VoiceOver essentials - slides

Title slide: VoiceOver essentials

VoiceOver essentials Tech Talk and Tea session for Vista

Brian Negus, 10 September 2020

Introductory slide

Please stop me any time to ask for clarification. You’ll probably be helping the others.

Feedback please

Nearly all my training has been one to one. Finding my way with group sessions.

Even more challenging over the internet

Who should use VoiceOver?

It’s designed for people with no sight at all.

If you are peering at the screen or using a magnifier or large amounts of Zoom it’s probably time to make the effort to learn VoiceOver.

If you have useful sight, you can turn VoiceOver on and off whenever you wish using Siri.

Performing touch gestures

Gestures are performed with one, two, three and even four fingers. Perform double taps and swipes near the centre of the screen.

Ensure stray fingers don’t touch the screen.

Double taps need to be quite quick. It’s possible to set a slower speed.

What’s on the screen?

It’s always safe to touch with one finger - a one finger touch never performs an action.

Slide one finger around the screen and stop while VoiceOver speaks - stray finger warning: resting a finger on an item and touching the screen with another finger is the same as a double tap with one finger and will result in an action.

Or use a left or right swipe.

A swipe is a rapid flick which brushes the screen in passing.Too slow and it’s a touch.

Swipe right moves forward through items on screen. Swipe left move backwards.

Understanding VoiceOver focus

VoiceOver is focused on the last item it spoke. If that is an app, then a one finger double tap opens the app. If it is a button a one finger double tap presses the button.

When you open an app or move to a new screen, VoiceOver speaks its initial focus, usually at the top of the screen. If that’s what you want, for example the top left app, then great, just double tap. If VoiceOver isn’t where you want it, move the focus by sliding or swiping.

In some apps, the initial focus will be on a back button at the top left of the screen and this probably isn’t what you want to double tap.

Screen layout

Nearly all screens have the status bar at the top.

VoiceOver focus can’t escape from the status bar by swiping.

Slide a finger down below the status bar to find the first non-status bar item if you touch the status bar.Swipes within apps

Swiping right or left moves forward or back between items in apps. In Mail swipes will move from message to message in your inbox list. In the Notes list, swipes move from note to note.

In settings, swipes move from item to item.

In a long item like a long email or web page, swipes move by a chunk of text or by objects like images.

Example - Mail the simplest way

Swipe right through message summaries in your Inbox Double tap with one finger to open an individual message.

Swipe right to hear the mail spoken a chunk of text at a time, bearing any objects within the mail identified.

Locate the back button at top left and double tap to return to the Inbox list.

Actions

Actions are available in many situations. VoiceOver usually states when they are.

Actions are selected by a vertical swipe either up or down. (It’s a circular list.) The action you stop at is performed by a single finger double tap.

Mail with actions

Locate a message in your inbox.

Swipe up to hear the available actions.

If you want to delete the mail, swipe up to hear delete and double tap.

Continuous reading

Swipe down with two fingers to have everything from the current VoiceOver focus spoken.

Swipe up with two fingers to have the whole screen spoken. Tap with two fingers to pause speech.

Tap with two fingers to resume speech.

If you missed something, tap with two fingers, swipe left to move VoiceOver focus back a bit, then resume continuous reading with a two finger swipe down.

Mail with continuous reading

Locate a message in your inbox.

Double tap with one finger to open it.

Swipe down with two fingers to start continuous reading.

Pause and resume with a two finger tap. Move back and forward with left and right swipes.

This works fine on any long document or web page.

Two finger tap - pause and resume speech

The two finger tap pauses and resumes all VoiceOver speech. Not just when you start continuous reading.

Anytime VoceOver is speaking, it can be paused this way.

Scrolling - three finger swipes

Move between pages of apps with right or left three finger swipes Scroll up on down with a three finger vertical swipe.

VoiceOver speaks the position of your current page.

Imagine the screen contents following your fingers.

There is a quicker way of scrolling through long pages - for another session!

The magic tap - two finger double tap

Action depends on context.

If the phone is ringing, answers the call.

If you are in a call, ends the call.

If you are listening to media like music or an audio book, pauses and resumes playback.

If you are editing text and a keyboard is on screen, begins and ends dictation. (Dictation needs to be enabled in Keyboard settings)

Entering text

Double tap a text field with one finger to start entering text and a keyboard appears at the bottom of the screen.

If you can’t see the keyboard and don’t know the QWERTY layout, typing is impractical.

If you do know QWERTY, slide a finger to locate the key and double tap to enter. Other styles are available.

Alternatives to QWERTY typing are dictation with the magic tap or handwriting and Braille Screen input, both of which require the rotor gesture. I’ll cover this in another session.

Essential app skills - items within apps

If you wait a while, VoiceOver often speaks hints on what you might do next. (This can be turned off in VoiceOver settings when you become more expert)

VoiceOver announces item names and their type., e.g. mailboxes, back button. Headings are just for your information.

Buttons can be double tapped to activate them.

Links can be double tapped to visit web pages - also call phone numbers There are plenty of other types of item you’ll encounter.

Sometimes with on/off switches, you’ll only hear on or off. Double tap with one finger to change.

Exploring app screens

Try sliding and swiping

May find tabs, usually at the bottom Each tab displays a different screen Select a tab with a one finger double tap

Then touch near top of screen to begin exploring the screen. (VoiceOver will still be focused on the tab.)

The Phone app and tabs

Feel at bottom left for the favourites tab and swipe right to explore the others. Swipe back left and locate Recents, tab, 2 of 5.

Double tap to select this tab.

Slide a finger down from top centre and you’ll find recents, heading

Swipe right from there.

Now find Recents, heading again and swipe left to discover what comes before.

Two buttons, one for all calls and one to restrict the display to missed calls. Double tap with one finger to select.

Final slide: Requests and questions?

Back to Tech talk and tea notes