JAWS Bytes E-Update 008

Quantum Technology welcomes you to the 8th edition of our JAWS Bytes e-update!

If you would like to subscribe to JAWS Bytes please email your full name and details to Please feel free to pass this e-newsletter to anyone who may be interested. In this edition we have:

JAWS 8 and VISTA

Quantum Technology/Freedom Scientific JAWS Scholarship 2007 Winners

User’s Tip

Quantum’s FAQ and Answers

JAWS 8 and VISTA

Freedom Scientific has, on the 1st of March, released an upgrade to Jaws version 8. This update will work for everyone using JAWS 8.0 and windows XP or Windows 2000. It will be a free update for all JAWS 8 customers that intend to use it on Windows XP and 2000. For JAWS 8.0 users who intend to buy Vista, a public beta of Jaws 8 for Vista was released on the 1st of March. Jaws 8 new purchases or upgrades beyond the 1st of February are already Vista enabled.

For those who either purchased or upgraded to Jaws 8 prior to 1st February, Freedom Scientific will require that you participate in the JAWS software maintenance agreement (SMA) program to allow your JAWS 8 license to authorize under Vista. You will still receive the next SMA upgrades as expected, so this does not mean that installing in Vista will result in losing an SMA.

You can check if your Jaws license is Vista enabled, by visiting www.FSActivate.com
If you see that your serial number shows one or more upgrades remaining on the ILM page, or you have the 8.0V flag, you can use the Jaws 8.0 update on Vista. Please see the Freedom Scientific web page for the Vista install instructions.

Quantum Technology/Freedom Scientific Scholarship Program 2007 winners

Congratulations to our eight scholarship recipients who each won a copy of JAWS Professional. It has certainly been a pleasure for us here at Quantum Technology to award these prizes and meet some of these worthy winners. Their names are:

Bradley Ford, Moss Vale, NSW
Syeira Ferguson, Ulladulla, NSW
Nastasia Campanella, Minchinbury, NSW
Lindsay Heaven, Balwyn North, VIC
Chelsea Bartlett, Seaview Downs, SA
Suzanne Gould, Bendigo, VIC
Josh Yates, Busselton, WA
Moana Mani, Glen Innes, Auckland, NZ

User’s Tip

Send your favourite tip to share with our readers to and win a prize.

Tom MacMahon is the author of our favourite tip for this edition, he wins a 128 Mb USB memory stick.

Have you ever thought of using the Laptop Keyboard Layout on your desktop PC? It is simple to change the setting and it offers some distinct advantages. The laptop layout uses the CAPS LOCK KEY (often referred to as the JAWS KEY) as the main modifier instead of the INSERT KEY for most JAWS functions. Furthermore, changing to this setting does not negate any of the usual desktop commands which remain intact, but instead adds the option of using the CAPS LOCK KEY as the ‘JAWS KEY’ whenever desired.

Text navigation, for example, uses CAPS LOCK in conjunction with letters pressed by the right hand to duplicate all commands usually performed using the numeric keypad. It is possible to perform many JAWS functions without taking the hands from the typing keys, sometimes quite a time saver, especially for beginners and anyone experiencing difficulties with frequent relocation of hand position. Turning the caps lock function on or off now simply requires a double press of the CAPS LOCK KEY. This adds the little advantage of making it much harder to inadvertently turn Caps Lock on!

The JAWS Help System provides a topic on Laptop JAWS Keystrokes, while using the Keyboard Help feature (turned on and off by pressing JAWS KEY with 1 on the number row) is an excellent way to learn and revise the new key combinations.

To select the Laptop Keyboard Layout in the JAWS program window:
press INSERT+J to bring focus to the JAWS window;
open the Options Menu;
open the Basics submenu;
tab five times to the ‘Use Keyboard Layout’ dialogue;
arrow down to select ‘Laptop’;
Press ENTER.
Note: the Classic Laptop option refers to the pre-version 4 layout which uses the ALT key as the main modifier.

Quantum’s FAQ and Answers

How do I perform Installation Maintenance procedures like Repair and Modify?
In JAWS version 7.10, the Installation Maintenance shortcut in the Tools subfolder of the JAWS program group was removed. If you want to repair or modify your installation of JAWS, do one of the following:

Insert your JAWS program CD into your CD drive and choose the JAWS Setup button.

If you downloaded JAWS from FreedomScientific.com, navigate to the folder where you saved the file, select it, and press ENTER.

When the Installation Maintenance utility starts, you can choose the Repair, Modify, or Remove option.

If you want to remove your installation of JAWS 7.10, you can choose the Uninstall option from the Tools subfolder of the JAWS program group.

NOTE ABOUT AUTOMATIC UPDATES

If you updated JAWS using the Automatic Updates feature, you can initiate a repair using the setup file from a previous build. The installer will first reinstall the files from the previous build and then reapply the update(s).

If a new full setup file (not using Automatic Updates) is used to update JAWS, that setup file should be used to perform a repair instead of the setup file from a previous build. In this scenario, if you re-use the old setup file to do a repair, you will revert to the older build.

The updates are downloaded to the Windows user temp directory in the Documents and Settings folder. The file is deleted after the update is finished, regardless of whether it was successful or not.

What are the various command line switches I can use when installing JAWS?
Answer: There are a number of special installation commands that may be helpful. To install JAWS using these options, do the following:

Press WINDOWS Key+R.
Choose the Browse button.
Navigate to the folder where the JAWS setup package is located.
Select the setup package file and press ENTER.
Press END and then press the SPACEBAR.
Type one of the following:

/ExtractSettings - Outputs the contents of Settings.ini to the output file specified. The installation process is not performed. If the output file already exists, it is overwritten. If there are spaces in the path to the file, the path must be enclosed in quotes (for example:
C:\Package.exe/ExtractSettings "C:\FS setup\OldSettings.ini" ).

/ReplaceSettings - Specifies an initialization file for the setup package engine to use instead of the Settings.ini file stored in the resources. This flag can be used if any of the contents in Settings.ini must be overridden. If there are spaces in the path to the file, the path must be enclosed in quotes (for example: C:\Package.exe /ReplaceSettings "C:\FS setup\NewSettings.ini" ).

/Log - Outputs the setup package process to the log file FS_Setup_Package.txt. The log file is created in the same folder as the setup executable file.

/Type Silent - Silently installs a typical installation of JAWS without displaying any installation dialog boxes or prompts.

/Type Repair - Repairs a typical installation of JAWS. Once the repair begins, you will not be able to cancel the operation. During the repair, progress dialogs are displayed and a clicking tone is played. At the end, you will be prompted to restart your computer

/Type Safe - JAWS is installed without making system changes. System changes include installing video hooks in Windows NT, 2000, and XP, and installing Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA).

/Type SilentSafe - JAWS is installed silently and without making system changes.

/Type Client - Installs only those components necessary to run JAWS from a local area network server. This setup type will not create a JAWS folder, but will install video hooks and MSAA as needed.

/Type SilentClient - JAWS is silently installed as a Client setup.

/Type Server - Server setup includes the same restrictions as Safe setup. In addition, it creates only selected icons in the Start menu and makes limited changes to the registry. Its intended use is for those who want to install JAWS on a server, but do not intend to actually run JAWS on the server.

//Type SilentServer - Performs a silent Server installation.

/Type ServerWithSpeech - ServerWithSpeech setup installs JAWS on a server. Speech and braille access is provided for local users on the server.

/Type SilentServerWithSpeech - Performs a silent ServerWithSpeech installation.

/Type Remote - Use this setup type when installing JAWS on a computer that will be accessed through a terminal session by JAWS users. Special video hooks for terminal services are installed and the virtual speech and braille drivers are set up. If you are running the installation from a remote location during a terminal session, this setup type is automatically detected.

/Type SilentRemote - JAWS is silently installed as a Remote setup.

/Type Roam - Allows you to use JAWS on a network with roaming profiles. No separate folders are created for user and shared settings. All settings are stored in the folder where you installed JAWS.

/Type SilentRoam - Performs a silent Roam installation.

Send your favourite tip to share with our readers to and win a prize.

Quantum Technology Pty Ltd
5 South Street (PO Box 390)
Rydalmere NSW 2116
Phone: 61 2 8844 9888
Fax: 61 2 9684 4717
E-mail: