Much
of the material in this website is copyrighted by the W3C
and UsableNet. We wish to thank them
for its
use and have provided appropriate links to the original material.
This is a collection of
pointers to information, and where possible, to demonstration versions of alternative
browsing methods.
People with disabilities,
whether temporary -- such as a slow connection or eyes "disabled" by having
to watch traffic -- or permanent -- such as hearing, visual, physical or cognitive
impairment -- use a wide range of alternative approaches, different from traditional
mouse-and-screen-based browsers.
People with visual impairment
or reading difficulties rely on speech output, Braille displays or screen magnification;
and in many cases use the keyboard instead of the mouse. People who can't use
a keyboard rely either on voice recognition for spoken commands, or on switch
devices which can be controlled by head, mouth or eye movements. People whose
eyes are busy with another task may need Web access using voice-driven systems.
This page is intended to give you background and pointers to solutions for these
scenarios.
The purpose of this collection
is to reflect the whole range of approaches used for browsing. If you design
Web pages, then this will allow you to try out a particular browsing method
with specific sites as a way of checking how usable they are for a given browser,
or combination of browser and screen-reader, voice-recognition, or other adaptive
systems. If you are a user who may be interested in finding the most effective
method for you, then you should also find useful information here.
The page is divided into
five sections:
Section
1 covers browsers which have been specially developed for people with
disabilities.
Section
2 is devoted to screen-readers, which allow visually impaired people to
navigate with standard applications, and are therefore most often used in
conjunction with mainstream browsers such as Netscape Navigator, Microsoft
Internet Explorer, Opera, etc.
Section
3 covers browsers not specifically designed for disabled people but which
have features that have allowed them to be used in combination with adaptive
systems.
Section
4 is devoted to voice browsers which give spoken Web access, e.g. by telephone
using voice input or dialled commands and speech output.
Section
5 is a "catch-all" section intended to cover any access methods not covered
by the previous categories.
Disclaimer:
Inclusion of products on
this reference list does not mean that they are endorsed by W3C. Products are
listed in alphabetical order, with no quality rating. W3C provides the information
on this page as a service to the Web community and in good faith. However W3C
cannot verify the accuracy of all claims made by developers or users.
Acknowledgements:
This reference list was
developed by Peter Bosher (peter@soundlinks.com),
for the WAI Education and Outreach Working
Group. Information on other activities and resources of W3C's Web Accessibility
Initiative is available on the WAI home page.
Please e-mail any suggestions for improvements or additions to Peter
Bosher with a cc to wai@w3.org.
For each of the following
browsers, a brief description is given indicating which of the above adaptive
features is supported.
BrookesTalk
This browser under development by Oxford Brookes University focuses on facilitating
intelligent web-searching.
Speech output, screen-magnification;
Demonstration available.
EIAD
A browser from Sarsfield Solutions which provides enhancements specifically
for people with special needs and learning difficulties.
Touch-screen, simplified language interface.
No demonstration available.
EMACSPEAK
The speech-enabled environment for EMACS, runs under UNIX or LINUX, includes
full web browsing capabilities through W3.
Speech output, simple keyboard interface.
Free download available.
HomePage
Reader
The speech-based browser from IBM, using Internet Explorer as its engine.
Speech output, simple keyboard interface based on number-pad.
Demonstration available.
Marco
Polo
A plug-in for Netscape Navigator from Sonicon with speech and auditory icons.
Speech output, audio icons, simple keyboard interface.
Demonstration available.
MultiWeb
Disability-specific browser developed at Deakin University.
Speech output, screen magnification, scanning for switch devices.
Free download available.
pwWebSpeak
The first and longest established low-vision browser from isSound.
Speech output, synchronised speech and screen magnification, simple keyboard
interface.
Demonstration available.
Sensus
Internet Browser
A low-vision internet browser from Sensus in Denmark.
Speech output, Braille support, special screen fonts.
No demonstration available.
Simply
Web 2000
A talking interface using the Internet Explorer engine.
Speech output, simple keyboard interface.
Free download available.
A screen-reader is used
to allow navigation of the screen presented by the operating system, using speech
or Braille output, and should therefore enable use of any mainstream application.
In the context of browsing this usually means that they are used in conjunction
with Netscape, Microsoft Internet Explorer, or, less often, with one of the
other non-disability-specific browsers such as LYNX and Opera, detailed in section
3. Listed below are the home pages of all the major developers of screen-readers
for different versions of Windows, and including one for Macintosh. Many of
these include support for MS-DOS, either as an integral part of the Windows
version, or in conjunction with a stand-alone DOS screen-reader. They all provide
demonstration versions.
ASAW
from Microtalk:
(DOS, Windows 95/98/ME) speech.
HAL
from Dolphin:
(DOS, Windows 95/98/ME and NT) speech and Braille.
JAWS
For Windows from Freedom Scientific
(DOS, Windows 95/98/ME and NT) speech and Braille.
These browsers are all
designed for general use, but are of interest because they may give enhanced
accessibility in combination with particular adaptive systems, and some have
enhanced screen magnification or navigation options.
AMAYA
This is W3C's test-bed browser, implementing emerging web technologies. There
are versions for Windows 95/98/ME, Windows NT and UNIX.
LYNX,
and Mac OS version
of LYNX
This is a popular text-based browser for UNIX, Windows 95/NT, MS-DOS, and
Mac OS allowing flexible and powerful text-based access from older platforms.
We will be expanding this
section to include links to reference lists of other access technologies such
as screen magnifiers and voice recognition programs which can be used in conjunction
with Web browsers.
There are a number of
systems which filter or transform existing pages to make them more accessible
regardless of which browser is being used. For a collection of links to such
transformation tools, see: The
WAI List of filter and transformation tools.
Agora
is a system which allows web-pages to be retrieved by E-mail simply by sending
a message containing the URL of the desired document.
Page
Getter allows powerful and flexible retrieval of web-pages by E-mail,
with options to include images, or request text only.
The
Voice allows representation of images in sound using Peter Meijer's "image
sonification" technique.
Information on screen
magnifiers, which can be used in conjunction with mainstream browsers, is
available at The Screen Magnification Home Page.
