Fwd: GNOME Accessibility Framework; J2SDK 1.4 beta 2; Java Accessibility Helper 0.4

These should help the non-Microsoft development efforts someday.
Wonder how soon?

Regards/Harvey
----
>Delivered-To: java-access@javasoft.com
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>Date:         Tue, 28 Aug 2001 14:10:35 -0700
>Reply-To: peter.korn@sun.com
>Sender: Java Accessibility interest mailing list <JAVA-ACCESS@JAVA.SUN.COM>
>From: Peter Korn <peter.korn@sun.com>
>Organization: Sun Microsystems
>Subject:      GNOME Accessibility Framework; J2SDK 1.4 beta 2; Java
>               Accessibility Helper 0.4
>Comments: To: JA-PR@basso.SFBay.Sun.COM
>To: JAVA-ACCESS@JAVA.SUN.COM
>
>The Sun Accessibility team is delighted to announce the availability of:
>
>     - The Early Access release of the GNOME Accessibility Framework,
>       which provides support for the development of accessible GNOME
>       applications and for the development of assistive technologies
>       for the GNOME desktop.  This Early Access release includes
>       everything necessary for GNOME application developers to make their
>       applications accessible, and for assistive technology vendors to
>       being developing assistive technologies for the GNOME user
>       environment.
>
>     - Version 1.4 Beta 2 of the Java (TM) 2 Software Development Kit,
>       containing the Java Accessibility API, the Swing user-interface
>       classes, and support for loading Assistive Technologies into the
>       Java VM.  Version 1.4 is a "feature" release of the Java 2 SDK,
>       and contains many new features, including a number of additions
>       and enhancements to support accessibility.
>
>     - Version 0.4 of the Java Accessibility Helper, a test tool for
>       Java application developers and testers to help them find and fix
>       accessibility problems with Java applications.  This release includes
>       support for testing Java applications and applets, and produces
>       detailed reports listing the problems it finds at a variety of
>       severity levels.
>
>
>   GNOME Accessibility Framework, Early Access release
>   ---------------------------------------------------
>     The GNOME project comprises a desktop user environment: a graphical
>     desktop user interface and a set of user-interface libraries; as
>     well as a suite of office productivity tools and applications.  GNOME
>     is commonly part of Linux distributions (such as those from RedHat,
>     TurboLinux, VA Linux, etc.) and it is the future graphical desktop
>     for Sun Solaris workstations and servers.  GNOME 2.0 is the upcoming
>     major release of the GNOME user environment, and it will support
>     accessibility for people with disabilities through built-in keyboard
>     access, and accessible applications which implement the GNOME
>     Accessibility Framework.
>
>     The GNOME Accessibility Framework is made up of several key pieces:
>
>       1. The Accessibility Toolkit (ATK), which is a definition of
>          the accessibility contract for GNOME user-interface elements;
>
>       2. The GNOME Accessibility Implementation Library (GAIL), which
>          implements the ATK on behalf of the GTK+ user-interface library
>          (a library of user-interface elements comprising things like
>          buttons, menus, scrolling text fields, etc.);
>
>       3. The desktop Assistive Technology Service Provider Interface
>          (AT SPI), which unifies all of the accessibility information
>          of applications running on the GNOME desktop (be they standard
>          GNOME applications, Java applications, or something different)
>          into one central interface for use by assistive technologies
>          like screen readers, screen magnifiers, and on-screen keyboards.
>
>     Like the rest of the GNOME project, the GNOME Accessibility Framework
>     is completely open-source.  The GNOME Accessibility Framework is
>     licensed under the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL).
>
>     This Early Access release includes the final definition of the ATK,
>     an edition of GAIL that is roughly 70% completed, and an early
>     edition of the AT SPI.  Also included in this release are a set of
>     test tools which both test the accessibility information in GNOME
>     applications, and illustrate how to develop assistive technologies
>     on top of the framework.  The GNOME Accessibility Framework is now
>     ready for GNOME application developers to begin the process of making
>     their applications accessible, and for assistive technology vendors
>     to being developing assistive technologies for the GNOME user
>     environment.
>
>     The GNOME Accessibility project, and the Early Access release itself,
>     can be found at:
>       http://developer.gnome.org/projects/gap/
>
>     A press release announcing the GNOME Accessibility Framework Early
>     Access is at:
>       http://www.gnome.org/pr-accessible.html
>
>     A Linuxpower interview with a number of Sun's GNOME engineering staff,
>     including members of the GNOME Accessibility engineering team, is at:
>       http://www.linuxpower.org/display.php?id=213
>
>
>   Java 2 Software Development Kit version 1.4 Beta 2
>   --------------------------------------------------
>     The SDK is the reference release of the Java platform, containing
>     core support for Accessibility, the Java Runtime environment, and
>     the Java Plugin for use with web browsers such as Netscape and
>     Internet Explorer.
>
>     Version 1.4 Beta 2 contains the Java Accessibility API, the Swing
>     user-interface libraries (which support the Java Accessibility API),
>     and support for loading Assistive Technologies into the Java Virtual
>     Machine.  New for accessibility in version 1.4 is improved keyboard
>     navigation in a number of Swing components - including the ability
>     to navigate links in the Swing HTML components, first-letter navigation
>     in list components, and tabbed pane keyboard mnemonic support.  Also
>     new for accessibility are several new AccessibleRole definitions,
>     several new system properties, and AccessibleExtendedComponent, an
>     addition to the Java Accessibility API.
>
>     A detailed list of the new accessibility features in Java 2 SDK 1.4
>     can be found at:
>       http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4/docs/guide/access/new-features.html
>
>     The Java 2 SDK version 1.4 is described at and downloadable from:
>       http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4/
>
>
>   Java Accessibility Helper version 0.4
>   -------------------------------------
>     The Java Accessibility Helper is a test tool for Java
>application            developers and testers to help them find and fix
>accessibility problems
>     with Java applications.  The Helper runs in a separate Java VM, and
>     works by exercising the application to be tested via standard
>     Java APIs, and via the Java Accessibility API.  The Helper generates
>     a report that includes a prioritized list of problems and potential
>     problems with the application being tested (e.g. verifying that
>     all input fields in an application can be reached using only the
>     keyboard).
>
>     Version 0.4 includes support for testing Java applications and
>applets,      and fixes a number of bugs in the previous releases.  The Java
>     Accessibility Helper development team maintains a special e-mail
>     alias for questions and issue regarding it.  Please direct your
>     Java Accessibility Helper e-mails to: jaccesshelper@sun.com
>
>     To download the Java Accessibility Helper version 0.4, go to the Java
>     Developer Connection Early access page (log in, or establish yourself
>     as a new user if you haven't logged in before):
>       http://developer.java.sun.com/developer/earlyAccess/jaccesshelper
>
>
>
>We actively welcome your comments on these releases - please tell us what
>you think of them, whether or not they meet your needs, and how we can make
>them better.  Send your comments to the Sun Accessibility team at
><access@sun.com>, or share your comments with others interested in Java
>Accessibility by joining the Java Accessibility mailing list,
><java-access@javasoft.com>.  (To join, send a message to
><listserv@javasoft.com> and put "subscribe java-access" in the body of
>the message).  To take part in the GNOME Accessibility Project, join the
>project's mailing list, <gnome-accessibility-list@gnome.org>.  Do this via
>the page: http://mail.gnome.org/mailman/listinfo/gnome-accessibility-list
>
>
>
>On behalf of Sun Microsystems,
>
>Peter Korn
>Sun Microsystems Accessibility team
>access@sun.com
>http://www.sun.com/access
>
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Received on Tuesday, 27 November 2001 08:44:56 UTC