I too am a VoiceOver only user. I have spoken at length with friends of mine
who are low vision users though. Not to stray to far off topic for this list,
but by all accounts from people I know, magnification on any version of windows
is hardly sufficient. As was stated earlier in this thread, comparing builtin
windows magnification to a product like zoom text is like comparing narrator to
jaws.
As for zoom text coming to the mac, if it does nothing else, it will certainly
be a familiar comfort for windows users who are considering switching. I say
this only because someone has expressed to me their hesitancy to switch because
they like the features of zoom text and don't think zoom on the mac gives them
all thse features. The mac users who are experienced with zoom may not wish to
even consider zoom text, but for new or those considering switching, it might
be that last push for them to make the complete change. I can't debate the
merrits of zoom on the mac because I can't see, just offering an opinion based
on conversations with magnification users.
----- Original Message -----
From: dhacker
To: [email protected]
Sent: Thursday, November 29, 2012 4:13 PM
Subject: Re: ZoomText on the Mac Coming Soon
I don't think there's any reason to make that comparison, it's just not valid.
Zoom on Mac works but it's not a sophisticated product. Voiceover works and
it IS a sophisticated product.
Ai Squared sees an opportunity to better Zoom related features. Also, the way
Voiceover works may be fantastic (your mileage may vary) for blind users but
for users who simply need reading "support" it's clear that there is an
opportunity to build it.
Put it this way, ZT Win does very well even though there is built in Zooming
on Windows and sophisticated (JAWS, Windows Eyes) screen readers on the market
as well as decent free ones (NVDA).
On Thursday, November 29, 2012 4:00:43 PM UTC-5, Alex wrote:
Yes, that's my point. If zoom on mac compared to zoom on windows is
anything like vo compared to narrator, then, as you said, there's no
comparison. Can some low-vision users chime in here? Maybe us totals
are missing something?
On 11/29/12, Teresa Cochran <[email protected]> wrote:
> Hi Alex,
>
> There's a bit of confusion here. I may get myself in trouble here, but I
> will say this: the off-the-shelf accessibility on the Mac is notches more
> complex than the off-the-shelf accessibility in Windows. I haven't used
Zoom
> for the Mac, and don't know if it has the same magnification features as
> ZoomText. Someone else can speak to that. However, if I were to choose
> between Narrator for Windows and Voiceover for the Mac, there just isn't
a
> comparison, and I really wouldn't try. Voiceover winds hands-down. It's a
> fact that there are more accessibility features in the Mac screen-reader
> than for Narrator. Again, I can't speak to Zoom for Mac, so I don't know
if
> the parallel for magnification is valid.
>
> Teresa
>
>
> Visualize whirled peas.
>
> On Nov 29, 2012, at 12:08 PM, Alex Hall <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> I'm not a large print user at all, but it seems to me that saying
>> windows already has zoom is like saying Narrator is already a screen
>> reader. Does it read things on the screen? Sure, but comparing that to
>> Voiceover is ridiculous. I hope AI Squared does well with this, I just
>> don't know if it will happen.
>>
>> On 11/29/12, Doug Hacker <[email protected]> wrote:
>>> Mike,
>>>
>>> The same is true on the Windows platform but Ai Squared does a very
good
>>> business there, no reason to think it would be any different on the Mac
>>> side. Visually impaired Mac users want the same thing as their Windows
>>> counterparts.
>>>
>>> - Better font smoothing
>>> - Better tracking
>>> - Cursor, pointer and focus enhancements
>>> - Color schemes
>>> - More efficient reading tools for VI users
>>>
>>>
>>> On Nov 29, 2012, at 2:19 PM, Mike Arrigo <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Should be interesting to see if that sells at all, the mac already
>>>> includes zoom for magnification and voice over for reading, these can
>>>> also
>>>> be used at the same time. If people buy it, great, but they're taking
a
>>>> huge gamble.
>>>> Original message:
>>>>> Just to let everyone know, Ai Squared is close to releasing a version
>>>>> of
>>>>> ZoomText for the Mac. First release will be Magnification +
>>>>> Enhancements
>>>>> only to be followed by reading functionality.
>>>>
>>>>> You can apply for group membership here:
>>>>
>>>>> https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/ztmac
>>>>
>>>>> Doug
>>>>> --
>>>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
>>>>> Groups
>>>>> "MacVisionaries" group.
>>>>> To view this discussion on the web visit
>>>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msg/macvisionaries/-/WZ_yEmqhhbgJ
>>>>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msg/macvisionaries/-/WZ_yEmqhhbgJ>.
>>>>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
>>>>> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
>>>>> [email protected].
>>>>> 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 [email protected].
>>>> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
>>>> [email protected].
>>>> 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 [email protected].
>>> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
>>> [email protected].
>>> For more options, visit this group at
>>> http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en.
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Have a great day,
>> Alex (msg sent from GMail website)
>> [email protected]
>>
>> --
>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
Groups
>> "MacVisionaries" group.
>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
>> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
>> [email protected].
>> 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 [email protected].
> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
> [email protected].
> For more options, visit this group at
> http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en.
>
>
--
Have a great day,
Alex (msg sent from GMail website)
[email protected]
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"MacVisionaries" group.
To view this discussion on the web visit
https://groups.google.com/d/msg/macvisionaries/-/0DK_UtzBfSkJ.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
[email protected].
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 [email protected].
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
[email protected].
For more options, visit this group at
http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries?hl=en.
