Easy

Reading news articles, (my own local newspaper was recognized after I entered my zip code in preferences), playing simple games, and storing content on your portable player or a USB drive are all available from within Speak Easy. Should you wish to browse the web or perform more advanced screen reading tasks, NVDA is easily configured to work with Speak Easy. The software also contains an onboard user guide, and a typing tutor for those who need help improving their keyboarding skills.

The Bottom Line

Whether you wish to purchase the Speak Easy software for your own computer, have Speak Easy installed on a Netbook, or buy a laptop, flatbed scanner, and a portable player—I was told that this player resembles an iPod Shuffle—New Designs Unlimited has you covered. I believe that this suite of products is definitely worth considering for someone who is absolutely new to computers. The fact that the product interfaces easily with the free NVDA screen reader allows the user to grow into more advanced computing tasks. For a one-man company, New Designs Unlimited has packed a lot into the Speak Easy Media System.

Product Information

Speak Easy Software Lite: $495
Speak Easy Basic (runs on a Netbook): $1,095
Speak Easy Media System Complete (preconfigured laptop with flatbed scanner and portable player): $1,995.00
Available From: New Designs Unlimited (Comes with a 2-year warranty; 30-day evaluation available.)
Phone: 888-868-6159

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

• The Free iBill Money Identifier from the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing by Breonna Patterson and Lee Huffman
• Help Me See: The Organization Dedicated to Eliminating Cataract Blindness Globally by Bill Holton

More from this author:

• Dolphin Guide from Dolphin Computer Access: A Suite of Access Programs that Simplify Computer Use by Jamie Pauls
• Evaluation of the Leasey (Learn, Enable, Advance--So Easy!) Computer Scripts from Hartgen Consultancy by Jamie Pauls

Dear AccessWorld readers,

Last month AccessWorld served up some great holiday gift-giving ideas for people with vision loss. In the November issue, Deborah Kendrick provided ideas in her article, AccessWorld 2015 Accessible Holiday Gift Guide: From Free to Extravagant, Something for Everyone on Your List, and Janet Ingber provided information on options to the inconvenience and stress of brick and mortar shopping in her article, Holiday Shopping with Your iOS Device. In this issue, Janet also offers even more holiday gift ideas for the people on your list who experience vision loss.

There is still time to get the shopping done, so if you missed these articles, you can follow the above links or, as always, you can select the "Back Issues" button to check out any past online holiday issue of AccessWorld.

If you happen to be doing some cooking this time of year, you may want to revisit Deborah Kendrick's November 2010 review of the Directions for Me website, Website Evaluation: Directions for Me, a Gift to People Who Can't Read the Box. This article may help take the guesswork out of preparing those holiday meals by having package directions available at your fingertips, and it may even have the manual for that gift you are hoping to get over the holidays.

If you find yourself needing a break from all the pre- or post-holiday festivities, you may want to consider a stop at the local movie theater. As you know, audio description technology in movie theaters is becoming increasingly available. Relying on a friend or family member or imagining what might be happening in the film is no longer necessary. It's now possible to become completely immersed in the theater experience and enjoy films on an entirely new level. So sit back, relax, and take a break from the holiday rush.

A lot has happened in this past year of technology, from smaller changes to hardware and software, to exciting new accessible apps and advances in vision research, to larger events such as the release of the Apple Watch and Windows 10. We here at AccessWorld have done our best to keep you updated and informed in 2015, and the team certainly hopes you have enjoyed reading the publication and have personally benefited from our coverage of the technology most relevant to people with visual impairments.

If you have benefitted from information presented in AccessWorld, we would like to know about it. We would appreciate you sharing how information in AccessWorld has been of benefit to you, your student, or someone you care about. Please send your story to us; we are always excited to receive your feedback.

Also, in this season of giving, as the Editor-in-Chief of AccessWorld, I would like to ask for your support. The American Foundation for the Blind and, in turn, AccessWorld, depend, in large part, on private donations from people just like you.

If you read AccessWorld and are in a position to do so, I would appreciate you considering a gift to AccessWorld. Your donation will help us continue our work on behalf of Americans who are blind or visually impaired.

Each dollar you donate allows us to:

• Review assistive technologies
• Provide technology resources and support for everyone affected by blindness or visual impairment, including senior citizens, parents, families, and friends
• Offer a hub of technology information for professionals in the vision loss field

AccessWorld is here for the millions of Americans living with blindness and low vision because friends like you are here for us. If you would like to make a donation to AccessWorld, please visit the AccessWorld donation page. I ask for your assistance and also ask that you encourage your friends, family, and colleagues to join in our efforts.

The AccessWorld team wishes you a happy and healthy holiday season. We look forward to bringing you the latest in tech news in the coming year!

Best regards,
Lee Huffman, AccessWorld Editor-in-Chief
American Foundation for the Blind

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I have been an AccessWorld reader for a number of years now. I noticed your announcement in the September 2015 issue about upcoming articles on home appliance accessibility. In part, you said, "We will cover features such as tactilely discernable controls, audible tones, font size and style of control labeling, color contrast, glare, and the positioning of controls."

There is one more huge and possibly game-changing aspect of home appliance accessibility I hope you address, namely, smart appliances that might be controlled through an iPhone. While it is certainly preferable to have accessible controls on appliances themselves, they seem to be harder and harder to find, especially here in Canada. Very few seem to be even close to accessible, what with the growing proliferation of touch screen controls and embedded menus.

I am aware that some manufacturers are now starting to make "smart" appliances with companion smart apps. Hopefully, this might bring some modicum of access our way, so long as apps are accessible either on the Android or iPhone platforms; hopefully both. Specifically, I see that LG, GE, Samsung, and Whirlpool all have some smart appliances. Obviously, my hope would be that apps would allow for complete control of an appliance, not just for monitoring progress or controlling time delay operation, etc.

This new smart technology holds great promise, but it is impossible to assess the level of access without seeing a machine in operation and having the app in hand on an iPhone running VoiceOver for example. Could you please try and include this kind of information in your articles?

Lastly, could you also include company contact information specifically concerning accessible products if any are found? This would be helpful, because model numbers change when companies export their products to different countries. For example, model X in the US might be model Y in Canada, or not available at all. It would be most helpful to have a manufacturer contact for accessibility so that I might have a starting point in trying to track down similar products in my market. Sadly, Customer Service departments have typically been less than helpful and basically not interested in understanding the problems or finding solutions here.

I am very much looking forward to updated information on home appliance accessibility—washers, dryers, stoves, induction cooktops, wall ovens, etc.

Thanks, and I look forward to reading.

Jean Menzies

Release of Making Life More Livable, 3rd Edition

AFB Press is pleased to announce the recent publication of the revised and updated Third Edition of Making Life More Livable: Simple Adaptations for Living at Home After Vision Loss, by Maureen A. Duffy.

Making Life More Livable is an essential resource for older adults experiencing vision loss, their family and friends who support them, professionals who work with older adults, vision rehabilitation therapists, and occupational therapists.?This large-print book provides information?on practical tips and easy modifications that improve the safety and security of the home and give older adults with vision loss solutions to continue living independent and productive lives. This book is 234 pages long and is now available in paperback for $39.95. electronic formats—e-books for $27.95 and online subscription for $23.95—will be available shortly.

Quick Look: A $50 Tablet from Amazon.com

In the March, 2014 issue of AccessWorldwe took a look at the Amazon Fire line of tablets, which operated on a modified version of Android and included both a built-in screen reader and magnifier. Recently, Amazon introduced a new member of the Fire tablet family, and the feature you may enjoy most is the price: $49.99… and they're cheaper by the half dozen. Buy five and the sixth Fire is free.

Like its predecessors, the new Fire has an accessibility quick start. Simply press and hold two fingers against the screen when you first start the device to turn on the screen reader, now called Voice View, or use three fingers to enable the screen magnifier. You will be offered a brief tutorial on the accessibility feature, then you will be prompted to set up your new device. The onscreen keyboard uses touch typing, which is to say when you find the character you want, simply lift your finger and the character is typed. There is no way to change this to the double-tap each character entry method preferred by many.

The new Fire supports most European languages, and offers Australian, British and US English voices. The speech is crisp and clear, but there is only one speaker. It's located on the back surface, so if you wish to use speech with the tablet lying on a table you will need to use headphones, not included.

The Fire features a 7-inch IPS display, a 1.3 gigahertz quad-care processor, built-in microphone, and both front and rear-facing cameras. The tablet only ships with 8 gig of memory, but it does include a micro SD card slot that will hold up to 128 gig of additional storage. To help subsidize the price, Amazon includes adds-mostly for free games—on the lock screen. These are the only place adds appear, though, and you can quickly bypass them by unlocking the device with a two finger slide up. The Mayday video help service is also missing from the new Fire, but email and telephone support are both still free.

Like its predecessors, the new Fire is primarily a consumption device. There are preinstalled home screen apps for shopping, reading, listening to music, and watching videos. The Amazon app store also offers Fire-optimized versions of most of your favorite apps. Additionally, thanks to the work of the Eyes-Free accessible Android news listand the members of Inclusive Androidit is even possible to side load Google Play onto the Fire. Now you can download, install and run most, but not all, of your favorite Android apps which are not yet available on the Amazon app store.

If you own an iOS phone or tablet, but have always wanted to "see how the other half lives," at $50 the new Fire may be just the tablet for you.

Labor Department Signs Alliance Agreement with Families and Work Institute

Collaboration to promote innovative employment strategies for workers with disabilities.

In an effort to promote inclusive workplaces that welcome the skills and talents of workers with disabilities, the US Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy signed an alliance agreement today with the Families and Work Institute, a New York-based non-profit that conducts research to inform innovative solutions to the challenges facing today's workplaces, families, and communities.

"For millions of Americans with complex life situations—including individuals with disabilities and their caregivers—workplace flexibility is essential to managing personal and family needs while also delivering on the job," said ODEP Deputy Assistant Secretary Jennifer Sheehy. "We look forward to working with the Families and Work Institute in the coming years to advance key strategies that foster the workplace success of people with disabilities, strategies that incidentally benefit many workers without disabilities as well."

Since its inception in 2006, the ODEP alliance initiative has been engaging organizations to work with the agency to develop and implement model policies and initiatives that increase the recruitment, hiring, retention and career advancement of employees with disabilities. The new alliance builds on ODEP's past work with FWI, which included informing the development of the 2014 National Study of Employers, a joint effort between FWI and the Society for Human Resource Management as part of their When Work Works initiative. Together, ODEP and FWI worked to add questions to the study about workplace flexibility around job tasks: a proven strategy for increasing the employment of people with disabilities.

"Partnering with the US Labor Department on this critical issue to promote the recruitment, development and retention of employees with disabilities is a dream come true for the Families and Work Institute. It is consistent with our mission of conducting rigorous research that leads to action," said the institute's President and Co-Founder Ellen Galinsky.

ODEP's mission is to develop and influence policies and practices that increase the number and quality of employment opportunities for people with disabilities. In addition to FWI, ODEP has alliances with SHRM, the US Business Leadership Network, the Higher Education Recruitment Consortium, National Industry Liaison Group, Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society and Youth Transitions Collaborative/Center for Health Care Transition Improvement.

Introducing Dolphin SuperNova Magnifier & Speech—with True Font Technology

Dolphin has made some changes to the SuperNova family, and SuperNova Reader Magnifier is now SuperNova Magnifier & Speech.

It's the same product as before, but now it's easier to understand what it does.

With SuperNova Magnifier & Speech you can magnify the content on your screen to a size that meets your individual vision requirements, as well as add a speech function for those times when your eyes are tired or you have a long document to read.

SuperNova Magnifier & Speech delivers magnification, high contrast color schemes and customizable mouse pointers—allowing you to tailor your experience to your own visual needs. It's compatible with Windows 7, 8 and the newly released Windows 10.

SuperNova Magnifier & Speech can be used on a desktop, latop or tablet so you can send emails, browse the web and read books in a way that suits you.

Ai Squared Announces ZoomText Fusion

ZoomText Fusion is a product designed for users with advanced or progressive vision loss. ZoomText Fusion provides the features and benefits of ZoomText Magnifier/Reader, plus a complete screen reader. Fusion is perfect for individuals who, over time, want a smooth and safe transition from magnification to full screen reading. ZoomText Fusion grows with you, ensuring that you will always be able to use your computer.

ZoomText Fusion's introductory price is $999 for a new, single user CD copy of the product.

For additional information, contact your local dealer or Ai Squared sales at 800-859-0270 or sales@aisquared.com.

Release of Second Edition of Beginning with Braille: Firsthand Experiences with a Balanced Approach to Literacy, by Anna M. Swenson.

AFB Press is pleased to announce the recent publication of the revised and updated Second Edition of Beginning with Braille: Firsthand Experiences with a Balanced Approach to Literacy, by Anna M. Swenson.

Beginning with Braille, 2nd Edition, updated with Unified English Braille (UEB), provides creative and practical strategies, materials, and resources for introducing braille literacy skills to students with visual impairments, including dual-media learners, English language learners, and students who have additional disabilities. This instructional book is an essential resource for teachers of students with visual impairments, students in personnel preparation programs studying to become teachers of students with visual impairments, and other special education teachers. The book is 458 pages long and is now available in paperback for $59.95. Electronic formats—e-books for $41.95 and online subscription for $35.95—will be available shortly.

For the visually impaired, there is no such thing as a comprehensive guide to Microsoft Windows. Sure, there are thousand-page books describing all of its features in detail, and there are shorter texts that can teach you useful tips and tricks for getting things done using the Windows operating system. But when it comes to accessibility, most of these reference works mention the fact that several built-in accessibility features are available, then skate ahead to the next topic.

Imagine how lengthy a book would have to be to cover Windows thoroughly, including the accessibility features. In the August issue of AccessWorld, AW readers were treated to Tamas Geczy's excellent article, Stepping Over The Threshold: Windows 10 In 10,000 Words, and at this length the author could take only a cursory look at the new Windows 10 features.

The introduction of Windows 10 has stimulated a number of questions among the sight-impaired community. "Should I upgrade from my current Windows installation, which seems to be working fine?" "If I do upgrade, can I do it myself, or will I need sighted help?" "I've heard the new Start Menu is different; is it going to be difficult to learn how to use it and will it work with my current accessibility solutions?" One of the first eBooks that attempts to answer some of these questions is Making Windows 10 Easy to See, by Quentin Christensen. The book is available using PayPal for $20 AU (approximately $13.98 US at the time of publication) from 22point.

The book is available in ePub format. It is fairly brief; I read it from cover to cover in less than two and a half hours on my iPhone using Voice Dream Reader. It can also be accessed using Google Books on either an Android phone or Windows PC.

As mentioned above, any book that deals with Windows 10 is only going to be able to cover a tiny slice of the available material. The slice Christensen has chosen to tackle is announced right there in the title: Making Windows Easy to See. The book is aimed at low vision individuals who can benefit from Microsoft's built-in accessibility features, primarily Screen Magnifier and Narrator. Family members and others interested in assisting an individual with a visual impairment set up and use a new computer are also targeted. The author mentions another book in the "Making Windows Easy" series, Making Windows Easy with NVDA, however this eBook is not yet available. Christensen has stated that copies of this eBook will be free to purchasers of the current book, when, and—a bit worrisome—if it is completed. In the meantime, he feels there is much useful information for screen reader users in this book as well, and I do agree, to a point.

The book includes 11 chapters and an equal number of appendices, all of which are well-formatted for eBook reader or software navigation. Each chapter includes a detailed summary, which is handy for moderate to experienced accessible computer users who will wish to skip ahead. The author includes step by step learning activities for each covered topic, then concludes with a summary of information covered, then rounds things out with a brief quiz. There is no answer key; some of the answers are in the preceding text, others are open-ended and designed to help the reader determine what accessibility choices are best for him or her.

The book begins with a pair of chapters introducing first the book, its layout, and conventions, and then computer hardware. In the latter chapter, the author appropriately describes the differences between desktops, laptops, tablets, and convertibles. This is useful information for the novice computer user with vision loss, and the chapter includes many valid observations regarding comparative screen size, speaker quality, and port configurations. The rest of this section seems a bit overdone, however. The novice user can only become confused and possibly intimidated by a discussion of processor cores, memory speed, and the comparative value of spinning versus solid state hard drives. Especially in these days when nearly any computer on the store shelves is up to the job, even with the extra overhead of screen readers and magnifiers.

For most readers the real meat of this book begins with Chapter 3, where the author offers an excellent, step-by-step guide to installing Windows 10, either via upgrading an existing installation of Windows 7 or 8.1, or using a DVD copy of the OS. My only qualm here is that when the installation reaches the point where either Narrator or Magnifier can be enabled to complete the installation, the author basically offers up a few hotkeys, suggests that they be turned on, and directs the reader to a much later chapter to learn more about them. A bit more is needed here, though I do commend the author for his use of both keyboard commands and mouse clicks here and in the rest of the book's learning activities, which serve both low vision and blind readers.

It's at Chapter 4 where, for me at least, the book steers a bit off the rails. The entirety of this chapter, along with more than half the links listed in "Appendix 10: Resources and Further Reading" are devoted to ergonomics. This is an important topic, especially to low-vision users for whom avoiding eye strain is critical. I also agree with the author when he opines that learning touch typing is an absolute necessity for users of accessibility. He suggests a typing tutor program, however he offers no software names or download links. He does, however, discuss in great depth stretching exercises, tips for choosing of chair and keyboard, and several other topics which do not seem to belong here. Perhaps the entire chapter should have been condensed, or confined to the book's first, "Using the PC Comfortably" appendix. Especially since when we left our intrepid novice, he or she was sitting in front of a freshly installed copy of Windows 10, willing, able, but not quite ready to go.

The next several chapters take the reader from turning on the computer to exploring the desktop, navigating program ribbons and menus, with a break in the middle for a deeper dive into the various components of the Microsoft Ease of Access Center. Most of the material in these chapters is well written, and aimed toward first time accessibility users, and it tends to be PC-centric. Windows Tablets and touch screen convertibles are mentioned, and especially for many low-vision users their close-up viewing potential may be preferable to a fixed desktop or heavy laptop PC. However there are no touch screen specific activities, or even a mention of the touch screen methods to toggle Narrator and Magnifier on.

With that exception, I found the step-by-step learning activities well executed. Unfortunately, they conclude far too soon. The reader is introduced to WordPad and the Windows Calculator, and by the end of the book he or she is able to open a program, enter text, navigate and edit that text, then print and save their work. That is where the activities stop. There is no help at all for web browsing or sending and receiving e-mails. Cortana, a Windows 10 marquee feature, is barely mentioned. Christensen saves these for another, not yet available eBook, Making Windows Even Easier to See: The Advanced Guide. This might have been acceptable 20 years ago, but today, I can't imagine any new accessible computer user who would be satisfied with a computer training experience that does not include e-mail and web browsing. At the very least, I believe the publication of this book should have been held until the screen reader version and the advanced volume were available. More to the point, I think this book and the upcoming advanced title should be combined into a single volume. The author also needs to spend some time alerting his readers that unlike with Apple, the Microsoft accessibility solutions are not the last word in screen access technology. NVDA and JAWS are briefly mentioned, but neither product is described and links are not provided. Third party screen magnifiers are not mentioned at all.

Doubtless there are those who will find Microsoft's built-in accessibility solutions sufficient for the tasks they need to accomplish. However this is a small subset of the potential audience of new and existing screen access users, and I feel the author would be well served to expand the scope of this book, or at the very least offer a package deal for this and the other, unfinished guides.

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

• Stepping Over The Threshold: Windows 10 In 10,000 Words, Thoroughly Reviewed by Tamas Geczy
• Overthrowing the Desktop: The Revolution 22-inch All-In-One Magnifier and Tablet by Shelly Brisbin

More from this author:

• Workflow: Powerful Automation Made Simple…and iOS Accessible by Bill Holton
• Evaluating Mobile Accessibility for Windows Phone on a Nokia Lumia 925 by Bill Holton

Marty Schultz is a guy with a lot of energy. A long-time programmer, he has run several businesses. In 2012, he managed to fit one more thing into his already-busy schedule—volunteering as a teacher at the Cushman School in Miami, FL, where his daughter was a sixth-grader. One day, Schultz came across several birthday wish lists she had been drafting. Items were rearranged, crossed out, and added. He thought to himself, "There should be an app for that." Having already written several programs that centered on child safety, Schultz knew how to write "kid-friendly" software. He originally intended to build a birthday wish-list app and have some of his friends test the software. Then, he had another idea. Why not start an after-school club, and teach students how to write an app? After receiving the green light from the head of the school, Schultz met with interested students three days a week for six weeks. At the end of that time, the free WishToList app was successfully deployed to the Apple app store.

Schultz was invited to teach a programming course at the school the following semester, and did so for a couple years. The group of budding young programmers who had managed to write a birthday wish list app next wanted to try their hand at developing a game. Schultz asked the students for ideas, and was promptly bombarded with suggestions for games that had already been written many times over in one form or another. Schultz told the students that he would not waste his time or theirs with rehashing old game ideas. He also wasn't a good artist, and didn't want to hire a graphic designer for the new game that was yet to be written. Schultz presented the idea of writing a game for people who were blind and would not need to look at the screen at all. Ironically, Schultz had never met a blind person in his life, and knew nothing about accessibility. Nevertheless, the after-school club set about writing a racing game that could be played without any visual feedback at all.

For the first six months of development, sighted children and adults tested the game. One of the student programmers who was learning braille in her studies suggested that blind teens from the Miami Lighthouse for the Blind be asked to become part of the test pool. The blind students loved the game, and had a flood of suggestions as to how the game could be improved. One question weighing on Schultz's mind was what to call this new game. He wanted a name that would let people know that the game was geared toward blind people, but that would not be in any way offensive to the blind community. One of the students from the Lighthouse suggested using the word Blindfold as a descriptor. Since there were no graphics on the screen, sighted people could play the game "blindfolded" as it were, and blind people wouldn't mind the lack of graphics at all. The only people who seemed to object to the lack of visuals in the game were those at Apple, who insisted that a screen shot of some sort be included when the game finally was placed in the app store.

Blindfold Racer: First Steps to Success

Having had almost no dealings with the blind community, Schultz had no idea what to expect when Blindfold Racer was released in 2014. As it turned out, the game was incredibly popular among blind players, and eventually landed a spot as one of three featured apps on AppleVis for the month of May 2014.

As the popularity of Blindfold Racer continued to increase, so did the number of game requests from the blind community. Before long, card games, word games, and action games were all under development. While in Boston for work-related matters, Schultz had the opportunity to meet with four prominent members of the blind community—ACB President Kim Charlson and her husband Brian, NLS's Judy Dixon, and long-time accessibility expert Doug Wakefield. The night before the meeting, the four of them played Schultz's games for several hours. When they met with Schultz the next morning, they were fans of his work, but gave him many suggestions for improving his games. Schultz came away from that meeting understanding that two things were of the utmost importance when designing his Blindfold games—sound and physicality. Rather than writing the third-person style games he had been toying with—games where the player observes the action as though watching a TV screen, he would focus on first-person style games where the player would be part of the action. Players would be able to use Apple's VoiceOver screen reader during game play, but other voice prompts would be added as well to more clearly indicate things such as which character was taking a turn, what area of the screen the player was on, etc. Finally, players would be able to use gestures already familiar to anyone using an iPhone with VoiceOver. In addition, they would be able to tilt or turn their phones in order to control game play.

Blindfold Games was now a brand, Schultz was beginning to truly understand the needs of the blind gaming community, and the community was loving his work.

Blindfold Games: The Best Is Yet to Come

Once he saw that the blind community was behind him, Schultz redoubled his efforts to make new games. He tries to rotate among gambling games, logic games, and movement-based games, but ideas for new additions to the ever-growing number of Blindfold Games titles just keep coming. All of the games are free to play, but have in-app purchases available. In addition to being able to purchase upgrades to the games, it is also possible to earn coins by listening to videos. The coins can then be exchanged for upgrades that make game play even more enjoyable. Schultz originally used the same ad service used by the popular Trivia Crack, game, but he learned that the service was difficult for blind players to use. He has now switched to the service used by the developers of DiceWorld, another popular game among the blind community.

These days, the blind community is talking about Blindfold Bowling. Schultz used a physics engine to control aspects of the game such as how the ball rolled down the lane and connected with the pins. Anyone who has played the game will be struck by the realistic sounds of the bowling alley. Schultz consulted members of blind bowling leagues to ensure that the game is as accurate as possible.

Blindfold Pong and Blindfold Breakout are games that allow the player to move his or her iPhone from side to side in order to hit a moving ball with paddles. In Blindfold Breakout, the ball breaks bricks. Once he or she has broken through an entire layer, the player can move to the next level of the game.

Although he does not promise to fulfill all requests, Schultz welcomes suggestions for more games. He is constantly looking for ways to push the envelope when it comes to blind gaming. You can find all Blindfold Games titles by doing a search on the app store or on AppleVis.

The Bottom Line

Marty Schultz is a talented programmer who loves to take on a challenge. He has shown an interest in and a commitment to designing games that are playable by the blind community. Although the original WishToList app that got the ball rolling has since been removed from the app store, the spirit of that project lives on today.

Anyone with an iPhone who enjoys gaming should definitely consider playing any and all titles from the Blindfold Games series. Be sure to check the app store often, as there are many more games yet to come!

Product Information

Blindfold Games
Platform: iOS
Website: The app store or AppleVis
Price: Free with in-app purchases available

Comment on this article.

Related Articles:

• The World of Audio Games: A Crash Course by Aaron Preece
• Shall We Play a Game? A Review of Two Accessible Gaming Platforms by J.J. Meddaugh

More from this author:

• Choice of Robots from Choice of Games LLC: A Game Review by Jamie Pauls
• 64 Oz. Games Promotes Braille Literacy and Fun At the Same Time by Jamie Pauls

If you still haven't found that special gift for someone with a visual impairment, whether blind or low vision, here are some more options. I have used all of the products listed below and recommend them. When ordering a product online, consider expedited shipping if the gifting date is near. All prices in this article are subject to change.

Gift Cards

Gift cards have become very popular for the holidays. Make sure to give the recipient the value, card number, and PIN if there is one. Popular cards include iTunes, Amazon, and restaurants.

Audible and the Audible Accessible Site

Audible offers thousands of audio books. They are available the same day the print version is released. Books can be played on many devices including a computer, a tablet, or a smartphone. Audible has several gift plans, starting at $45. Members can also use their credits to gift books to other Audible members.

Fitbit Flex

If the gift recipient likes exercise or wants to get in shape, the Fitbit Flex ($99.95) is a good option. The Flex tracks steps, active minutes, calories burned, and distance walked. You can manually add calories consumed, exercise, and weight.

The Flex is worn on the wrist and is roughly the size of a small rectangular wristwatch. The actual electronic device (called a tracker) slides into the flexible wristband and is lightweight. Two wristbands are included in black, one small and one large. Additional wristbands are available at extra cost in various fashion colors to match your outfit.

There is a free, accessible iOS app that syncs with the Fitbit. The user can also sync their Fitbit with the Fitbit website.

Jawbone Jambox Wireless Bluetooth Speakers

For the music lover, consider one of the Jambox Wireless Bluetooth Speakers from Jawbone (Big Jambox, $160; Mini Jambox, $86). They have very good sound, especially for their size. All controls are tactile. It is easy to pair any Bluetooth enabled device, such as an iPhone, with these speakers. The top of the speaker has extremely tactile, differently shaped, raised buttons. The side of the speaker has an On/Off button, a button for pairing a device and ports for connecting the speaker to headphones, connecting the speaker with a device using the device's headphone jack, and USB. The speaker has a built-in rechargeable battery that holds its charge for about 10 hours.

PenFriend2 Voice Labeling System

The PenFriend2 ($139.95) provides a quick and easy way to identify items. It uses a pen-like device to record a description and special small stick-on labels. Many different sizes and shapes of labels are included and more can be purchased. Simply attach a label to an item, touch the pen to the label, press the record button, and record a description. Read a label by touching the PenFriend to the label. These labels can be used on items that will be stored in the refrigerator and freezer.

L'Occitane en Provence

L'Occitane is a French company that offers skin care, bath and body, and fragrance products for both men and women. They pay extra attention to charitable causes and one of their goals is the "support of visually impaired people worldwide." Every L'Occitane product has a braille label, even the little soaps. They recently donated $100,000 to the American Foundation for the Blind. The company is environmentally friendly and does additional charitable work.

L'Occitane has special holiday gifts including a list of gifts for under $30. They also sell individual items and sets. Their products are available on their website, beauty.com, at Sephora, and at L'Occitane boutiques (a boutique locator is available on their website).

The Gift of Reading Printed Text

Reading printed materials is something that sighted people may take for granted. For someone losing that ability or for someone who has never been able to read print, that ability can be a tremendous help. There are two optical character recognition (OCR) programs available that I especially like for reading printed text.

These programs use an electronic device to take a picture of text and then convert the photo into text that the device's screen reader then reads aloud. There are stands available, if needed, for holding a device steady and properly aligned for scanning. Several AccessWorld articles compare various OCR programs and stands. Not all devices are supported by a particular OCR app or stand. Check the links below to determine whether a specific device is supported.

All products in this section, with the exception of the KNFB Reader, are mainstream products and are not specifically designed for people with visual impairments.

KNFB Reader ($99.99)

Android

iOS

My favorite OCR program is the KNFB Reader. Although it is expensive, this app does an excellent job of recognizing text; it is easy to use. This app is specifically designed for people who are blind or visually impaired. In the latest version, the device can be placed in a stand and documents can be scanned automatically without having to press the "Take Picture" button between pages.

Abbyy TextGrabber + Translator ($4.95)

Android

iOS

My second favorite OCR app is Abbyy TextGrabber + Translator. This mainstream app is significantly less expensive than KNFB Reader but it does a very good job. It supports many languages and does an excellent job of translation.

Giraffe Reader ($52)

The Giraffe Reader stand is used to hold a phone and works with iPhone 4, 4S, 5, 5C, 6, and 6 Plus. Android users should e-mail Giraffe Reader to determine whether their particular device will work. The Giraffe reader is very easy to assemble and folds up into a small size. Although a bit expensive, it is an excellent product.

StandScan Pro ($34.95)

The StandScan Pro works with just about any device that has a back-facing camera. It is held together by tiny magnets and is not difficult to assemble. It folds down to fit into a computer bag. The StandScan Pro comes equipped with LED lighting to insure a good scan. It is powered by battery or electricity.

Conclusion

Even if you need a last-minute gift, there are still many options for a person who is blind or visually impaired. When giving a gift, be give sure to give the recipient information on how to use it. For example, if you're giving someone a Giraffe Reader, offer to help them put it together the first time. Remember to get your gifts as early as possible. Happy Shopping and Happy Holidays.

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

• AccessWorld 2015 Accessible Holiday Gift Guide: From Free to Extravagant, Something for Everyone on Your List by Deborah Kendrick
• AccessWorld 2014 Holiday Gift Guide: Great High- and Low-Tech Ideas Under $100 by Deborah Kendrick

More from this author:

• Holiday Shopping Using Your iOS Device by Janet Ingber
• Using the Audible Accessible Website and iOS App by Janet Ingber

In the August 2014 issue of AccessWorld, we spoke with then-new IBM Chief Accessibility Officer Frances West. During our discussions she made the point that an accessible workplace isn't just a corporate responsibility, it can also lead to innovative business opportunities. "As we listen to what our employees need and develop in-house solutions, this gives us a decided advantage in the marketplace," said West.

One solution West mentioned that originated in-house and is now available commercially is the IBM Easy Web Browser platform. This server-side application allows government agencies and businesses to easily make their websites accessible to people with low vision. Site visitors can download the plug-in components, which install automatically, then use a special control panel to adjust fonts, colors, contrast, and other screen elements, or use IBM text-to-speech to read the page aloud.

Another solution IBM expanded from an in-house asset to a commercial product is IBM Media Captioner and Editor. This software uses advanced speech recognition technology to analyze and translate the content spoken on a video into a text transcript, which can then be synced with the original video. The editor was created to help IBM employees with hearing impairments access training videos. Now other companies can use it as well.

The IBM Mobile Accessibility Checker

Recently, IBM commercialized yet another of their in-house accessibility solutions: The Mobile Accessibility Checker. "All too often companies design and develop their mobile apps and websites, then put them out for testing," says P. G. Ramachandran, Program Director of Advanced Technology for IBM Accessibility. "Accessibility becomes a bug to be squashed, and there isn't always time and resources to get the job done before the product needs to go live."

The Mobile Accessibility Checker works with iOS, Android, and hybrid apps, along with mobile websites. It identifies and documents usability issues from the ground up, and designers and developers are automatically alerted to accessibility breaches such as inaccessible controls, lack of description, poor color contrast, and other issues. The checker includes developer libraries that offer best practices so these problems can be fixed as soon as they pop up, instead of waiting until after the product goes live, and then trying to tack on accessibility afterward.

According to Ramachandran, the checker helps developers adhere to industry standards and government regulations. "It also saves time and expense, and eliminates roadblocks for developers who are less familiar with accessibility."

Mobile Accessibility Checker is currently available on an enterprise level through IBM partners, including SSB BART Group, an accessibility software and services organization.

Digital Content Checker and Automated Accessibility Tester

IBM is also making it easier and affordable for smaller organizations to create accessible applications and content. They recently announced a pair of new cloud-based accessibility services, Digital Content Checker and Automated Accessibility Tester, both of which are available on IBM Bluemix, the company's cloud platform for managing apps and services.

Digital Content Checker examines HTML content and EPUB documents, provides a detailed report of all accessibility violations, and then recommends how to fix the issues. Automated Accessibility Tester integrates accessibility reporting and auditing capabilities directly within the Selenium testing framework so any violation can be corrected in the DevOps process before the application is deployed.

"Even the smallest app developer can now use these tools to check and enhance their product's accessibility," notes Ramachandran.

Teaming Up with Freedom Scientific

Leveraging their accessibility assets into yet another go-to-market opportunity, this past July IBM licensed their in-house accessibility training portfolio to Freedom Scientific, makers of the popular JAWS screen reader and MAGic screen magnifier. Freedom Scientific, in turn, is customizing this wealth of materials into eLearning packages tailored to the specific wants and needs of various large corporations, governmental agencies, and universities.

"Over the past few years we've witnessed a significant uptick in the numbers of companies and agencies interested in learning about accessibility," says Ryan Jones, a senior trainer with Freedom Scientific. "Our ability to license and customize these modules enables them to jumpstart their accessibility education and training without having to create an entire program from scratch."

The Enterprise Accessibility Training Modules are text based, and take from 30 minutes to 2 hours to complete. They are not available to individuals, but a quick title check of a trio of the eight modules aimed toward ?all hands? offers a glimpse into their potential utility.

• Intro to Accessibility and the WCAG 2.0 Standards
• Disability Etiquette
• Documentation Accessibility

Along with general audience training modules, other modules are directed at designers, developers, quality assurance testers, and program project leaders. Of course teaching about accessibility is only half of the mission. Standards must be set, procedures put into place and tracked over time. IBM has been doing just this for years using their in-house Compliance System, and as this article goes to press, Freedom Scientific is finalizing arrangements with IBM to license this platform in order to offer it to large organizations alongside the accessibility training modules.

"IBM, along with many other large companies, may have hundreds, even thousands, of projects in the works at any one time," observes Ramachandran. "Keeping track and documenting what has been done to enable accessibility for each project, when and by whom, is critical information. Our Compliance System enables us to track accessibility initiatives and workflows. We can capture internal and external accessibility statements, document accessibility standards conformance results, and maintain a system of record to align policies, processes, results, and accountability across hundreds of departments and thousands of projects."

If you've used a screen reader for any length of time, you have undoubtedly encountered websites and mobile apps that to some degree or another simply do not work well with speech. Those who reach out to the developers or use contact forms to report accessibility bugs usually discover that the smaller the company, the faster and more accommodating the reply. Send an accessibility bug report to Winston Chen, the developer of Voice Dream Reader, and he will usually begin working on a fix immediately. Send a report to Amazon, or CNN, and it's likely you won't even receive an acknowledgement other than an automated, "Your issue has been passed along to our developers" message. After that…nothing.

Part of the reason for this may be that the rep who received your message simply had no "accessibility" checkbox to tick before sending your issue up the chain of command. In addition, there may not be a person or position responsible for monitoring accessibility bugs and the status of their resolutions, let alone someone whose responsibilities include encouraging designers and developers to include accessibility from the start.

In the October issue of AccessWorld I described an accessibility management system called AudioEye. Basically, this company (also called AudioEye) corrects accessibility issues on the fly and delivers a fully accessible website for its clients, making corrections as needed. This system has positive aspects going for it:

• An accessible webpage is delivered to the end user, even if the native page is unreadable with a screen reader.
• There is a central point of responsibility; even if dozens of developers are working on a website and they inadvertently undo each other's accessibility fixes, ultimately, a readable page is delivered.

However there are also some negatives:

• With AudioEye taking care of accessibility, designers and developers may not feel the need to address accessibility directly, if they think of it at all.
• Clients using AudioEye may not learn how to address accessibility issues at their source. If a poorly laid out PDF file is created by an advertising department and repaired by AudioEye, the people in advertising may never learn how to properly structure a PDF.

The IBM/Freedom Scientific solutions bring accessibility knowledge and responsibility back to the enterprise. From help desk technicians to chief developers, accessibility is placed on to-do lists, and results are monitored and tracked. Granted, problems may still get mired in red tape and bureaucracy, but overall learning will have a broader base, and, hopefully, will be ongoing.

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

• AudioEye: Providing Web Accessibility as a Managed Service by Bill Holton
• Odin Mobile: A New Cell Phone Carrier Specifically for People Who Are Blind or Have Low Vision by Janet Ingber

More from this author:

• A Review of the Voice Dream Reader for iOS: A One-Stop Solution by Bill Holton
• Frances West, New IBM Chief Accessibility Officer, on What's Ahead in Accessibility at IBM by Bill Holton

On September 30, 2015, Apple released OS X 10.11 El Capitan, a new operating system for Mac computers. This operating system has some excellent new VoiceOver options as well as a few changes to other applications. There are fewer changes than between OS X Mavericks and OS X Yosemite. Some apps are now more accessible.

VoiceOver Changes

The main changes for VoiceOver are an additional VO modifier key, additional options for interacting, and a new feature called Window Spots.

Caps Lock Key as VO keys

The standard VO keys are Control + Option. There is now another choice: the Caps Lock key. Go to the VoiceOver Utility with VO + F8 or any other method you have previously used. In the General tab is an option to choose which keys to use as the VoiceOver modifier. Use the pop-up menu to choose Control + Option, Caps Lock, or both.

Interacting

It is no longer necessary to interact with many lists, toolbars and scroll areas. In the VoiceOver Utility, select the Navigation tab. Go to the Grouping Behavior option. There are four options in the pop up menu. By default, the Standard option is selected. This means that it is always necessary to interact, just as in previous operating systems. The next option is Bookend groups. In this option, VoiceOver will announce the beginning and end of a group, list etc. The third option is Announce Groups. VoiceOver will announce only when you enter a toolbar, list, etc. The final option is Ignore Groups. With this setting enabled, VoiceOver will not say anything. Some items still require interaction such as tables.

Window Spots

This is a new feature. VoiceOver picks out items it thinks would be important and puts them in a menu. Window Spots is selected with VO + U. Navigate the menu with the up and down arrow keys and select an item with the Return key.

You can also create and delete your own Window Spots. Create a Window Spot by typing VO + Shift + Command + Right Bracket on the Window Spot Location. Delete the Window Spot by typing VO + Shift + Command + Left Bracket.

Content Chooser

This is similar to Window Spots, but it is only available in a few apps such as Mail and Notes. Go to Content Chooser selections with VO + U and Right Arrow to Content Chooser. Read the menu and make selections the same way as with Window Spots. Unlike Window Spots, you cannot add your own Content Chooser items.

Application Changes

A few applications have been changed in El Capitan.

Safari

Prior to El Capitan, the Favorites Bar was accessed with Command and whichever number the specific item had been assigned. Now, Command + Option and the number will perform this task.

Pinned tabs are a new feature in El Capitan. They are similar to items on the Favorites bar except that they are refreshed in the background so they always have the most recent content. Pinned tabs are accessed with Command and whichever number is assigned to the site.

Add a website to your Pinned tabs by bringing up the menu bar and going to the Window option. Open the Window menu and select Pin Tab. The website will be added to your Pinned Tabs. VoiceOver will say, "Remove tab." Ignore it. To remove a website, go to the site and VO + Left Arrow until you hear the name of the site followed by the words Pin Tab. Bring up the contextual menu and select Unpin Tab.

Mail

In Yosemite, when you attached a file to an email, VoiceOver only said, "Attached image." Now, VoiceOver has gone back to speaking the name of the file.

Apple Music

When viewing a list of content in the HTML area, use the tab key to reach the Play button quickly. VoiceOver now will also say the name of the album or playlist and artist or compilation.

Spotlight Search

Spotlight Search list has some new sources including stocks, weather, web video and sports. You can now search using Natural Language. For example, "Show all the documents I opened yesterday."

iWork and VoiceOver

Apple has improved accessibility to its iWork group of applications, Pages, Numbers, and Keynote. According to 9TO5 Mac, the following accessibility improvements have been added to iWork with El Capitan:

Pages 5.6

• Add and review comments with VoiceOver
• Track changes with VoiceOver
• Edit chart data and chart elements with VoiceOver

Numbers 3.6

• Edit chart data and chart elements with VoiceOver
• Add and review comments with VoiceOver

Keynote 6.6

• More easily edit presenter notes with VoiceOver
• VoiceOver can now read presenter notes during slideshows
• Edit chart data and chart elements with VoiceOver
• Add and review comments with VoiceOver

Conclusion

It is definitely worth updating to El Capitan. Personally, I like not having to interact with toolbars, scroll areas, etc. Pinned tabs in Safari is a nice convenience for frequently used web sites.