Originally Mosaic and other mainstream browsers such as Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer did not contain any accessibility features that could assist blind and visually impaired users or any other users with a disability. This led to the development of different types of accessibility browsers.
The accessibility browsers developed to aid the blind and visually impaired are known as talking browsers. These provided the accessibility features that the mainstream browsers were unable to provide to blind and visually impaired users. A talking browser works in exactly the same way as a screen reader. The difference between a talking browser and a screen reader is that a screen reader provides speech output for all programs on a computer system. While a talking browser only provides speech output for web pages. Information about some of the talking browsers available is given below.
HomePage Reader was developed by IBM specifically for blind and visually impaired users it uses IBM’s ViaVoice OutLoad speech synthesizer and Netscape Navigator the speech synthesizer provides speech output of all information on web pages e.g images, tables, forms etc while Netscape Navigator is responsible for visual formatting. No extra hardware is require for HomePage Reader and the user can execute commands using the numeric keypad on the keyboard. HomePage Reader has some unique accessibility features:
The BrookesTalk web browser was developed by the RNIB (Royal National Istitute for the Blind) and the School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences and Oxford Brookes University.
BrookesTalk is operated using the function keys (F1-F12) on the keyboard. The disadvantage of this is that users may have difficulty remembering all of the commands. However BrookesTalk does contain a built-in help feature that explains the action of each function key. This can be accessed by pressing CTRL plus any function key. BrookesTalk provides speech output of web pages using the Microsoft Speech Engine or Microsoft Speech API. As a result BrookesTalk requires the Microsoft Speech Application Programming Interface or equivalent alternative in order to be able to run. Brookes Talk contains the following accessibility features:
Sensus, an accessibility consultancy firm in Denmark developed the Sensus Internet Browser specifically for blind and visually impaired users. The Sensus Internet Browser is similar to HomePage Reader, it provides speech output for web pages and it works with Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is used to provide the visual rendering of the page. The advantage of the Sensus Internet Browser is that it is multilingual and can also work alongside Braille displays and screen magnifiers. Like the majority of talking browsers the Sensus browser is operated via the keyboard. Navigation can be controlled using the arrow keys on the keyboard as well as other keyboard shortcuts. The Sensus Internet Browser contains the following accessibility features:
MultiWeb was developed by the Equal Access Research and Development Group at Deakin University in Australia. It provides a wide range of accessibility features for people with various disabilities. For blind and visually impaired users it provides a specific user interface. It contains a speech engine, which provides speech output of web pages and also provides a screen magnifier for enlarging the size of pages.
Sigtuna Browser is a version of PwWebSpeak. It contains all the accessibility features of PwWebSpeak but without the speech synthesizer. Instead it renders web pages using digital talking book technology. The product is supported by the Japanese Society for rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities (JSRPD). It is only available to non-profit organisations, government groups within developing countries, and members of DAISY Consortium and government organisations in Japan. It is available in English and Japanese.
The English version requires a supported speech synthesizer including 32bit version of SoftVoice, DecTalk Software speech synthesizer, and SAPI-compliant speech synthesizer such as Watson, Flextalk or Microsoft's Speech Synthesizer. The Japanese version, on the other hand, requires 95 Reader Software for voicing IME keyboard entry. More information about the Sigtuna Browser can be found on the Japanese Society for rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities website.
The VIP Browser was created by Jbliss Imaging Systems. It uses command menus to show shortcut keys that are required to operate the browser. It also has an interactive mode that announces function of key when the user presses a key. It also provides help for the function keys. It also provides speech out of web pages and also provides screen magnification facilities. It provides four magnification views:
WebCite was created by a Canadian company called Compusult Limited It provides speech output of web pages. It is keyboard driven and only uses a small number of limited commands for ease of use. It is also compatible with both Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer. More information about WebCite can be found on the Hear It website.
Mozbraille is designed to turn GUI browsers such as Mozilla or FireFox into an accessible Internet Browsers for blind and visually impaired users, so that they do not have to use a screen reader to browse the web. It provides speech out of web pages, supports Braille displays and also contains screen magnification facilities. MozBraille contains the following accessibility features:
MozBraille is not yet a fully developed product, at present blind and visually impaired users are unable to use it without a screen reader. The latest information about the development of MozBraille can be found on the Mozilla website.
The Web Media Talking Browser was created by the Web Media Internet company in New York. It has large buttons to allow the visually with navigation and it also can be operated via the keyboard. Not only does the talking browser provide speech output for web pages but it also allows them to convert the pages to text-only if this makes access easier. It allows the user to change the colour of the screen, which can be useful for visually impaired users. The Web Media Talking Browser can be downloaded from the Web Media website The site also contains more information about the browser.
EMACSPEAK was created by T.V Ramon. EMACSPEAK provides blind and visually impaired users with speech output of web pages and other applications. EMACSPEAK not only provides speech output of the contents on the visual display but also outputs other information to help make it is easier for the user to comprehend the information on the screen.
EMACSPEAK uses a different tone of voice for different items on the screen e.g. graphics and text. It also uses non-speech feedback when providing speech output to give users an idea of how the screen looks. For example if a graphic is aligned to the left of the screen and a graphic is aligned to the right of the screen then EMACSPEKAK will announce the left graphic and then there will be a large pause (representing the space between the graphics on the page) before it announces the right sided graphic.
More information about EMACSPEAK can be found on the EMACSPEAK website. EMACSPEAK can be downloaded free from the EMACSPEAK website downlods page
Simply Web 2000 is part of the EconoNet Internet Speech Series, which also includes the Simply Talker screen reader. It provides output for web pages and is controlled using keyboard commands. It works best with Internet Explorer 5.0. It can be used alone as a talking browser or can be used together with an existing screen reader, it is fully compatible with the Simply Talker 98 and 2000 screen readers. A free copy of Simply Web 2000 can be downloaded from the EconoNet website.