Accessibility Jumpstart 5: Using Assistive Tech
In the last article, I covered the most common Assistive Technologies (AT) on the market. However hearing about it, versus using assistive tech or seeing in action is a whole different story. When I first began testing accessibility I was surprised to learn that most users of AT take time to explore the general structure and outline of a page before just diving right in. If you want to explore what the experience is like for yourself, feel free to use the helpful guides below.
JAWS
While this one costs some serious money for software these days, it is (or was) the gold standard. While JAWS has a few interaction modes, Forms and Browse are the most well-known. WebAIM has a much more comprehensive list of key commands while in these modes, but here are some of my most used ones.
| Description | Keys |
|---|---|
| Stop read back | Control |
| Read current item again | Insert Tab |
| Slow down voice | Control Alt Page down |
| Speed up voice | Control Alt Page up |
| Leave Forms mode | Num pad + |
| Description | Keys |
|---|---|
| Move to main region | Q |
| Next region | R |
| List headings | Insert F6 |
| Next heading | H |
| Heading at level 1 through 6 | 1 through 6 |
| Next clickable element | / |
| Next form control | F |
| Next button | B |
| List links | Insert F7 |
| Next list | L |
| Next item in a list | I |
| Next article | O |
| Next paragraph | P |
| Next table | T |
| Next tab control (tab list and tab panel) | ' |
| Next graphic | G |
NVDA
Like JAWS, NVDA has similar key commands. Again, WebAIM has a more robust list than I have here.
| Description | Keys |
|---|---|
| Stop read back | Control |
| Read current item again | Insert Tab |
| Slow down voice | Insert Control ↓ |
| Speed up voice | Insert Control ↑ |
| Leave Forms mode | Insert Space |
| Description | Keys |
|---|---|
| Next landmark | D |
| Next heading | H |
| Heading at level 1 through 6 | 1 through 6 |
| Next form field | F |
| Next button | B |
| Next list | L |
| Next item in a list | I |
| Next paragraph | P |
| Next table | T |
| Next graphic | G |
| Next embedded object (video, audio) | O |
Voiceover on MacOS
Voiceover on MacOS works a little differently than screen readers on Windows, but the same general ideas still apply. Again, top notch overview by WebAIM on key commands.
| Description | Keys |
|---|---|
| Toggle Voiceover on or off | Command F5 |
| Stop read back | Control |
| Description | Keys |
|---|---|
| Activate rotor (page element menu) | Control Option U |
| Next heading | Control Option Command H |
| Next link | Control Option Command L |
| Next form field | Control Option Command J |
| Next table | Control Option Command T |
| Next list | Control Option Command X |
| Next graphic | Control Option Command G |
Voiceover on iOS
Voiceover on iOS is different than its MacOS counterpart. This is far and away the most popular mobile AT. Navigation is very different, and exploration is done by touch. Turning on Voiceover will change how your iOS device works, so be ready.
| Description | Command |
|---|---|
| Discover items on screen | Drag |
| Toggle mute for Voiceover | 3 finger double-tap |
| Act on focused item | 1 finger double-tap |
| Description | Command |
|---|---|
| Speak entire screen from top of page | 2 finger swipe up |
| Activate rotor selection (page element menu) | 2 finger rotate |
| Select next item (even if not interactive) | 1 finger swipe right |
| Select previous item | 1 finger swipe left |
| Select next chosen rotor item | 1 finger swipe down |
| Select previous chosen rotor item | 1 finger swipe up |
| Scroll page | 3 finger swipe down or up |
Dragon Naturally Speaking
And finally, Dragon Naturally Speaking has its own set of commands to interact and navigate with on the web. Nuance, the company that makes Dragon has a nice cheat sheet of commands as well.
| Description | Voice command |
|---|---|
| Finds and clicks a specific object. This why icon-only buttons can be a problem. | “Click {link or button name}” |
| Presses the keyboard key of same name. Tab and enter are used often. | “Press {key name}” |
| Move through list items quickly | “Move down {number}” |
There are a slew of text entry commands, and mouse moving commands as well, but I typically find that using assistive tech in sanity checking UI is the most beneficial exercise at the moment.
Conclusion
Hopefully this helps you have a general sense of how people use the internet with assistive technology, and helps you get your feet wet using assistive tech. Its also important to remember, just because you have played with AT doesn’t mean you understand what the experience is like.
In the next part, we will be covering a bit on testing users who interact with assistive technology everyday. See you soon!