Screenreader

A screen reader (English screen reader, screen reader '), also known as reading application, a software that blind and visually impaired is an alternative user interface instead of text mode or instead of a graphical user interface provides. A screen reader conveys the information that is usually printed on the screen, use of non-visual output devices. The controls and texts are reproduced by means of acoustic speech synthesis mostly via a sound card or via a tactile Braille display.

The issue is not limited to text: Reproduced are all shown on screen graphical elements such as windows, menus, selection boxes, current input position, symbols, etc. The detail of the reproduction of these elements is individually adjustable in the rule. Thus be operated not only individual programs, but the entire graphical user interface for the blind and partially sighted About speech and Braille.

Some screen readers are limited to specific applications and do not allow access to the operating system. The screen reader will be doing mostly uses only the keyboard.

Screen readers enable, inter alia, also reading and operation of websites. Thus, in visual content ( graphics, animation, videos) are read aloud their alternative texts. With special key combinations can ( with the P key usually ) are bound, for example, from heading to heading (usually with the H key) and from paragraph to paragraph. Also the direct control of other text structures is possible. Provided, however, the barrier-free design of a website.

Speech

The generation of the synthesized speech to output the information acoustically occurs depending on the manufacturer by two different methods:

Firstly, there is an external device that is connected to the PC and generates the language independently of the computer used. This has to supply only the output medium with the information to be read.

On the other hand, there is the easier way, the synthetic speech ( have integrated the many screen readers ) with a program to make and then play on PC speakers or headphones.

Since the synthetic speech is produced by a machine, the voice acting is not always pleasant and harmonious, as the records are read monotonously without pause or emphasis and not every word is pronounced correctly. But remedy mostly built in the software dictionary feature that allows the user to certain words, terms, names, and character strings ( eg emoticons, abbreviations ) can cause a specific debate in order to improve clarity. The user can decide whether you want a male or female voice resound; in addition it can set whether the text should be spoken slowly or quickly.

Known Screen Reader

• Blindows - German Screen Reader from FRANK Audio Data, later Audio Data GmbH (today BAUM Retec AG) for Windows 3.11 to Windows XP. The development of BLINDOWS was terminated in 2006 in favor of COBRA.
• COBRA - German Screen Reader BAUM Retec AG. Common successor of BLINDOWS and VIRGO.
• Emacspeak
• HAL
• JAWS (Job access with speech )
• Virgo German Screen Reader BAUM Retec AG for Windows 3.1 to Windows XP. The development was terminated in 2006 in favor of COBRA.
• Window Eyes
• NonVisual Desktop Access ( NVDA) - free open source screen reader for Microsoft Windows
• System Access
• Thunder
• Orca ( screen reader ) for the GNOME Desktop on Linux
• Talkback - the operating system of integrated screen reader for Android
• VoiceOver - or built-in screen reader for Mac OS X and iOS

Browser plug-in for screen readers

• Fire Vox ( for Firefox)
• Webformator ( for Internet Explorer)