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Subject:
From:
Edwin Montanez <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Edwin Montanez <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Mon, 21 Feb 2000 11:30:06 -0500
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I just wonder how many bugs it will have.

Edwin

Windows 2000: Accessibility Features
http://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/windows2000/features.htm

Windows 2000: Accessibility Features
Microsoft Accessibility, Technology for Everyone

Text-only

Microsoft® Windows® 2000 features several useful new accessibility tools to
help people with disabilities configure and use business computers
quickly-without
additional software and hardware. Accessibility features from earlier
releases of the Windows operating system are still there, and with the
increased
integration of
Microsoft Active Accessibility®,
many accessibility aids simply work better.

Enhanced Accessibility Menu
Two new accessibility utilities, Narrator and On-screen Keyboard, together
with the previously introduced Magnifier, are installed by default in Windows
2000. They appear along with the Accessibility Wizard and the Utility
Manager in the expanded Windows 2000 Accessibility menu, which can be
accessed through
the Start menu.

Utility Manager
Utility Manager brings all of the Windows 2000 Accessibility
programs-Narrator, Magnifier, and On-screen Keyboard-together in one place.
You can quickly
check the status of an individual program or, start and stop any or all of
them. If you have administrator-level access, you can assign programs to start
when Windows 2000 starts.

On-Screen Keyboard
On-screen Keyboard displays a virtual keyboard on the computer screen that
enables people with mobility impairments to type data by using a pointing
device
or joystick. On-screen Keyboard provides a minimum level of functionality
for some people with mobility impairments. It can also help people who do not
know how to type.

With On-screen Keyboard you can choose from three typing modes:
Clicking. Select the on-screen keys to type text.
Scanning. Type keyboard characters by pressing a hot key or by using a
switch-input device as On-screen Keyboard scans and highlights areas of the
keyboard.
Hovering. Point to a key by using a mouse or joystick for a pre-defined
period of time, and the selected character is typed automatically.
On-screen Keyboard also allows you to:
View an enhanced keyboard that includes the numeric keypad, or view a
standard keyboard without the numeric keypad.
Display the keyboard with the keys in the standard layout, or in a block
layout in which the keys are arranged in rectangular blocks.
Display the U.S. standard keyboard (101 keys), the universal keyboard (102
keys), or a keyboard with additional Japanese language characters (106 keys).
Select Click Sound to add an audible click when a key is selected.
Select Always on Top to keep the keyboard displayed on the screen when
switching programs or windows.
Narrator
Narrator is a text-to-speech utility for people who are blind or have low
vision. Narrator reads what is displayed on the screen-the contents of the
active
window, menu options, or text that has been typed.

Narrator is designed to work with Notepad, WordPad, Control Panel programs,
Internet Explorer, and some parts of Windows 2000 Setup. Narrator has a number
of options that allow you to customize the way screen elements are read.
You can:
Hear new windows, menus, or shortcut menus read aloud when they are displayed.
Hear typed characters read aloud.
Watch the mouse pointer follow the active item on the screen.
Adjust the speed, volume, and pitch of the voice.
Magnifier
Magnifier is a display utility that makes the computer screen more readable
for people who have low vision. Magnifier creates a separate window that
displays
a magnified portion of the screen. Magnifier provides a minimum level of
functionality for people with slight visual impairments. Magnifier enables you
to:
Adjust the magnification level of text and images in the magnification window.
Change the size and location of the magnification window.
Change the position of the magnification window on the desktop.
Invert the screen colors.
Use a high-contrast setting.
Magnifier also has a number of tracking options, which include:
Following the mouse pointer as it moves on the screen.
Following the keyboard focus, which centers on the location of the cursor.
Following text editing.

Familiar Accessibility Options Are Still There
The new utilities and enhanced features in Windows 2000 expand the array of
accessibility options included in earlier versions of Windows.


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