Techstravaganza

JAWS Basics, Thursday, Mar 12, 2026

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Desktop Navigation Basics

Siena demonstrated fundamental JAWS navigation techniques for the Windows desktop.

  • Details
    • Siena(She/Her): Explained desktop is arranged in a grid format with 5 rows
    • Siena(She/Her): Showed arrow key navigation (up/down/left/right) to move between icons
    • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated typing first letter repeatedly to jump between items starting with same letter
    • Siena(She/Her): Showed typing multiple letters quickly to navigate to specific icons
    • Siena(She/Her): Explained JAWS announces icon name and position (e.g., “30 of 41”)
    • Conclusion
      • Users can navigate desktop efficiently using arrow keys or typing icon names
      • Single letter navigation cycles through items starting with that letter
      • Typing multiple letters quickly narrows down to specific items
        • Web Navigation Techniques

        Comprehensive demonstration of navigating websites using JAWS keyboard commands.

        • Details
          • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated using H key to navigate by headings
          • Siena(She/Her): Showed number keys (1-6) to jump to specific heading levels
          • Siena(She/Her): Explained B key navigates to buttons, E key to edit fields
          • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated Ctrl+Home to go to top of page, Ctrl+End to go to bottom
          • Siena(She/Her): Used Techstravaganza website as demonstration example
          • Conclusion
            • JAWS provides single-letter navigation for different element types
            • Heading level navigation allows quick access to page structure
            • Control+Home/End provides quick page navigation
              • JAWS List Features

              Detailed explanation of JAWS condensed list dialogs for efficient navigation.

              • Details
                • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated Insert+F7 opens links list dialog
                • Siena(She/Her): Showed Insert+F6 opens headings list dialog
                • Siena(She/Her): Revealed Insert+F5 opens form controls list
                • Siena(She/Her): Explained lists can be sorted alphabetically or in tab order
                • Siena(She/Her): Showed filtering options (all links, visited only, unvisited only)
                • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated Alt+M to move to link without activating it
                • Jackie: Confirmed familiarity with Insert+F7 but not F5 or F6
                • Siena(She/Her): Noted single letter navigation works within list dialogs
                • Conclusion
                  • JAWS separates different element types into dedicated list dialogs
                  • Lists provide filtering and sorting options for easier navigation
                  • This approach differs from VoiceOver’s unified list with granularity switching
                    • System Information Shortcuts

                    Demonstration of JAWS shortcuts for accessing system information.

                    • Details
                      • Siena(She/Her): Showed Insert+F12 announces current time
                      • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated Insert+F12 pressed twice announces date
                      • Siena(She/Her): Explained Insert+Shift+B announces battery status, AC connection, and Wi-Fi network
                      • Siena(She/Her): Noted this is more efficient than navigating to system tray with Windows+B
                      • Siena(She/Her): Mentioned JAWS does not announce volume percentage when using volume keys
                      • Conclusion
                        • JAWS provides quick keyboard shortcuts for common system information
                        • Battery status shortcut also includes network connectivity information
                        • Volume adjustment lacks percentage announcement, requiring manual checking
                          • Typing Echo Settings

                          Explanation of JAWS typing echo options for different user preferences.

                          • Details
                            • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated Insert+2 cycles through typing echo modes
                            • Siena(She/Her): Showed four options: None, Characters, Words, Both characters and words
                            • Siena(She/Her): Used Notepad to demonstrate each setting with live typing
                            • Siena(She/Her): Explained personal preference for either all or nothing, not individual settings
                            • Conclusion
                              • Users can customize typing feedback based on personal preference
                              • Insert+2 provides quick toggle between echo modes
                              • Different modes suit different tasks and user preferences
                                • Document Reading and Navigation

                                Demonstration of reading and navigating text documents in JAWS.

                                • Details
                                  • Siena(She/Her): Showed arrow keys read line by line
                                  • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated left/right arrows read character by character
                                  • Siena(She/Her): Explained JAWS announces phonetic alphabet for letters
                                  • Siena(She/Her): Showed Ctrl+Right/Left arrows navigate word by word
                                  • Siena(She/Her): Used sample text “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog”
                                  • Conclusion
                                    • JAWS provides multiple granularity levels for reading text
                                    • Phonetic pronunciation helps distinguish similar-sounding letters
                                    • Control key modifiers enable word-level navigation
                                      • Virtual PC Cursor Functionality

                                      Comprehensive explanation of Virtual PC Cursor and its use cases.

                                      • Details
                                        • Siena(She/Her): Explained Virtual PC Cursor allows browsing website content with JAWS navigation commands
                                        • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated conflicts when using website keyboard shortcuts with Virtual PC Cursor on
                                        • Siena(She/Her): Showed YouTube example where K key (pause) conflicted with JAWS place marker command
                                        • Siena(She/Her): Explained Insert+Z toggles Virtual PC Cursor on/off
                                        • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated left/right arrows rewind/fast-forward in YouTube only with cursor off
                                        • Siena(She/Her): Noted VoiceOver does not have equivalent feature due to different modifier key approach
                                        • Conclusion
                                          • Virtual PC Cursor should be ON for reading web content with JAWS navigation
                                          • Virtual PC Cursor should be OFF for using website-specific keyboard shortcuts
                                          • Toggle is necessary to avoid conflicts between JAWS and application shortcuts
                                            • Gmail Navigation with Virtual PC Cursor

                                            Practical demonstration of Virtual PC Cursor usage in Gmail.

                                            • Details
                                              • Siena(She/Her): Showed navigating inbox list requires Virtual PC Cursor OFF
                                              • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated opening messages with Enter key
                                              • Siena(She/Her): Explained reading message content requires Virtual PC Cursor ON
                                              • Siena(She/Her): Showed semicolon key to expand thread conflicted with JAWS when cursor was on
                                              • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated G+I shortcut to return to inbox only works with cursor off
                                              • Siena(She/Her): Provided rule: cursor off for lists, cursor on for reading content
                                              • Conclusion
                                                • Gmail requires frequent toggling of Virtual PC Cursor
                                                • Lists and navigation work best with cursor off
                                                • Reading message content requires cursor on for proper heading navigation
                                                  • Google Calendar Navigation

                                                  Demonstration of calendar grid navigation with Virtual PC Cursor.

                                                  • Details
                                                    • Siena(She/Her): Showed T key navigates to today’s date
                                                    • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated left/right arrows move between days of week (columns)
                                                    • Siena(She/Her): Showed up/down arrows move between weeks (rows)
                                                    • Siena(She/Her): Explained Virtual PC Cursor ON makes grid navigation confusing
                                                    • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated entire calendar can be navigated with cursor OFF
                                                    • Siena(She/Her): Showed tabbing through events after selecting a date
                                                    • Conclusion
                                                      • Google Calendar works best with Virtual PC Cursor OFF throughout
                                                      • Calendar grid navigation uses arrow keys like a spreadsheet
                                                      • Virtual PC Cursor ON interferes with proper grid navigation
                                                        • Hidden JAWS Features

                                                        Revelation of lesser-known JAWS functions accessed through Insert+Space menu.

                                                        • Details
                                                          • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated Insert+Space+F11 toggles screen shade on/off
                                                          • Siena(She/Her): Explained screen shade saves battery and provides privacy
                                                          • Siena(She/Her): Showed Insert+Space+V+B controls audio balance
                                                          • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated routing JAWS to right ear and system audio to left ear
                                                          • Siena(She/Her): Explained this enables multitasking with separate audio streams
                                                          • Jackie: Confirmed understanding that balance feature is for multitasking
                                                          • Siena(She/Her): Showed Insert+Space+V+C switches between sound cards
                                                          • Jackie: Stated this makes JAWS the best screen reader
                                                          • Siena(She/Her): Called these “Easter egg functions” not widely known
                                                          • Conclusion
                                                            • Insert+Space reveals hidden menu with advanced features
                                                            • Audio balance control is unique to JAWS among screen readers
                                                            • Screen shade provides battery savings and privacy benefits
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                                                              TechstravaganzaBy Ali Moosa, Macara Slobodian, and Siena Trigiani