Accessibility

JAWS scripts for Flex 1.5/2.0 ReadMe

July 19, 2006

Description of scripts

These JAWS for Windows scripts are provided by Adobe free of charge to users to enhance the accessibility of Adobe Flex with JAWS for Windows. These scripts are designed to work with JAWS 6.1 or JAWS 7.0 and with Flex 1.5 or 2.0. The scripts only work for Flex controls embedded in web pages with Internet Explorer 6. By default, JAWS supports many Flex components in an accessible manner; this document covers only script enhancements and does not describe the full list of Flex accessibility features.

The scripts enhance the following:

  • Turning on and off Forms mode when on an interactive Flex component
  • Braille support for combo boxes, menu items, and tab controls
  • Speaking correct state of checkboxes when toggled in Virtual Cursor mode and in Forms mode
  • Speaking correct state of radio buttons when toggled in Virtual Cursor mode and in Forms mode
  • Speaking state of tree items (closed or open)
  • Speaking presence of tree view when reaching tree view items in Virtual Cursor
  • Speaking role of “tree” and currently focused tree view item when entering tree control in Forms mode by pressing Enter/Left mouse button
  • Speaking the name and role of page tabs (without extra role text of “tab”)
  • Performing the “default” action on buttons when Enter/Left mouse button is pressed
  • Speaking “read only” for static text that is placed in the tab order
  • Speaking “unavailable” for unavailable controls
  • Speaking pop-up alert box title, text, and buttons when the box appears while in Forms mode
  • Speaking combo-box and list-box values when arrowing to them in Virtual Cursor mode
  • Speaking of “sub menu” state of menus in Forms mode
  • Speaking of “checked” state of menu items in Forms mode
  • Speaking of “menu item” role for menu items in Forms mode
  • Speaking of role of “grouping” after panel groupings in Virtual Cursor mode
  • Speaking current page tab name when user enters Form mode on tab control by pressing Enter/Left mouse button
  • Placing focus on tree view when Enter is pressed on the tree to enter Forms mode
  • Speaking of “unchecked” radio buttons when Control+Up/Down arrows are used to focus on a new radio button

Installing the Flex JAWS scripts

Previous versions of Flex scripts must be uninstalled from all versions of JAWS before the new Flex scripts can be installed.

Run the install program jfw_flex_2.exe to install the JAWS scripts for Flex 1.5 and 2.0. The same script file is used for both versions of Flex.

During installation the user is prompted to choose from the JAWS versions on the system (6.10 or 7.0) to install into. The user may select multiple version of JAWS to install the scripts into. The scripts are installed to the user settings folder for the current user. The scripts are not designed to be installed under different user accounts on the same machine. In order to install the scripts for all users, the scripts must be manually installed. Manual installation is not recommended.

To confirm that the JAWS scripts have been installed, press JAWSKey+Q while Internet Explorer 6 is open and active. The scripts will announce “updated for Adobe Flex 1.5 and 2.0 ” at the end of the message.