Google Docs, Calendar enhanced for blind users

Search giant Google has made its Docs, sites and Calendar services friendlier to the blind by enhancing their accessibility features. Google Accessibility technical lead T.V. Raman said the enhancements include improved keyboard shortcuts and support for screen readers. "While our work isn’t done, we’ve now significantly improved keyboard shortcuts and support for screen readers in several Google applications, including Google Docs, Google Sites and Google Calendar," Raman said in a blog post. Google has scheduled a "webinar" (web seminar) on the updated accessibility features on September 21, from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time. On the other hand, Raman said the features should particularly come in handy for blind students who use Google Apps to take quizzes, write essays and talk to classmates. "Yet blind students (like blind people of all ages) face a unique set of challenges on the web. Members of the blind community rely on screen readers to tell them verbally what appears on the screen. They also use keyboard shortcuts to do things that would otherwise be accomplished with a mouse, such as opening a file or highlighting text," Raman said. Raman also said the updates are the result of working with advocacy organizations for the blind to improve Google's products with more accessibility enhancements. "In the weeks and months ahead, we’ll continue to improve our products for blind users. We believe that people who depend on assistive technologies deserve as rich and as productive an experience on the web as sighted users, and we’re working to help that become a reality," Raman said. — TJD, GMA News