Keith:
Three cheers!!!
If anything is going to change regarding the accessibility of EDGE, the same
kind of concentrated effort, by all those who forced Microsoft to continue
supporting Windows XP for much longer than it had planned, may be necessary.
As it stands now, Microsoft will continue supporting IE 11 until some time in
2020. We should mount a concentrated campaign/effort to force Microsoft to
support IE 11 until EDGE is fully accessible with all meanstream screen
readers. And we should do this before Microsoft goes farther down this road!
"Power to the people!"
Jim H
-----Original Message-----
From: Visually Impaired Computer Users' Group List
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Keith Bundy
Sent: Wednesday, January 4, 2017 9:52 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [VICUG-L] JAWS and Microsoft Edge
I admit two things at the beginning of this post. First, I have done limited
research on Microsoft Narrator, though I believe I have given it a fair look.
Second, some of what I am about to say may be related to my age - I just
passed a milestone birthday.
I am concerned about Microsoft working hard to make Narrator competitive. I
think competition is a great idea and will benefit all of us in the future.
And a built-in screen reader is a fantastic idea!
However, the operation of Narrator seems to be vastly different from the
operation of other Windows screen readers out on the market. While this is
fine for individuals just learning how to work with a screen reader, I get
concerned for those of us who have been using such technology for ten fifteen,
twenty or more years.
First, how many programs will we be excluded from if we don't transition to
Narrator? For example, I hear that Narrator works fine with Edge right now,
but a user of JAWS or NVDA will have difficulty. Is this the trend of the
future? Will we be excluded if we don't learn Microsoft's proprietary screen
reader?
Second, is Microsoft working on any type of training or documentation that
will assist those of us who have certain ways of using the computer integrated
into our brains in learning the smooth operation of Narrator? Now before
anyone calls me a Luddite, please know that I have continually accepted new
technologies for the last twenty years and don't plan to stop doing so - yes,
I will learn Narrator. . But not all screen reader users wish to learn new
methods of operating a computer and navigating the screen. Will these folks
just be left behind like yesterday's dust?
I welcome any and all discussion on this topic. If my concerns are invalid,
please let me know. But I think what I am saying expresses the concerns of
many users of screen readers.
Thanks for reading this and for the opportunity of expressing concerns like
this. Have a great day!
Keith Bundy
Digital Accessibility Consultant and Trainer
Siteimprove, Inc.
7807 Creekridge Circle
Minneapolis, MN 55439
Tel: 612-259-6350
Email: [log in to unmask]
VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
Archived on the World Wide Web at
http://listserv.icors.org/archives/vicug-l.html
Signoff: [log in to unmask]
Subscribe: [log in to unmask]
VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
Archived on the World Wide Web at
http://listserv.icors.org/archives/vicug-l.html
Signoff: [log in to unmask]
Subscribe: [log in to unmask]
|
