JAWS® for Windows for FREE? Lets give a try!

[Webnauts]

Web Designers Alternative for JAWS®

Not every freelancer designer, developer, can afford buying JAWS, to test the web sites they build.

Therefore, see how this problem may be solved!

More info here:

http://www.dreamlettes.net/petition/

Thanks for your your time and help!

[Paul_C]

I signed a while ago, but now I'm having second thoughts. If JAWS is too expensive for developers what about the people who really need it? I don't see any reason why we're special while the visually impaired still have to pay full price - sounds like discrimination to me.

Better idea - someone start a petition to bring the price of JAWS down to affordable levels for everyone.

[redux]

or release an SDK or detailed documentation of its behaviour and capabilities...

[Webnauts]

I signed a while ago, but now I'm having second thoughts. If JAWS is too expensive for developers what about the people who really need it? I don't see any reason why we're special while the visually impaired still have to pay full price - sounds like discrimination to me.

Better idea - someone start a petition to bring the price of JAWS down to affordable levels for everyone.

But it would solve a lot of problems for blind people who have JAWS! Or not?

[Webnauts]

or release an SDK or detailed documentation of its behaviour and capabilities...

Redux, if I got you right, do you mean something like this?
http://wats.ca/resources/jawskeystrokes/9

[Paul_C]

But it would solve a lot of problems for blind people who have JAWS! Or not?

Is there some reason reducing the price for everyone (not just developers) wouldn't help solve the same problems?

[Webnauts]

Is there some reason reducing the price for everyone (not just developers) wouldn't help solve the same problems?

Then there will be much more problems solved! And that for everyone!

[vgarcia]

Better idea - someone start a petition to bring the price of JAWS down to affordable levels for everyone.

I just woke up, but this is probably the best idea I'll hear all day

[Kynn Bartlett]

Is there some reason reducing the price for everyone (not just developers) wouldn't help solve the same problems?

Sure -- if Freedom Scientific couldn't afford to do this, and then go out of business or have to drop the product.

There's an assumption here that Freedom Scientific doesn't know how to price their software product. That may be true, but the decision shouldn't be based on "people would like it for less money" by itself.

The danger with demanding a lower price is the possibility that the screen reader will no longer make a profit -- and therefore, the people creating it will stop doing so. This would be an overall loss to the disability community.

--Kynn

[Kynn Bartlett]

Also, please see:

A Web Designer's Guide to JAWS

--Kynn

[Webnauts]

Welcome on board Kynn! Nice to have you here!

And by the way, I must agree with your point of view above.

[xhtmlcoder]

I had come to a similar conclusion about Mark Pilgrim referencing a WCAG Working Draft like it was a Technical Recommendation; what nonsense it's like referencing XHTML 2.0 and talking about it as if it had been fully finalised. The rest of what he said was more or less reasonable.

In general I'll skirt around this petition because it's highly unlikely it will be successful due to various flaws.

In either case many web designers seem to have forgotten that JAWS is an assistive technology rather than a specific program for people whom have visual impairment.

Thus it is likely than a wider range of people whom may have various disability types - like myself - would use the program.