AbilityNet · Web viewProduct Guide Price Supplier Mac Settings Free Built into Mac Windows settings Free Built in to Windows Mouse pointers Free . Microsoft Word and Excel Features

Vision impairment and computingThis factsheet explains how people with impaired vision can use computers effectively.

This factsheet is part of AbilityNet’s free Advice and Information service.

If you have any questions at all about anything in this Factsheet, or any other aspect of assistive technology, please contact us.

Helpline: 0800 269545

Email: [email protected]

Help us to help othersOur Factsheets are part of our charitable work which relies on donations. If you can afford it a donation will help to keep these Factsheets free to those who can't.

You can donate now by texting ANET12 £3 to 70070. You will receive a reply and can then donate as little as £1 or as much as £10 to AbilityNet.

The service is run by JustGiving and Vodafone but works with any network. There's no cost to you for sending the text message, your free allowance/bundle won’t be deducted and AbilityNet receives 100% of your donation.

If you have any questions about the donations please call on 0203 714 8235.

mailto:[email protected]

Access to the Keyboard

The letters on a computer keyboard are small and can be difficult to see. Large print keytop stickers in several colour combinations are available. Learning to touch-type is recommended, where possible.

Keyboard Stickers

Touch-typing tutors are available as a speaking computer program. See our factsheet on touch typing for further information.

Screen Placement

The placement of the screen can be important. Glare and window light can make unusable a computer that would otherwise be manageable.

Colour

Many people with impaired vision can see some colour combinations better than others. Colour options are available in practically all programs. Windows/OS X has a wide range of pre-defined colour schemes to try or you can create your own preferred colour schemes.

Screen Size

Larger than standard screens produce a larger than standard image. Screens are available over 30” in size. It is now possible to connect a TV to a computer via HDMI cables although this normally applies to newer TV models.

For laptop computers, screens are typically around 15” visible viewing area. They can go up to 17” but the bigger the screen the heavier the laptop. We’d always advise that if you need a bigger screen you consider connecting your laptop up to a larger monitor.

Web: www.abilitynet.org.uk. Tel: 0800 269545. Email [email protected]

Updated February 2014 Page 2

http://www.abilitynet.org.uk/

Screen Resolution

Ensuring that your screen resolution (how small the dots are that make up the picture on your monitor) is no higher than 800x600 is a good starting point – text and pictures will be larger than at higher resolutions.

Choice of Font Style and Size

It is possible to increase the size of all text within Windows (including icon text, menus, message boxes etc). This can considerably enhance the visibility of Windows and all the programs you use.

A font such as the one this document is written in - "Arial", can be easier to see than others which are not uniform width and have "serifs" (tails) such as "Times New Roman".

In Windows a number of colour schemes include larger text of up to 3 times the standard size.

The Mouse Pointer

In Windows (and OS X) it is possible to change the colour and size of the mouse pointer (arrow) and the other shapes the mouse pointer appears as. A wider range of sizes and colours and high visibility effects can be achieved with specialist software.

Product Guide Price Supplier

Mac Settings Free Built into Mac

Windows settings Free Built in to Windows

Mouse pointers Free www.yourdolphin.com

Microsoft Word and Excel Features

Both Microsoft Word and Excel have features that may help increase visibility. You can increase the size of the buttons in the toolbars in both.

In Word you can make the document window white text on a blue background regardless of Windows' colour scheme.

"Zooming In"

A number of programs such as word-processors allow the user to increase the size of the text in the window where the document appears quite considerably. This does not affect the size in which the text is printed out. Most buttons on the toolbar (the row of




http://www.yourdolphin.com/

small pictures at the top of the screen that can perform an operation when clicked with the mouse) can be enlarged by choosing the right option within the program.

Magnification Software

A number of products are available that produce an enlarged image on the computer's screen. The sizes of enlargement possible, the image quality and the method of control vary.

Example of screen magnification

Enlarging characters in this way always means that only a portion of the whole screen is visible at any time. Use of such software is relatively simple and there are also a number of word-processing packages specifically designed for use with large characters.

There is also software that magnifies the area around the mouse pointer like a magnifying glass.

Product Guide price

Supplier

Windows magnifier

Free In Windows XP and above

Virtual Magnifier Free http://magnifier.sourceforge.net

Mac Magnifier Free Within Mac OS

Hyperlens $49.95 www.visionsuit.com

Finding the Text Cursor

Many people find it difficult to locate the blinking vertical bar that indicates where you are typing in a word processor.




http://www.visionsuit.com/

http://magnifier.sourceforge.net/

There is no way of increasing the size, or enhancing the appearance, of this cursor except in Windows XP and above (and then its size only increases in MS Word and a few other programs). A program called Mouse&Caret Buddy can help you find your mouse cursor and text caret by showing pictures next to them.

Product Guide price

Supplier

Mouse&Caret Buddy (works with Win 7/8)

US$39.00 www.ahf-net.com/Mcbuddy.htm

Pin Point (MAC only)

US$4.99 http://www.lagentesoft.com/pinpoint/index.html

Configuring your Web-Browser

All new computers now come with Internet browsing software already installed. Many websites are visually complex and confusing with multiple columns and text in strange combinations of colours. All of the most common browsers can force the text to be of the size and colour you prefer, and the background and foreground colours of the page whatever combination you wish.

“Screen Reading” using Speech Output

It is often thought that Windows and the Apple operating system (OS X) with its pictures and "icons", is inaccessible to those without vision. In fact these pictures are often purely cosmetic or accompanied by a text label.

A blind computer user can know what is on the screen by having the necessary information spoken by a synthetic voice. This could include having each character or word echoed back as you type.

The software programs that control the speech (called "screen readers") vary in their reliability and intelligence. The more sophisticated allow the user effective and reliable "eyes-free" use of the vast majority of programs.

There are some free text to speech packages available but these are not intended for visually impaired users.

"Screen Reading" Access to the Internet

A program called a "web browser" is used to view pages on the internet (called "web pages" or "web sites"). These pages contain mostly textual information, but could also




http://www.lagentesoft.com/pinpoint/index.html

http://www.ahf-net.com/Mcbuddy.htm

include pictures, music and video or audio clips. It is important to choose the right software to get best access to these pages.

There are some specialist web browsers that enlarge text and speak the content of a web page. Also, some combinations of screen readers and web browsers have the ability to make the reading of pages with complex structures and layouts even easier than the specialist web browsing programs.

Product Guide Price

Supplier

Voiceover Free Apple (built into OSX X)

Thunder screenreader Free www. screenreader .net (Windows only)

NVDA Screenreader Free http://www.nvaccess.org/

Portable Computers and Note-Takers

Visually impaired people may wish to have a portable solution to their computer needs. There are many portable devices that offer note taking, word- processing, and diary and address book facilities.

Some are specialist machines that have been designed to give speech and/or Braille output and have either Braille or "Qwerty" keyboards. Others are essentially laptop or PDA computers running screen reading software with speech output or a Braille display added.

OCR/Scanning

A scanner looks a little like a small photocopier on which you place a page of text or opened-up book. The text on the page is converted into text on the screen which can then be magnified or spoken back. There are many specialist scanners that can "read" the printed page and automatically speak back the contents. They do not need to be attached to a computer and do not have a screen. Mainstream scanners, however, are now typically sold with the necessary optical character recognition (OCR) software, at a fraction of the cost, and can easily be used by someone who already has a computer with speech, Braille or enlarged image output. You can now use a mobile phone with a camera to scan in text and then “speak” it out to you.

No scanner can read hand-written text.




http://www.nvaccess.org/

http://www.screenreader.net/

CCTVs

Closed circuit TV systems, or video magnifiers, are devices that enlarge print or hand-written text. Some can be attached to a computer. Most common are standalone models. They comprise a single unit, with a screen above a moveable table on which the item to be read is placed.

Example of a CCTV

Portable versions are available, with small hand-held cameras that connect to a television or computer. Those connecting to a computer give the user the option to view the CCTV image, or the computer image, or both in a "split-screen" view.

Combined Approaches

These solutions need not be thought of in isolation. For many visually impaired users the best solution might combine a number of the strategies mentioned above.

Mobile phones

With the advent of Android and Apple IPhones there is now a greater amount of software applications (apps) that people with visual impairment will find useful. Please see our factsheet “Tablet Computers” for more details.




Useful Factsheets

The following factsheets are relevant to this subject. We also produce a range of skillsheets that are step by step guides to customising your PC.

Vision Impairment and Touch-Typing

Keyboard Shortcuts in Windows

Electronic Publications

It also might be worth looking at the RNIB information on technology products http://www.rnib.org.uk/livingwithsightloss/computersphones/guides/




http://www.rnib.org.uk/livingwithsightloss/computersphones/guides/

Copyright information

This Factsheet is licensed by AbilityNet under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

View a copy of this license at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/

This means you are free to:

Share — to copy, distribute and transmit the work

Remix — to adapt the work

But only under the following conditions:

Attribution — You must attribute the work to AbilityNet (but not in any way that suggests that we endorse you or your use of the work).

Noncommercial — You may not use this work for commercial purposes.

Share Alike — If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under the same or similar license to this one.

With the understanding that:

Waiver — Any of the above conditions can be waived if you get permission from the copyright holder.

Public Domain — Where the work or any of its elements is in the public domain under applicable law, that status is in no way affected by the license.

Other Rights — In no way are any of the following rights affected by the license:

Your fair dealing or fair use rights, or other applicable copyright exceptions and limitations;

The author's moral rights;




http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#I_don.E2.80.99t_like_the_way_a_person_has_used_my_work_in_a_derivative_work_or_included_it_in_a_collective_work.3B_what_can_I_do.3F

http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#Do_Creative_Commons_licenses_affect_fair_use.2C_fair_dealing_or_other_exceptions_to_copyright.3F

http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Public_domain

http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Public_domain

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/

Rights other persons may have either in the work itself or in how the work is used, such as publicity or privacy rights.

We are always keen to help share knowledge about accessibility and assistive technology. If you have any questions about how you may use the contents of this Factsheet please contact us at AbilityNet and we will do all we can to help?




http://wiki.creativecommons.org/Frequently_Asked_Questions#When_are_publicity_rights_relevant.3F

AbilityNet Adapting Technology. Changing Lives.Our specialist services help disabled people to use computers and the

internet to improve their lives, whether at work, at home or in education.

Accessibility ServicesOur expert consultants help make websites, intranets, office documents

and mobile technologies accessible to all.

Assessment ServicesOur professional assessors identify the technologies and adaptations

needed to enable people with disabilities to be more productive at work, at

home and in education.

IT VolunteersOur network of over 8,000 IT volunteers provide high quality specialist IT

support to charities and people with disabilities.

Information and Advice ServicesAbilityNet has is a leading authority on accessibility and assistive

technologies. Our Factsheets and other free tools help people use IT to

address their needs.

We charge for our services to businesses and others who can pay for our

expertise. We use charitable income to deliver services to people who

cannot afford to pay, including disabled people and charities.

Visit www.abilitynet.org.uk/donate for information about how you can

support AbilityNet’s charitable work.




http://www.abilitynet.org.uk/donate

Telephone: 0800 269545

Email: [email protected]

Web: http://www.abilitynet.org.uk

AbilityNet is a Charity, registered in England and Wales, registration

number 1067673, and in Scotland registration number SC039866.





mailto:[email protected]

Documents

AbilityNet · Web viewProduct Guide Price Supplier Mac Settings Free Built into Mac Windows settings Free Built in to Windows Mouse pointers Free . Microsoft Word and Excel Features