Here are some specific questions on areas where it appears Jaws is ahead. 1. In messenger programs, is it possible to have a set of keystrokes that will read messages and stay within the history area while being able to type in the edit area at the same time and review that typing? I would want to have a feature set like the alt plus numbers and arrows in Jaws otherwise it would be too slow. This is one of the main reasons I haven't switched to NVDA rather than Jaws.
2. In Skype, I can get to my contacts or conversations list with single keystrokes using ctrl 1 and ctrl 2, and focus most other areas with similar keystrokes. In addition to the feature I just asked for in messenger, how easy is this in Mac? 3. This one is not a Mac problem, but is really important to me. I use several programs that make tasks so easy in Windows that don't work on the Mac. How much does it cost to buy Windows stand alone these days to run those on a Mac? I'm thinking of SpeakOn which makes internet radio, podcasts and all sorts of other audio things much easier and gives you fantastic control over speed etc, Kurzweil 1000 which though expensive automates so much of my mail reading by simply scanning and automatically reading things while I'm doing things, and programs that don't even exist for Mac like the VIP communicator for the Accessible Friends Network and VIP Conduit. It is also possible with Jaws for people to write scripts to do things and share them. Is this possible for VO? -----Original Message----- From: macvisionaries@googlegroups.com [mailto:macvisionar...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Olivia Norman Sent: Thursday, June 17, 2010 1:13 AM To: macvisionaries@googlegroups.com Subject: Re: Prospective Mac User What do you feel Freedom Sciencefiction and jaws provide that VO lacks? I'm just curious. "Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower" Steve Jobs On Jun 16, 2010, at 4:25 PM, cathyk wrote: > Hi Kolby, > I bought my MacBook Pro about a month ago, and am largely happy. But > there are a few important things to know. 1) VO doesn't work with all > programs, notably MS Word. I was surprised that such an industry > standard requires finding workarounds every time you open a document, > which isn't ideal when doing collaborative writing projects or comment > on hundreds of papers electronically as I do. Whether this is Apple's > or Microsoft's fault, the bottom line is that Word files need to be > "translated" through programs like "Preview" (which comes installed) > or Pages in iworks, which requires laying out another $50 or $60. > Some say the new freeware version of Open Office works better; I > haven't tried, so I'd love to hear from someone who writes and edits a > lot. Even if it works better than the paid version, I suspect other > features get lost - alas, you get what you pay for. 2) the > portability features seem terrific but you should consider which > environments you'll be wanting to access because at least for now the > Mac market is quite small in comparison to PCs, so the number of > computers where your USB settings will work is fairly small. 3) VO is > very good, but it isn't JAWS or ZoomText. Many of us dream of a day > when we can use out-of-the-box technology just like everyone else; > we're much, much closer, but that day isn't there yet. 4) The user > support is limited for VO. This discussion list is excellent, but I > still have a growing list of questions that people can't answer and > that are impossible to look up. Even the in-depth manual isn't *that* > in-depth. This means there's a kind of pioneer spirit to the whole > thing, with people figuring out this and that just like they would > sort out how to repair a wagon wheel a thousand miles from > civilization. That's exciting, hip, and creative, but sometimes you > just want a simple answer to a nagging problem that's still beyond > even the best macvisionaries. All that said, I'm enjoying my new > machine. > Best, > Cathyk > > > > On Jun 16, 2:10 pm, Pete Nalda <lpna...@gmail.com> wrote: >> First off, don't worry about what may be going on at the moment, with the update. Mac OS is still so much easier in general to deal with than windows and its various screen readers. This may not apply for everyone on here but to me the choice was economical. Every time there was a new version of windows, I'd have to purchase a new version ("upgrade") of ZoomText. I got tired of playing that game. Every time I buy a new version of Mac OSX, I get a new version of Zoom *and* VoiceOver :) >> >> On Jun 16, 2010, at 3:21 PM, Kolby Garrison wrote: >> >>> Hello Everyone, >>> I am considering purchasing a mac book pro, and I wanted to know what satisfied mac users have to say about the pros and cons of mac and windows. I have been researching voiceover, and it sounds like a very stable screen reading solution. I like the portable preferences feature, and from what I have read thus far I do believe that a mac book pro will be purchased in my very near future. I will go to an apple store for some hands on time with a mac, but if anyone would share your mac experiences with me I would appreciate it. I know that there will be a learning curve going from the windows operating system to the mac operating system, but I am ready and willing to learn all that I can. >>> Thank you, >>> Kolby >> >>> -- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. >>> To post to this group, send email to macvisionar...@googlegroups.com. >>> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. >>> For more options, visit this group athttp://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en. >> >> Egun On, Lagunak! (Basque for G'day, Mates) >> Pete Naldahttp://www.myspace.com/musikonaldahttp://www.facebook.com/lpnalda > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. > To post to this group, send email to macvisionar...@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. To post to this group, send email to macvisionar...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. To post to this group, send email to macvisionar...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en.
