Hi guys I switched from Windows because of the reasons mentioned already, and now I know who did it, whether it's good or bad. There's a lot to be said for that. The other thing is, we have no guarantees that any company will be around forever for us. Look at what's going on these days. We have WindowEyes making nice to MicroSoft these days. It remains to be seen how that will affect JAWS.
Having said all that, we should keep in mind that nobody made Apple write VoiceOver by passing a law or filing lawsuits. They didn't have to set up a special number for us to call; by the way, Scott who is new here, when you get your Mac be sure to keep that number handy. And have you guys looked on the apple.com/accessibility web site lately? It's extensive, and maybe they left out something, but I would be hard pressed to figure out what. Before I got my Mac, I downloaded a copy of the VoiceOver manual and started reading. If you're a braille reader, the San Francisco Lighthouse did the VoiceOver manual in braille, and its available in hardcopy and electronic files. Some guys on this list have put Windows on their Macs, but I have avoided it like the plague. I figured, (for myself), that if I was going to do it, I was just going to do without whatever I couldn't get with the Mac. In my case, I am self-employed, so it was easier for me to do that. In 2011 when I made the switch, I had to up editing pdf files and doing tables in a word processor. That's not the case now because the new Pages and PDF Pen Pro will let you do those things now. For whatever issues we have, and we have some when the Mac is updated, we need to keep in mind that Apple has been doing this accessibility thing for shorter than Freedom Scientific and G. W. Micro, and the progress is amazing. It is not an easy switch for blind users; it took me about two weeks, and at first, I thought I was in big trouble. Other blind guys saved me, and I have been teaching myself computers for years. I signed for One to One training, which Apple offers if you get your computer from the store. Basically, for the most part, if you have trouble, you want to assume that if you are having trouble, it's probably something you're doing wrong, until it's shown to you otherwise. That sounds obvious, but this past week I was teaching a blind friend the iPhone and she kept saying that the iPhone was doing bad. She was panicking (split tap was getting her into trouble), and now after five days, she and I are laughing about how expert a split tapper she is. So, when or if you decide to get your Mac, just hang in there and it will get better. Regards, Gigi Regards, Gigi On Apr 1, 2014, at 6:29 PM, Kerri <shalo...@shaw.ca> wrote: > me either but I trust no one at this juncture! > > *** > "Thousands of years ago, cats were worshiped as gods. They have never > forgotten this." > > > > > > On Apr 1, 2014, at 4:22 PM, Kristeen Hughes <khwi...@gmail.com> wrote: > >> I think and hope that Apple remains more committed to accessibility. I >> haven't seen any indication that they are not. >> >> Kristeen >> >> On Apr 1, 2014, at 6:54 PM, Kerri <shalo...@shaw.ca> wrote: >> >>> Hi, Kristeen: >>> I must agree other than the fact that I didn't work for microsoft. the >>> only issue I see is that if apple ever decides to no longer support voice >>> over, we're sunk! >>> >>> On Apr 1, 2014, at 12:21 PM, Kristeen Hughes <khwi...@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>>> Jenine, I can basically echo what you say. I was a windows user from the >>>> windows 95 os. In fact, I worked for Microsoft for three years and so had >>>> to believe in something that provided me with my bread and butter, and of >>>> course, chocolate. (grin) However, I could crash any windows system with >>>> great ease. Some of it is the OS itself, which, although it is better in >>>> versions 7 and 8, still has more crashing issues than Mac. Some of it, >>>> probably most of it, is due to the fact the the screen reading software is >>>> separate from the os. this has always caused instability and i don't see >>>> that changing any time soon. >>>> >>>> When it comes to iOS, there's no contest in my oppinion. Talks and Mobile >>>> speaks and anything else is just so much more fickle than is the iOS. I, >>>> and lots of people i know, struggled constantly with crashes and lock-ups >>>> and having to turn the phone on and off a great number of times even in a >>>> day. >>>> >>>> I am very happy with both mac os and ios platforms andwould not want to >>>> give them up. >>>> >>>> . on apr 1, 2014, at 2:26 pm, jenine stanley <dragonwalke...@gmail.com> >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>> this is an interesting question. from just an average user point of view, >>>> i have been using my macbook pro since early february and use a windows >>>> laptop for work. they literally sit side by side on my desk. >>>> >>>> i had used the iphone since 2011 so was sort of familiar with how >>>> voiceover works and love it on the ios platform that said, it's very >>>> different on the mac or os side. >>>> >>>> speaking first to stability, i managed to crash the mbp twice in the first >>>> week but literally have not made the speech stop since then. has my mbp >>>> slowed down or acted strangely a few times without explanation? yes, but >>>> it's come back to its original performance soon after these fits. >>>> >>>> my windows machine frequently hangs up both in the operating system in >>>> general and because of screen reader/video issues. outlook is really bad >>>> about this and i usually have to reboot at least once a day. yes, i >>>> maintain my windows machine well with weekly cleaning and such but ... >>>> >>>> the one thing that you will find difficult at first but which, if you >>>> continue to plug away at it will soon become second nature, is the whole >>>> concept of interacting with things. i hated it at first and still am not >>>> fond of it. unlike the ios realm, you have to take an extra step to access >>>> some things using voice over. once you get used to it though and combine >>>> quick nav with the regular vo operation, and ask this list a ton of stupid >>>> questions, :) you'll be fine. >>>> >>>> i really like the variety of quality voices available with vo too. it's >>>> fast and responsive. i'm sold. be sure though to give yourself some time >>>> and be patient. beprepared to read over and over any and all instructions, >>>> podcasts and other things about switching, commands and apps. >>>> jenine stanley >>>> dragonwalke...@gmail.com >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> on apr 1, 2014, at 2:14 pm, scott rumery <blindfait...@gmail.com> wrote: >>>> >>>> hello scott, >>>> >>>> you will probably get a lot of varying opinions on this topic so you will >>>> have to decide which ones you will take seriously or not. having said this >>>> let me first tell you that ever since i switched to using a mac more than >>>> 3 years ago i have become probably one of the biggest apple fan boys that >>>> there is, so my thoughts on this subject are going to have a strong apple >>>> bias to them. >>>> >>>> if you are wanting a computing environment that is very stable compared >>>> to what you are currently getting on the windows platform then in my >>>> opinion you would be very happy with a mac. >>>> >>>> the instability of my windows computer is exactly what helped me to make >>>> the decision to make the switch over 3 years ago. >>>> >>>> i used to have to restart my windows computer several times a day and now >>>> that i am on a mac i hardly ever need to reboot. >>>> >>>> you will notice that i said "hardly." i have had to restart my mac once in >>>> a while due to lost speech or something, but as i stated with the use the >>>> word hardly this does not happen with any regularity. >>>> >>>> now having said all of this let me give you a little word of caution >>>> about switching platforms. i teach blind people who make this switch how >>>> to use their macs for a company called fedora outlier, llc and one the >>>> biggest mistakes that people make is thinking that switching from a >>>> windows computer over to a mac computer is going to be easy. >>>> >>>> it isn't as easy as one might think. after all you are going to have to >>>> learn how to use a totally different operating system and a new and >>>> different screen reader. >>>> >>>> now having said this if you are determined to learn the new platform and >>>> you do it correctly by this i mean that you don't try and learn everything >>>> in one day you can definitely learn how to use a mac very quickly. >>>> >>>> one more thing. in response to your question as to whether or not a mac is >>>> more stable than a windows computer. remember earlier when i said that >>>> when i was still using a windows computer i would have to restart the >>>> computer several times a day, well with my current mac which is 2012 mac >>>> book pro with 4 gigabytes of ram i haven't had to restart it in about 2 >>>> weeks. my mac is on 24 hours a day. during the day when i am working i am >>>> actually using it, and at night the mac will just sleep, but it hasn't >>>> been turned off in at least 2 weeks now and voiceover is running >>>> flawlessly . >>>> >>>> i hope that all of this helps you with your decision and if you need >>>> anything else please just ask. >>>> >>>> have a great day, >>>> >>>> scott rumery >>>> on apr 1, 2014, at 11:44 am, scott duck <scottduck1...@gmail.com> wrote: >>>> >>>> hi everyone, >>>> >>>> as i said previously, i am thinking about getting a mac and the main >>>> reason is that i am tired of the increasing instability of the pc >>>> environment. my first question is, is this really different on a mac? >>>> >>>> i am using jaws 15 with windows 8. both are not all that stable. i have >>>> been a jaws user for 17 years and i have noticed a definite progressive >>>> increase in instability with the last few releases. jaws crashes >>>> frequently and, even if it doesn't crash, it often stops talking when >>>> errors occur with other applications. then, there's windows 8. i don't >>>> mind the windows 8 interface but several times per week, i will have a >>>> problem that requires me to restart my computer. i did not have that >>>> nearly as much with windows 7. also, it isn't unusual for me to install a >>>> program which will, either directly or through add ins, make windows >>>> and/or jaws more unstable. i then have to decide rather the additional >>>> functionality is worth the increased instability. i'm just tired of all >>>> the crashes and reboots and having to use three or four screen readers >>>> because i have to run one when another one crashes. >>>> >>>> by contrast, my iphone and ipad, while not perfect, are certainly more >>>> stable. voiceover seldom just stops working. of course, every single app >>>> is not accessible and they do not all work correctly but any problems with >>>> an app are almost always confined only to that app. when an app crashes, >>>> it usually does not also cause voiceover or the device to crash. is this >>>> also true of the mac? >>>> >>>> i have certainly used technology enough to know that none of it is >>>> perfect. however, i would like something that is better than the pc, when >>>> it comes to stability. over all, in your experience, is the mac more >>>> stable? >>>> >>>> thanks, >>>> scott duck >>>> >>>> -- >>>> you received this message because you are subscribed to the google groups >>>> "macvisionaries" group. >>>> to unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>>> email tomacvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >>>> to post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. >>>> visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. >>>> for more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> you received this message because you are subscribed to the google groups >>>> "macvisionaries" group. >>>> to unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>>> email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >>>> to post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. >>>> visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. >>>> for more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> you received this message because you are subscribed to the google groups >>>> "macvisionaries" group. >>>> to unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>>> email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >>>> to post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. >>>> visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. >>>> for more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>>> >>>> -- >>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>>> "MacVisionaries" group. >>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>>> email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >>>> To post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. >>>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. >>>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>> >>> -- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>> "MacVisionaries" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >>> email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >>> To post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. >>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. >>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "MacVisionaries" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >> To post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. >> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "MacVisionaries" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. 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