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All the exciting news from the programs and personalities of the Canadian Council of the Blind
Episodes
Friday Oct 25, 2019
Friday Oct 25, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes:
September 25, 2019
How to use Reader View on the Mac, PC, iOS and Android Browsers
What is Reader/Simplified View, and why does anyone want to explore it? Here’s an article that might explain it, followed by instructions on how to activate it in your favourite, or soon to be favourite browser.
Reader View
First posted on July 12, 2018 by Rob Tomlinson
“Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s dictum that “Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away” can be re-deployed most helpfully when discussing Reader View, a topic that touches on web page design and browser behaviour.”…
PC Browsers:
Simplified View for Google Chrome on the PC:
- type this into a new tab in Google Chrome
chrome://flags/#enable-reader-mode
press enter.
- A Chrome settings page comes up that you can navigate using headings.
- Press the letter H until you get to reading mode.
- There is a combo box that shows that reader mode is disabled.
- Press enter to go into forms mode if using Jaws.
- Press the down arrow to get to enabled and press enter.
- Go to the bottom of the page with control end and there is a restart chrome button, and Press enter.
- Now visit a page that has news stories such as this article from the Victoria Times Colonist,
- You can try down arrowing through the page and see all the links, controls and advertisements on the page.
- Press the Alt Key to bring up a menu and either up or down arrow to “Toggle distilled page contents” and press enter.
- you will hear your screen reader say, “Simplified View”.
- Now what you have is the news article in its entirety without the ads and other controls.
- To get the page back to normal view, repeat step 11 and press Enter.
- Press the Escape Key to close the menu.
Reader View for Firefox on the PC:
Reader View is a Firefox feature that strips away clutter like buttons, ads and background images, and changes the page's text size, contrast and layout for better readability.
Mozilla Firefox Download Page;
- Open Firefox and enter the address of the page you want to visit, let’s use the Victoria Times Colonist article again.
- Examine the page with down and up arrow keys to see that it is cluttered with links, controls and advertisements.
- Press the f9 key to enable reader view.
- If nothing happens then reader view is not available for the current page.
- If reader view is available, the page loads and is clutter free.
Mac Browsers:
Reader View for Safari on the Mac:
Safari Browser for the Mac Download Page;
To display an article in Reader on the Mac, do the following:
- Click the Safari icon on the Dock or Launchpad.
- Type in the URL for the website you want to visit.
For example, you might visit The New Yorker at www.newyorker.com.
- Click the article you want to read. You see the article with various advertisements, banners, photos, links, and so on.
- Click the Reader button, or press Command+Shift+R.
- If the article runs over several pages, Reader displays it as one continuous page so you need only scroll down, not click from one page to the next.
- If you need to adjust the size of the text, click the type buttons (the two A’s) in the upper-left corner.
- To exit Reader, click the Reader button, or press the Esc key to exit Reader and return to the normal Safari view of the article. Click the Back button to return to the original site.
- In both Reader and normal Safari view, press ⌘+= or ⌘+– to zoom in or out on the text. If you have a Magic Mouse or Trackpad or a MacBook that recognizes multi-touch gestures, you can also pinch in or out to zoom.
iOS 12.4 Browsers:
Sadly, we could find nothing to say there is a Reader or Simplified View for the Google Chrome Browser for iOS.
Reader View for Safari Browser on iOS:
How to enable Reader View in Safari in iOS 12.4:
- Launch Safarifrom your Home screen.
- Navigate to the website you'd like to read.
- Tap the Reader button on the left of the address bar. It looks like a series of stacked lines.
- If the Reader button doesn’t appear it means the page isn’t able to be simplified.
Reader View for Mozilla Firefox Browser in iOS 12.4:
Mozilla Firefox Download Page on the App Store for iPad and iPhone;
How to enable Reader View in Firefox on iOS:
- Launch Firefox from your Home screen.
- Navigate to the website you'd like to read.
- Tap the Reader button on the right of the address bar. It looks like a series of stacked lines.
- Double Tap it again to turn it off when you want access to more of the page.
- If the Reader button doesn’t appear it means the page isn’t able to be simplified.
Reader View for Microsoft Edge in iOS 12.4:
Microsoft Edge Download for iPad and iPhone;
How to enable Reader View in Microsoft Edge on iOS:
- Launch Edge from your Home screen.
- Navigate to the website you'd like to read.
- Tap the Reader Mode button on the right of the address bar. It looks like a book that is open.
- Double Tap the Done button to turn it off when you want access to more of the page.
- If the Reader Mode button doesn’t appear it means the page isn’t able to be simplified.
Android Browsers:
Simplified View for Google Chrome on Android:
Google Chrome Browser Download from the Google Play Store;
How to Enable Reader Mode in Chrome for Android?
- Open Chromeon your Android smartphone or tablet and type
chrome://flags
in the address/search bar and hit enter. The Chrome Flags page will open up.
- Hit the three dot button inthe top right corner and tap “Find in page “.
- Once enabled, you will see a “Make page mobile-friendly” button at the end of the webpage.
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Tuesday Oct 22, 2019
Tuesday Oct 22, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes:
September 11, 2019
- On September 11, 2019 Gerry Chevalier gave a presentation to the GTT National Conference Call Meeting demonstrating how to search for and download from the new website launched earlier this year by The Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA).
- Gerry used Windows 10 for this demonstration, and the web browser used was Google Chrome. The site also works well with Firefox and Internet Explorer.
- The screen reader used for this demonstration was JAWS for Windows, and both Narrator and NVDA are also compatible with the CELA Library website.
What is CELA:
- The CELA accessible library service for print disabled Canadians provides many services including: downloadable recorded DAISY books, downloadable DAISY eBooks, downloadable Bookshare DAISY eBooks, DAISY books on CD mailed to your home, braille books mailed to your home, print-brailled books for kids, over 150 downloadable DAISY e-text magazines, recorded DAISY magazines by download or mail, and over 40 daily newspapers that can be read online.
- In early 2019 CELA launched a new accessible website that brings together their collection and that of Bookshare searchable from one place.
- Many will recognize these CELA services to be the same as those previously provided by the CNIB Library. CELA took over the CNIB Library in 2014 and now serves all print-disabled Canadians not just those who are blind or vision impaired.
The Players:
- In addition to playing CD books the Victor Reader Stratus can also receive direct to player DAISY books over the Internet. The user chooses their book by logging into CELA online and once a book is chosen it is sent directly to the player. For non-computer users, CELA customer service or your local Librarian can set up a reader profile for you and then the CELA computer will choose your books and send them directly to the player or on CD mailed to your home.
- It is also suggested some may prefer the pocket sized Victor Reader Stream which can accept the direct to player books and perform other online functions Such as getting Bookshare books and listening to podcasts and radio stations.
- CELA Direct to Player audio books can also be played on your iPhone or Android phone using the free Dolphin EasyReader app.
- CELA audio books can also be downloaded through Dropbox to iPhones and played using the Voice Dream Reader app.
How much does it cost:
- There is no fee for CELA service or Bookshare service.
How do I find CELA:
- Visit the CELA web site for information on all their services or call their customer service at 1-855-655-2273.
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Monday Oct 21, 2019
Monday Oct 21, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes:
August 28, 2019
Microsoft Soundscape
A map delivered in 3D sound by Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft Soundscape was recently released in Canada in both official languages, Canadian French and English. You can download Soundscape free for iOS from the App Store here.
Presenting over the Zoom Conference to the GTT New Westminster group were Amos Miller, the Product Manager for Microsoft Soundscape Research in Redmond WA, and Jarnail Chudge, a technology designer and user experience expert on the team.
Microsoft Soundscape uses 3D audio technology to enhance your awareness of what is around you, and thereby help you get around and explore your surroundings.
Soundscape will place audio cues and labels in 3D space such that they sound like they are coming from the direction of the points of interest, parks,
roads and other features in your surroundings.
You will need a pair of stereo headsets that you feel comfortable wearing outdoors. For example, bone conduction headsets, Apple AirPods and in-ear open
headphones have proven to work well.
Soundscape is designed to live in the background and provide you with effortless ambient awareness. Therefore, feel free to use it in conjunction with
other apps such as podcasts, audio books, email and even GPS navigation.
Key features:
- As you walk, Soundscape will automatically call out the key points of interest, roads and intersections that you pass. These can be adjusted and turned on and off.
- An audio beacon can be placed on a point of interest, and you will hear it as you move around. You can place an audio beacon on a point of interest that you would like to track such as your destination, a point to return to or a landmark you are familiar with.
- “My Location” describes your current location and the direction you are facing.
- "Nearby Markers" describes nearby places you have marked.
- “Around Me” describes nearby points of interest in each of the four cardinal directions, helping with orientation. Try this out when getting off a bus or leaving a train station.
- “Ahead of Me” describes points of interest in front of you, for example when walking down the street.
- The expandable Callout History section lets you review callouts you have heard, repeat callouts, hear more information about them, and more.
We hope you enjoy the experience. We believe that this kind of technology offers a new way to relate to the environment around you and we can’t wait to hear what you make of it.
If at any time you have any questions about Soundscape, please refer to the Help & Tutorials section available on the main menu or if you require further help then you can contact the Disability Answer Desk on
1-800-936-5900 which is a free of charge service.
This work started out in 2010/2011 when Amos was still in the UK. He was involved with the local guide dog organization there, and working with them to try and figure out how technology can integrate into our own independence and mobility when we’re out and about, but in a way that enhances that experience. Some people from Microsoft started working with mobility instructors, and guide dog and cane users. We explored a range of ideas long before we figured out how to solve the problem. We landed on this notion of how important it is to enhance the awareness, but not tell the person what to do in that space. A lot of what orientation and mobility trainers will do with us is to work on a specific route, but especially how to perceive the environment, how we read the cues that the environment is giving us from a sound perspective, echo location, traffic noise, direction of the wind, the tactile feeling of the ground: all of the signals we can get from the environment in order to orient, and make good navigational decisions. The work that we did with Guide Dogs in the early days of Soundscape was really to see how we can build on that. The idea of sound playing a big role in the perception of the space, was really how this idea evolved. Soundscape as an ap, is the first incarnation of that idea.
The ap is free, and available from the Ap Store. It does rely on map data, and so it does need to be able to access that data. For the most part, it will download the necessary data from the environment that you’re in, and from that point forward it’s not using data. So it’s not constantly drawing on your data plan, but it does require one. We’ve tried to optimize it so that the data usage is minimal, and in certain situations, it will also work in areas where there is no data.
Bose frames are a very good way to get the stereo effect, as are Bone conducting headphones. EarPods or standard headphones will work, but they will block your ears to ambient sound. Putting it in one ear to keep the other ear free won’t be effective because you won’t get the signature 3D effect. Amos said that he personally likes EarPods because of their sound quality, and it’s possible to insert them lightly into the ear and still have ambient sound. Some sports headphones are a good solution too, Plantronics for example. This type of headphone rests around the back of your neck, and clips over the ear. They sit in front of the ear canal without blocking it. They’re used commonly by runners and cyclists.
Users can email
and that comes to the Microsoft Soundscape team. There is also a feedback button in the ap itself.
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Thursday Oct 17, 2019
Thursday Oct 17, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes:
August 14, 2019
WayAround
The Smart Assistant for People Who are Blind
Meet WayAround
WayAround is the app for your smart device that provides on-demand details about everyday things. The simple tag-and-scan approach lets you quickly and easily identify things around you. It also provides extra details, like how something works or when it expires.
The result? Doing more of the things you want, with more confidence and more independence.
Get the FREE App!
Download WayAround on the App Store
Download WayAround on the Google Play Store
Canadian Distributor:
Canadian Assistive Technologies Ltd:
Check out this Sample Pack of WayAround Tags:
Contact Canadian Assistive Technologies:
OUR MISSION
Because Assistive Technology has been our lives for over 30 years, we understand the importance that any given device or piece of software can have in
our clients' day to day lives. We strive to ensure that every client has the tools and training they need in order to empower them to be able to live the
lives they want through the power of Accessibility.
1-844-795-8324
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Wednesday Oct 16, 2019
Wednesday Oct 16, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes:
July 10, 2019
Windows 10 Accessibility Primer
Following is a summary of the Windows10 accessibility primer Carrie Anton and Lyle Rollaman presented to GTT National Conference Call meeting attendees on July 10, 2019. Although the presentation was focused on low vision Windows access there is information that is also relevant to blind users. There are links to other resources so you can research more commands and tools. The commands provided are for Windows 10. The resource links provided take you to the Microsoft pages where you can choose the version of Windows you are using. Also find at the bottom of this document links to three Microsoft Accessibility Learning Webinar Series episodes hosted by Microsoft staff related to low vision and blind access to Narrator and Magnification features built into Windows 10.
Windows Shortcut Keys
Learning Windows Shortcut Keys is important to be Efficient and to be able to perform functions when you cannot use a mouse.
Windows Ease of Access Center
This is where all Accessibility related settings can be adjusted.
Scaling
This is a setting that adjusts the size and clarity of most items on your screen. The default is 125% but you can also customize it to what you want. Adjusting this to higher settings does require more scrolling of windows. Icons are larger, and text is larger without the stepping pixelating that often happens with magnifying things.
Right click anywhere on the desktop
Go to display settings
Scaling and Layout appear in the middle of the screen.
Magnifier
Magnifier allows you to enlarge the entire screen or sections of it. There are 3 viewing modes including full, lens, and docked. Magnifier’s application toolbar appears in the Taskbar at the bottom of the screen. It may also hover a magnifying glass on your screen. Click it and see the tools like plus, minus, zoom percentage, View, and a gear for settings.
|
TO DO THIS |
PRESS THIS |
|
|
Turn Magnifier on |
Windows logo key + Plus (+) |
|
|
Turn Magnifier off |
Windows logo key + Esc |
|
|
When Magnifier is on, zoom in or out |
Windows logo key + Plus (+) or Minus (-) |
|
|
Zoom in and out using the mouse scroll wheel |
Ctrl + Alt + mouse scroll wheel |
|
|
Open Magnifier settings |
Windows logo key + Ctrl + M |
|
|
Pan in the direction of the arrow keys |
Ctrl + Alt + arrow keys |
|
|
Invert colors |
Ctrl + Alt + I |
|
|
Switch to full screen view |
Ctrl + Alt + F |
|
|
Switch to lens view |
Ctrl + Alt + L |
|
|
Switch to docked view |
Ctrl + Alt + D |
|
|
Cycle through views |
Ctrl + Alt + M |
|
|
Resize the lens with the mouse |
Ctrl + Alt + R |
|
|
Resize the lens with the keyboard |
Shift + Alt + arrow keys |
|
|
Quickly see the entire desktop when using full screen view |
Ctrl + Alt + Spacebar |
|
More About Magnifier https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/11542/windows-use-magnifier
Mouse Enhancements
As one of the hardest things to find as a visually impaired person, the Pointer’s Size and Color often makes the difference in its visibility.
Also, if you can find your Mouse Settings in Control panel, you can adjust more mouse shapes and effects like pointer trails.
Press WindowsKey+U to open Ease of Access centre.
IN the Search box type, Mouse
Then the mouse panel appears and you can choose to change the look of the mouse, how it looks when moving, and more.
More on adjusting your
Cursor Thickness
In the Ease of Access Center, “Other Options” you can change the thickness of the typing cursor by using a horizontal left/right slider from a blinking vertical line to a thick blinking box. This makes finding where your cursor is much easier.
Color & High Contrast
There are many ways to change color of THE screens in Windows.
Magnifier’s invert color
Windows color filters – especially useful if someone has color blindness
Windows Themes – is a quick way to adjust all colors in every application for text, hyperlinks, buttons and active or inactive items.
I find that using a Windows Theme presents the best diversity of color especially high contrast. However, the possibility of losing information that is only represented by color is there. Take for example, a web page that is not coded for accessibility may eliminate colored items if a theme is enforced. You will need to be the judge of your own experience. For working with text and email Themes work great. For someone who is always on the web and uses cues from images and color, themes won’t work well.
Use invert colors of Magnifier or similarly the Color & High Contrast Invert setting. Keep in mind certain colors have hard to read inversions like organize and green. Yellow’s invert is blue. White is black.
|
TO DO THIS |
PRESS THIS |
|
Turn your High Contrast Theme on or off |
press Left Alt + left Shift + Print Screen |
|
Turn your color filter on or off |
press Windows logo key + Ctrl + C |
Text to Speech to Read What is Magnified
There is a built-in screen reader called Narrator which I’ll mention later. For those of us who just want reading in MS Office documents there is a Speech feature you can activate. It reads aloud any text you select in the document. It can be activated by keyboard shortcut or a button in the Quick Access Toolbar at the top of the application. This feature is available in Microsoft Office 2013, 2016 and of course Office365.
Narrator
Narrator is a full-blown screen reading application that does just that, it reads the screen. Again, keyboard shortcuts are handy in controlling and navigating documents.
Narrator has a setting panel that allows you to customize the way narrator acts such as voice, cursor and pointer following. Narrator also lets you “highlight the cursor” which is where it is reading, a red box appears around where Narrator is reading. This is useful when I am trying to hover my mouse over text I want read.
On many keyboards, the Windows logo key is located on the bottom row of keys, to the left or right of the Alt key.
|
TO DO THIS |
PRESS THIS |
|
Open Narrator settings |
Windows logo key + Ctrl + N |
|
Turn Narrator On or Off |
Windows logo key + Ctrl + Enter for Windows 10 Windows Logo Key + Enter for Windows 7/8 |
More on Getting Started with Narrator
There are several ways to read text using Narrator. The first and simplest way is to use the arrow keys to navigate text if you’re interacting with a document in a word processor, such as Microsoft Word.
If an app doesn’t support text reading commands, Narrator will say “not on explorable text.” In this case, use Scan Mode to navigate and read text. While in scan mode you need to listen for Narrator saying scan on or scan off, otherwise, the letters or arrow keys you use are actually moving in your document.
Move to the next or previous word
|
TO DO THIS |
PRESS THIS |
|
Turn Scan Mode On or Off |
Caps lock + Spacebar. |
|
Read by paragraph in scan mode |
Up and Down arrow keys |
|
Read by character |
Left and Right arrow keys |
|
To activate an item that you want to use, such as a button in an app, a link in a webpage, or a text box |
Press the spacebar |
|
Move to the start or end of a line of text in an app or webpage |
Home and End |
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Move to the beginning or end of text |
Ctrl + Home and Ctrl + End |
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Move to the next or previous word |
Ctrl + Left arrow and Ctrl + Right arrow |
|
Move to the next or previous line |
Ctrl + Up arrow and Ctrl + Down arrow |
To learn more about Scan Mode. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/22809/windows-10-narrator-using-scan-mode
Speech Recognition
A great feature for dictating to the computer as well as in documents. The trick to anyone using speech recognition software is to recognize when mistakes are made. You can open programs, control menus, click buttons and dictate text. First be in a quiet environment with a microphone connected to your computer. At the start menu type Speech Recognition or just speech and it will appear in the Start Menu.
More about Speech Recognition
Microsoft Accessibility Learning Webinar Series
Microsoft Accessibility Learning Webinar Series for low vision and blindness on YouTube
Accessibility Learning Webinar Series: Magnifier and Low Vision Features in Windows 10, Feb 27, 2019
Accessibility Learning Webinar Series: Narrator 101, Jan 30, 2019
Accessibility Learning Webinar Series: Narrator 101 for the May 2019 Update to Windows 10, Jul 2, 2019
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Friday Oct 11, 2019
Friday Oct 11, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes:
General Windows, Mac, MS Office Shortcut Keys:
On June 26, 2019 Ryan Fleury and Albert Ruel presented some favourite shortcut keys to the GTT New Westminster group based on the below list.
Ryan’s frequently used Windows keyboard commands:
Insert W application hot keys
Insert h jaws hot key info for application
Windows x works like a mini start menu
Windows I quickly jump to windows settings
Windows r opens the run dialogue
Insert spacebar h brings up jaws speech history
Windows E opens windows/file explorer
Windows D to go to desktop
Albert’s frequently used Windows keyboard commands:
Insert T, Task Bar
Insert F, Font attributes in JAWS
Insert B, read the pop up window
Control Z, undo
Insert number row 1, keyboard help toggle
Control X, C and V, Cut, copy and paste
Control B, U and I, bold, underline and italic
Windows B, System Tray
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Friday Oct 11, 2019
Friday Oct 11, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes:
On June 25, 2019 Albert Ruel demonstrated the use of the Rotor with Voice Over for effectively and efficiently accessing information from websites using iOS devices. A discussion of the Reader View available in the Safari Browser was also undertaken with a view to accessing just the text of articles rather than pages of advertising, links and other navigation controls.
Additional Resources:
Bluetooth Keyboard Commands are listed here:
Logitech Bluetooth Keyboard K380:
Web Browsing using the Rotor with Safari:
- Using both touch gestures on the iOS screen and the Logitech Bluetooth keyboard K380.
- Voice Over and Safari on iOS, iPod iPad and iPhone with the latest version of iOS 12.
- The rotor was used when web browsing to access Headings, Links, Form Fields, Edit Options, Text Selection, Characters, Words, Lines, Buttons and Tables.
- To turn the Rotor to the above movement units move two fingers across the screen in opposite directions, or use the thumb and forefinger to mimic the turning of a knob. To do this on a Bluetooth keyboard press both the left and up arrow buttons to turn the Rotor to the left and use the right and up arrow buttons to move it to the right.
- Once a movement unit is selected, a one-finger flick up will move to the previous item and a one-finger flick down will move to the next item. To do that with a Bluetooth keyboard press the up and down arrow buttons respectively.
Reader View Button in the Safari Browser:
- The Reader View button is located at the very top of Safari on the left-hand side of the page and looks like a button with squiggly lines.
To access it perform a four-finger single tap near the top of the screen to bring focus to the top, or hold down the Control key and press the up arrow button.
- To activate and de-activate the Reader View button one-finger double tap it, or press the up and down arrow buttons together. When the Reader View button is activated it strips out most links, advertisements and other junk from a webpage.
- Voice Over will announce that Reader View is available once a web page is loaded.
- Reader View in Safari can be activated when accessing any website where it is available, or it can be programmed to automatically activate when all web pages are accessed, or just specific websites. To access the Automatic Reader View Menu, from the Reader View button perform a one-finger swipe up or press the up arrow, then one-finger double tap or press the up and down arrow buttons to activate the Menu. Use a one-finger swipe to the right or the right arrow button to examine the menu and one-finger double tap or press the up and down arrow buttons together to activate your desired option.
- Low vision configuration is available once Reader View is activated by one-finger double tapping or pressing the up and down arrow buttons on the keyboard on the Reader Appearance Options button to the right of the Address Bar. Swipe to the right or use the right arrow button to examine the list of options and one-finger double tap or press the up and down arrow buttons together to select desired items.
General Touch Screen Gestures:
- On all web pages, a one-finger swipe to the right, or pressing the Write arrow button will move focus to the next item, and a swipe to the left, or pressing the left arrow button will move to the previous item.
- To have Voice Over read from the top of the page perform a two-finger swipe up, or hold down the VO key and press the letter A. To have Voice Over read from the current position perform a two-finger swipe down or hold down the VO key and press the letter B.
- To pause and resume Voice Over’s reading of any document, email or web page perform a 2-finger single tap, or press and release the Control key. Both of the above gestures will toggle the reading functions on and off.
- Access Heading Navigation by turning to it with the Rotor, or holding down the VO key on a Bluetooth keyboard and typing the letter Q. VO + the letter Q will toggle it off again.
- Navigating by headings is the most important means of examining a web page, and once the desired section is found swiping to the right or pressing the right arrow buttons will move focus to the next item. Using Heading Navigation will avoid much of the junk at the top of web pages.
- Headings are like the chapter markers in a book. They are organized in a hierarchical numbering system with Level 1 Headings above Level 2 and so on. With VO + Q turned on pressing numbers 1 through 6 will move to those respective Level Headings.
- Every time a Google search is conducted in Safari there should be a Level 1 Heading titled: Search Results. Turn the Rotor to Headings then use a one-finger swipe down or press the down arrow button to locate the Search Results area, and eventually each of the results listed on the page.
- forefinger double tap on the iPhone screen will turn on keyboard help, this will enable you to test out key commands on the keyboard or swipes on the phone to hear descriptions of what that action will do when outside of keyboard help.
- To access the Status Bar at the top of the screen in any iOS device using a Bluetooth Keyboard hold down the Control key and the CapsLock key plus the letter M, then perform the same key command again to get out of the status bar.
Quick Navigation Keys:
- to turn quick navigation keys on/off use left and right arrow Keys at the same time.
- when typing into an edit field quick navigation keys are off.
- Having quick navigation keys On enables one to use the Rotor to access headings, Characters, Words, Lines and many other navigation elements.
- when the focus is on the address bar and it is clicked on you can assume that the text is selected and if using quick navigation it will turn off automatically so you can begin to type. Typing will replace the highlighted text.
- The Rotor elements called Vertical Navigation and Rows will allow you to move up and down columns when in a table rather than swiping right and left to go horizontally across the screen then wrapping around to the next line or row. This is useful on bank statements as an example.
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Sunday Oct 06, 2019
Sunday Oct 06, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes: June 12, 2019
Robert Felgar, CEO, Raz Mobility attended the GTT National Conference Call to tell us all about the Lucia talking cell phone that is now available for sale to Canadians.
- Lucia is an Accessible mobile phone for individuals who are visually impaired, blind, hard of hearing or seniors.
- Lucia is a user-friendly cell phone that allows persons who are disabled to remain independent.
- Advanced features such as accessible buttons in different colors and shapes, voice guide to transform the phone into a talking companion, ergonomic design, combined with long battery life, make this high-quality, Swiss-made phone the perfect mobile phone for users who are disabled.
- Lucia has a powerful battery and can operate for more than one week before requiring a charge (up to 7 days standby time and 10 hours of talking time).
- Lucia allows users who are blind to enter their own contacts and move through the contact list to hear the contact names read out loud.
- Low vision users benefit from extra large characters and can choose between various color schemes such as white on black or black on white display.
- For emergencies, the phone has a dedicated SOS button on its back.
- Easy to navigate menus with large and highly tactile buttons. The control buttons are different colors and shapes so that the user always presses the correct button.
- Speech interface guides the user while using the phone. It speaks everything that is on the screen, speaks the keys that are pressed and even prompts the user to perform certain functions. Caller ID, amount of remaining battery power, contacts, list of missed calls and text messages are read out loud by Lucia. The user can select between more than 10 different voices.
- Lucia is 100 percent accessible to individuals who are blind. Its features make it the perfect phone for individuals who are visually impaired, blind, hard of hearing or seniors.
- To assist people who are hard of hearing, the phone has a “sound boost” function that provides additional volume during phine calls with the press of a button. Lucia has premium speakers to maximize clarity and sound experience.
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Sunday Oct 06, 2019
Sunday Oct 06, 2019
Get Together with Technology (GTT)
Sponsored by the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB)
GTT is an exciting initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind, founded in Ottawa in 2011 by Kim Kilpatrick and Ellen Goodman. GTT aims to help people who are blind or have low vision in their exploration of low vision and blindness related access technology. Through involvement with GTT participants can learn from and discuss assistive technology with others walking the same path of discovery.
GTT is made up of blindness related assistive technology users, and those who have an interest in using assistive technology designed to help blind and vision impaired people level the playing field. GTT groups interact through social media, and periodically meet in-person or by teleconference to share their passions for assistive technology and to learn what others can offer from their individual perspectives.
Show Notes: May 28, 2019
GTT Beginners National Conference Call
Navigating Websites Using Screen Readers with a PC
Kim Kilpatrick, Brian Bibeault and Albert Ruel demonstrated the use of Navigation Quick Keys and other strategies for effectively and efficiently accessing information from the websites we visit using the screen readers available in the Windows environment.
The pages visited were the Get Together with Technology (GTT) Blog and CELA Library pages.
Navigation Quick Keys for JAWS
NVDA command key quick reference
Narrator keyboard commands and touch gestures
For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:
Albert Ruel or Kim Kilpatrick
1-877-304-0968,550 1-877-304-0968,513
albert.GTT@CCBNational.net GTTProgram@Gmail.com
CCB Backgrounder:
The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).
The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments. CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.
CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.
The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.
The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues. For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.
As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the "Voice of the Blind™".
CCB National Office
100-20 James Street Ottawa ON K2P 0T6
Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net
Thursday Dec 13, 2018
Thursday Dec 13, 2018
Certainly it can be the "most wonderful time of the year", however Christmas can lead to a lot of stress.
Learn some tips on dealing with food, exercise, family stress.