People who are blind or have low vision rely on screen readers to vocalise what is on a computer screen or a mobile device. Keyboard shortcuts become incredibly useful for screen reader users because they speed up navigation and makes using a mouse almost unnecessary.
Here are some amazing keyboard shortcuts our screen reader users are very familiar with, but the sighted community might not know.
Save some time and give them a go:
|
Task |
Shortcut |
|
Increase font size |
Ctrl + Shift + > |
|
Decrease font size |
Ctrl + Shift + < |
|
Insert page break |
Ctrl + Enter |
|
Zoom in |
Ctrl + Mouse Wheel Button Up |
|
Zoom out |
Ctrl + Mouse Wheel Button Down |
|
Magnify |
Windows Key + Plus (+) |
|
Make anything a bulleted list |
Ctrl + Shift + L |
|
Revert back to normal formatting |
Ctrl + Shift + N |
|
Select to end of line |
Shift + End |
|
Select to beginning |
Ctrl + Shift + Home |
|
Select to end |
Ctrl + Shift + End |
|
Delete one word to the left |
Ctrl + Backspace |
|
Delete one word to the right |
Ctrl + Delete |
Watch Ros use a screen reader in the video below:
For more tips and tricks on using technology from a blindness and low vision perspective, listen to Talking Tech every week.