What's New in ZoomText 2022 and Fusion 2022
Docking the Quick Access Bar
By default, the Quick Access Bar is now docked to one of four corners on your
screen when you start ZoomText or Fusion. This provides a location for the Quick
Access Bar to return to when it loses focus. It also makes it easy to find when
viewing a magnified screen.
The bar can be docked in the top right corner, top left corner, lower right
corner, or lower left corner of the screen. If you want to change the dock
location, do the following:
1. If the Quick Access Bar is not expanded, click the Show Shortcut Names button
to expand the bar.
2. Click the Customize button and then Preferences.
3. Select Automatically Dock to Screen Corner and select a screen corner in the Corner list.
The default wake word for ZoomText is now "Hey Zoomy," while the default wake
word for JAWS is now "Hey Sharky."
When running Fusion, you can now say either "Hey Sharky" or "Hey Zoomy" and
the voice assistant knows which features are for JAWS or ZoomText and will do
the appropriate action depending on what you asked. Previously, Fusion users
could only access ZoomText features using the voice assistant.
After selecting text with JAWS or Fusion, you can now say "Hey Sharky, Read
Selection" to read the selected content, or "Hey Sharky, Append" to append the
selected text to the clipboard.
Selecting the Settings option from the Voice Assistant submenu in the JAWS
Utilities menu now opens a dedicated Voice Assistant Settings dialog box instead
of taking you to Settings Center.
JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion Discontinues Windows 7 and 8.1 Support
In order to keep pace with continued advancements in Microsoft Windows
technology, JAWS, Fusion, and ZoomText 2022 will no longer install and run on
versions of Windows earlier than Windows 10. We also continue improving support
for Windows 11, scheduled for release in the coming months. Versions of our
software will continue to be available for users of older Windows versions from
our Previous Downloads web pages.
Earlier in JAWS and Fusion 2021, we introduced a way for users to lower the
volume of JAWS speech independently of system audio to help make it easier to
hear audio from other applications. Version 2022 takes this a step further by
now allowing those using stereo headsets or speakers to route all JAWS or Fusion
speech to one ear while routing audio from all other applications to the other
ear. This helps make it easier to continue getting work done with JAWS while
following along during a Zoom or Teams meeting, a Skype call, or a YouTube
video.
To split audio:
1. Press INSERT+SPACEBAR followed by V to activate the Volume
layer.
2. Press B for Balance, and then do one of the following:
o Press LEFT ARROW to route JAWS Speech to the left and audio from all
other applications to the right.
o Press RIGHT ARROW to route JAWS speech to the right and audio from all
other applications to the left.
o Press UP ARROW to restore both JAWS speech and application audio to
both channels.
Note: Before attempting to split your audio, make sure your headset or speakers are properly oriented. For instance, if you route JAWS speech to the left and instead hear it in your right ear, your headset is most likely reversed.
Once you split your JAWS speech and application audio, it remains in effect
until you restart JAWS, or use the command to restore the audio balance.
You can also wake up the Voice Assistant and say "Sound Left," "Sound Right," or
"Sound Balance." Make sure your microphone is not muted before speaking these
commands. You also may not want to use these commands in apps like Teams or Zoom
as other meeting participants will hear you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: I use a stereo Bluetooth headset that includes a microphone for participating
in Teams and Zoom calls. Can I split the audio in this situation?
Answer: No, splitting the audio will not work in a call when using a Bluetooth
headset. This is not a JAWS issue. When connecting to a call in Teams or Zoom,
it switches from a headphone device to a headset device. By design, the headset
device works as a mono device, so sound splitting does not work. If you want to
split your audio during a call, we recommend using a wired headset.
Q: Can I split my audio if I'm using a stereo Bluetooth headset to just listen
to music?
Answer: Yes. If you are playing audio from another source such as a YouTube
video, the sound splitter works as expected even if you are using a Bluetooth
headset. You will only experience issues with splitting audio when connecting to
a Teams or Zoom call using a Bluetooth headset as it changes from a stereo
headphone device to a mono headset device.
Q: Does the sound splitter work with external speakers?
Answer: Yes, JAWS speech and application audio will split as expected if you are
using your computer's internal speakers, or you have external speakers connected.
Q: I currently have JAWS configured to use a different sound device instead of
the Windows default sound card. Will I still be able to split the audio?
Answer: As long as both JAWS and the other applications playing sound are all
routed through the same sound card, the audio will split as expected. If you use
the Sound Cards option under the JAWS Utilities menu to configure JAWS to use a
different sound card, JAWS remains routed, but audio from other apps will be
restored to both speakers.
Resolved an issue where typing echo was not working correctly when typing
messages in Skype.
Resolved an AppReader issue where sentence and paragraph reading commands were
ignored in TextView mode. This resulted in non-stop reading in Word and Notepad
documents.
Resolved issues with echo performance when using AppReader in Chrome and Edge.
Resolved several cursor enhancement and focus tracking issues in Outlook, web
browsers, and WordPad.
Resolved a problem where Chrome would stop responding when reading certain
content with mouse echo on.
Resolved an issue that was seen when ZoomText was starting. The focus
enhancement was moving to the Quick Access Bar icon on the ZoomText toolbar and
would fail to move to the Activation window when it appeared.
Resolved an issue where the cursor enhancement did not appear while typing in
the Index field in the ZoomText help.
Resolved issues related to cursor enhancements remaining on the cursor while
navigating in applications such as Word and WordPad.
Enhancements in ZoomText 2022.2110.47 and Fusion 2022.2110.19 (October 2021)
Made changes in both ZoomText and Fusion to address reports that the programs
would become unstable after running for roughly 30 minutes. This was seen often
when running Chrome with multiple tabs open.
The Quick Access Bar now returns to its collapsed view if the bar is expanded,
and you move focus away from it.
Resolved issues with the Quick Access Bar when using ZoomText or Fusion with
more than one monitor. After pressing CAPS LOCK+RIGHT CLICK, the bar did
not always appear on the same monitor where you had placed the mouse pointer to
perform the keystroke. Also, the bar will dock on the last monitor where it was
used.
In Fusion, mouse echo can be set to either Echo (on) or No Echo (off). When
set to on, echo speaks when the mouse pointer is placed over text or an item for
a set amount of time. Previously, Fusion's default echo delay was no delay. The
new default is 0.4 seconds as you move your mouse pointer over text.
With the Quick Access Bar, you can now search for and
quickly perform magnification and speech features, add features to your
shortcuts list, and read a brief description to learn more about these features.
And with Fusion, you can also create application-specific shortcuts that appear
in the bar when you switch to that application.
The Search box appears at the top of the Quick Access Bar.
To select and run a feature using Search, do the following:
1. Go to Search on the Quick Access Bar, and enter a word associated with the
feature you want to use. Search results appear in the Quick Access Bar list. It
displays a maximum of six items. If the list is empty, try again using different
words.
Note: If you want to learn more about any shortcut displayed in the list, select
the More Information button for a brief description. The button is located next
to the shortcut in the list and can be selected using your mouse or pressing the
Right Arrow key.
2. Select the feature you want to use.
With Fusion, you can create customized shortcut lists for
any application you use. When you switch to an application, the Quick Access Bar
will automatically change to that application's shortcut list.
To make an application-specific shortcut list, do the following:
1. Go to an application and open the Quick Access Bar (CAPS LOCK+RIGHT-CLICK).
2. Select the Customize button then Add Shortcut.
3. The Customize window opens. Note that the Application list shows the current
application name followed by (default), for example, Microsoft Word (Using
default). This indicates that Word is currently using the bar's default
shortcuts.
4. You can delete shortcuts that are currently displayed in the list and add new
shortcuts that you want to use for the application. Note, as you add and delete
shortcuts, the application name is no longer labeled as a default.
5. When finished, select OK to close the Customized dialog box. The
shortcut list will now be used when running that specific application.
Note: When you move away from the application, the bar will return to its
default shortcuts list.
When you first start Fusion, the Quick Access Bar now
appears on the same display as the Fusion toolbar when using multiple monitors.
The Quick Access Bar now appears on the correct display if you switch from
multi-monitor mode to single-monitor mode.
The Quick Access Bar has been localized for Russian.
Resolved an issue where focus enhancement would not stay on the selected item
in the Quick Access Bar.
When launching Teams, Zoom, or Skype, where it is beneficial to separate JAWS
speech and audio in a call or meeting, JAWS or Fusion now displays a dialog box
offering a quick tip on using the Sound Splitter feature. There is a check box
in that dialog you can select to avoid seeing this reminder in the future.
If you are focused on a link in an email message or web page that you are not
sure about, you can now say a command like "Hey Sharky, Tell Me the Address" to
quickly find out where the link is going.
With the Quick Access Bar, you can now search for and
quickly perform magnification and speech features, add features to your
shortcuts list, and read a brief description to learn more about these features.
And with Fusion, you can also create application-specific shortcuts that appear
in the bar when you switch to that application.
The Search box appears at the top of the Quick Access Bar.
To select and run a feature using Search, do the following:
1. Go to Search on the Quick Access Bar, and enter a word associated with the
feature you want to use. Search results appear in the Quick Access Bar list. It
displays a maximum of six items. If the list is empty, try again using different
words.
Note: If you want to learn more about any shortcut displayed in the list, select the More Information button for a brief description. The button is located next to the shortcut in the list and can be selected using your mouse or pressing the Right Arrow key.
2. Select the feature you want to use.
When you first start ZoomText, the Quick Access Bar now
appears on the same display as the ZoomText toolbar when using multiple
monitors.
The Quick Access Bar now appears on the correct display if you switch from
multi-monitor mode to single-monitor mode.
The Quick Access Bar has been localized for Russian.
Resolved an issue where focus enhancement would not stay on the selected item
in the Quick Access Bar.
Latvian language support has been added to ZoomText.
Resolved an issue where ZoomText was not properly tracking when using Chromes
Caret Browsing extension.
Resolved an issue where the ZoomText Recorder was not recognizing copied text.
Resolved an issue with mouse pointer tracking in Edge, Chrome, and Firefox.
Resolved an issue where ZoomText was not reading the read/unread status of
Outlook messages.
Resolved an issue where words were not echoed as expected when navigating
cells in Excel.
Resolved an issue where mouse echo was not reading tables correctly in Edge,
Chrome, and Firefox.
The following items have been addressed in the February
2022 update.
You can add a delay for when the mouse pointer moves from one desktop to
another when using multiple monitors. This delay is now enabled and set to 0.25
seconds. You can change the delay using the "Keep the pointer from crossing the
border" setting found in Multiple Monitor Options.
Stability and performance have improved when using ZoomText with the following
applications:
o Microsoft Edge
o Microsoft Excel
o Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
o Agent Ransack file search utility
o Antidote 11 and Antidote 10 writing assistance software
ZoomText now installs and runs on Windows 11 SE operating system and devices.
Resolved several issues with focus enhancement that occurred when navigating
combo boxes in Outlook 365/2016 and Word 365/2016.
Resolved an issue where ZoomText would close when switching between Contacts
and Tasks in Outlook 365/2016.
Resolved an issue with keyboard echo (when set to Words) not working properly
in various edit fields in Firefox.
Resolved an issue with the cursor enhancement becoming distorted and not
tracking correctly when typing in Google Docs.
Resolved an issue where AppReader had trouble reading numbered lists.
The following items have been addressed in the April 2022 update.
Resolved an issue where CAPS LOCK+V was not switching between monitors
when running ZoomText with multiple monitors.
Resolved an issue with mouse echo when running ZoomText or Fusion with the ARC
console application.
Resolved an issue where the Scroll commands were not working on magnified
screens.
Resolved an issue where voice settings were not being saved after restarted
international versions of ZoomText.
Resolved an issue where the Quick Access Bar was not launching when running
international version of ZoomText.
Resolved an issue where it was difficult to read magnified text in the Chrome
address bar.
Resolved an issue with Excel 2016 and Excel 365 where the correct character
was not echoed when navigating through cells and the formula bar.
Improved focus enhancement performance when navigating cells in an Excel file.
Resolved an issue where the cursor enhancement would disappear in some Word
menus.
Resolved an issue with iTunes where it would crash when trying to edit the
name of audiobooks.
The Display Adapter settings are now located under ZoomText > ZoomText Support
instead of ZoomText > Preferences.
The following items have been addressed in the June 2022 update.
The ZoomText UI now supports Macedonian, Latvian, and Albanian.
Resolved an issue with focus tracking when running Acrobat DC Pro with
ZoomText or Fusion.
Resolved an issue where AppReader would not read when running Acrobat DC Pro
with ZoomText or Fusion.
Resolved an issue where CAPS LOCK+V was not moving the mouse point
between multiple monitors.
Resolved an issue where ZoomText would close while trying to insert a header
or footer in an Excel worksheet.
Improved focus enhancement and cursor enhancement performance when running
Excel 365.
Resolved an issue where cursor enhancement was not tracking correctly when
running Notepad on Windows 11.
Improved character-smoothing of text that appears in the Windows Start menu
and Teams chat window.
Resolved an issue in Outlook where cursor enhancement and keyboard tracking
would disappear after opening a context menu.
The following items have been addressed in the July 2022
update.
Resolved an issue for Sight and Sound where the Zoom Window Adjust Tool was
not working when using the Lens zoom window.
Addressed an issue where magnification would sometimes fail after switching
languages in ZoomText.
Resolved an issue with AppReader where pressing ESC while on a link
would launch the link instead of closing AppReader.
Resolved an issue where AppReader was not working properly with some kiosk
applications.
Resolved an issue where the magnified view port was not tracking along when
using scroll commands such as CAPS LOCK+SHIFT+RIGHT ARROW.
Resolved an issue where there was no keyboard echo when pressing DELETE
to delete characters.
When using the Quick Access Bar with Macedonian selected as the user interface
language, search results would appear in English instead of Macedonian. This has
been resolved.
Senast uppdaterat Juli 2022