Using the Ease of Access Center to Turn Features On or Off

In general, you probably want to turn on whichever Ease of Access features you find useful, and leave them turned on, but if you share your computer, you may want the capability to turn them on and off easily.

Windows Vista has a new way to turn on and off the Magnifier, Narrator, High Contrast Settings, and On-Screen Keyboard: the Ease of Access Center. Press WINDOWS-U to see it (see Figure 17-1).

Figure 17-1: The Ease of Access Center

You can also start the program by choosing Start All Programs Accessories Ease Of Access Ease Of Access Center. Another way is to use Start Control Panel Ease Of Access Ease Of Access Center.

At the top of the Ease of Access Center are the following options you can select:

Start Magnifier
Start On-Screen Keyboard
Start Narrator
Set Up High Contrast

Other Ease of Access options you can set up or access using the Ease of Access Center include the following:

Use the computer without a display
Make the computer easier to see
Use the computer without a mouse or keyboard
Make the mouse easier to use
Make the keyboard easier to use
Use text or visual alternatives for sounds
Make it easier to focus on tasks

Each of the preceding options displays a window from which you can select related Ease of Access features. Some features appear in more than one window, such as Narrator, which can be found by clicking either Use The Computer Without A Display or Make The Computer Easier To See.