Accessibility Options in the Windows XP Control Panel

By Mitz

Free computer Education

The accessibility options are in the Windows Control panel to help people with disabilities use the computer. There are some simple settings that you can change to make your computer using experience more pleasant. For example if you have trouble pressing two keys at once to use the Windows Shortcut keys, you can use Stickykeys. With stickykeys you can change your keyboard settings to allow you to press one key and then the other. The computer will perform the same task as it would have if you had pressed the keys together. See an example of Windows Shortcut keys. 

If you have problems typing on the keyboard, pressing the wrong keys, or holding keys down, you can set Windows to ignore this. If you tick the box, FilterKeys, it changes the keyboard repeat rate. You can stop it from repeating a letter if the key is held down.

If you press on the sound tab, you can see settings that will help people that have hearing problems. For example you can set it to visually show you that the system is making a sound. There is also an option to have text and actions read aloud if you can't see it happening yourself.

The Display tab controls the way you see things on your screen. This can help vision impaired people see items on the screen better. For example you tick the box that says Use High Contrast and Windows will change the colors and fonts of Windows so it is easy to read. You can also change how fast the cursor blinks. A fast blinking cursor is very annoying. You can also change the width of the cursor. Even I cannot see the cursor when it is too narrow.

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