Windows Voice Access
Windows Voice Access is a modern voice control system. It appears to be replacing Windows Speech Recognition.
There are 2 types of overlays that you can turn on.
- "show numbers" will turn on an overlay that displays a number for every element on the page. This is helpful when an element is missing a name, or if the user does not know how to pronounce a name.
- "grid" will turn on an overlay that displays a numbered grid over the screen that allows the user to interact with parts of the screen that don't have names or numbers. For example, a user can zoom in on grid a grid number until it is large enough to cover an incorrectly coded icon button without a name or role, then pan the screen so that the number is over the button, and then say "<number>" to activate the button.
Differences between voice control software
Install
Windows Voice Access is built into Windows. You can enable it in Settings > Accessibility > speech.
How to find your version
- From the system search, type "About your PC"
- Click "About your PC"
- Scroll down to "Windows specifications"
- Use the "version" listed there
Guides, Documentation, and resources
Commands
The following are some common commands.
General
| Task | Command | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Activate item by name | "Click <text>" | If there are multiple choices with the same text, they will be labeled by numbers. Say "Choose <number>", then "Okay" to finish. |
| Activate item by number | "<number>" | You will need to say "okay" to confirm |
| Turn on the numbers overlay | "Show numbers" | |
| Hide the numbers overlay | "Hide numbers" | |
| Turn on the grid overlay | "show grid" | |
| Hide the grid overlay | "Hide grid" | |
| press a keyboard command | "press <key>" |