Are there Accessibility Features?

[DeaconBlues]

I'm a quadriplegic, and therefore, need help typing key combinations requiring more than one hand.

What flavors of Linus desktop gui's have features similar to, if not superior to, those found in MS Windows?

Thnx

[MkIII_Supra]

KDE2 has some features for the physically impaired. I haven't tried them yet but I can give them a whirl for you if you'd like. Let me know what kind of configuration / features you need, I'll set them up on my 500 and test them for you. That will be using KDE2.0 on a Mandrake 7.2 box.


mmcdona2@san.rr.com
+++++-----------------+++++
The Dragon is swift and powerful. Beware his wrath...
Honor your family and yourself. Speak not out of passion but out of wisdom and temper the fires of war that reside in you, and you shall then reach your full measure as a man of Honor, Courage and Integrity.
http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/MkIIISupra/ (http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/MkIIISupra)

http://www.linuxnewbie.org/ubb/biggrin.gif

[This message has been edited by MkIII_Supra (edited 07 January 2001).]

[DeaconBlues]

Originally posted by MkIII_Supra:
I'll set them up on my 500 and test them for you. That will be using KDE2.0 on a Mandrake 7.2 box.

That would be splendid. I'm d/ling Mandrake 7.2 as I write.

Now, the function I need is to have alternate function keys held for me as I type key combinations.

For example:

If I need to type 'Ctrl-D' I should be able to press 'Ctrl' once and then the letter 'D'.

This should hold true for any key combination such as Ctrl-Alt-Del, or Ctrl-Shft-P, et cetera. The alternate keys should also be lockable. For instance, if I press 'Alt' twice; every key pressed after that would be the 'Alt-WhatEverKey' combination. Pressing 'Alt' again would unlock the key.

I hope this is a clearv example of what I'm looking for in the Gui.

[MkIII_Supra]

Yes you can assign specialty keys! I was playing around with it on the 500 and the Compaq. It's called creating an alias, something UNIX / Linux have been able to do for years!

Here you go, and this is actually better because you can use the keystrokes in any window manager including CLI!!

You need to edit your .bashrc which is located in your home directory. Example:

/home/mac/.bashrc

in order to see it issue the following command:

ls -a [ENTER]

That will list all files and directories in the /home/mac directory. Now keep in mind that your home directory will be listed as your name not mac...

Here is a copy of my .bashrc it's really easy to set-up... I'll explain in a second...


# .bashrc

# User specific aliases and functions
alias rm='rm -Rf' I modified this one
alias mv='mv -i'
alias cp='cp -i'
alias s='cd ..'
alias d='ls'
alias p='cd -'
alias ls='ls -a' I added this one

# Need for a xterm & co if we don't make a -ls
[ -n $DISPLAY ] && {
[ -f /etc/profile.d/color_ls.sh ] && source /etc/profile.d/color_ls.sh
export XAUTHORITY=$HOME/.Xauthority
}

# Read first /etc/inputrc if the variable is not defined, and after the /etc/inputrc
# include the ~/.inputrc
[ -z $INPUTRC ] && export INPUTRC=/etc/inputrc

# Source global definitions
if [ -f /etc/bashrc ]; then
. /etc/bashrc
fi


Now to set-up special key strokes simply identify what command you want then create an alias for it. I am still working this out. But in a nutshell you should be able to create or we can create them for you, double character commands to execute other commands / programs.

Now there is also under KDE2 Look and Feel Personalization's Accessibility a setting to allow you to move the mouse with the keyboard as well as a couple other items... here are the screen shots for that:

Here is the first shot (http://home.san.rr.com/mk3supra/ScreenShots/Access1.jpg)

Here is the second shot (http://home.san.rr.com/mk3supra/ScreenShots/Access2.jpg)

Here is the third shot (http://home.san.rr.com/mk3supra/ScreenShots/Access3.jpg)

There is another method that I am not to familiar with but what the hell I will learn it then show you. It's call .xmodmap or something like that, where you can set-up your keyboard really customized! There is a guru here that I can't remember his name hopefully he will see this post!

Hope all this helps!

Mac

------------------
The Dragon is swift and powerful. Beware his wrath...
Honor your family and yourself. Speak not out of passion but out of wisdom and temper the fires of war that reside in you, and you shall then reach your full measure as a man of Honor, Courage and Integrity.
http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/MkIIISupra/ (http://www.angelfire.com/wa2/MkIIISupra)

[This message has been edited by MkIII_Supra (edited 08 January 2001).]

[DeaconBlues]

Ooh, StickyKeys! That's exactly what I'm looking for to help me type. I don't really need to setup keyboard macros, which is what it looks like you were describing.

StickyKeys are actually what they are called in the Windows OS flavors.

Thnx