In this article, we’ll go through the updated Accessibility offerings in Windows 11, touch on how they can sometime differ from Windows 10, and suggest how these features can be utilized by Windows users.
Getting to Your Accessibility Center
In Windows 11, the Action Center is a great space for quickly getting to the things you need including your Accessibility settings.
Checking Out Your Quick Access Options
If you click on the Accessibility button icon in the Action Center menu, you’ll open up another menu with options to toggle often-used functions on or off. These are far from the only Accessibility tools available on Windows 11, and you can open the full settings menu by either clicking “More Accessibility Settings” in that quick-access menu or by using the Win + U shortcut.
Available Features
The easiest parts of the Accessibility menu to get to are those toggle options that live in the Action Center. Briefly, these tools offer the following functionalities:
Magnifier – zooms in on a section of your screen. You can use your mouse to navigate around to different parts of the screen. This is helpful if there are areas with smaller print or buttons that are difficult to make out due to contrast issues. Color filters – will lower the saturation on all of the elements on your screen and essentially make it black and white.Narrator – reads the text on the screen out loud to you. Narrator outlines the text as it’s reading. You can also choose whether Narrator will tell you about associated keyboard shortcuts.Mono audio – brings all of your audio out of one channel instead of the left and right channels, which can be helpful for people who have diminished hearing in one ear but not the other.Sticky keys – allows users to press keys one at a time instead of simultaneously and still access the associated commands. For example, instead of having to press Ctrl + C together, “Sticky keys” allows someone to press the Ctrl button and then the C key.
Main Accessibility Menu
Accessibility lives within the Settings menu, and you can quickly navigate to the full list of features. Note that most of these are also available in Windows 10. In what follows, we’ll explore the additional Accessibility options based on the categories of those they’re aimed to help.
Options for the Blind/Visually Impaired
For most of us, it would seem impossible to navigate a computer if we couldn’t see the screen. Knowing that, Microsoft has included a set of these features to help visually impaired users get the most of their Windows experience. We’ve already touched on the Narrator and Magnifier features, and now we’ll take a look at some of the additional features included in Windows 11.
1. Text Size, Cursors, and Pointers
Combined, these features make it easier to interact with text and other elements across the computer’s interface.
2. Visual Effects
These features can make it easier to distinguish between windows by making them slightly transparent. You can find this option by going to “Accessibility-> Visual effects”. This, coupled with another feature we’ll touch on in a bit, can really help those with low vision. Animation effects make for a nicer UX for most of us, but in some cases, users may wish to simply have the menus appear and disappear on screen.
3. Color Options
According to the UK-based non-profit organization Color Blind Awareness, 1 in 12 men and 1 in 200 women today suffer from color blindness. On this context, Microsoft has included several filters for various types of colorblindness. Another important Accessibility option is “Contrast Themes” which used to be called “High Contrast Themes” in Windows 10. You can access via “Accessibility-> Contrast Themes”. Compared to Windows 10, these themes are much more robust in Windows 11. They’re a lot subtler in Windows 11 while offering enough contrast to be useful to those who need to use higher contrast settings for their vision. There are four themes, and users can edit from those presets to make unique setups. Microsoft also made a big effort to provide an aesthetic option for those who need more contrast on their computers.
Options for the Deaf/Hearing Impaired
Those who are deaf or have a hearing impairment rely on visual cues in their digital environments, and Microsoft has created some features specifically for those users. They’re also useful for those who are using their computers in a space where it’s not possible to rely on audio.
1. Audio Effects
2. Captions
Captions are one of the most widely used tools by those who have audio processing disorders and those who have a hearing impairment. In the future, Windows 11 users will be able to download a package that allows live captioning. This feature, currently only available to Windows Insiders, will transform any audio into text in real time. This means that users will be able to take advantage of real-time captions during their Zoom meetings or videos which don’t have captions built into them.
Options for Users with Mobility Impairments
One of the biggest improvements in terms of Accessibility in Windows 11 is related to voice typing and dictation. While the feature was plagued by bugs in Windows 10, the new version finally works as intended.
1. Voice Typing and Dictation
This is a great feature for people affected by mobility impairments involving issues with manipulation of objects by hand who need to create documents or input text. Users can “write” in Notepad, Microsoft Word, and online sites like WordPress and Google Docs. If you’re in need of more voice functionality than just text input, you can set up the speech recognition. This allows you to control your computer with your voice. It requires some initial setup so that it can recognize your voice. 3. Up next, follow the steps to set up the feature.
2. Eye control
When it comes to acute mobility impairments, Eye control can help patients communicate by typing responses using their eyes. Go to “Accessibility-> Eye control” to find this feature.
You’ll need a compatible eye-tracking device before you can start communicating only with your eyes though and someone to help you set everything up by enabling the “Eye control” toggle.
Image credits: Unsplash All screenshots by Amy Yoder
This webpage acts as a hub for those looking to find out more about Windows Accessibility. Scroll through tips (broken into categories like keyboard shortcuts and YouTube videos) and find resources such as webinars. In addition users can access useful phone numbers, live chat, American sign language support, and download the Be My Eyes app.
Using features like dark mode can help us see better, but most of us still end up squinting to find things, like the cursor bar or pointer. This can lead to eye strain, headaches, and fatigue. Using these features can help alleviate some of the stress that constant computer work puts on our bodies and brains.
Some keys to offering good feedback, according to Microsoft, are making sure you have a concise and descriptive title and keep each piece of feedback limited to one issue only. Be aware that device, OS, and app information are automatically submitted with your feedback.
