Strategies
- Screen resolution changes and tinted glasses
- Switching magnification programs
- Taskbar - Quick launch and short cut keys for programs
- Changing font and icon sizes in Windows
- Desktop icon personalisation
- Desktop icon removal
- Highlighting and Colour coding folders
- Screen dulled down and blue
- Keyboard access to flash audio player
- Joystick with macros for mouse use
- Download files using a USB hub
- QuickTime and video podcasts
- TextHelp Read and Write and colour changes
- Quickly Changing languages
- Mouse clicks slowed
- Two screens for notes and editing.
- Optical Mouse and Slow Pointer Speed
- Adjust power settings to dull screen for videos
- Colour Explorer and Eyepilot for colour changes
- Quick colour changes
- Font changed to sans serif Verdana
- Hot Keys and Ergonomic Keyboard to speed searches
- OneNote for creating notes for revision
- Scanning books - right up to the spine!
- OneNote for note taking, research and revision
Microsoft Windows Operating System
3 Keywords: Microsoft Operating System, Accessibility, Ease Of Access Centre
The Microsoft Windows Operating System has many built in features to aid accessibility and these are available from the Accessibility Options in XP and the Ease of Access Center in Vista. Microsoft have different accessibility sections for their products with a guide for educators
It is possible to run the latest Windows OS on a MacOS system with bootcamp or Parallels that will allow some assistive technologies such as the JAWS screen reader to work on a Mac system.
Links
- Accessibility options built into Microsoft Products
There are many accessibility features built into the Microsoft Office products although they do not all work in the same way and differ between versions. Keyboard shortcuts, colour changes and zooming in to magnify items are included along with basic screen reading for menus and start up.
- MSN Tips and Tricks
This is a Microsoft page of tips to save time and manage Windows Messenger in Windows XP.
- My Computer, My Way for Windows
AbilityNet offer ways of customising your Windows PC using the built in accessibility options.
- My Web My Way
"Do you need help in making the web easier to use? This site explains the many ways you can change your browser, computer, keyboard and mouse settings to make the web more accessible for you. " The site has been developed and maintained through a partnership between bbc.co.uk and AbilityNet, a leading UK computing and disability charity. It is based on AbilityNet's original My Computer, My Way site.
- Keyboard shortcuts for Windows
This is a long list of Windows applications that allow for the use of shortcut keyboard strokes for access and when working within documents or for databases and web pages etc. They tend to be require a combination of two keys pressed simultaneously.
- Help with seeing the screen
AbilityNet have a series of guides that advise about making the screen easier to read by using a selection of software.
- Tablet PC Speech Assistant
"The Tablet PC Speech Assistant is a program which runs on the Tablet PC or the more portable Ultra-Mobile PC. The software was originally built by Todd Landstad, a software engineer with years of experience with Tablet PC development. He developed the Tablet PC Speech Assistant as an aid for people who have problems speaking. The Tablet PC Speech Assistant can make it fairly easy for some people to have phrases that they often use spoken by the default voice on the Tablet PC. Given that the software require fairly good handwriting ability, and access to specific hardware, it will not be practical for some people." Oats opensource software database
- Microsoft Windows Tablet software tips
Microsoft have a series of developers webpages that may also be helpful to learn more about pen or stylus use, gestures or pen flicks etc and speech recognition with the tablet.
