Getting By with Gestures
Lesson 4
Resources
ZIP file of all resources for lesson 4 (alternatively, download individual files below)
Gestures to discuss in lesson 4
Back to Windows 11 Training Page
Objectives
By the end of this lesson you will understand, be able to discuss, and/or perform the following tasks as they relate to using gestures with JAWS in Windows 11 :
- State the gesture to toggle between Windows gestures and JAWS gestures when JAWS is running
- List at least three commonly used JAWS gestures
Introduction
This instructional demonstration is an overview of a few of the basic gestures one might use when running Windows 11 with JAWS on a tablet or similar device with a touch screen.
Why should you learn some of the basic gestures for Windows and JAWS? There may be instances where you need to use a tablet or other touch device and there is no full-sized keyboard available. And of course, if your regular keyboard suddenly stops working, knowing some basic gestures can help save the day.
Toggle Between Windows Gestures and JAWS Gestures
Windows has built in gestures. JAWS also has gestures. When it is running, JAWS controls all gestures.
Why would you want to switch to Windows gestures while JAWS is running? A couple of reasons might include:
- Scrolling the screen to view multiple pages visually, perhaps on a web page or in another app
- Keeping JAWS available for screen reading and other tasks
To switch between JAWS and Windows gestures perform the following gesture:
- Toggle between Windows or JAWS gestures, five-finger rotate
Common Types of Gestures
There are several different types of gestures available for both Windows and JAWS. Gestures may include taps, flicks, swipes, glides, pinches in or out, and rotations.
- I have focus on the Windows desktop. I will touch my finger to the screen and glide it around a bit.
Nothing was happening visually as I did this. JAWS is just announcing the item underneath my fingertip as I glide it around. This is a great way to just explore the screen.
- Let us practice moving to the next or previous element. Focus is on the Recycle Bin icon on the desktop. I will FLICK RIGHT a few times. JAWS is reading down the first column of icons on the Windows desktop on my PC.
You may also flick left to go backwards. You may continue to flick in either direction. Eventually focus wraps back to the point where you started.
- To launch an app, just stop on the icon when you hear it and double tap the screen. Focus is on the icon for ExpressVPN. I will double tap the screen now. OK, great. ExpressVPN, one of the utility apps I use, has opened.
- Next, close the app you just opened by using the gesture equivalent of ALT+F4, a two-finger swipe up/down. Focus was placed on the Taskbar when the app closed.
- Move to the desktop by pressing the gesture for SHIFT+TAB, which is a three-finger left flick.
- What if you want to open a context menu for an icon or folder, etc.? Since focus is back on the icon for ExpressVPN on my PC, I will do that with a two-finger double tap. The context menu for desktop icons has opened. There are many choices here, but two that we cover in later lessons include “Pin to Start” and “Pin to taskbar.”
- For now, close the context menu by using the gesture equivalent of the ESC key, a two-finger swipe right/left.
The Windows Touch Keyboard
Focus is back on the icon for ExpressVPN on the desktop of my PC. I want to open the Start menu and explore the pinned apps there briefly as well as the Windows touch keyboard.
- First, I will use the JAWS gesture equivalent of the TAB key, a three-finger flick right, to move to the Start button.
- Perform a double tap on the Start button to open it.
- Before we open the Windows touch keyboard, let us use the JAWS three-finger flick right gesture to TAB to the Pinned area of the Start menu.
- Flick right a few times to explore the first few apps here.
- It’s handy to have those apps you need pinned at the top of the Start menu when you need to launch them from a touch screen device. That is covered later in the training. For now, flick left a few times once more to find the icon for Edge.
- Now, let us use the JAWS three-finger flick left gesture to SHIFT+TAB to the Search edit box again and take a look at the Windows touch keyboard.
- I will double tap the Search edit box. The Windows touch keyboard opens.
I am going to look for an app I downloaded from the Microsoft Store, Amortization Tool, which is used to calculate loan amounts, interest rates, number of monthly payments, etc.
As I move my finger around, the key beneath it is announced. You can also use flick gestures to move one key to the right or left at a time, but it is faster to drag your finger around the screen to locate and activate the keys.
Perform a split double tap whenever you want to input a new key. A split double tap is just tapping the screen with another finger while the first finger remains in place.
I will move my finger around to find the letter “a.”
There it is.
- Next, I will perform a split double tap. While leaving my finger on the letter “a” I will tap the screen twice quickly with another finger. The letter “a” is inserted into the edit box. Windows suggests the app Audacity initially.
- Leaving my first finger on the screen, I will move around and search for the second letter, the letter “m.” There it is.
- I will perform a split double tap on the letter “m” now.
Windows found the Amortization Tool pretty quickly there in the search results. I could press ENTER to launch this app now if I wanted to. But for now, I will use the JAWS gesture which emulates the ESC key, a two-finger swipe right/left.
The Start menu and the Windows keyboard both close.
Summary
So far, you have learned how to do the following:
- Tap
- Glide
- Flick and/or swipe
and use the gesture equivalents of the following keystrokes:
- ENTER, double tap
- ALT+F4, two-finger swipe up/down
- ESC, two-finger swipe right/left
- TAB and SHIFT+TAB, three-finger flick right/left
- SHIFT+F10 or APPLICATIONS key, two-finger double tap
Download the list of gestures used and discussed in lesson four from the Resources section of this lesson.
For a full list of JAWS gestures, refer to the JAWS Help System topic “Using JAWS with a Touch Screen.”
Thank you for joining me in this lesson on using gestures in Windows 11 with JAWS.