Accessibility Jumpstart 5: Using Assistive Tech

Posted on Category: Accessibility
Fisherman by Kōno Bairei (1844-1895). Digitally enhanced from our own original 1913 edition of Barei Gakan.

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.

General
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 +
Exploration
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.

General
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
Exploration
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.

General
Description Keys
Toggle Voiceover on or off Command F5
Stop read back Control
Exploration
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.

General commands
Description Command
Discover items on screen Drag
Toggle mute for Voiceover 3 finger double-tap
Act on focused item 1 finger double-tap
Exploration
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.

General commands
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!


Want to read the rest of the series?

  1. What Is Accessibility?
  2. Standards
  3. The Law
  4. Assistive Technology
  5. Using Assistive Technology
  6. User Testing
  7. Dev & Design Tools
  8. Staying Current with Accessibility
My opinions & views expressed may not reflect my employer's.


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