[blindlaw] Re JAWS scripts as a remedy for inaccessible workplace software

Dan Beitz dbeitz at wiennergould.com
Mon Jan 26 02:22:34 UTC 2015


I use Jaws, but I can tell you that the window-eyes mouse, using the number pad, is fabulous.  There are a few programs that I simply couldn't use any other screen reader to read, but where the window-eyes mouse works really well.


Daniel K. Beitz
Wienner & Gould, P.C.
950 University Dr., Ste. 350
Rochester, MI  48307
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-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Michal Nowicki via blindlaw
Sent: Sunday, January 25, 2015 6:12 PM
To: 'Blind Law Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Re JAWS scripts as a remedy for inaccessible workplace software

Dear Ms.  Rene,

Thank you for your comments.  I will address each of them in the paragraphs that follow:

I agree with you 100% that blind people (not just lawyers) should use all available assistive technology.  In fact, I have come to believe that ideally, a blind person should have at least 2 screen readers:  a primary one for everyday use and a secondary one.  That way, when the primary program fails, there is always a chance that the secondary one will do the job.  For example, I have observed that NVDA correctly reads some image alt text tags that JAWS fails to recognize.  However, part of the reason why JAWS remains so popular in the workplace is because it offers more features than the competition, including, for instance, the ability to create custom labels for web elements and the text analyzer, a tool that makes the proofreading of documents much easier for blind people.

Until a few weeks ago, I too felt reluctant about accessing most PDF documents using JAWS.  The exception was documents that were tagged for heading navigation, and those which contained in-page links to other parts of the document.  After doing some research, though, I discovered a couple of features that changed my attitude towards JAWS compatibility with Adobe Reader.  One of these is the ability to create multiple placemarkers in a PDF document, and the other is the "go to page" function, which, when accessed by pressing Control plus Shift plus N, causes JAWS to tell you which page of the document you are currently on.  Additionally, while Adobe find isn't very accessible, JAWS find works perfectly well for searching documents.  With that in mind, I am no longer concerned about navigating PDFs with JAWS, so long as the files aren't scanned images.  Even then, however, I can use OCR software to make such files accessible, provided that the image resolution is reasonable.

As for WindowEyes, I must say that as a JAWS user, I hate it.  I've had the chance to try it out, but, unlike NVDA, with which I haven't had any trouble, I just can't get used to WindowEyes, no matter how hard I try.  In fact, sometimes I feel that GW Micro intentionally wrote the software in such a way that JAWS users wouldn't be able to utilize it efficiently.  I am not the only JAWS user that despises it, and I know that many WindowEyes users can't stand JAWS.

I won't say anything about an office's duty to purchase accessible software because I don't really know anything about the topic.

Best,

Michal

-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Elizabeth Rene via blindlaw
Sent: Sunday, January 25, 2015 3:36 PM
To: blindlaw at nfbnet.org
Subject: [blindlaw] Re JAWS scripts as a remedy for inaccessible workplace software

When dealing with inaccessible workplace software, I wonder whether we lawyers shouldn't be using more than one screen reader tool.  We're always talking about whether JAWS will do this or do that.  What about Apple OSX and iOS?

I find, for example, that working with PDF files in JAWS is a headache, while opening a PDF document in iBooks lets me breeze right through it.  In fact, Apple reads PDFs better than it does Word documents!  But Apple does something else better than JAWS.  Now I have a tiny, tiny bit of eyesight.
I can read the Apple screen with a 10X magnifying lense.  So if something isn't readable with VoiceOver, I can turn VO off and use the Zoom utilities to enlarge the print as much as I need to, and scroll through text that VO somehow isn't flexible enough to accommodate.  A simple click of the home button allows switching back and forth, or, if you want to, switch back and forth to reverse from white on black to black on white.  And you can flip between portrait and landscape orientations.  No extra software needed!  And you can do all of this at your desk, at a cafe or a pub with something good in front of you, or on your backyard deck with the kids outside.

 For that matter, maybe WindowEyes does some jobs better than JAWS or Apple.

I think we should be skilled in every tool we can find and afford, to make our lives what we want them to be, and not be held hostage to office programs that one tool can't handle.

And even as I say this, our offices may have a duty to vet their software for accessibility before they buy it.To me, that seems to be part of the "reasonable" in "reasonable accommodation."

Elizabeth Rene




 
  

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