Introducing AT Prime for Windows by VICT Access
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AT Prime is a cloud-based accessibility optimiser service which makes it much easier for blind computer users to use Windows desktop applications with a screenreader. Screenreader applications have evolved a vast array of features in order to provide blind computer users with keyboard access to windows and controls while providing feedback in speech and Braille.
The problem remains that screenreaders tend to deliver much of that accessibility in special modes with many keyboard shortcuts to remember and this requires extensive training, often at some considerable expense. Not all users get the benefit of such training and much effort is required on the part of the screenreader user to understand when to use the special modes and to remember dozens of keyboard shortcuts. As a consequence, blind computer users are expected to be far more computer literate than their sighted counterparts.
The principal goal of AT Prime is to abolish the need for a blind computer user to have to learn about their screenreader's special navigation modes, mouse simulations and associated keyboard shortcuts. It does this by making it possible to tab to and interact with controls which do not normally receive keyboard focus, to perform mouse operations on controls and to customise how you do all of this without introducing any additional keyboard shortcuts to remember.
Initially supporting desktop applications only, AT Prime does not replace a Windows screenreader; it works silently in the background and all of its features are accessible through its own popup menu.
What are the benefits of AT Prime being a cloud-based service?
In addition to providing simple keyboard access to all kinds of controls, AT Prime lets you label or add notes to controls, compile collections of often-used objects as favourites, and let you customise any window so that you tab to only the controls you want to access in any given situation. And, being a cloud service, your labels, profiles and settings are stored in the cloud and will be available to you on any Windows computer no matter what screenreader you use. All you have to do is to log in to your AT Prime account.
Overview of AT Prime's features
- Tabbing to blocks of text in windows and message boxes which do not normally receive keyboard focus.
- Displaying the text of any kind of control in a popup window so that you can read through the text with the arrow keys.
- Labelling unnamed controls and saving longer descriptions and help messages for controls.
- Viewing a control's tooltip without knowing how to use the mouse simulation features of your screenreader.
- Adding a control to a list of your favourites which can be accessed later from a popup menu or by a shortcut you provide.
- Viewing an application window's accessible controls in a single list which also lets you interact easily with items in that list.
- Tabbing to all kinds of controls, such as toolbar buttons, which do not normally receive keyboard focus.
- The ability to design different custom tabbing schemes for the same application window which let you hide controls you don't want to tab to when performing different tasks.
- Automatically labelling unlabelled controls and images in a window in a single operation.
- Automatic announcement of changes in a control's text while you focus on a different control in a window.
- Special features to make your screenreader give more meaningful information about slider controls.
- Scanning image files of text and converting them to readable text.
- A comprehensive online audio and text help system, including 19 tutorial podcasts available from within AT Prime itself.