The vinux project may be worth checking out for those who'd like to use
ubuntu with fewer fights especially connected to taking and getting root
control over systems with orca. http://vinux.co.uk/ if memory serves
should get you in the neighborhood.
On Sat, 25 Oct 2008, krishnakant Mane wrote:
hi
On 25/10/2008, Stephen Clower <steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
krishnakant Mane wrote:
I use only ubuntu for my daily work and I am a busy IT consultent so I
can't sacrify work at the cost of non functional free software.
So the point is that since ubuntu 8.04 in particular I find no reason
i should tell people to still use windows. I find no reason why
people should not migrate to the world of technology freedom with
linux.
While a commendable goal, the graphical Linux desktop still has a ways
to go before I am comfortable enough to switch to it on a full-time
basis. Radical software mind-sets aside, I have found Window-Eyes on top
of a nicely tuned XP system to be considerably more responsive than
Gnome and Orca. I'll admit that sound card/speech synthesizer
preferences would likely need adjusting, but the basic computer user
should not have to tweak these settings just to have responsive speech.
I exactly had an opposit experience. I used both jaws and window-eyes
and was always in a state of discomfort with them and never liked the
way windows works. I used windows and related screen readers only
till the point that there were no alternatives. But in contrary to
your personal experience I and many others have really got a lot out
of orca and ubuntu.
In fact I find myself much more productive once orca has reached to
the level where it is since last few months.
I find word processing beyond my expectation (I use latex and convert
it to rtf and pdf ). spreadsheets work perfectly with orca on ubuntu
8.04.1 and firefox itself provides a lot of accessibility. cd burning
and other tasks are a snap and other such tasks like file or folder
copy is also heavenly easy. for example I get the copy speed,
estimated time and progress percentage all in gnome and orca like i
would get in windows.
I use vlc with orca pritty well for movies and music. I can create
pdf files from open office word processor in 2 or 3 easy steps.
programming is shear bliss.
and may be slightly off topic but let us put accessibility on the side
track, I don't like the way windows works and the methods in which
tasks are performed. copying half way and then telling "disk is full
" is one such bad thing in windows. And I hait viruses and don't want
to be stuck in the mids of a conference with a windows crash which can
happen any time without prediction.
So all in all windows = less productivity and uncertainty and linux
with gnome = better accessibility and consistency provided we start
getting used to it.
happy hacking.
Krishnakant.
Additionally, we have access to the more common tools, E.G. web browser,
word processor, E-mail, and so on with both platforms; although I have
yet to find a commercial-grade multitracking editor that supports ASIO,
VST effects, and is accessible inside GNOME. Until this last fact
changes, switching to Gnome full-time would limit me a great deal in
terms of how I want to use my computer for both work and leisure.
I am not a slave to my operating system or assistive tech, and neither
will I deny the obvious fact that Linux accessibility is superior in
many respects to that of Windows. Gnome and orca have really come a long
way over the past few years, and I sincerely hope work will continue to
improve application accessibility where possible. For now, I love the
philosophy behind GNU/Linux, but the presently accessible applications
(or lack thereof) in the graphical environment leave me no choice but to
stick with Windows for most of my work. I am very glad that we have
compelling choices on all major platforms, and competition between them
all can only benefit everybody involved. Perhaps one day in the not so
distant future, even I may have what I need to switch to Linux
permanently; with open-source software, anything is possible.
Regards,
Steve
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