How It Works: Modern Screen Readers

Abstract

This informal discussion-style presentation will introduce the architecture of a modern screen reader – the software used by blind and visually impaired users to gain access to standard computers — and how it evolved from the early days of computer assistive technology. The presentation will include an overview of modern screen reading technologies and their relative strengths and weaknesses, as well as resources for learning more about individual products and usage patterns. Screen readers are a technology that exists within a fascinating ecosystem of economics and politics, and these topics will be discussed as well.

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