Re: Tasks: browser <-> screen reader

in the example I was siting, all that the browser need do is set an
appropriate font size for pages.  as for detecting screenreaders, they
detect all kinds of other things upon installation and If I understand
correctly, screenreaders are not that difficult to detect because they are
resident during install.  As for what screenreader developpers would like
browsers to do, well, perhaps they could present pages to us with noframes
or pup up a listbox.  I'm going to be carefull here.  I'd like to see
browsers do things that would benefit all not just screenreader users too.  
One idea would be for a screenreader friendly style sheet to be envoked
upon install and all this of course is changeable at will by the user.
as for unix, lynx doesn't need anything that I know of in terms of access
to screenreaders.

I think the paper is well done and most of our needs concerning
screenreaders are met in it.  I do see advantages though to making as many
things changeable as possible because there are older screenreaders out
there and others for whom the benefits would be great.

I also think it would do no harm to ask browser developpers to include an
accessability section in their documentation explaining some of the things
that can be done and how to do them that would optimize their browsers for
diffferent needs.


 On Mon, 9 Mar 1998, Jon Gunderson wrote:

> Response to David by JRG:
> I think it would be difficult in some operating systems for the browser to
> know there is a screen reader, escpecially UNIX.  I think that the browser
> should have features that can support screen readers, but I am not sure we
> should require screen readers to be detected.  It is not clear to me that
> there would be a good consensus between screen reader manufactures about
> what the browser should do if it new there was a screen reader present.
> Jon
> At 06:39 PM 4/6/98 -0400, David Poehlman wrote:
> >I finally got in and read the page.  I have a couple of comments.  is it
> >possible for the ua to sense that there is a screenreader and
> >automatically make at least the basic adjustment to pages that come in or
> >perhaps automatically set a default that prevents the text from extending
> >outside the window?
> >there are a few other things, but I'll be going back over the document for
> >them.
> >
> >
> >Hands-On-Technolog(eye)s
> >touching the internet
> >voice: 1-(301) 949-7599
> >poehlman@clark.net
> >ftp://ftp.clark.net/pub/poehlman
> >http://www.clark.net/pub/poehlman
> >
> >
> Jon Gunderson, Ph.D., ATP
> Coordinator of Assistive Communication and Information Technology
> Division of Rehabilitation - Education Services
> University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign
> 1207 S. Oak Street
> Champaign, IL 61820
> 
> Voice: 217-244-5870
> Fax: 217-333-0248
> E-mail: jongund@uiuc.edu
> WWW:	http://www.staff.uiuc.edu/~jongund
> 	http://www.als.uiuc.edu/InfoTechAccess
> 

Hands-On-Technolog(eye)s
touching the internet
voice: 1-(301) 949-7599
poehlman@clark.net
ftp://ftp.clark.net/pub/poehlman
http://www.clark.net/pub/poehlman

Received on Thursday, 9 April 1998 16:51:49 UTC