Windows NT Screen Reader (fwd)

From: David Andrews (dandrews@winternet.com)
Date: Thu Aug 15 1996 - 19:43:51 PDT


I got the following message from Rich Schwerdefeger who works for IBM.
He is involved with Screen Reader/2. I believe he did much of the
Windows code. He is looking for feedback on whether or not they should
do a NT screen reader. I told him that I personally would rather see
them do x-windows as no one else is likely to do it, but if not that, NT
is the next obvious choice. People need it and there is only one very
expensive product that has received mixed reviews at best.
David andrews

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: 15 Aug 96 17:31:34
From: Richard Schwerdtfeger <schwer@austin.ibm.com>
To: dandrews <dandrews@winternet.com>
Subject: Windows NT Screen Reader

Hi David,

I have not talked to you in a while since I dumped CompuServe in favor of my
Internet connection. I got a copy of Chuck Opperman's latest ActiveX marketing
bonanza attached to this note.

I met Chuck a while ago in Chicago on another matter regarding mobility
impairment. ActiveX requires more than throwing jello at the wall and hoping it
will stick. Companies need to be convinced to adopt ActiveX accessibility as
well as just ActiveX itself. Also, screen reader developers need to accommodate
this as well. It is nice that Microsoft is developing a means for developing
accessible applications, but they are not helping vendors to adopt it as well
as they should. Microsoft should be going to companies such as Corel, Intuit,
and Lotus and helping them out to set the standard for using ActiveX
accessibility. They are not. The second problem is that Active Accessibility
only gives you contextual information when it is able to do so, such as whether
an object is a button or an HTML table ultimately. You still need an OSM and a
robust screen reader to do the rest of the job. Active Accessibility does
about 30 percent of the job of helping to interpret what is on the screen as
both Chuck Opperman and I discussed in our last meeting. The Windows95 version
of TOM was never implemented by Microsoft despite their claims of having worked
on it. In there defense, many of the Screen Reader vendors would not have used
it anyway.

On an aside, I am conducting an feasibility study of doing a Windows NT Screen
Reader. What kind of interest is there out there for IBM to do this? If you
think there is I would appreciate your sending me any feedback on this from
anyone you know who might be interested, including yourself. Clearly, I think
this is Microsoft's duty to do this as we did on OS/2, but I do believe we
could do a better job and there has been some interest in IBM for us to do
this. The question is should we and can we. Your input can help in this
determination.

Rich

ATTACHMENT:

From: David Andrews, INTERNET:dandrews@winternet.com
TO: Multiple recipients of list, INTERNET:NFB-RD@LOTHLORIEN.NFBCAL.ORG
DATE: 8/13/96 3:52 AM

RE: Microsoft's Pledge on HTML Standards (fwd)

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From: David Andrews <dandrews@winternet.com>
To: Multiple recipients of list <nfb-rd@lothlorien.nfbcal.org>
Subject: Microsoft's Pledge on HTML Standards (fwd)

I thought the following Microsoft pledge migght interest some of you.
David Andrews

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Mon, 12 Aug 1996 18:18:11 -0700
From: Charles (Chuck) Oppermann <chuckop@MICROSOFT.COM>
To: Multiple recipients of list GUISPEAK <GUISPEAK@LISTSERV.NODAK.EDU>
Subject: Microsoft's Pledge on HTML Standards

The following pledge can be found at
http://www.microsoft.com/internet/html.htm

Note the sentence "screen readers for the visually-impaired need to
"speak" HTML and so on across the Internet.

We feel that Microsoft is in the best position to make the entire world
of the internet accessible to people with disabilities. Microsoft
Internet Explorer 3.0 is just the first of many products that will take
advantage of ActiveX Accessibility and be designed with the needs of
everyone in mind. If you'd like to comment on Microsoft's approach,
please send mail to me.

Charles Oppermann
Program Manager,
Windows Accessibility Group
Microsoft Corporation
chuckop@microsoft.com
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/enable/

------
Microsoft Pledge on HTML Standards

Microsoft views the Internet as the most exciting growth opportunity for
the computing industry and for our own business. We are committed to
helping the industry grow as fast as possible; we appreciate the role
that successful open standards can play in accelerating growth by
letting every vendor participate.

Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) is the most basic and fundamental data
format of the World Wide Web. Support for HTML standards ensures that
content can be viewed by any browser as the creator intended. As with
the ASCII character set, agreement on the most basic data format is
critical to interoperability and the continued growth of the industry.
Imagine the chaos of the computer industry without the ASCII standard
for text. The need for interoperability goes beyond the browser.
Authoring tools create HTML, databases emit HTML, screen readers for the
visually-impaired need to "speak" HTML and so on across the entire
Internet.

Previous proprietary HTML extensions from Microsoft and other vendors
have confused the market, hampered interoperability and been
ill-conceived with respect to the design principles underlying HTML (and
its SGML parent).

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), headed by Tim Berners-Lee, is the
driving body for enhancements to HTML. The efforts of the W3C include
the HTML version 3.2 specification, CSS1 Stylesheets and the Platform
for Internet Content Specification (PICS) as well as ongoing work to
enhance stylesheets and define a layout specification. The W3C has been
instrumental to the extraordinary growth of the Internet. Every major
industry player participates in W3C and has publicly endorsed the W3C's
standards work. Among the expectations for W3C members:

* Bring new ideas which impact HTML to the group's attention, as oppo=
sed
to keeping them secret.
* Implement ideas that have achieved consensus in the group.
* Follow the architectural principles guiding the group, rather than
release alternatives which ignore or contradict these principles.

To date, W3C has been an effective standards body, making significant
contributions to the industry and keeping up with the incredible pace of
innovation on the Internet. Because of this effectiveness, Microsoft is
committed to working with the W3C to further advance the HTML standard.
Microsoft will agree to:

* Not ship extensions to HTML without first submitting them to W3C.
* Implement all W3C approved HTML standards.
* Clearly identify any not-yet-approved HTML tags we support as such.
* Publish a Document Type Definition (DTD) for its browser as mandate=
d
by SGML.
* Follow the architecture principles of HTML and its parent, SGML, wh=
en
proposing new extensions.

Microsoft agrees to hold itself to these standards. Will all the other
Web browser vendors, including Netscape, also agree to this conduct of
behavior?

=A91996 Microsoft Corporation

  



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