[blindlaw] Windows Eyes or JAWS?

Wed Jun 3 15:24:43 UTC 2015

At least at our agency (county public defender office), my supervisor was part of the committee that eventually procured the file management program.  Because I use a screen reader (and to a lesser degree, screen magnification) and a co-worker uses Dragon due to paralysis, she lobbied incessantly for the programs to be accessible.  At first, no one - either in administration OR in the varying software firms - even knew what that meant.  There is a common misconception that if something is on the Internet, it must be accessible.  Once she got everyone somewhat educated, the administration then said they would still purchase what they wanted (arguing cost and general attractions of the program chosen), and would work with that firm's software engineers later to make it accessible.  Over two years later, none of that has happened, and my co-worker and I rely on our assistants to help us manage that program.

As far as the courts, things are slowly changing - but only very slowly, after years of complaining and threats of litigation.  Finally, one other aspect - our county government also relies now on an automated. Web-based personnel management program, for everything from time / attendance and payroll to general human resources and employee benefits.  It is also almost entirely inaccessible, beyond the initial sign-on screen.  After my continuing complaints about the extreme HIPPA and other privacy violations involved in requiring me to rely on others to access this program, our ADA liaison and reps from our Human Resources department met with the company, which is apparently the largest payroll management firm in the country.  Their response was essentially that they are aware of the accessibility problems and...they don't care.  They have absolutely no intention of making compliance a priority.

-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of mike mcglashon via blindlaw
Sent: Wednesday, June 03, 2015 7:53 AM
To: Blind Law Mailing List
Cc: mike mcglashon
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Windows Eyes or JAWS?

hi guys:

I have been following this window eyes or jaws thread a bit and one question comes to mind?

that is, if the courts and government agencies are all supposed to of the ADA and its provisions in the public sector portion under title II, then how come these issues are coming forth from folks in the field saying that their software that the agency tey work for is inaccessible?  this is confusing to me and says that the agencies are not taking the ADA title II seriously, or that it simply doesn't apply to them?  I could see this happening in the private sector simply due to ignorance of the law; this would be correctable; but to hear of public government agencies making these faux pas's is quite disturbing to me as an outsider looking in?

Please explain, I need to be educated?

Sincerely:

Mike M.

-----Original Message-----
From: Susan Kelly via blindlaw
Sent: Wednesday, June 03, 2015 9:46 AM
To: 'Blind Law Mailing List'
Cc: Susan Kelly
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Windows Eyes or JAWS?

Alex mentions another screen-reader side issue that has frustrated me, and I think a lot of other folks on this list.  If you are in an office setting that uses an electronic file management program, be prepared for nothing to completely (or in some cases, even partially) narrate and assist in its use. 
The same is true of any of the court-based file management systems.  Our office (government agency, so no wiggle room to run something else,
unfortunately) chose to purchase an electronic file program which is completely inaccessible - as a result, my assistant does the entries in that program for me, and copies everything to a system that I created in Word which is totally navigable by JAWS.  The court programs have varying levels of usability, which I was initially able to get around using screen magnification software in addition to the screen reader.  As that becomes a less and less viable option, my assistant also transfers that information to an accessible format in Word.

Long story short, a lot of the final choice will depend on the nature of your work environment.

-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Stephen Alexander Marositz via blindlaw
Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2015 3:45 PM
To: 'Blind Law Mailing List'
Cc: Stephen Alexander Marositz
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Windows Eyes or JAWS?

Okay, taking a break from bar prep to answer this one.

Ed, this is obviously a loaded question.   A lot of this comes down to your
own preferences and needs though.  Here are some things to think about.  You say you are new to screen-readers.  Does that mean you are losing your vision slowly?  If so, I found that window-eyes has some stability issues, that Jaws and NVDA do not, not at first, but after a few hours of use.  If you have enough residual vision to recover the program when this happens, then this will not be a problem for you.
Next, are you a braille reader who uses a braille display?  I find that in terms of connectivity, NVDA presents the least difficulty connecting and configuring your braille display.  If you test it out, and find that you have no trouble connecting your braille display to Jaws and Window-eyes, then I would say that all three are superior at outputting braille, even to Voiceover.
Do you work in a corporate environment?  Do you use a virtual desktop or anything like that?  If so, Jaws is your best bet for making that happen.
Also, if this is the case, cost may not be an issue for you.
Do you access a lot of complex websites/web 2.0 applications like google docs and sheets?  This is one of NVDA's strengths but both NVDA and Jaws are superior to Window-eyes on this point.  Window-eyes is making strides in this area but I found that many student management web based applications I had to use for work wouldn't work with it whereas the others would.  I would imagine case management programs work in much the same way.
Is security important to you?  NVDA is open source and for some, this means that it is potentially more secure than the other commercial screen-readers.
Learning curve. I think Jaws is the clear loser here, it is the most complex, except when you consider that because it is the industry leader there is a lot of documentation out there for it.  Freedomscientific also puts on excellent webinar based training which is superior to anything that Window-eyes (in particular the free Microsoft version) and NVDA have.  NVDA and Jaws share many of the same commands so if you are familiar with one, it isn't difficult to move to the other.  NVDA's command structure, I found through training people to use both, was easier to pick up than Jaws's though.  Window-eyes is completely different.  many of the skills you learn in Window-eyes cannot easily be brought to the other screen-readers.  One thing it has going for it is that it is completely customizable though.

If I were introducing someone to screenreaders for the first time, and they were going  to be a Windows user, I think I would begin with NVDA because it is free and, because most if not all of the skills you learn in NVDA can be brought over to Jaws if need be.  I would move over to Jaws if the need arose or if the person needed more support and/or training than I could provide.  I frankly can't think of a good reason why I would start with Window-eyes.

What do I use on Windows?  Well, I use Jaws most of the time at home.  Jaws is what I am using right now to study for the bar and write this e-mail.  I have been a Jaws customer for almost 20 years except for a 3 year period in the early 2000s when I used Window-eyes.  At work, I have used a combination of NVDA and Window-eyes for the last 2 plus years (almost exclusively NVDA) because I couldn't justify the cost of Jaws to my employer.

I hope these thoughts are helpful to you.

Alex
-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Susan Kelly via blindlaw
Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2015 11:29 AM
To: 'Blind Law Mailing List'
Cc: Susan Kelly
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Windows Eyes or JAWS?

I use both, depending on what device I am using, and also prefer Voiceover.
That said, most legal firms, especially in my home state, are totally invested in Windows / Microsoft type computers.  For that, JAWS is likely the best.

-----Original Message-----
From: blindlaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Cody J.
Davis via blindlaw
Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2015 11:18 AM
To: Blind Law Mailing List
Cc: Cody J. Davis
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Windows Eyes or JAWS?

If you are not set on a Windows computer, all Apple computers come with a built-in screen reader called voiceover. I have found that voiceover is much easier to learn, at least it was for me. It seems to be more intuitive than JAWS. In high school I was taught how to use JAWS but it didn't really stick and I was very slow and limited with it. I think it really is a person by person basis though. I found quite a few YouTube videos that were helpful when deciding whether or not to switch from jaws to voice over.

Sent from my iPhone

> On Jun 2, 2015, at 12:11 PM, Ed Rizzuto via blindlaw 
> <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
wrote:
>
> Hi Folks,
>
>
>
> I'm new to the world of screen reader technology and would appreciate 
> any thoughts on whether Windows Eyes or JAWS are preferable for use in 
> practicing law.
>
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Ed Rizzuto
>
>
>
> Edward Rizzuto
>
> Law Office of Edward Rizzuto
>
> 1280 East 9th Street, Suite D
>
> Chico, California  95928
>
> (530) 899-9280
>
> edrizzuto at edrizzutolaw.com
>
> www.edrizzutolaw.com <http://www.edrizzutolaw.com/>
>
>
>
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