Reader TTS

ADAPTIVE ACCESSORIES. Choosing SWITCH CONTROL on an iPhone or SWITCH ACCESS in Android presents options for using adaptive switches and accessories. On the iPhone you can use one or more

switches to sequentially select text, tap, drag, type or perform other actions, including using the front-facing camera to control your phone with head gestures. You also can create

specialized actions or “recipes” to, say, turn pages in an e-book. Google recently added a CAMERA SWITCHES feature that is also found under SWITCH ACCESS. It lets you navigate Android with

six facial gestures: Open Mouth, Smile, Raise Eyebrows, Look Left, Look Right and Look Up. You might use any of these gestures to scan items on the screen until you land on the one you want,

the weather app, for example. Performing a second gesture can select and open the app. In SETTINGS, you can adjust how big you want the gesture to be before it is recognized. In the Google 

Play Store, you can download a new Android application called Project Activate that lets you use these same gestures for customized actions such as sending a text or speaking a preset

phrase. CHANGES IN TOUCH. You can alter how the screen responds to your touch. On an iPhone under TOUCH | TOUCH ACCOMMODATIONS, you can change how long you must touch the screen before your

touch is recognized. Or flip a switch so multiple touches of the screen are treated as a single touch. Android users can tap a TOUCH & HOLD display switch that lets you change the

duration (short, medium, long) of when a tap is recognized as a “long press." DICTATION. iPhone and Android handsets both can take dictation, letting you use your voice to create lists,

compose emails and give other instructions. By speaking, you also summon the assistance of Siri on an iPhone using the “Hey, Siri” verbal command and the Google Assistant via “Hey, Google”

or “OK, Google” on Android. On an iPhone, head to SETTINGS | GENERAL | KEYBOARD and make sure the ENABLE DICTATION switch is turned on. From then on, you can tap the microphone icon to speak

rather than type whenever a keyboard turns up within an app. You even can use your voice to add punctuation. For example, “Dear Ed comma the check is in the mail exclamation mark.” With its

iOS 16 software update, Apple added an auto-punctuation feature for some of its more recent iPhones. The phone will automatically insert those commas and such without you having to specify.

You similarly can tap a microphone icon whenever an Android keyboard appears. Tap ALLOW rather than DENY if you're cool with the app in question recording your voice so you can speak

instead of type. Android also has the auto-punctuation feature for when you type with your voice. Dictation provides a benefit not just for people with accessibility challenges but anyone

who finds typing on relatively tiny keyboards a hassle. Android Settings to Help You See and Hear Better _This story, originally published May 26, 2020, has been updated to reflect new

features that have been introduced_. An Android app called Action Blocks is designed for people with a cognitive disability but can automate everyday tasks for anyone. The final steps allow

you to choose an image, name and size of button that the Action Block will display on your home screen. Google recently gave users the ability to create Action Blocks that speak aloud.

Action Blocks work in tandem with the Google Assistant. The app works on devices using Android 5.0 and higher. Courtesy Google Action Blocks _Edward C. Baig is a contributing writer who

covers technology and other consumer topics. He previously worked for_ USA Today, BusinessWeek, U.S. News & World Report _and _Fortune _and is the author of_ Macs for Dummies a_nd the

coauthor of_ iPhone for Dummies_ and _iPad for Dummies​​.