I am so impressed with what Microsoft has done and with what they
continue to do with Windows, Office and, in particular, with Narrator.
Narrator is becoming quite a robust screen reader and its image
recognition feature will make it unique among other screen reading
products. Here is the post.
Windows Accessibility: What to Expect Later This Year
MAY 18, 2017 BY MICROSOFT ACCESSIBILITY BLOG
By Jeff Petty, Windows Accessibility Program Manager Lead
Today we are celebrating Global Accessibility Awareness Day. This is a
great opportunity to share an inside look into what’s coming in the
Windows 10 Fall Creators Update later this year. Let’s take a quick look
back, before we get into an overview of features that will be coming to
Insiders in the coming weeks, with general availability this fall. We’ll
then ask for your feedback on how we can continue to improve Windows 10
accessibility.
A quick look back
Last year, Jenny Lay-Flurrie, Microsoft’s chief accessibility officer,
reaffirmed our company-wide commitment to accessibility and outlined our
guiding principles and goals to improve accessibility across our
products, including Windows. In the Anniversary Update, Windows
delivered accessibility improvements to Microsoft Edge, Windows Mail,
Narrator (including publishing a user guide at
http://aka.ms/narratorguide), Start, Cortana, the Microsoft Store,
Groove, Movies & TV, and other experiences.
The Windows 10 Creators Update continued our journey of accessibility
improvements. With this update, people with low vision or who are blind
can now install Windows without sighted assistance or use a Braille
display to interact with Windows. With mono audio, people with partial
hearing loss or deafness in one ear can send the audio in their left and
right channels to both channels, so they don’t miss any sounds. Xbox
provided in-game chat transcription to game developers, so that they can
offer people with hearing loss or deafness a way to enjoy gaming with
friends and family without missing a word. Xbox also delivered Copilot,
which enables gamers to use both controllers simultaneously to control a
single character in a game. This is great for gamers with physical
disabilities who need alternate ways of holding a controller and for
parents assisting kids. Microsoft Edge now includes eBook Learning Tools
accessibility features: Read Aloud and text spacing make it easier for
everyone to read and enjoy text, including people with learning
differences such as dyslexia, emerging readers and English Language
Learners. The KNFB Reader app was launched in the Microsoft Store and
complements existing accessibility-related apps like Read&Write for
Microsoft Edge and TalkTablet. Finally, the Windows accessibility site
was updated to better reflect the ways Windows 10 makes your device
easier to use, including people with vision, hearing, physical and
cognitive disabilities.
Looking forward
Later this fall, Windows 10 Fall Creators Update will include additional
accessibility improvements. Some of the highlights include improvements
to Narrator, our built-in screen reader, improvements for low vision
users, and new features that make it easier for everyone, including
students, to read and write.
Narrator Improvements
The Narrator team continues to focus on making a screen reader that is
both easy to learn and use, and powerful enough to support learning,
working and playing on Windows 10 devices including PCs, phones and
Xbox. Narrator improvements coming in the Fall Creators Update include:
◾ Device learning mode – Narrator will include the ability to send
commands from a keyboard, touch or braille display and get feedback
about what the command does without invoking the command.
◾ Usability improvements – Narrator will read controls more accurately
and consistently, will include Scan Mode turned on by default (and
remember whether Scan Mode is turned on or off in apps across sessions),
and will read apps like Settings and Weather like a web page. Narrator
continues to make progress toward a unified interaction model, where
Windows apps and web pages can be navigated with a consistent set of
commands so that Narrator is easy to learn and use without having to
remember a large set of keyboard shortcuts.
◾ Braille improvements – Narrator users can type and read using
different braille translations. Users can also perform braille input for
application shortcuts and modifier keys, which enables users to employ
their braille display to perform common tasks such as pressing ALT + TAB
to switch between active applications or pressing CTRL + B to bold text.
◾ Automatically generated image descriptions – Narrator will include the
ability to use artificial intelligence to generate descriptions for
images that lack alternative text on demand. The service includes the
ability to extract text from images using optical character recognition.
Low vision improvements
The Fall Creators Update includes:
◾ Magnifier improvements – Magnifier on the Windows 10 Desktop will
follow Narrator focus, so that Magnifier and Narrator are easier to use
together for low vision users. Desktop Magnifier will include an option
to provide smoother fonts and images. And, it will include new Settings
and the ability to zoom in an out using a mouse wheel.
◾ Color filters – Windows 10 will include color filters at the system
level, including filters designed to make it easier for people with
color blindness to differentiate between colors like red and green and
to make it easier for people with light sensitivity to create and
consume content.
Reading and writing improvements
The Fall Creators Update also includes features that make it easier to
read and write:
◾ Learning Tools in Edge – In addition to eBooks, Read Aloud or
simultaneously highlighting and voicing text, Learning Tools will be
supported on web pages.
◾ Word predictions – In addition to the touch keyboard, word predictions
will be supported for U.S. English using hardware keyboards.
New Windows modes
The Windows team is committed to delivering built-in assistive
technology that exceeds our users’ needs and expectations. We are also
working closely with assistive technology partners to continue to
improve their experiences with Windows 10 and to support deploying more
assistive technology apps in the Microsoft Store. We recently announced
Windows 10 S, which promises Windows 10 devices with faster boot times
and improved security and reliability. We believe Windows 10 S is great
for many customers. Others may prefer Windows Home or Windows Pro to
meet their needs. Microsoft is committed to meeting the needs of people
with disabilities and providing choices for devices and modes for
operating Windows. We will provide assistive technology users with a
switch to Windows 10 Pro from Windows 10 S at no charge as we continue
to improve our built-in assistive technology and bring more assistive
technology apps to the Microsoft Store.
Thanks, and keep the feedback coming
Thank you to the many people who have provided feedback — both positive
and constructive — to help make Windows accessibility delightful. If
you’re interested in providing help or suggestions, we welcome your
feedback via the Windows Insider Program as these features are previewed
in the coming months. Windows 10 makes it easy to share your thoughts
and suggestions — just press Windows logo key + F to launch the Feedback
hub and share what’s top of mind.
As well, if you are a customer with a disability (of any kind) and need
technical assistance, the Disability Answer Desk is there to assist via
phone and chat, and in the United States, we also have an ASL option for
our customers with hearing loss (+1 503-427-1234).
--
David Goldfield, Assistive Technology Specialist Feel free to visit my
Web site WWW.DavidGoldfield.Info
You are invited to visit the moderator's Web site at WWW.DavidGoldfield.Info
for additional resources and information about assistive technology training
services.
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