M12Y

 


Ten VI Mac Myths

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The following list is not meant to be all inclusive. It provides an overview of only the most common misconceptions about the Mac and VoiceOver.

  1. Myth: VoiceOver does not include scripting or advanced settings configuration, like that in Jaws for Windows, or Window-Eyes, rendering it less useful than its Windows counterparts.
    Truth: While VoiceOver itself does not include scripting functionality, the Mac OS X operating system does. AppleScript provides a great deal of similar functionality and features visually impaired Windows users are used to in Jaws or Window-Eyes scripts, and then some. Other tools, such as the Automator are also available, which may be used in enhancing access to applications and the OS. Another example is that, unlike Windows, hot keys may be assigned to any menu command system wide or in specific applications. The upshot to all of which is, of course, that VoiceOver does not need to duplicate that which the operating system already provides.
  2. Myth: ITunes is not accessible on the Mac with VoiceOver.
    Truth: ITunes is entirely accessible with VoiceOver, after steadily improving with updates to Apple’s media player which were released through the course of 2007 and 2008. VoiceOver users can easily browse, organize, listen to, and manage their music and playlists, as well as work with the content on their iPods. In September of 2008, Apple completed work on making the iTunes Store wholly accessible with VoiceOver. Visually impaired users can now register, manage their accounts, and purchase audio or video content without issue. Apple went the extra mile and also released a new version of its iPod Nano digital media player with speaking menus, improving accessibility for blind and visually impaired users.
  3. Myth: VoiceOver is very limited due to its lack of using an OSM (off screen model).
    Truth: Windows screen readers that do not use an OSM are severely limited, which is likely from where this misconception arises. Mac has a much more robust and well-designed accessibility infrastructure. It has undergone radical renovations in recent years, and has been designed with accessibility in mind. Unlike Windows, OSM’s are not critical to making the OS and third-party applications accessible. Just like Windows, visually impaired users will experience inaccessibility when trying to use applications which are highly graphical in nature. Overall access between the two systems is very comparable, with Mac surpassing Windows in many key areas, due to its better accessibility framework.
  4. Myth: There is no Braille display support on the Mac.
    Truth: Before the release of Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, it was possible to use a Braille display while using terminal applications on the Mac. With the release of Leopard in October, 2008, Apple introduced more robust Braille display support with VoiceOver, including compatibility with a wide array of USB refreshable Braille displays.
  5. Myth: You cannot produce or emboss Braille content from a Mac.
    Truth: Many free open source tools, some complete with GUI interfaces, have been developed for the Mac for just such a purpose, in a variety of languages. Many of these can be found on the Wyoming Medical Center Braille site.
  6. Myth: You cannot perform OCR with a Mac.
    Truth: Several OCR packages for Mac are perfectly usable with VoiceOver, including the popular OmniPage and ReadIris. For users with less robust needs, several Canon CanoScan models of scanner come with basic OCR software.
  7. Myth: You can’t read PDF files with VoiceOver.
    Truth: Reading PDF files with VoiceOver is simple and painless, and is far easier with the Mac’s built-in Preview program for PDF viewing than with Adobe Acrobat Reader under Windows with Windows screen readers. This is due in part to the fact that VoiceOver does not need to utilize a virtual rendering of the page to present the information as both Window-Eyes and Jaws for Windows do.
  8. Myth: VoiceOver has not been updated in X-number of years.
    Truth: VoiceOver is an integral part of the operating system. As software and components of the operating system are updated, accessibility with VoiceOver often improves. VoiceOver itself does not need to have new releases for better performance, and indeed we have seen a number of OS updates that have improved accessibility on the Mac under both Mac oS X 10.4 Tiger and Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard.
  9. Myth: Most software for the Mac doesn’t work with VoiceOver.
    Truth: Most modern software for the Mac is developed with Cocoa, a derivitive of Objective C. Cocoa provides inherent accessibility functionality, and the XCode tools needed to build Cocoa applications are available with every Mac. Most Mac software developed in the last several years will work well to stellar with VoiceOver without any effort on the part of the third-party developer. As a result, a treasure trove of Mac commercial software, as well as freeware and shareware is available that works out of the box with VoiceOver. Much of this software can be found at Pure-Mac, and a newly begun list of software and its accessibility rating with VoiceOver can be found at the Wyoming Medical Center’s VoiceOver Compatibility site.
  10. Myth: VoiceOver requires you to learn a huge array of extremely complicated commands to use the OS effectively.
    Truth: VoiceOver commands are logical and designed not to conflict with application or OS commands. The Mac OS provides built-in navigation similar to what Windows users are accustomed to, such as tab to move from control to control, and spacebar to activate them. VoiceOver navigation and usage is no more complex than any other screen reader on any other platform, though it is significantly innovative in its strategy. For example, VoiceOver takes the approach of providing the layout of controls on the screen at a glance, in many instances, before presenting their information through interaction. This makes familiarizing oneself with and navigating software far easier than with many other screen reading packages.