>>>>

OutSpoken is the major screen reader for Mac.  Do you find it difficult to
use?

I wouldn't say "difficult", but rather "tedious".  It seemed to me to be
several generations behind in user interface development as compared to JFW
and Window-Eyes, and without MSAA support for apps like IE 5.0 and up,
there is just no comparison.

I also found it to be somewhat unstable in some situations (such as on a G4
network running OS8), but that was 2 years ago and I admit that I have had
no contact with OutSpoken since then.

I was one of the early users of OutSpoken for Windows back in 1994, but
quickly retired it when Window-Eyes and JFW came out -- even as buggy and
cantankerous as those early versions were.  I just never cared much for the
OutSpoken user interface -- mostly because each new app was a whole new
exercise in frustration with very little carryover from other apps aside
from the basic screen reader's native key sequences.

This is one place where some more quality competition could really benefit
the users, but given the market share economics of Apple, this is not
likely to happen anytie soon.  The only prayer this has of coming to
fruition is if something happens as a result of a 508 compliance problem
that motivates one of the other vendors to get into the Apple market.
Again, not real likely tohappen.

-- Jim

------------------------------
James A. Rebman

Cognitive Levers Project
Center for Life-Long Learning and Design
Department of Computer Science
University of Colorado, Boulder

"In times of change, the learners will inherit the earth while the learned
will find themselves beautifully equipped for a world that no longer exists."

- Eric Hoffer