Make presentation on Monday 24th on Web Accessibility use this link for relevant resources - You can discuss web sites or mobile phones or any other device.
Types of Assistive Technology
- Screen readers: Software used by blind or visually impaired people to read the content of the computer screen. Examples include JAWS for Windows, NVDA, or Voiceover for Mac.
- Screen magnification software: Allow users to control the size of text and or graphics on the screen. Unlike using a zoom feature, these applications allow the user to have the ability to see the enlarged text in relation to the rest of the screen. This is done by emulating a handheld magnifier over the screen.
- Text readers: Software used by people with various forms of learning disabilities that affect their ability to read text. This software will read text with a synthesized voice and may have a highlighter to emphasize the word being spoken. These applications do not read things such as menus or types of elements - they only read the text.
- Speech input software: Provides people with difficulty in typing an alternate way to type text and also control the computer. Users can give the system some limited commands to perform mouse actions. Users can tell the system to click a link or a button or use a menu item. Examples would be Dragon Naturally Speaking for Windows or Mac. Please note both Windows and Mac have some speech recognition utilities, but they cannot be used to browse the web.
- Valid HTML : browsers (Netscape, Internet Explorer) have traditionally been very tolerant of loosely written HTML, but other browsers are not so forgiving. Nothing can cause more havoc in screen readers that nonstandard, incorrect or incomplete HTML. It's a good idea to have an HTML validator check your code. This works best if you have declared in the first line of your file what version of HTML you are using ; the DTD ("document type definition")
- Alternative input devices: Some users may not be able to use a mouse or keyboard to work on a computer. These people can use various forms of devices, such as:
- Head pointers: A stick or object mounted directly on the user’s head that can be used to push keys on the keyboard. This device is used by individuals who have no use of their hands.
- Motion tracking or eye tracking: This can include devices that watch a target or even the eyes of the user to interpret where the user wants to place the mouse pointer and moves it for the user.
- Screen Keyboards