JFW announces, "JAWS Cursor."
??Press the Plus key to activate the PC Cursor. JFW announces, "PC Cursor."
You can review the screen using the JAWS Cursor.
??Move the JAWS Cursor to the top, left corner of the screen by pressing Page Up, then, press the Home key to move the mouse pointer to the left edge of the screen and press the Left Arrow key until JFW announces, "Top of Window Blank."
??Begin reviewing the Desktop and Taskbar. Press Insert-Down Arrow to review the screen. JFW automatically reads the entire screen beginning with the My Computer icon and ending with the current time as it appears on the Taskbar.
You can review the screen by element, if you press Ctrl-Right Arrow to move from one element to another.
If you want to read character-by-character, press Right Arrow. If you want to read line by line, press the Up and Down arrow keys.
Exercise 2.
Review the Desktop and Taskbar using the JAWS Cursor. If you have a tactile image of the Windows screen, try to compare your impression with the picture.
Starting and Exiting programs
You can start a program by activating the program icon on the Desktop or by choosing the program from the Programs sub-menu or you can use Run dialog box.
??For programs listed on a menu, you may press the first letter to open the program quickly. When the program opens, JFW reads the title bar.
??Each time you open a program, Windows places a button for that program on the Taskbar. You can use these buttons to switch between different open programs. When the full program title does not fit on the program button on the Taskbar, Windows only lists the first few words in the title followed by ellipses to indicate the title is longer than what is listed on the button.
You can switch between running applications also using Alt-Tab or Shift-Alt-Tab.
You can close a program window by accessing the Program Control-menu (see below) and choosing the Close command, or by pressing Alt-F4. You can also use Exit command in File sub-menu of application menu (see below).
If you are running Windows and JAWS is not speaking, maybe you need to run JAWS. Press Ctrl-Esc to activate the Start menu, then press P to activate Programs Sub-menu, then press J to open JAWS sub-menu and finally press J to run JAWS.
Except of keys mentioned above, you can use also special keys for JAWS application:
??Press Insert-J to switch to JAWS quickly.
??Press Insert-F4 to exit JAWS quickly.
Exercise 3.
a) Activate the Start menu, review the Start menu commands, open a sub-menu (Programs, Documents, Settings), and read the hot keys for the menu commands. Try to use the keyboard shortcuts for selecting and executing menu commands.
b) Open My Computer using the program icon on the Desktop.
c) Start WordPad using the Programs sub-menu.
d) Start Notepad using the Programs sub-menu.
e) Switch among the WordPad, Notepad, and My Computer program windows using a keyboard shortcut and the open program buttons on the Taskbar.
f) Close My Computer using a keyboard shortcut Alt-F4.
Application Window
Each program runs in a window. A window is simply a framed region on the Desktop. The number of windows, which can appear on the Desktop, depends on your computer's memory, the Windows program, the amount of memory your programs require, and the manner in which you choose to display them.
There are two types of windows, program windows and document windows.
??Program Window: A computer program is a set of instructions that perform a specific task, such as word processing or data management. A program window might contain several document windows. You can only enter commands through a program window.
??Document Window: A document is any information you create with a program, such as a letter, spreadsheet, or database file. When you open or create a document in a program, you open a document window. Each document window contains a single document and always appears in the program window's work area. This type of window is sometimes referred to as a child window.
Each window can be in three states:
??Minimized - appears as small as a button
??Maximized - appears as large as the Desktop
??Restored - any size in between.
However, JFW works best when the program and document windows are maximized. Therefore, you should always make sure the window in which you are working is maximized. You can use the Program or Document Control-menu (see below) to minimize, maximize, or restore a window.
??You can pull down the Program Control-menu by pressing Alt-Spacebar. Then you can choose Restore, Minimize or Maximize command.
??You may use the JFW keystroke, Insert-F6 to minimize all windows.
Picture 1.: WordPad window elements.
Most windows contain a combination of the following elements:
??Window Borders: Window borders are the four edges that define a window.
??Control Menu: The Control menu lets you move, close, or change the size of a window.
??Control Menu Box: The Control menu box is a button appearing in the top, left corner of the window. When you activate the Control menu box with Alt-Spacebar keystroke the Control menu appears.
??Title Bar: The title bar is a horizontal bar directly below the window's top border between the Control-menu box and the resize buttons. The title bar lists the window's name. Press Insert-T to read the title bar.
??Resize and Close Buttons: The resize and close buttons appear in the top, right corner of the window. You must use the JAWS Cursor to activate these buttons. The resize buttons perform the same tasks as Minimize, Maximize and Restore commands on the Control menu. The Close button performs the same task as the Close command.
??Menu Bar: The menu bar is a horizontal bar the length of the window. It appears at the top of a program window, directly beneath the title bar. The menu bar lists all menus for the program.
??You can access the menu bar in a program by pressing the Alt key. To move the focus off the menu bar, you can press the Escape key twice or the Alt key once.
??You can press the Left or Right Arrow key to select a new menu once the menu bar is active.
??You can press the Up or Down Arrow key to select a new menu command once the menu is active.
??You can use keyboard shortcuts to pull down a menu quickly.
??You can use keyboard shortcuts to execute some menu commands quickly.