The JAWS Scripts for DBT

DBT comes with JAWS script files which support JAWS version 9 or higher. Please note that JAWS scripts are language-specific. There is a set for English use and now a set for Russian as well. (The JAWS script files for using DBT in Russian were developed by Elita Group.)

When launched, DBT checks to see if your JAWS English settings folders have up-to-date copies of the JAWS script files for DBT. If not, it asks for permission to install the English-language script files supplied.

As it installs the latest scripts, the system makes back-up copies of any files it replaces. After installing, it asks for permission to restart DBT, then works on compiling the JAWS script files for each version of JAWS on the system.

Note that, for Russian, the JAWS script files are not automatically installed at this point, but require manual installation.

JAWS Hot Keys in DBT

• Insert + h - Lists hot keys and what they do.
• Alt + 7 - (on top number row) - Reads the translated line.
• Alt + 8 - Reads the current style name.
• Alt + 8 Twice quickly - In tabular material, press Alt+8 twice quickly to hear the row and column numbers at the current cursor location.
• Alt + 9 - speaks the current location (page, line, and column).
• Alt + 0 - speaks the current document name.
• Alt + comma - once gives current position on the line.
• Alt + comma - twice quickly gives number of characters remaining on the line.
• Alt + period - once gives number of characters on the line.
• Alt + period - twice quickly gives number of left spaces on the line.
• Alt + slash - reads the last word on the line.
• Alt + u - toggles setting that determines whether JAWS reads the translated line when moving up or down in a braille document, is silent, or announces each line as braille characters.
• Alt + i - toggles setting that determines whether JAWS announces change of style and/or blank lines implied by codes.
• Alt + o - toggle setting that determines whether requested status information appears on braille display as well as being spoken.
• Alt + p - toggles setting that determines whether JAWS speaks braille cells for keyboard entry in a braille document.
• Alt + semicolon - a cursor toggle. The first press switches to the JAWS cursor, positioned at the start of the translated line; the next press switches back to the PC cursor.

Using JAWS in Tables

As of DBT 12.6 SR1, JAWS has a number of special features to help you navigate through the tables in your documents.

First, JAWS tells you when you are entering or exiting a table.

When you move from one table entry to another, JAWS tells you the column number and/or row number that has changed.

When you press Tab to move from one table entry to another, JAWS reads the new column entry.

When you are in a table and press the keystroke to read the current line, JAWS instead reads the current table entry.

When you enter the first column in the first row, JAWS tells you not to press Shift+Tab; when you enter the last column in the last row, JAWS tells you not to press Tab. (This prevents accidentally entering a Tab into the table data.)

Interpretation of Braille Cells

To hear a more generic reading of braille cells, not based on the English language context, go to the Global menu, and select Internationalization. In the section, Braille encoding for Input and Display, set the radio button control to: Prefer Unicode patterns for braille display.

Also in the Global menu, select Default views, and set the Default font for braille documents to Print. (Note: This also sets the font for the translated braille line.

Other Features for Editing

• For further help on using DBT with JAWS, press Insert+F1 while in DBT.
• When you are editing a braille document, or have the JAWS cursor positioned on the translated line for a print document, and you move with the Left Arrow or Right Arrow key, you hear the braille cell spoken, rather than hearing the ASCII character. For example in English, you might hear "e d sign" rather than "dollar sign".
• The above type of braille-cell echo is also available for keyboard entry in a braille document, be it 6-key entry or not. You can choose this with the Alt+P toggle.
• You can set JAWS so that when you are editing a braille document, and you read a line or move to a new line, JAWS speaks the back translation of the line. You can choose this with the Alt+U toggle. Reading the back translation is the default setting.
• When JAWS is reading by word in a braille document, it spells out the word as braille cells.
• When you use the Spell Checker, you hear the questioned word and its current spelling. Press Insert + C to hear the word in context on its line.
• In Coded View, when arrowing by character or word, or pressing Delete or Backspace, if the item to speak is a code or style code, JAWS speaks it that way.
• When you use a movement command and the cursor lands at the same position, due to an adjacent code or to reaching the start or end of the document, JAWS makes a click.
• In Global: View Preferences, if you choose Yes for Use verbose labels, the Unicode number for the current character appears on the status line after the style name. In this case, JAWS uses the Unicode number from the status line when you ask JAWS for the Unicode number of the current character, by pressing the SayCharacter key three times quickly. Also, for announcing the character, JAWS announces the character that corresponds to the Unicode number on the status line. This method announces characters and their Unicode numbers more reliably when you are working in a print document that includes an Asian language, such as Arabic, Hebrew, or Hindi; you may also need to use DBT's coded view.
• JAWS tells you when you turn highlighting on or off in DBT.
• When you press the keystroke on your braille device for brailling the next line or the prior line, JAWS brailles the desired line and does not speak it.

Using JAWS in the Help Topics

• Insert + F1 - Provides up to date help and information.
• Insert + Right Arrow or Ctrl + Right Arrow - can be used to read the next word in a document.
• Insert + Down Arrow - invokes the Continuous Read command.
• Alt + Left Arrow - to move back to a previous topic (where applicable).
• Tab or Shift + Tab - to move to a link.

Depending on the key you have defined as your "JawsKey", use JawsKey + F6 for the list of headings in the topic; JawsKey + F7 for the list of links in the topic. You can also use the JAWS Find commands to find specific text in the topic. These commands are JawsKey + Shift + F, then F3 and Shift + F3 to find further occurrences.

You can also use all of the quick navigation keystrokes for web pages. A few of these are h to move to the next heading, Shift + h to move to the previous heading, L to move to the next list, and greater than to move to the end of the current list.