Assistive Technologies
When navigating online, many people may use assistive devices, or pieces of technology that help them perform the typical tasks one carries out online (scrolling, reading, listening, etc.). Assistive devices include:
- Alternative keyboards
- Alternative mouses
- Head wands
- Mouth sticks
- Refreshable braille display
- Screen magnifiers
- Screen readers
- Voice recognition software
In practice, these devices work best when they consume carefully structured content. Without structure and flexible format options, people might not be able to navigate websites, understand layouts, fill out forms, or receive information. For examples on how assistive technology works, see the following videos that demo screen readers, text magnification, and refreshable braille displays.
- Demonstration of How Facebook Is Read by a Screen Reader
- Web Accessibility 101: ZoomText Demo
- Refreshable Braille Display and the iPad
The W3C Web Accessibility Initiative has also assembled a helpful series of videos demonstrating disability perspectives and accessibility features like text-to-speech and video captions.
