Browsing the web with Safari

Safari - Apple's web browser

Safari is Apple's web browser and is tightly integrated into the iPhone and iPad systems. Other web browsers are available but I will outline only Safari here. I have also produced some notes on using the Google app as an alternative way to search and browse the web on iPhone and iPad. The Google app has some nice features, but it sometimes has problems working with VoiceOver and is probably best suited to low vision users and experienced VoiceOver users.

Safari is opened with the Siri command "open Safari" or by locating the app and double tapping.  If you are using another app, Mail for example, and come across an item that VoiceOver describes as a link, then this contains the address of a web page.  Double tapping will open Safari automatically at that web page. 

Layout of the Safari screen

Safari offers two screen layout options. These options may be set at Settings / Apps / Safari in the Tabs section. 

iPhone users can choose between two settings called Tab Bar and Single Tab. If Tab Bar is selected, the address field is positioned at the bottom of the screen above a toolbar. If Single Tab is selected the address field is positioned at the top of the screen and the toolbar at the bottom.

iPad users can choose between two rather different settings called Separate Tab Bar and Compact Tab Bar. If Separate Tab Bar is selected, the address field is positioned at the top of the screen above a bar of browser tabs. If Compact Tab Bar is selected a single bar incorporating a few of the browser tabs is positioned at the top of the screen.

On this page I assume that your iPhone screen layout is in Single Tab layout with the address field at the top of the screen. If you have chosen the other layout please reinterpret any positions I describe from top to bottom. 

Visit a web page for which you know the web address

Open Safari. VoiceOver will speak the item on which it is currently focused.  This will probably be the page menu button. Swiping right should take you to the address field. If that doesn't work, slide a finger slowly down from top centre of the screen until you find the address field. This will normally contain the address of the last web page you visited or display the text search or enter website name.  Lift your finger. 

Double tap now to enter the address of the web page that you want to visit.  You will probably hear "address, text field, is editing". This will be followed by the address of the last web page you visited and this will be selected so that it will be replaced by whatever you type or dictate. 

Now you can enter the web address using the keyboard, handwriting or Braille Screen Input. Once the web address is entered, feel near bottom right of the screen for the Go key on the keyboard and double tap. 

If you prefer trying to dictate a web address, the voice search button offers the most convenient way to do this; if you swipe right after you hear "text field, is editing", you will find the voice search button. After double tapping on this button,wait for a ping and then speak the web address, for example, bbc dot co dot uk and then pause. Safari should then display the web page. You can also try spelling addresses or parts of addresses that are likely to be difficult for dictation to interpret.

Exploring the content of a web page

Safari should now be displaying the web page you selected.

At this point, it's worth noting that some web pages are written very badly and won't work well with screen readers.  Most modern web sites work reasonably well with screen readers and many are now totally accessible to screen reader users. If the web site you want to use isn't accessible, there is no easy fix. Let's assume for now that the website is accessible. 

There is no best way to explore web pages. It's a personal choice and may also be dependent on the way the website is organised.

Here are some ways you can explore a web page.

Method one:

Swipe down with two fingers to have the entire page spoken to you from the current position. Pause and resume reading with a two finger tap.

Method two:

Slide your finger slowly down the screen and listen to the text under your finger. This will also give you some idea of the layout of the page, which may be helpful. If you reach the bottom of the screen and want to read on, scroll up with a three finger swipe upwards.  You should hear something like "page two of eight" to let you know how much more information is available on this web page.

Method three:

Swipe forward through items on the page with a right swipe and backwards with a left swipe. This will take you through the content of the page but give you no information about the layout. This may not take you to every item on the page. Slide your finger slowly over the screen instead if you suspect that you aren't hearing all of the screen content.

Method four:

Finally, you can use the rotor to do some skimming. Try turning the rotor to headings. You will be told how many headings are on the page and you can skip forward through them with a one finger swipe down and back up again with an upward swipe. This can be a very effective way of skipping quickly to content that interests you on websites that are marked up well with headings by their authors..

As you swipe down through the headings, the text of the heading will be spoken to you. If you hear the text of the heading, followed by the word heading, then the heading will usually be followed by the relevant information, just like a newspaper headline. You will be able to listen to the information by swiping down with two fingers to begin continuous reeding. Sometimes the heading will also be a link to another webpage containing the detail. In that case, VoiceOver will speak "link" after the heading text.  Double tapping will take you to that web page.

If you wish to return to the previous web page, you will find a back button at bottom left of the screen.

Another rotor setting that you may find useful on web pages is links.

Searching the web using Safari

So, that's a brief summary of using Safari to visit a web page for which you know the web address. What should you do if you don't know the address. One choice would be to use the Google app, but you can also use Siri's intelligence as well as Google search  in Safari. Here's how -

Instead of entering a web address when you begin your Safari session, enter something you wish to search for. If you type using the on-screen keyboard, then you will need to return VoiceOver focus to the top of the screen with a touch after typing the search term. Otherwise, if you used the voice search button,  handwriting or Braille Screen Input, VoiceOver will remain focused on the address text field. Swipe right from the address field to hear what has appeared on the screen. You may hear some other items before you encounter the results of your search.  What turns up will depend on what you typed.  Some of the items will be suggested web addresses and others will be suggested Google searches. There may be a Top hits heading, followed by suggested web pages or perhaps Siri will also suggest a web address. If any of these look good, double tap to go straight to the web page. If not, there will probably be a Google search heading. The Google search heading  is followed by suggested Google search phrases.. When you find a search phrase that suits you, double tap to perform the Google search. You will be presented with a standard Google search results web page.  Be aware that Google search results may start with advertisements for commercial items similar to the item you specified. Just keep going past these if you know what you want. Google results pages have several buttons at the top of the page to let you refine the search to items like images and maps. You will need to swipe past these if you don't want to refine your search further. To skip quickly over this section, set the rotor to headings and swipe down until you hear "search results, heading level 1" and then swipe right from here.  Alternatively slide your finger down from the top of the screen until you reach some useful search results and then swipe right from there. If any of the suggested links are of interest  double tap. Safari will then display the selected web page and you can explore its contents as before. 

If your search wasn't successful and you want to begin a new search or enter a new web site address, slide your finger slowly down from top centre of the screen and you will find the address field .  Double tap to enter a new search or web site address.

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