Category: AT tips and tricks

Want more customers? Then make your web site accessible. Learn how June 24

Published June 7, 2010 by L. Legendary

I have many friends in the disability and accessibility field, and one of them is Tom Babinszki of Even Grounds. Tom is offering a class on Section 508 web site compliance on June 24, 2010, and here are the details

Where: Alexandria, Virginia, near the Metro.

When: June 24, 2010 from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm

Price: $295.00

Class overview: Learn how to meet the Section 508 requirements when designing web sites or web applications.

The class will cover the following material:

•Understanding Section 508 standards
•How people with disabilities use the internet
•Creating a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template
•Testing for Section 508 compliance
•Using testing tools
•The use of JAWS when testing for Section 508 compliance
•Creating Section 508 compliant web sites
•Making forms, tables, frames and images Section 508 compliant
•Working with images, videos and image maps
•Using stylesheets effectively
•Methods to skip navigation
•Preventing seizure
•Using colors on a web site
•The use of text onli sites
•Handling time responses
•Posting documents and third party applications
•Using JavaScript
•Section 508 and web 2.0
It is recommended that you have some web development experience.

You can also sign up for the Even Grounds Newsletter to get tips and advice dropped into your inbox. For more info, go here:

Even Grounds home

Tell Tom I said hello!

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Low-cost Home Modifications for Greater Independent Living: 10 Accessibility Tips

Published June 2, 2010 by L. Legendary

Whether you anticipate changes in your health status or that of a friend or relative, modifying a home to accommodate a disability could be a component of those changes. While you may have visions of drop cloths, plastic sheeting and drywall dust all over your home, don’t worry. Many home modifications need not involve noisy construction and costly contractors. There are many inexpensive ways to make your home more accessible. If you are planning in-home care strategies with your aging parents, or just want to answer the question, “What do we do when Uncle Bob comes over?” the following tips can help alleviate the stress and anxiety of making the changes that will accompany you into a new phase of life.

Keep the lines of communication open. It is always better to inquire as to what is needed than to avoid the issue. Asking what is the best way to accommodate a disability is not insensitive, and raising your awareness can help to avoid awkward moments and misunderstanding. Don’t be afraid to express your ignorance and consider the situation a learning opportunity. Your desire to learn is an act of compassion, as it treats others with dignity and respect.

Try a “simulation exercise.” Spend a day sitting in a wheelchair. Move about the living areas making note of what is in the way or out of reach. Rearrange the items that you anticipate will be needed frequently. For example, pull the microwave closer to the edge of the countertop, or move it to a low table, while still allowing for a food transfer and preparation area. Simulate vision loss with a blindfold, and attempt to locate food in the pantry or refrigerator, personal care items, towels, electrical outlets, and the telephone. Make these items readily accessible and identifiable. This exercise will help you to understand the challenges that face people with disabilities every day.

Don’t overdo it. If your loved one or friend uses a wheelchair, it is not necessary to remove all the furniture in the house. In general, you should establish a five-foot by five-foot turning radius for wheelchair users in kitchens and bathrooms when possible. If a person who is blind comes over, you need not pack away your knick-knacks. While removing obstacles is a good idea, simply orienting the person to his surroundings and potential hazards can go a long way toward making that individual feel more welcome and comfortable.

Seek alternatives. If you are unable to recruit a contractor to widen doorways, you can try removing doors altogether or purchasing “swing free” hinges. These special hinges allow the door to swing completely away from the frame, allowing just a little extra room to accommodate a scooter or smaller wheelchair.

Remove hazards. Think of the home modification project in the same way you think of baby-proofing a home. If electrical cords might cause a tripping hazard, remove them or tape them securely to the floor. Remove throw rugs or floor mats that may impede a person who has difficulty ambulating. These items may also make using a cane or walker more difficult.

Know when to stop. If a friend or loved one with vision loss is visiting or living with you, ask how much description is needed for comfortable identification of food, surroundings or entertainment activities. This way you do not find yourself providing a continuous stream of information, which may be embarrassing and unnecessary.

Keep your options open. Not all alterations to the home must be permanent. If a person is temporarily disabled or undergoing difficult treatments that will eventually conclude, look for independent living aids that can assist with reaching and grabbing, seating and support, watching TV or reading. Many daily living aids are inexpensive, and may fill a role temporarily. Daily living aids can be found in catalogs and on the Internet. You will discover an astounding array of tools for home, work or play.

Shop around. Not all home modification fixtures are utilitarian, unsightly and sterile-looking. With the popularity of home makeover and interior decorating shows, many of these design elements are very fashionable. Decorative grab bars, bath fixtures and floor texturizing for safe ambulation are attractive and readily available.

Don’t forget about lighting. For those with low vision, consider how lighting can make your guests or loved ones more comfortable. Either insufficient or intense lighting may be problematic, depending upon the specific type of vision loss. Use lighting to enhance contrast, as well as a way to identify potential hazards, such as stairs or changes in the floor texture. Ask the individual in what type of lighting he or she functions best. He or she may prefer indirect light or close lighting, or lighting that can be adjusted. Install dimmer switches for maximum flexibility.

Do a little research. If you do require construction, look for contractors who are familiar with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) construction guidelines. Accurate communication will ensure that the result will meet your specific needs. A good contractor will know the critical requirements of wheelchair ramp width, slope ratio, handrail height, etc. If you are considering a major remodel or building a new home, then find a contractor who specializes in “universal design.”

When modifying a home for accessibility, small changes can make a big difference. Evolving health circumstances along with aging can make for difficult choices. Educate yourself as to the variety of accessibility options, and comparison shop for the best value. Planning for changes before they are necessary will make transitioning into a new lifestyle more comfortable and secure. Most importantly, you can enhance the quality of life for yourself as well as for your loved ones.

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Win 7 workaround for Zoom Text users

Published May 13, 2010 by L. Legendary

If you have yet to upgrade to Windows 7, then you may be unaware of a perplexing little phenomenon about the new operating system. At first, you may not catch it, you are so enthralled by the new features and doo-dads. Once you get set up, though, you realize that there is something missing, but you just…can’t…quite…put your finger on it. Oh well, you’ll get to that later. Right now, you want to send an email to your best friend to tell him or her how great your new Windows 7 performs.

Then you realize what the missing piece of the puzzle is. Windows 7 does not come with email. that’s right, no Windows Mail, no Outlook or Outlook Express. Microsoft announced this, it is not an oversight. You did not get ripped off by the value-added reseller who configured your system. Microsoft did not include an email program in the latest version of Microsoft Windows, deliberately.

There are more than a dozen different options you can choose for your email client. You do not have to use the Windows Live Journal online email. If you already have pop 3 mail, and use Outlook or Outlook Express, you can download the Windows Live Essentials suite of programs.

Windows Live Essentials is a grouping of free products that includes Live Writer, media software and mail. You can choose to install only the components that interest you. Or, if you already own the MS Office package, you already have a copy of Outlook that you can use in your new Windows operating system. Either way, don’t panic. You are not forced to use any paid services or obtain a hotmail address.

One caveat though, for screen reader users, particularly those who use Zoom Text: While Windows Live Mail is almost identical to Outlook Express, all the way down to the steps required to setting up email accounts and importing contacts, the screen reader may not work. In fact, when I was unable to get Zoomtext to voice the “To,” “CC” and “Subject” data entry fields, I called A I Squared. The tech support person informed me that Zoomtext is flat incompatible with Windows Live Mail, told me that it will not work, and that there is no work around.

that’s not entirely true. Perhaps that is what they have to say, since they made no effort to develop ZoomText for Live Mail. However, I have had little difficulty in getting around, except for a few important keystrokes that do not announce accurately.

A work-around for this, I discovered, is by using Windows Narrator. if you read my previous post, then you know I’m becoming a bit of a fan of Narrator, because on the occaisions when Jaws loses speech or ZoomText hangs up or something else goes horribly awry, invoking Narrator or NVDA (if you have it) really helps.

While struggling to figure out how to get ZoomText to tell me what I wanted to know in Windows Live Mail, I found that Narrator filled the gap. It voiced what ZoomText did not. So, I was able to complete the Live Mail setup process, load in my email accounts, and I’ve sent and recieved email with no problems whatsoever. So, keep those hotkeys handy. Admittedly, having to use multiple screen readers isn’t the most elegant solution in the world, but it’s no different than driving around with a spare tire. You may not ever use it, but you are sure glad it’s there when you need it.

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Hotkey help for screen reader users

Published May 10, 2010 by L. Legendary

Recently, I found myself sitting in front of a new computer trying to get it up and running with my critical personalization’s. If you are someone who has low or no vision and have ever been dead in the water because you cannot get to anything without sighted assistance, you can empathize. New version of Windows, old versions of software on CD. Update them? Sure, no problem. Just go online and download the new OS compatible versions, right? Except that you don’t have your screen reader loaded onto the new PC. I knew that if I could get something, ANYTHING to talk, I’d have no problem, but I realized that without something that would auto play, like a screen reader loaded onto a USB drive, I was stuck. My NVDA on USB? Older version, wouldn’t work with Win 7. Zoomtext? My CD wouldn’t load on Win 7, unless I made some changes to the compatibility mode, which I could not do without speech. I didn’t even know how to get to Windows Narrator, which I knew would do in a pinch. I even tried matching keystroke for keystroke in tandem with my desktop, but alas, the steps diverge at some point. Grrr! When you cannot see what’s happening on the screen, just randomly pressing keys and hoping for a lucky break can be dangerous. Once you lose your place, who knows what havoc ensues.

In sheer frustration, I went out to Twitter, which is quickly rivaling Google as the repository for all knowledge, and queried my accessibility tweeps how to invoke the Narrator in Windows 7. In fractions of a second, five people produced the answer. A hotkey sequence that was unknown to me brought up the native screen reader in my new version of Windows, and I was off and running. Whatever you may think of Twitter, many of the people who use it are brilliant pros who are eager to help. I was very grateful for their help in this case.

It occurred to me that I cannot be the only person who has ever been sitting blind in front of a computer, with no way to accomplish anything without a screen reader. I began compiling a list of Windows 7 keyboard hotkeys, gathering them from various places, either web sites or help screens or user’s guides. Below is that list.

This is by no means a comprehensive list. Also, keep in mind that not all hotkeys are going to work in all versions of all programs. If you are using a screen reader or other feature-rich programs, hotkeys can often conflict. I have not personally tested every one of these hotkeys with the various versions of each program, but this list will get you started. I suggest you just copy and paste this entire post into a notepad doc, and then clip out what you don’t want. Save it to your desktop, copy it to a USB drive, send it to your friends. You never know when one of these key combinations will get you out of a jam. If I had known that by pressing the Windows key plus U, then pressing alt-n would get me to Windows Narrator, I would have saved an entire day of frustrated attempts trying to get something loaded that would talk.

Finally, if you want to try out a screen reader but don’t want to spend the money, scroll down to the bottom of the list and click the link for NVDA. It’s a great little screen reader, especially for the price..it’s free. Immediately below that, I’ve listed a few of those hotkeys, too.

Windows 7 abbreviated hotkey list:

From the desktop, press Win plus U, then alt plus N to get narrator started

Ease of Access keyboard shortcuts

Right Shift for eight seconds: Turn Filter Keys on and off
Left Alt + Left Shift + PrtScn (or PrtScn): Turn High Contrast on or off
Left Alt + Left Shift + Num Lock: Turn Mouse Keys on or off
Shift five times: Turn Sticky Keys on or off
Num Lock for five seconds: Turn Toggle Keys on or off
Windows logo key + U: Open the Ease of Access Center
General keyboard shortcuts

F1: Display Help
Ctrl + C (or Ctrl + Insert): Copy the selected item
Ctrl + X: Cut the selected item
Ctrl + V (or Shift + Insert): Paste the selected item
Ctrl + Z: Undo an action
Ctrl + Y: Redo an action
Delete (or Ctrl + D): Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin
Shift + Delete: Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin first
F2: Rename the selected item
Ctrl + Right Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word
Ctrl + Left Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word
Ctrl + Down Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph
Ctrl + Up Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph
Ctrl + Shift with an arrow key: Select a block of text
Shift + any arrow key: Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or

select text within a document
Ctrl + any arrow key + Spacebar: Select multiple individual items in a window or on the

desktop
Ctrl + A: Select all items in a document or window
F3: Search for a file or folder
Alt + Enter: Display properties for the selected item
Alt + F4: Close the active item, or exit the active program
Alt + Spacebar: Open the shortcut menu for the active window
Ctrl + F4: Close the active document (in programs that allow you to have multiple

documents open simultaneously)
Alt + Tab: Switch between open items
Ctrl + Alt + Tab: Use the arrow keys to switch between open items
Ctrl + Mouse scroll wheel: Change the size of icons on the desktop
Windows logo key + Tab: Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D
Ctrl+ Windows logo key + Tab: Use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the

taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D
Alt + Esc: Cycle through items in the order in which they were opened
F6: Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
F4: Display the address bar list in Windows Explorer
Shift + F10: Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
Ctrl + Esc: Open the Start menu
Alt + underlined letter: Display the corresponding menu
Alt + underlined letter: Perform the menu command (or other underlined command)
F10: Activate the menu bar in the active program
Right Arrow: Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu
Left Arrow: Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu
F5 (or Ctrl + R): Refresh the active window
Alt + Up Arrow: View the folder one level up in Windows Explorer
Esc: Cancel the current task
Ctrl + Shift + Esc: Open Task Manager
Shift when you insert a CD: Prevent the CD from automatically playing
Left Alt + Shift: Switch the input language when multiple input languages are enabled
Ctrl + ShiftL: Switch the keyboard layout when multiple keyboard layouts are enabled
Right or Left Ctrl + Shift: Change the reading direction of text in right-to-left reading

languages
Dialog box keyboard shortcuts

Ctrl + Tab: Move forward through tabs
Ctrl + Shift + Tab: Move back through tabs
Tab: Move forward through options
Shift + Tab: Move back through options
Alt + underlined letter: Perform the command (or select the option) that goes with that letter
Enter: Replaces clicking the mouse for many selected commands
Spacebar: Select or clear the check box if the active option is a check box
Arrow keys: Select a button if the active option is a group of option buttons
F1: Display Help
F4: Display the items in the active list
Backspace: Open a folder one level up if a folder is selected in the Save As or Open

dialog box

Windows logo key keyboard shortcuts

Windows logo key: Open or close the Start menu.
Windows logo key + Pause: Display the System Properties dialog box.
Windows logo key + D: Display the desktop.
Windows logo key + M: Minimize all windows.
Windows logo key + Shift + M: Restore minimized windows to the desktop.
Windows logo key + E: Open Computer.
Windows logo key + F: Search for a file or folder.
Ctrl + Windows logo key + F: Search for computers (if you’re on a network).
Windows logo key + L: Lock your computer or switch users.
Windows logo key + R: Open the Run dialog box.
Windows logo key + T: Cycle through programs on the taskbar.
Windows logo key + number: Start the program pinned to the taskbar in the position

indicated by the number. If the program is already running, switch to that program.
Shift + Windows logo key + number: Start a new instance of the program pinned to the

taskbar in the position indicated by the number.
Ctrl + Windows logo key + number: Switch to the last active window of the program

pinned to the taskbar in the position indicated by the number.
Alt + Windows logo key + number: Open the Jump List for the program pinned to the

taskbar in the position indicated by the number.
Windows logo key + Tab: Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D.
Ctrl+Windows logo key + Tab: Use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the

taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D.
Ctrl+Windows logo key + B: Switch to the program that displayed a message in the

notification area.
Windows logo key + Spacebar: Preview the desktop.
Windows logo key + Up Arrow: Maximize the window.
Windows logo key + Left Arrow: Maximize the window to the left side of the screen.
Windows logo key + Right Arrow: Maximize the window to the right side of the screen.
Windows logo key + Down Arrow: Minimize the window.
Windows logo key + Home: Minimize all but the active window.
Windows logo key + Shift + Up Arrow: Stretch the window to the top and bottom of the

screen.
Windows logo key + Shift+ Left Arrow or Right Arrow: Move a window from one monitor

to another.
Windows logo key + P: Choose a presentation display mode.
Windows logo key + G: Cycle through gadgets.
Windows logo key + U: Open Ease of Access Center.
Windows logo key + X: Open Windows Mobility Center.
Windows Explorer keyboard shortcuts

Ctrl + N: Open a new window
Ctrl + W: Close the current window
Ctrl + Shift + N: Create a new folder
End: Display the bottom of the active window
Home: Display the top of the active window
F11: Maximize or minimize the active window
Ctrl + Period (.): Rotate a picture clockwise
Ctrl + Comma (,): Rotate a picture counter-clockwise

Num Lock + Asterisk (*) on numeric keypad: Display all subfolders under the selected

folder
Num Lock + Plus Sign (+) on numeric keypad: Display the contents of the selected

folder
Num Lock + Minus Sign (-) on numeric keypad: Collapse the selected folder
Left Arrow: Collapse the current selection (if it’s expanded), or select the parent folder
Alt + Enter: Open the Properties dialog box for the selected item
Alt + P: Display the preview pane
Alt + Left Arrow: View the previous folder
Backspace: View the previous folder
Right Arrow: Display the current selection (if it’s collapsed), or select the first subfolder
Alt + Right Arrow: View the next folder
Alt + Up Arrow: View the parent folder
Ctrl + Shift + E: Display all folders above the selected folder
Ctrl + Mouse scroll wheel: Change the size and appearance of file and folder icons
Alt + D: Select the address bar
Ctrl + E: Select the search box
Ctrl + F: Select the search box
Taskbar keyboard shortcuts

Shift + Click on a taskbar button: Open a program or quickly open another instance of

a program
Ctrl + Shift + Click on a taskbar button: Open a program as an administrator
Shift + Right-click on a taskbar button: Show the window menu for the program
Shift + Right-click on a grouped taskbar button: Show the window menu for the group
Ctrl + Click on a grouped taskbar button: Cycle through the windows of the group

Magnifier keyboard shortcuts

Windows logo key + Plus Sign or Minus Sign: Zoom in or out
Ctrl + Alt + Spacebar: Preview the desktop in full-screen mode
Ctrl + Alt + F: Switch to full-screen mode
Ctrl + Alt + L: Switch to lens mode
Ctrl + Alt + D: Switch to docked mode
Ctrl + Alt + I: Invert colors
Ctrl + Alt + arrow keys: Pan in the direction of the arrow keys
Ctrl + Alt + R: Resize the lens
Windows logo key + Esc: Exit Magnifier

Click here to download NVDA 2010

NVDA command key quick reference

Many of these commands use the NVDA key. The NVDA key is the insert key found either

on the numberpad or near the delete, home, end, page up and page down keys on

your keyboard. NVDA can also be configured so that you can use the capslock key as

the NVDA key.

Global commands

Control: Pause speech
Shift: Continue speech

NVDA+1: keyboardHelp
turns on keyboard help mode so you can press any combination of keys on the

keyboard and NVDA will tell you its name and what command it performs if it has one.

To turn off keyboard help, press NVDA+1 again.

NVDA+t: title
Announces the title of the currently active application. Spels it when pressed twice and

copies to the clipboard when pressed three times..

NVDA+b: speakForeground
Speaks the content of the currently active application. Useful to read information in a

dialog box that you perhaps missed when it first was announced.

NVDA+n: showGui
Press this key to activate the NVDA menu where you can access NVDA’s settings.

NVDA+q: quit
Asks if you want to exit NVDA. Pressing yes will exit, pressing no will not.

NVDA+s: speechMode
Toggles between the three speech modes (talk, beeps and off).

NVDA+F12: dateTime
Announces the current time, pressing twice quickly announces the current date.

NVDA+End: reportStatusLine
Announces the status bar of the current application if it can find one.

NVDA+f: reportFormatting
Announces formatting information at the current position in a document

Control+NVDA+f1: speakApplicationName
Announces the currently active application’s name, and also spells it out. It also

announces the currently loaded NVDA app module.

NVDA+Shift+b: say_battery_status
Announces the current battery level and whether AC power is plugged in.

NVDA+5: toggleReportDynamicContentChanges
Turns on and off the automatic speaking of content changes (such as when new text

appears in a dos console window).

NVDA+6: toggleCaretMovesReviewCursor
Turns on and off the automatic movement of the review cursor as the caret moves.

NVDA+7: toggleFocusMovesNavigatorObject
Turns on and off the setting of the navigator object to the object with focus as it

changes.

NVDA+Tab: reportCurrentFocus
Announces the object you are currently focused on.

NVDA+f2: passNextKeyThrough
Pressing this key then allows you to press any other key on the keyboard and NVDA will

let it go straight to the operating system with out running its NVDA specific command if it

has one.

Shift+NVDA+upArrow: reportCurrentSelection
Announces the current selection in edit controls and documents. If there is no selection it

says so.

NVDA+upArrow: reportCurrentLine
Announces the current line in edit controls and documents.

NVDA+downArrow: sayAll
Starts reading from the current position in a document or edit control

Control+NVDA+c: saveConfiguration
Saves the configuration.

Control+NVDA+r: revertToSavedConfiguration
Resets the configuration.

NVDA+c: reportClipboardText
Reports the text on the Windows clipboard.

Change Settings (found in the settings dialogues)

NVDA+2: toggleSpeakTypedCharacters
Turns on or off the speaking of characters when you type them.

NVDA+3: toggleSpeakTypedWords
Turns on or off the speaking of words as you type them.

NVDA+4: toggleSpeakCommandKeys
Turns on or off the speaking of any keys as you type them.

NVDA+p: toggleSpeakPunctuation
Turns on or off the speaking of punctuation symbols as NVDA speaks information.

NVDA+m: toggleMouseTracking
Turns on or off announcement of the object or word at the mouse pointer’s current

position, as it moves.

NVDA+u: toggleBeepOnProgressBarUpdates
Controls how NVDA anounces progress bar updates. It can either beep for all the

progress bars within the active window (default), beep for all the bars currently in

progress within the whole system, or it can even anounce each 10 percent by speech.

Control+NVDA+leftArrow: previousSetting
Moves to and announces the previous voice setting
Control+NVDA+rightArrow: nextSetting
Moves to and announces the next voice setting

Control+NVDA+upArrow: increaseSetting
Increases the current voice setting

Control+NVDA+downArrow: decreaseSetting
decreases the current voice setting

Show dialogues

Control+NVDA+g: activateGeneralSettingsDialog
Shows the general settings dialog.

Control+NVDA+s: activateSynthesizerDialog
Shows the synthesizer selection dialog.

Control+NVDA+v: activateVoiceDialog
Shows the voice settings dialog.

Control+NVDA+k: activateKeyboardSettingsDialog
Shows the keyboard settings dialog.

Control+NVDA+m: activateMouseSettingsDialog
Shows the mouse settings dialog.

Control+NVDA+o: activateObjectPresentationDialog
Shows the object presentation dialog.

Control+NVDA+b: activateVirtualBuffersDialog
Shows the virtual buffer settings dialog.

Control+NVDA+d: activateDocumentFormattingDialog
Shows the document formatting settings dialog.

Control+NVDA+z: activatePythonConsole
Shows the python console.

navigator object navigation

NVDA+numPad5: navigatorObject_current
Announces the current navigator object. If pressed twice spels it out and if pressed three

times copyes its name and value to the clipboard.

NVDA+numpadDelete: navigatorObject_currentDimensions
Announces the size and location of the current navigator object.
NVDA+numPad8: navigatorObject_parent
Sets the navigator object to the current navigator object’s parent (i.e. the object that

contains it).

NVDA+numPad2: navigatorObject_firstChild
Sets the navigator object to the current navigator object’s first child (i.e. the first object

inside it)

NVDA+numPad4: navigatorObject_previous
Sets the navigator object to the current navigator object’s previous object (i.e. the

object before it, on the same level).

Shift+NVDA+numPad4: navigatorObject_previousInFlow
Sets the navigator object to the current navigator object’s previous object in flow (i.e.

the object before it, not necessarily on the same level).

NVDA+numPad6: navigatorObject_next
Sets the navigator object to the current navigator object’s next object (i.e. the object

after it, on the same level).

Shift+NVDA+numPad6: navigatorObject_nextInFlow
Sets the navigator object to the current navigator object’s next object in flow (i.e. the

object after it, not necessarily on the same level).

NVDA+numpadEnter: navigatorObject_doDefaultAction
Performs the default action on the current navigator object (e.g. presses a button,

activates a list item).

NVDA+numPadDivide: moveMouseToNavigatorObject
Move the mouse pointer to the current navigator object
NVDA+numPadMultiply: moveNavigatorObjectToMouse
Sets the navigator object to the current object under the mouse pointer

numpadSubtract: review_moveToCaret
Moves the review cursor to the location of the caret.

Control+numpadSubtract: review_moveCaretHere
Moves the caret to the location of the review cursor

NVDA+numPadSubtract: navigatorObject_toFocus
Sets the navigator object to the current object with focus.

NVDA+shift+numPadSubtract: navigatorObject_moveFocus
Sets the keyboard focus to the navigator object

numPadDivide: leftMouseClick
Clicks the left mouse button once where ever it may be at the time.
shift+numpadDivide: toggleLeftMouseButton
Locks or unlocks the left mouse button

numPadMultiply: rightMouseClick
Clicks the right mouse button once where ever it may be at the time.

shift+numpadMultiply: toggleRightMouseButton
Locks or unlocks the right mouse button

numpadAdd: review_sayAll
Uses the review cursor to read from its position to the end of the currently reviewable

text.

NVDA+numPadAdd: navigatorObject_sayAll
Starts to read all the objects after the navigator object, in flow order.

reading objects

numpad1: review_previousCharacter
Moves the review cursor to the previous character.

Shift+numpad1: review_startOfLine
Moves the review cursor to the start of the line.

numpad2: review_currentCharacter
speaks the character at the review cursor.

numpad3: review_nextCharacter
Moves the review cursor to the next character.

Shift+numpad3: review_endOfLine
Moves the review cursor to the end of the line.

numpad4: review_previousWord
Moves the review cursor to the previous word.

numpad5: review_currentWord
speaks the word at the review cursor.

numpad6: review_nextWord
Moves the review cursor to the next word.

numpad7: review_previousLine
Moves the review cursor to the previous line.

Shift+numpad7: review_top
Moves the review cursor to the first line.
numpad8: review_currentLine
speaks the line at the review cursor.

numpad9: review_nextLine
Moves the review cursor to the previous line.

Shift+numpad9: review_bottom
Moves the review cursor to the last line.

NVDA+f9: review_markStartForCopy
Marks the current position of the review cursor as the start of text to be copied.

NVDA+f10: review_copy
Retrieves the text from the previously set start marker up to and including the current

position of the review cursor and copies it to the clipboard.

VirtualBuffer commands:

NVDA+space: toggleVirtualBufferPassThrough
Turns virtualBuffer pass-through mode on or off.

control+NVDA+f: find
NVDA+f3: find next
NVDA+f7: elements list
NVDA+f5: refresh buffer
NVDA+v: toggleScreenLayout

VirtualBuffer quick keys to skip to the next element of a particular type (also use shift with

the key to go backwards):
h: heading
l: list
i: list item
t: table
k: link
f: form field
u: unvisited link
v: visited link
e: edit field
b: button
x: checkbox
c: combo box
r: radio button
q: block quote
s: separator
m: frame
g: graphic
d: ARIA landmark
n: nonLinked text
o: embedded object
1 to 6: headings 1 to 6 respectively

If you have a USB drive, be sure to get the “portable” version of NVDA, so you can have speech anywhere, on any computer. While you’re there, make a donation! NVDA is a free and open source program, and your generosity keeps the good stuff coming.

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