#chromevox — Public Fediverse posts

#Accessibility hive mind, I have some questions about #ChromeVox as well as #Chromebook accessibility & #usability in general. I'm working with a #PixelBook that has never been used. ChromeVox is telling me to use commands involving the search key as a modifier, but these seem not to work as any use of the search key invokes #Google #Gemini. What's going on here? Additionally, how are #blind people using #Chromebooks? In what tasks do they excel. In what tasks do they fall short? Any input and/or information would be greatly appreciated.

#Blind #BlindMasto #BlindMastodon #BlindFedi #a11y @mastoblind

#Accessibility hive mind, I have some questions about #ChromeVox as well as #Chromebook accessibility & #usability in general. I'm working with a #PixelBook that has never been used. ChromeVox is telling me to use commands involving the search key as a modifier, but these seem not to work as any use of the search key invokes #Google #Gemini. What's going on here? Additionally, how are #blind people using #Chromebooks? In what tasks do they excel. In what tasks do they fall short? Any input and/or information would be greatly appreciated.

#Blind #BlindMasto #BlindMastodon #BlindFedi #a11y @mastoblind

#Accessibility hive mind, I have some questions about #ChromeVox as well as #Chromebook accessibility & #usability in general. I'm working with a #PixelBook that has never been used. ChromeVox is telling me to use commands involving the search key as a modifier, but these seem not to work as any use of the search key invokes #Google #Gemini. What's going on here? Additionally, how are #blind people using #Chromebooks? In what tasks do they excel. In what tasks do they fall short? Any input and/or information would be greatly appreciated.

#Blind #BlindMasto #BlindMastodon #BlindFedi #a11y @mastoblind

#Accessibility hive mind, I have some questions about #ChromeVox as well as #Chromebook accessibility & #usability in general. I'm working with a #PixelBook that has never been used. ChromeVox is telling me to use commands involving the search key as a modifier, but these seem not to work as any use of the search key invokes #Google #Gemini. What's going on here? Additionally, how are #blind people using #Chromebooks? In what tasks do they excel. In what tasks do they fall short? Any input and/or information would be greatly appreciated.

#Blind #BlindMasto #BlindMastodon #BlindFedi #a11y @mastoblind

#Accessibility hive mind, I have some questions about #ChromeVox as well as #Chromebook accessibility & #usability in general. I'm working with a #PixelBook that has never been used. ChromeVox is telling me to use commands involving the search key as a modifier, but these seem not to work as any use of the search key invokes #Google #Gemini. What's going on here? Additionally, how are #blind people using #Chromebooks? In what tasks do they excel. In what tasks do they fall short? Any input and/or information would be greatly appreciated.

#Blind #BlindMasto #BlindMastodon #BlindFedi #a11y @mastoblind

ChromeOS bekommt Steuerung per Gesichtsbewegung - COMPUTER BILD
https://www.computerbild.de/artikel/cb-News-Notebooks-Netbooks-ChromeOS-bekommt-Steuerung-per-Gesichtsbewegung-36999707.html #ChromeOS #Steuerung #Chromebook #Facetracking #ChromeVox

ChromeOS bekommt Steuerung per Gesichtsbewegung - COMPUTER BILD
https://www.computerbild.de/artikel/cb-News-Notebooks-Netbooks-ChromeOS-bekommt-Steuerung-per-Gesichtsbewegung-36999707.html #ChromeOS #Steuerung #Chromebook #Facetracking #ChromeVox

ChromeOS bekommt Steuerung per Gesichtsbewegung - COMPUTER BILD
https://www.computerbild.de/artikel/cb-News-Notebooks-Netbooks-ChromeOS-bekommt-Steuerung-per-Gesichtsbewegung-36999707.html #ChromeOS #Steuerung #Chromebook #Facetracking #ChromeVox

ChromeOS bekommt Steuerung per Gesichtsbewegung - COMPUTER BILD
https://www.computerbild.de/artikel/cb-News-Notebooks-Netbooks-ChromeOS-bekommt-Steuerung-per-Gesichtsbewegung-36999707.html #ChromeOS #Steuerung #Chromebook #Facetracking #ChromeVox

ChromeOS bekommt Steuerung per Gesichtsbewegung - COMPUTER BILD
https://www.computerbild.de/artikel/cb-News-Notebooks-Netbooks-ChromeOS-bekommt-Steuerung-per-Gesichtsbewegung-36999707.html #ChromeOS #Steuerung #Chromebook #Facetracking #ChromeVox

Hmmm...

Time to see how well I can replicate either the #Chromevox and/or #Talkback keyboard experience with the #jieshuo screen reader's 'Hotkey Scheme' feature. The default has 'waaaaaaaay' too many conflicts in my view (particularly if using web browsers that support keyboard shortcuts).

And since people are able to share said keyboard layouts, anyone thought of creating a #WindowEyes or #SuperNova/#Hal layout?

Hmmm...

Time to see how well I can replicate either the #Chromevox and/or #Talkback keyboard experience with the #jieshuo screen reader's 'Hotkey Scheme' feature. The default has 'waaaaaaaay' too many conflicts in my view (particularly if using web browsers that support keyboard shortcuts).

And since people are able to share said keyboard layouts, anyone thought of creating a #WindowEyes or #SuperNova/#Hal layout?

Hmmm...

Time to see how well I can replicate either the #Chromevox and/or #Talkback keyboard experience with the #jieshuo screen reader's 'Hotkey Scheme' feature. The default has 'waaaaaaaay' too many conflicts in my view (particularly if using web browsers that support keyboard shortcuts).

And since people are able to share said keyboard layouts, anyone thought of creating a #WindowEyes or #SuperNova/#Hal layout?

new #pinafore problem: on #ChromeOS with #ChromeVox when arrowing through the home tl it's suddenly now started just saying "Unlisted post from ,username>" or "public post from <username>" instead of the actual post text

new #pinafore problem: on #ChromeOS with #ChromeVox when arrowing through the home tl it's suddenly now started just saying "Unlisted post from ,username>" or "public post from <username>" instead of the actual post text

Alright. #ChromeVox on Windows works out of the box. Using the kbd element actually broke it! A list with 4 sub items was being read as a list with 2 items, because the first letter in the third sub-item was a kbd.

Then, while reading text, there was no announce whatsoever about the `o` key being a keyboard input. It would pause, read o, announce "list item" to say now the list item was being read again in continuation before taking the pause for `o`.

Alright. #ChromeVox on Windows works out of the box. Using the kbd element actually broke it! A list with 4 sub items was being read as a list with 2 items, because the first letter in the third sub-item was a kbd.

Then, while reading text, there was no announce whatsoever about the `o` key being a keyboard input. It would pause, read o, announce "list item" to say now the list item was being read again in continuation before taking the pause for `o`.

#orca did the trick. The text was (as guessed by @benjaminpaikjones) being read as s, ave.

There was no distinction between kbd and paragraph, though.

Testing #ChromeVox on #Windows might be the next to-do.

#orca did the trick. The text was (as guessed by @benjaminpaikjones) being read as s, ave.

There was no distinction between kbd and paragraph, though.

Testing #ChromeVox on #Windows might be the next to-do.

Not a good look for Google (to be fair, when is it ever...)

I installed #ChromeVox on #Chromium and there are no voices available out of the box.

To get voices, apparently you need to compile the browser yourself? https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromium/src/+/lkgr/docs/accessibility/chromevox_on_desktop_linux.md

Not a good look for Google (to be fair, when is it ever...)

I installed #ChromeVox on #Chromium and there are no voices available out of the box.

To get voices, apparently you need to compile the browser yourself? https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromium/src/+/lkgr/docs/accessibility/chromevox_on_desktop_linux.md

Will be installing and configuring #Filezilla tonight, and then I can really jump into this #IndieWeb thing. #Chromebooks and #Chromevox just don’t support plain text editors and #SFTP management very well.

Went from a #Chromebook to a #Windows box overnight, and I’m doing okay, except I keep wanting to push the #Chromevox key, which is the same as the windows key on my keyboard.

In this Post

Toggle

• What is This?
• What is Covered in This Chapter?
• Terms in This Chapter (in order of discussion)
• A Closer Look at Mastodon
  • Doesn’t That Already Exist?
    • Common Features Between Twitter and Mastodon
  • With So Many Similarities, Why Not Just Stay on Twitter?
    • The Argument I Refuse to Make
    • Don’t Let Me Scare You off
• Instances
  • How Do I choose My Instance?
    • Choose Based on Interest
    • Choose Based on How You Feel About Rules
    • Considerations for Screen Reader Users
• Signing Up
• Coming Up

What is This?

This is the second in a series of posts that explains how to use Mastodon if you use a screen reader. It is an alternative form of the already existing documentation for Mastodon, subject to my interpretation of concepts. Therefore, I suggest that you use this guide in conjunction with the official documentation, linked to later in this post. I also suggest that you go back and read Chapter One. Once you’ve done that, continue reading this chapter.

What is Covered in This Chapter?

This chapter takes a closer look at what Mastodon is, deals with the concept of instances, explains the differences between Mastodon and other platforms, offers suggestions on choosing an instance, and concludes with a brief description of the signup process. If you’ve already done these things, go on to Chapter Three.

Terms in This Chapter (in order of discussion)

• Microblog
• Instance
• Federation, fedeverse

A Closer Look at Mastodon

You probably have an idea of what Mastodon is by now, or else why would you be reading this? Just to make sure I’m covering my bases, however, let’s take a closer look. Mastodon is a service that offers its users a microblog, a space to share short posts with no title, and the option to attach media such as pictures and videos. Other users can then interact with these posts in a number of ways, discussed in chapters  and Five.

Doesn’t That Already Exist?

It sure does. These days, Twitter is synonymous with microblogging, because it’s the most popular. This is similar to how America Online (AOL) was once the most popular form of Internet access, but it was not the only service like that, and it certainly not the Internet. Just like forms of Internet access, email, and many other services, it is to be expected that different microblogging services would have some features in common. I’ll briefly discuss some of those now.

Common Features Between Twitter and Mastodon

• The primary form of communication is short statuses. On twitter, this limit is 280 characters, and 500 on Mastodon.
• The ability reply to, like/favorite, and repost posts. (More on this in chapter Five.)
• Being able to follow and be followed by other users. (More on this in Chapter Four).
• The ability to create custom timelines by creating and adding users to lists. (More on this in Chapter Six, coming soon).
• The ability to filter out unwanted content. (Also discussed in chapter Six.)

With So Many Similarities, Why Not Just Stay on Twitter?

Let me take this opportunity to tell you that I have no special reason for you to leave Twitter if you’re happy there. I mean, we’re in Chapter Two of this guide, clearly there is more to come, and if you’re still reading up to this point, it’s because you’ve already made the decision to at least consider having a presence on Mastodon. With that said, there are plenty of differences between the two services, but we need to take a look at a few concepts before we can discuss them. This is a lot like how when you got your first email address, you probably read the documentation of something like Gmail before you decided to switch providers, or at least that you needed a second email address.

The Argument I Refuse to Make

The most common argument I hear for using mastodon is something to the tune of everybody is so friendly on Mastodon. I’ve never had a bad experience on Mastodon, but the fact of the matter is Mastodon is a place for people, and people have the capacity to be hostile regardless of the platform. The most infamous example of this is the situation concerning Wil Wheaton from last summer, followed immediately by many users’ decision to block one Instance when they found out it was admined by someone who had done work for the FBI. In both cases, people had their own reasons for behaving the way they did, but it was still aggressive behavior. If you’re going to be online, if you’re going to interact with people, there’s a chance you may experience some form of hostility.

Don’t Let Me Scare You off

If you’ve come this far, don’t let me scare you off. If you choose your instance carefully, you can minimize the chance for hostile encounters. As you’ll see in the next section, it’s a lot like picking a neighborhood to live in.

Instances

Before you can find out what an instance is, you need to know how Mastodon works. With a service like Facebook or Twitter, you and I, the users, sign up for an account, managed by one central server, accessed when we open our browser and log on to something like twitter.com. To find a user, you put a slash after the web address, so if you wanted to find me on Twitter, you’d go to twitter.com/changelingmx. From there, you can click the follow button, and if I can verify that you aren’t a porn bot, won’t clog my timeline with Bible quotes, etc., I’ll probably follow you back, and we’re connected. We’re interacting within one ecosystem. This is just fine until the ecosystem dies (looking at you, Google+!), in which case we all die, digitally speaking.

As explained on joinmastodon.org, rather than being one website, the Mastodon network is a collection of websites powered by the mastodon software, which enables them to interact with each other. Each of these websites is called an instance.

You pick your instance the way you choose your email address. In fact, my Mastodon address looks like [email protected]. If you’re reading this on an iPhone and click that link, you’ll actually launch the device’s Mail client. If you want to find me once you join your chosen instance, click here, or see the H-Card widget in the sidebar of any starshipchangeling.net page, which has every link for every service i actively use. If you don’t want to see all of my Mastodon interactions, but want to follow this blog, you can follow it via Mastodon by typing “[email protected]”, minus the quotations. All of these websites together form the fedeverse, or, as Mastodon calls itself, a decentralized, federated social network. This detail becomes particularly important starting in Chapter Four. For now, what you need to take away is that instances can interact with each other, meaning that some on mastodon.cloud can follow me on mastodon.social. It’s also important to understand that instances can block each other, which happens from time to time since anybody can run a Mastodon instance, regardless of whether or not their opinion is a popular one.

How Do I choose My Instance?

To paraphrase a passage from Ernest Cline’s Armada, this is an objective, rather than a subjective task, so there is no right way to do it. It’s not uncommon for someone to join an instance, realize it’s not a good fit, and change instances. You may go through that process, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Here are some suggestions to guide you.

Choose Based on Interest

Anybody can run a Mastodon instance. This means if you can think of it, there’s probably a community for it. The “Getting Started” section of joinmastodon.org has a form you can fill out to get server suggestions. Parameters include everything from what language you speak, to your hobbies.

Choose Based on How You Feel About Rules

Since anybody can run a Mastodon instance, the code of conduct from instance to instance varies. Theoretically, I could start an instance that requires users to be able to quote every line from Disney’s “Aladdin” upon request. Realistically I’d be the only member of that instance. Seriously, though, pay close attention to the rules of the instance. Each instance has them. Here is the code of conduct for mastodon.social. Please believe me when I tell you that these rules are usually strictly enforced.

Considerations for Screen Reader Users

The following is a list of questions a screen reader user should consider before joining an instance.

• What version of the Mastodon software does the instance run? Newer versions often have accessibility improvements.
• Does the instance run beta versions of the mastodon software? If so, make your life easier by considering the following:
  • Have a backup of your data in case you need to leave. (described in Chapter Six).
  • Have a backup account on a stable instance. This will help you troubleshoot any problems you may have by enabling you to distinguish between caused by beta software and bug in a stable release.
• Do uploaded images appear as links you can click? This will make it easier to download images for further analysis by AI.

Signing Up

If you can fill out a web form, you can sign up for the instance of your choice. Enter your desired username, your email, and your passowrd in the appropriate boxes. Once you’ve confirmed your password, use your screen reader to check the boxes to agree to follow the rules of the instance and privacy policy. Once you submit the infromation and verify your email address, your ready to complete your profile.

Coming Up

In Chapter Three, we’ll be looking at how to complete your profile, as well as send that first post. In the meantime, go ahead and pick your instance and join it, so you will be ready for the next installment.

https://www.starshipchangeling.net/changelings-guide-to-mastodon-for-screen-reader-users-chapter-two-a-closer-look-joining-instances-and-signing-up/

#A11y #Chromevox #hackerTown #JAWS #Mastodon #NVDA #ScreenReaderUsers #screenReaders #SocialNetworks #technology #Twitter #VoiceOver #WilWheaton