- Mac Voiceover Manual Free
- Mac Voiceover Off
- Mac Voiceover Utility
- Voiceover Apple
- Mac Voiceover Manual Download
Last modified: November 26, 2012 at 7:39 p.m. EST
On the web at: http://support.sas.com/misc/accessibility/education/ios/quickref.html
How to use Voice Over. This video will piss off contractors! - DO NOT DO THIS! The Barndominium Show E101 - Duration: 16:05. Texas Barndominiums 3,328,747 views. VoiceOver is an assistive technology built right into the MacOS software, in order to help people with poor vision. Once VoiceOver is enabled on a Mac, it starts reading whatever is on the screen in a Computer generated voice. As you can imagine, this feature can be extremely helpful for people. This chapter provides information about the basics of using VoiceOver, including how to get help while you’re learning. You’ll learn how to turn VoiceOver on and off and pause it, how to hear information about items on the screen and interact with them, and how to use cursor tracking.
Ed Summers
Manager, Accessibility and Applied Assistive Technology
ed.summers@sas.com
Diane Brauner
Teacher of the Visually Impaired and Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist
diane.brauner@sas.com
Table of contents
Introduction
This quick reference defines gestures, keyboard commands, and refreshable braille commands for voiceover on iOS. The information in this document is current as of iOS version 6.01. In an attempt to create a comprehensive list, we have collected material from the iOS users guide and many other sources on the web.
The primary audience of this document is students with visual impairments, teachers of the visually impaired, and other education professionals that serve students with visual impairments. However, we hope the document will be useful to all interested parties.
Please email comments or corrections to accessibility@sas.com .
Using Voiceover with a bluetooth keyboard
An iOS device becomes much more useful for reading, writing, and research when you pair it with a bluetooth keyboard. If you buy a bluetooth keyboard for your iOS device, make sure the keyboard has arrow keys so you can use the 'quick nav' feature with Voiceover. We recommend the Apple wireless keyboard .
The quick nav voiceover feature allows you to navigate very quickly using the arrow keys on a bluetooth keyboard. The user interaction is somewhat similar to the JAWS virtual PC cursor, i.e. you can quickly navigate HTML content by specific types of HTML elements such as headings, links, etc. The quick nav feature is also tightly integrated with the rotor feature and they complement each other very nicely. You will find more information about the quick nav and rotor features throughout this document.
Press the left arrow and right arrow on your bluetooth keyboard to toggle quick nav on and off.
Notes:
- Many voiceover keyboard commands require that the control key and the option key are pressed at the same time. This document uses the common shorthand 'VO' to denote that the control and option keys should be pressed at the same time.
- Apple keyboards are different than Windows keyboards. Apple keyboards contain an option key and a cmd key. Apple keyboards do not contain the alt key or the Windows key. However, if you are using a Windows keyboard you can substitute the alt key for the option key and the Windows key for the cmd key.
Using Voiceover with a refreshable braille display
There are many refreshable braille displays that are supported by Voiceover on iOS devices . The refreshable braille commands in this guide were tested using the Rfreshabraille 18 from American Printing House for the Blind . Note that the Refreshabraille 18 has a joystick that works very well with Voiceover including the rotor feature.
Basic commands
The commands defined in this section are universal. They can be used in almost any context including the home screen, the app switcher, the status bar, Mail, Safari, Pages, etc.
| Action | Gesture | Keyboard with quick nav on | Keyboard with quick nav off | Braille |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turn quick nav on or off | / Not available | Left arrow + right arrow | Left arrow + right arrow | Not available |
| Move focus to any item on the screen | Touch the item with one finger | Not available | Not available | Not available |
| Move focus to the next item | One finger swipe right anywhere on the screen | Right arrow | VO + right arrow | 4 + spacebar OR joystick right |
| Move focus to the previous item | One finger swipe left anywhere on the screen | Left arrow | VO + left arrow | 1 + spacebar OR joystick left |
| Activate the item that has focus | One finger double tap anywhere on the screen | Up arrow + down arrow | VO + spacebar | 3 + 6 + spacebar OR joystick in |
| Cancel or go back to previous screen | Two finger scrub back and forth from side to side | Escape | Escape | 1 + 2 + spacebar |
| Move focus to next text field | Not available | Tab | Tab | 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + spacebar |
| Move focus to previous text field | Not available | Shift + tab | Shift + tab | Not available |
| Read all starting from the top of the screen | Two finger swipe up | VO + B | VO + B | 2 + 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Pause or resume reading at current position | Two finger single tap | Control | Control | 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + spacebar |
| Read all from current position | Two finger swipe down | VO + A | VO + A | 1 + 2 + 3 + 5 + spacebar |
| Move focus to first item on the screen | Four finger single tap near top of screen | Control + up arrow | Not available | 1 + 2 + 3 + spacebar |
| Move focus to the last item on the screen | Four finger single tap near the bottom of the screen | Control + down arrow | Not available | 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Move focus to the first item in the next container on the screen | Not available | Control + right arrow | Not available | 4 + 7 + spacebar |
| Move focus to the first item in the previous container on the screen | Not available | Control + left arrow | Not available | 1 + 7 + spacebar |
| Scroll down to the next page | Three finger swipe up | Option + down arrow | Not available | 1 + 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Scroll up to the previous page | Three finger swipe down | Option + up arrow | Not available | 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Scroll right to the next page | Three finger swipe left | Option + right arrow | Not available | 1 + 3 + 5 + spacebar |
| Scroll left to the previous page | Three finger swipe right | Option + left arrow | Not available | 2 + 4 + 6 + spacebar |
| Find text on the screen or in the current app | Not available | VO + F | VO + F | Not available |
| Find next occurrence of text | Not available | VO + G | VO + G | Not available |
| Find previous occurrence of text | Not available | VO + shift + G | VO + shift + G | Not available |
Rotor commands
| Action | Gesture | Keyboard with quick nav on | Keyboard with quick nav off | Braille |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Select the next item in the rotor | Two finger twist clockwise | Up arrow + right arrow | Not available | 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Select the previous item in the rotor | Two finger twist counter-clockwise | Up arrow + left arrow | Not available | 2 + 3 + spacebar |
| Perform action or adjust value defined by current rotor setting | Single finger swipe up or down | Up arrow or down arrow | VO + up arrow or VO + down arrow | 3 + spacebar or 6 + spacebar |
| Select next value in speech rotor | Not available | VO + cmd + right arrow | VO + cmd + right arrow | Not available |
| Select previous value in speech rotor | Not available | VO + cmd + left arrow | VO + cmd + left arrow | Not available |
| Adjust value of selected item in speech rotor | Not available | VO + cmd + up arrow or VO + cmd + down arrow | VO + cmd + up arrow or VO + cmd + down arrow | Not available |
Miscellaneous commands
Mac Voiceover Manual Free
| Action | Gesture | Keyboard with quick nav on | Keyboard with quick nav off | Braille |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turn on Voiceover help | Not available | VO + K | VO + K | 1 + 3 + spacebar |
| Turn off Voiceover help | Not available | Escape | Escape | 1 + 2 + spacebar |
| Open the item chooser | Two finger triple tap | VO + I | VO + I | 2 + 4 + spacebar |
| Get more information about the item that has focus | Three finger single tap | Not available | Not available | 3 + 4 + spacebar |
| Apply a custom label to the item that has focus | Two finger double tap and hold the second tap | VO + / | VO + / | 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 6 + spacebar |
| Mute voiceover | Three finger triple tap if Zoom feature is on, otherwise three finger double tap | VO + S | VO + S | 1 + 3 + 4 + spacebar |
| Turn the voiceover screen curtain on or off | Three finger quadruple tap if Zoom feature is on, otherwise three finger triple tap | VO + shift + S | VO + shift + S | 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Move focus to the status bar | Not available | VO + M | VO + M | 2 + 3 + 4 + spacebar |
| Answer phone call, hang up phone call, or pause/resume multimedia playback | Two finger double tap | VO + - | VO + - | TBD |
| Take a screenshot | Press the home button and the power button at the same time | |||
Managing apps
| Action | Gesture | Keyboard with quick nav on | Keyboard with quick nav off | Braille |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| When an app is open, switch directly to the next open app | Four finger swipe left (multi-tasking gestures must be enabled in Settings > General) | Cmd + tab | Cmd + tab | TBD |
| When an app is open, switch directly to the previous open app | Four finger swipe right (multi-tasking gestures must be enabled in Settings > General) | Cmd + shift + tab | Cmd + shift + tab | TBD |
| Go to the home screen | Five finger pinch (multi-tasking gestures must be enabled in Settings > General) | VO + H | VO + H | 1 + 2 + 5 + spacebar |
| Scroll left and right through the pages of the home screen | See scrolling commands defined in the Basic commands section of this document. | |||
| Search entire device including contents of apps | Go to the home screen. Scroll left past the first page of the home screen to the search screen. | |||
| Open the app switcher | Four finger swipe up (multi-tasking gestures must be enabled in Settings > General) | VO + H twice quickly | VO + H twice quickly | 1 + 2 + 5 + spacebar twice quickly |
| Scroll left and right through the pages of the app switcher | See scrolling commands defined in the Basic commands section of this document. | |||
| Close the app switcher | Four finger swipe down (multi-tasking gestures must be enabled in Settings > General) | VO + H twice in a row | VO + H twice in a row | 1 + 2 + 5 + spacebar |
| Enter 'jiggle mode' so you can move or remove apps from the home screen or app switcher | Single finger double tap and hold on second tap | VO + shift + M | Not available | TBD |
| Exit 'jiggle mode' | Press the home button | VO + H | Not available | TBD |
Interacting with HTML content in Safari and other apps
HTML is used to format web pages. It is also commonly used to format content in other iOS apps. For example, emails are commonly formatted using HTML. Use the commands defined in this section to navigate HTML content in any app.
Navigating HTML content using gestures
- Use the two finger twist gesture to select an item on the rotor such as headings, links, form controls, etc.
- Use the single finger swipe up or down gesture to move focus to the previous or next instance of the item type selected in the rotor, respectively.
Mac Voiceover Off
Navigating HTML content using a bluetooth keyboard
- Press the left arrow and right arrow on the keyboard at the same time to ensure that quick nav is on.
- Press the up arrow and the left arrow at the same time or press the up arrow and the right arrow at the same time to select an item on the rotor such as headings, links, form controls, etc.
- Press the up arrow to move focus to the previous item of the type selected in the rotor or press the down arrow to move to the next item of the type selected in the rotor.
When quick nav is on you can also move the focus around HTML content using the following commands:
- Heading of any level - H for next, shift+H for previous
- Level 1 heading - 1 for next, shift+1 for previous
- Level 2 heading - 2 for next, shift+2 for previous
- Level 3 heading - 3 for next, shift+3 for previous
- Level 4 heading - 4 for next, shift+4 for previous
- Level 5 heading - 5 for next, shift+5 for previous
- Level 6 heading - 6 for next, shift+6 for previous
- Links - L for next, shift+L for previous
- Text fields - R for next, shift+R for previous
- Buttons - B for next, shift+B for previous
- Form controls - C for next, shift+C for previous
- Images - I for next, shift+I for previous
- Tables - T for next, shift+T for previous
- Static text - S for next, shift+S for previous
- Landmarks - W for next, shift+W for previous
- List - X for next, shift+X for previous
- Element of the same type as element with focus - M for next, shift+M for previous
Navigating HTML content using a refreshable braille display
- Press dots 5+6+spacebar at the same time or press dots 2+3+spacebar at the same time to select an item on the rotor such as headings, links, form controls, etc.
- Press dot 3+spacebar or press the joystick up to move focus to the previous item of the type selected in the rotor.
- Press dot 6+spacebar at the same time or press the joystick down to move to the next item of the type selected in the rotor.
Reading text
This section defines commands that can be used to read text in a read-only context, i.e. text that is not in an editable text field. Examples of read-only text include the labels on the apps on the home screen, the name of the sender of an email message, text in a web page, etc.
Reading text using gestures or a bluetooth keyboard
| Action | Gesture | Keyboard with quick nav on | Keyboard with quick nav off |
|---|---|---|---|
| Read next phrase | One finger swipe right | Right arrow | VO + right arrow |
| Read previous phrase | One finger swipe left | Left arrow | VO + left arrow |
| Read all starting from the top of the screen | Two finger swipe up | VO + B | VO + B |
| Pause or resume reading at current position | Two finger single tap | Control | Control |
| Read all from current position | Two finger swipe down | VO + A | VO + A |
| Read by character, word, or line | Set the rotor to 'characters', 'words', or 'lines' and use next or previous rotor commands. See rotor commands defined in the Rotor commands section of this document. | ||
Reading text using a refreshable braille display
Voiceover breaks text into phrases. A phrase may consist of a single word, multiple words, a single sentence, multiple sentences, a single paragraph, or multiple paragraphs. The size of each phrase depends on how the text was authored.
When reading text using a refreshable braille display, you will generally navigate by phrase. The contents of a phrase may not fit on the braille display so it is necessary to pan to the right to read the entire phrase. See commands for panning in the table below.
When Voiceover encounters interactive elements it will first read the visible text that is associated with the element, state the type of the element, and then announce how to interact with the element. For example, when Voiceover encounters a button on a web page it will read the text associated with the element, state it is a button, and then announce that you may double tap to activate the button. Announcements are displayed on the braille display very briefly to alert the user to their existence. The user can enter 'announcement mode' to read recent announcements one at a time. This feature is very handy for deaf-blind users or blind users that have turned Voiceover speech off. See commands for announcements in the table below.
| Action | Braille |
|---|---|
| Read next phrase | 4 + spacebar or joystick right |
| Read previous phrase | 1 + spacebar or joystick left |
| Pan right within phrase (reads next phrase if at end of current phrase) | 5 + spacebar |
| Pan left within phrase (reads previous phrase if at beginning of current phrase) | 2 + spacebar |
| Read all starting from the top of the screen | 2 + 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Pause or resume reading at current position | 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + spacebar |
| Read all from current position | 1 + 2 + 3 + 5 + spacebar |
| Toggle contractions on or off | 1 + 2 + 4 + 5 + spacebar |
| Switch between 6 dot braille and 8 dot braille | 2 + 3 + 6 + spacebar |
| Enter or exit announcement mode to view announcements | 1 + 3 + 4 + 5 + spacebar |
| When viewing announcements, read previous announcement | 1 + spacebar |
| When viewing announcements, read next announcement | 4 + spacebar |
Copying text from a read-only source
This section defines how to copy text from a read-only source such as a web page, etc.
Copying read-only text using gestures
- One finger swipe left or right to navigate to the phrase that contains the desired text or the beginning of a large block of desired text.
- Single finger double tap and hold the second tap until you hear three beeps.
- Adjust the rotor to the unit of text that will be used to select the desired text: 'characters', 'words', or 'lines'.
- Use the pinch gesture to increase or decrease the amount of selected text. Voiceover will speak text as it is added or removed to the selection.
- Adjust the rotor to the 'edit' item. If the 'edit' item is not present in the rotor that means no text has been selected.
- One finger swipe up or down until you hear 'copy'.
- Single finger double tap anywhere on the screen to copy the selected text into the buffer. Voiceover will announce the entire block of text that was copied to the buffer.
- Move focus to an editable text field and single finger double tap to edit it. If you do not have a bluetooth keyboard connected then the on-screen keyboard will appear. You can ignore it or close it by activating the 'Hide keyboard' button at the bottom right of the on-screen keyboard.
- Move the insertion point to the desired location in the text field by dragging a single finger around within the text. You can also adjust the rotor to 'characters', 'words', or 'lines' and then move the insertion point using single finger swipe up or down.
- Adjust the rotor to the 'edit' item.
- Single finger swipe up or down until you hear 'paste'.
- Double tap anywhere on the screen to paste the text from the buffer into the text field. Voiceover will read the entire block of text that was pasted into the text field.
Copying read-only text using a bluetooth keyboard
- Press the left arrow and right arrow simultaneously to ensure quick nav is on.
- Press left arrow or right arrow to navigate to the phrase that contains the desired text or the beginning of a large block of desired text.
- Press VO+shift+M. You should hear three beeps.
- Adjust the rotor to the unit of text that will be used to select the desired text: 'characters', 'words', or 'lines'.
- Use the pinch gesture to increase or decrease the amount of selected text. Voiceover will speak text as it is added or removed to the selection. Note that it appears there is no way to use the keyboard to do this so you must use the pinch gesture.
- Press cmd+C to copy the selected text into the buffer. Voiceover will announce the entire block of text that was copied to the buffer.
- Move focus to an editable text field and press up arrow and down arrow at the same time to disable quick nav so you can edit the text in the text field
- Move the insertion point to the desired location in the text field using the commands defined in the Entering and editing text section of this document.
- Press cmd+V to paste the text from the buffer into the text field. Voiceover will read the entire block of text that was pasted into the text field.
Copying read-only text using a refreshable braille display
- Press 1+spacebar or 4+spacebar to navigate to the phrase that contains the desired text or the beginning of a large block of desired text.
- Press 2+3+spacebar or 5+6+spacebar to adjust the rotor to the unit of text that will be used to select the desired text: 'characters', 'words', or 'lines'.
- Press 2+5+6+spacebar to select the first unit of text that you specified using the rotor. Note that Voiceover speaks the selected text and the selected text is identified on the braille display by dots 7 and 8.
- Press 2+5+6+spacebar to increase the amount of text that is selected. Change the unit of text to be selected by adjusting the rotor using 2+3+spacebar or 5+6+spacebar. Note that each time you increase the amount of text selected Voiceover speaks the text that was added to the selection and the entire block of selected text is identified on the braille display by dots 7 and 8.
- Press 2+3+5+spacebar to decrease the amount of text that is selected. Note that each time you decrease the amount of text selected Voiceover speaks the text that was added to the selection and the entire block of selected text is identified on the braille display by dots 7 and 8.
- Press 1+4+spacebar to copy the selected text into the buffer. Voiceover will announce the entire block of text that was copied to the buffer.
- Move focus to an editable text field.
- Move the insertion point to the desired location in the text field using the commands defined in the Entering and editing text section of this document.
- Press 1+2+3+6+spacebar to paste the text from the buffer into the text field. Voiceover will read the entire block of text that was pasted into the text field.
Entering and editing text
This section defines commands that are used to enter and edit text in an editable text field such as a search field, the address bar in Safari, the Notes app, the Pages, app, etc.
Mac Voiceover Utility
Entering and editing text using the on-screen keyboard
This section defines how to enter and edit text using the on-screen keyboard. The on-screen keyboard is slow and cumbersome compared to a bluetooth keyboard or a refreshable braille display. Therefore, we recommend using the keyboard or braille display when possible.
- Move focus to an editable text field and single finger double tap to edit it. The on-screen keyboard should appear if you do not have a bluetooth keyboard connected to your device.
- Move the insertion point to the desired location in the text field by dragging a single finger around within the text. You can also adjust the rotor to 'characters', 'words', or 'lines' and then move the insertion point using single finger swipe up or down.
- If you need to copy and paste text within the text field, use the process defined in the Copying read-only text using gestures section of this document.
Entering and editing text using a bluetooth keyboard
The most effective and efficient way to edit text with a bluetooth keyboard is to disable quick nav. This section assumes that you will turn off quick nav when entering and editing text within an editable text field. Press the left arrow and right arrow at the same time to turn quick nav on or off.
Navigating text using a bluetooth keyboard
| Action | Keyboard with quick nav off |
|---|---|
| Read next character | Right arrow |
| Read previous character | Left arrow |
| Read next word | Option + right arrow |
| Read previous word | Option + left arrow |
| Read next line | Down arrow |
| Read previous line | Up arrow |
| Read next paragraph | Option + down arrow |
| Read previous paragraph | Option + up arrow |
| Move insertion point to the beginning of the current line | Cmd + left arrow |
| Move insertion point to the end of the current line | Cmd + right arrow |
| Move insertion point to the top of the text field | Cmd + up arrow |
| Move insertion point to the bottom of the text field | Cmd + down arrow |
Manipulating text using a bluetooth keyboard
| Action | Keyboard with quick nav off |
|---|---|
| Select text to be copied, cut, or deleted | Press shift and any of the commands defined in the navigating text using a bluetooth keyboard section of this document |
| Select all | Cmd + A |
| Delete selected text | Delete |
| Copy selected text | Cmd + C |
| Cut selected text | Cmd + X |
| Paste text | Cmd + V |
| Undo | Cmd + Z |
| Redo | Cmd + shift + Z |
Entering and editing text using a refreshable braille display
Navigating text using a refreshable braille display
| Action | Braille |
|---|---|
| Move cursor to a specific character | Press the cursor routing button under that character on the braille display |
| Pan to the right | 5 + spacebar |
| Pan to the left | 2 + spacebar |
| Read the next unit of text defined by the rotor | 6 + spacebar |
| Read the previous unit of text defined by the rotor | 3 + spacebar |
| Page down | 1 + 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Page up | 3 + 4 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Move cursor to beginning or end of text field or document | 3 + 6 + spacebar or joystick in |
Manipulating text using a refreshable braille display
Voiceover Apple
| Action | Braille |
|---|---|
| Tab | 2 + 3 + 4 + 5 + spacebar |
| Delete | 1 + 4 + 5 + spacebar or 7 + spacebar |
| Enter | 1 + 5 + spacebar or 8 + spacebar |
| Select an additional unit of text to be copied, cut, or deleted (where unit of text is defined by the rotor) | 2 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Unselect a unit of selected text (where unit of text is defined by the rotor) | 2 + 3 + 5 + spacebar |
| Select all | 2 + 3 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Delete selected text | 1 + 4 + 5 + spacebar or 7 + spacebar |
| Copy selected text | 1 + 4 + spacebar |
| Cut selected text | 1 + 3 + 4 + 6 + spacebar |
| Paste text | 1 + 2 + 3 + 6 + spacebar |
| Undo | 1 + 3 + 5 + 6 + spacebar |
| Redo | 2 + 3 + 4 + 6 + spacebar |
| Show or hide on-screen keyboard | 1 + 4 + 6 + spacebar |
VoiceOver is a built-in screen reader that describes aloud what appears on your computer screen: it speaks the text that’s in documents and windows. To turn on VoiceOver, press Command-F5.
When a supported refreshable braille display is connected to your computer, VoiceOver detects the display and sends it information about what’s on the screen using contracted or uncontracted braille. If you’re using a Multi-Touch trackpad, you can use VoiceOver gestures to navigate and interact with what’s on the screen. Using VoiceOver, you control the computer primarily with a keyboard, braille display, or trackpad, instead of the mouse.
When VoiceOver is on, you can use VoiceOver commands to navigate and interact with items on the screen. You enter VoiceOver commands by holding down the Control and Option keys together, along with one or more other keys. The Control and Option keys are called the “VoiceOver keys,” or “VO keys” for short. They are shown in commands as VO, as in VO-F1. You can assign VoiceOver commands to numeric keypad keys, keyboard keys, braille display input keys, and trackpad gestures, so you can use the commands with fewer keystrokes.
Mac Voiceover Manual Download
You use the VoiceOver cursor to move around the screen and hear descriptions of the items in the cursor. You use it to select buttons and other controls, and to read and edit text. The keyboard focus and mouse pointer work with the VoiceOver cursor in a variety of ways. You can configure them to follow each other, or use them separately to move in different applications at the same time.
The first time you start VoiceOver, you can choose to take the Quick Start tutorial, an interactive tour of VoiceOver navigation and interaction basics. When VoiceOver is on, you can start the tutorial at any time by pressing VO-Command-F8.
You can customize VoiceOver to best suit your needs using VoiceOver Utility.