Today, Apple released Mac OS X Snow Leopard and predictably there are a plethora of webpages discussing the new advancements and features. One of the most overlooked and under-hyped feature is Mac OS X's accessibility; the software component that allows users with special needs to access their Mac.

As I am a blind user who uses both the Mac and Windows platform everyday, I have wide experience in relation to the tech market for handicapped consumers. It's a market that is horribly under-served, and most software and devices that are targeted at handicapped consumers are incredibly expensive. However, Apple, for the past 4 years has continually increased its presence in the accessibility market making the technology more affordable. And I don't mean that Apple is pulling a move from Microsoft by partnering with third-parties. Apple is developing the technology, the software, and devices aimed at users with special needs.

Before I get to the accessibility tools found in Snow Leopard, I want to highlight some of the other accessibility advancements that Apple has made. The 4th generation iPod Nano has screen reading capabilities which enables blind users with the ability to use the iPod. The new iPhone 3GS, released this last summer, also came with features aimed at blind users. Screen reading technology, color inversion, zooming capabilities, and more are included in every iPhone 3GS. And this September, it is likely that the iPod Touch will also receive the same features.


Mac OS X is now loaded with accessibility tools without bringing additional cost to the end-user. Every accessibility component is included in all copies of Mac OS X and on every Mac.

In its beginning, Mac OS X had a bare minimum of tools aimed at those that are blind, deaf, and those with motor handicaps. But in 2005, Apple took a great step forward with Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, which brought a new screen reading technology to the Mac. Apple calls this technology VoiceOver. Although it was a great beginning for Apple, the VoiceOver feature was lacking in some areas, but improved tremendously when Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard was released in 2007. Leopard brought greater VoiceOver control to the user as well as a breakthrough voice called Alex. This new voice is by far the most realistic computer voice on the consumer market. It emits natural sounding pauses, breaths, and intonation as it reads the screen's contents to users. Also included in Leopard was closed captioning support in QuickTime and iTunes, as well as support for braille devices.

The tools found in Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard are even better. Blind users can now access the contents of an active window by use of the multi-touch trackpad.

The trackpad surface on your Mac notebook represents the active window on your computer, so you can touch to hear the item under your finger, drag to hear items continuously as you move your finger, and flick with one finger to move to the next or previous item. You’ll hear how items are arranged on the screen, and you can jump directly to an item just by touching the corresponding location on the trackpad. For example, you can drag your finger around the trackpad to learn how items are arranged in a web page, a spreadsheet, a presentation, or any document with text. The more you touch, the more information you gather.

If a user doesn't have a Mac laptop or prefers not to use this trackpad method, the keyboard can still be used for screen navigation. And keyboard commands for voiceOver have improved in Snow Leopard.

Blind users who have used screen readers to navigate through web pages know how much of a headache it can be. Most sites place ads, navigation links, pictures, and other items ahead of the actual content of the page and filtering through all that stuff can be quite tedious. Snow Leopard now has the ability to auto discover the main content of web pages and gives the user the option to have the screen reader skip directly to it.

VoiceOver is also much more configurable. Users can determine how much information the screen reader tells them. For the basic user, there is high, medium, or low verbosity, or advanced users can customize nearly every aspect of VoiceOver and what it audibly describes.

For users who are slightly visually impaired, Mac Os X has zooming abilities, a contrast level adjuster, and color inversion. Also, Mac OS X is the only operating system that has braille display support built in. Snow Leopard adds support for bluetooth braille displays and the ability to have multiple braille devices using the same Mac, Ideal for educational environments.

Snow Leopard has also increased accessibility for those hard of hearing, with visual alerts and open and closed captioning. Also in Snow Leopard is a new on-screen virtual keyboard for those with motor and other physical handicaps.

Microsoft Windows has very little accessibility tools built-in. In fact, I would say that Microsoft's offerings are pitiful when compared to Apple's. Handicapped users who have a Windows PC have to rely on third-parties to deliver the needed tools. These third-parties do a great job and fulfill many needs, but the software is not cheap. The software packages range anywhere from $750 to $1050.

In my opinion and my experience, the Mac is a much better computer for handicapped users, especially for those who are blind or visually impaired. You can buy a Mac for the same price as accessibility software for Windows, but your Mac will already come preloaded with the accessibility tools.

NOTE: This article and most of this site were constructed using the accessibility tools found in Mac OS X.