Hi Tom.
it might actually be then that microsoft are doing right in win8 what they
missed in win7? sinse certainly I've not heard these things about win7.
Whether however they continue with support for these changes and if they
appear in none beta win 8 (I mean, I heard win7 was supposed to feature more
of narrator), we'll see, though as I said this might well mean that I'll end
up skipping from xp to win8 completely.
We'll just have to see where it ends up and if these things actually happen
or not.
Beware the grue!
Dark.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Thomas Ward" <[email protected]>
To: "Gamers Discussion list" <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, March 14, 2012 7:34 AM
Subject: Re: [Audyssey] Monopoly
Hi Dark,
Alright, but here is where your argument actually falls apart. If you want
to talk about access on Windows 8 I can say access has actually improved.
There are a number of areas where access has actually increased and not
decreased in Windows, and is well worth noting.
First, UI automation. In Windows 8 Microsoft has been deprecating a
number of access technologies like MSAA in favor of UI Automation. Its a
huge improvement over MSAA, is now a standard part of the Windows API, and
any application designed with UI Automation in mind should be accessible
without video intercept drivers, scripts, and any of the other crap
screen readers have had to use to make prior versions of Windows
applications accessible.
Second, Windows Narrator has been drastically improved under Windows 8. It
looks to me like Microsoft has basically copied Apple's Voiceover screen
reader which is not a bad thing. Narrator is far more functional as a
screen reader in Windows 8 than prior versions, and thanks to UI
Automation any app using it will be accessible to Narrator out of the box.
Third, MS Sapi 5.5 is an improvement over earlier versions. Windows 8 now
has some new voices available and they blow away Mike, Mary, and Sam found
in XP. Even Microsoft Anna which first appeared in Vista was an
improvement.
Fourth, Microsoft Speech Recognition. Its perhaps not as good as say
Dragon Naturally Speaking, but from beta testing the new version the
recognition engine is better than prior versions too. So both people with
mobility and visual impairments can take advantage of voice input under
Windows 8 if they want to.
Finally, touchscreen technology is making huge access improvements for
people with mobility impairments. All they have to do is point to the
screen, and tap the icon they want a couple of times to open it up. This
is often easier than using a mouse, trackball, touchpad, etc as a person
can interact with Windows 8 with a single finger.
Bottom line, if you want to make the case that more and more effort is
required to gain equal access to Windows I don't think it really holds a
lot of water. From what I've seen of Win 8 so far the opposite is true.
Less effort is required because the access technology present is superior
to anything else Microsoft has released to date.
Cheers!
On 3/13/2012 8:28 PM, dark wrote:
Hi Dennis.
the problem is this isn't about learning new things or preferring older
systems, this is about access.
As per my phd thesis, access = equal, or as close to equal as possible
amounts of effort betwene groups with different biological limitations,
and whatever way you cut the cookie, more and more effort is having to be
expanded with the newer trends in Ui microsoft are implementing.
It's rather like a building being rennivated and putting in escalators
while wripping up the old ramps that paraplegics could use to enter.
It is true that there is little to know prophet in access, however if we
followed that line of thinking to it's ultimate conclusion, very little
would be accessible. Access is an ethical matter and as such falls
outside te of the basic tennits of capitalism, and this is why we can
cryticise microsoft mainstream game companies etc, for following prophet
only rather than access measures (indeed this is where Carl marx was
exactly right in noting that the persuit of prophit is itself an amoral
motivation, not an ethical one).
plus I might add that "saving money" seems a pretty feeble excuse for the
worlds richest coorporation which is paying most of it's manual workers
in china and tyland a pittance.
Beware the grue!
dark.
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