Linux
Presentation by:  William Powell, BOSMA Rehabilitation Center, AT Instructor

Linux is an operating system (OS).  There are three major graphical user interface (GUI) operating systems:  1. Windows, 2. MAC (Apple), and 3. Linux.  Linux comes in many distributions, each designed with specific purposes. Hardware, in the form of physical computers, and parts, are the same as for the PC and the MAC.  When considering Linux, look at what you will be using it for, then purchase hardware accordingly.  While command line Linux (no graphics, all typed) will run on very old computers, the newer GUI versions of Linux can act similar to Windows, and require newer physical components.   Categorically, Linux distributions can fall into the major groups of communication, servers, business, and entertainment.  Linux is a free operating system, with free programs, which can be downloaded, or purchased via contributions, on-line. 
Major distributions of Linux include, but are not limited to, Debian, Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Redhat Fedora, Suse, Linspire, Slackware, and others.  There are live CDs which allow the user to boot up the CD, and preview an operational Linux distribution, before installing it.  A list of many live Linux CDs can be found at:  http://www.frozentech.com/content/livecd.php.  While Linux from a CD runs slower then when it is installed, it does allow the user to use the internet, and run many of the programs.  This is not generally possible with command line Linux.  To acquire a live Linux CD, the user can directly download it from the internet, then burn it as an ISO on a CD, or make a contribution, and have it mailed to him/her.  There is Linux that runs from a USB memory/flash stick, and virtual Linux.  Virtual Linux can run from inside Windows or the MAC.  VMPlayer, by VMWare, is free, and can be found at the following web site:  http://www.vmware.com/products/player/  Once the VMPlayer is downloaded, the user can select one or more virtual operating systems at:  http://www.vmware.com/appliances/ (look at the third column to the right—User Favorites, Most Downloaded).  All of the preceding has included common programs, such as Open Office.  There are a few different types of desktops for the GUI Linux.
Kde, X, and Gnome are all versions of the Linux GUI desktop.   Gnome is excellent in terms of screenreader accessibility.  Kde offers a very Windows type environment, but is not as screenreader friendly.  While Kde offers more in the way of program development, Gnome offers complete accessibility.  Currently, Kde is being refined to meet the needs of users who are blind.  Kde and Gnome offer forms of screenreaders, screen enlargers, and other assistive technologies.  Voice command and on screen keyboard programs are built in, or can be installed to meet the needs of users.
Open Office is a group of programs which includes a word processor, spreadsheet, and slideshow generator.  Open Office can be downloaded for either Windows, or Linux, at the following web address:  www.openoffice.org.  While Linux pre-installs Open Office, and Evolution (email), the Windows user will need to download it from the preceding web site.  Evolution does not come with the Open Office download, therefore, will need to be downloaded from the following web address:  http://www.softpedia.com/get/Internet/E-mail/E-mail-Clients/Evolution-for-Windows.shtml.  Screenreader users will find that Open Office allows the use of many common Windows type commands, and many of the key commands found in Microsoft Office.  It is important to note that when saving a file from Open Office Writer, the user needs to save it as a Rich Text Format, text format, or Word format, if they are going to be opening in on a MAC, or Windows type word processor.
Internet access in the GUI types of Linux can be accomplished with a number of programs.  Firefox and Konquerer are two prevalent programs, and are very similar to IE Explorer.  Firefox comes in versions for both Windows and Linux.  This program can be obtained from the following web address:  http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/. 
To go to the area in the GUI where the assistive programs are started and set up, do the following:  Press alt escape, right arrow to System, make sure you are on Preference, then right arrow, then down arrow to assistive Technologies and tap enter one time.  Press alt p for Preferred Applications.  Right arrow to Accessibility, then tab down and press Run Orca at Startup.  When you log in, and Orca starts, press alt p to go to Preferences.  You can press down arrow to select desktop or laptop keyboard layout.  You can right arrow one time to speech, then tap down to areas for Speech synthesizer, Voice settings, Person, Rate, Pitch, and volume.  Further down are settings for Punctuation Level, Verbosity, and Table Row Speech.  There are other settings after this, including Say All By.  If you have just pressed alt p to go to Preferences, right arrow two times to get to the Braille settings, or three times to get to the Key Echo settings. 
At this time there are many Linux projects underway to make optical character recognition (OCR) and other tasks possible in Gnome.  Comprehensive projects for Gnome in general are listed at:  http://www.gnome.org/projects/.  To read the Gnome Desktop Accessibility Guide, go to the following web address:  http://library.gnome.org/users/gnome-access-guide/2.14/.  To make sure JAVA is accessible, go to the following web page:  http://live.gnome.org/Java%20Access%20Bridge.  To go to the Orca screenreader web page:  http://live.gnome.org/Orca.  Accessible programs are listed at:  http://live.gnome.org/Orca/AccessibleApps.  Gnome is constantly under development, and is becoming more accessible by the day.
Key commands for Gnome and Orca (screenreader) can be found at:  http://developer.gnome.org/projects/gap/keyboardnav.html.  Orca overview is at:  http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/9978.  Orca key commands is at:  http://live.gnome.org/Orca/KeyboardCommands, and http://library.gnome.org/users/gnome-access-guide/latest/keynav-1.html. 
Linux has a main web page at:  www.linux.com, and a page for various Linux distributions at:  http://www.linux.com/distributions/.  Other sites are:  www.ubuntu.com, www.debian.com, www.slackware.com, www.redhat.com, http://en.opensuse.org/Welcome_to_openSUSE.org, http://www.knoppix.com/, and http://www.centos.org/.  It is important to download the i386 for standard Intel chip sets, or the other option for the AMD chip set.
DO NOT LOAD THE 64 BIT VERSION OF ANY LINUX (OR WINDOWS)—THIS LEVEL OF OS WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO USE YOUR SCREENREADER.
A Quick Walkthrough

1.  You have down loaded your live CD, and are booting it for the first time—you will need sighted help.  You come to the boot up screen.  On the newer distros of Linux, tap F6 one time and type acpi=off then tap enter.  You may have to tap it two times.
2. If you are bringing up Ubuntu, on the desktop will be an install icon.  Tap enter on this one time, and then follow the instructions on the pages.
3. Now, you have rebooted, and are at the login screen.  Type your username, tab one time, type your password, then tap enter one time.
4. You are now booted up.  Press alt F1 (it acts like the Windows or Start key).
5. Right arrow two times to get to the system menu.
6. Down arrow one time and you should hear Preferences.
7. Right arrow one time.
8. Down arrow to Assistive Technologies.
9. Press alt e to enable assistive technologies.
10. Press shift tab one time to go to Preferred Applications.
11. Tap enter one time.
12. Right arrow three times to go to Accessibility.
13. Press alt r to Run or Start.
14. Press shift tab one time to get to Orca.
15. Press the down arrow key several times to hear your options.  If you are only going to need the screenreader, make sure you arrow back to where it says only Orca.
16. Press alt c to close this window.
17. Press alt c a second time to close the Assistive Technologies window.
18. Reboot by pressing alt escape, right arrow two times, up arrow one time to go to Quit, tap enter, the press alt r to restart.
19. After you have rebooted, put in your username and password and tapped enter, press alt p at the desktop.
20. Press down arrow one time to select Desktop keyboard layout, or two times to select laptop keyboard layout, then press shift tab one time to go back to General.
21. Press right arrow one time to go to Speech.
22. Press alt e to enable speech (to make sure it is on; or maybe two times to be sure it says “checked.”
23. Tap two times to the speech synthesizer, then use your up and down arrow keys to select the synthesizer you want.
24. Tap the tab key two times to go to Person, use the up and down arrow keys to find the voice you want—you can press alt a two times, then tap enter one time to apply the settings, and will hear the new voice you have selected.  If you do not like it, press alt p to go to person, use your up and down arrow keys to select a different voice, press alt a two times, and tap enter to change the voice.
25. Press alt r then use your left and right arrow keys to select the rate or speed of the voice.
26. Press alt t then use your left and right arrow keys to select the pitch (low to high) of the voice.
27. Press alt l then use your left and right arrow keys to select the volume of the voice.
28. Tab through the rest of the radio and check boxes, tapping the spacebar one time on any that you want to select.  When finished, press alt a until you hear Apply, then tap enter one time.  Finally, press alt o until you hear OK Button, then tap enter one time.
29. To get a quick list of key commands, press alt p from the desktop, then right arrow to Key Bindings, then tab down to where you hear Bookmark Where I am… then down arrow to hear specific commands.
30. Press alt F4 to close this window.
31. Press alt F1.
32. Down arrow to Office, right arrow one time, down arrow to Open Office Word Processor, and tap enter one time.
33. These formatting commands work: control b turns bold on and off; control i turns italics on and off; control e centers text on the line; control r right aligns text; control l left aligns text; control 2 double spaces lines; control 1 single spaces lines; control shift right arrow highlights the word to the right; control shift left arrow highlights the word to the left; control c copies highlighted text; control x cuts and copies highlighted text; control v pastes the text that has been copied; alt o down arrow one time to Character, and tap enter goes to where you can set the Font, Type Face and Size.  There are many other ways to format, but note that the preceding key commands also work in Windows word processors.
34. Reading and text navigation keys:  right arrow moves forward one letter; left arrow moves backward one character; control right arrow moves forward one word; control left arrow moves backward one word; the plus key on the numeric keypad (with the keypad turned off) reads from where the cursor is, to the end of the text/file.  Control Home takes you to the top of the file; control End takes you to the bottom of the file; Home takes you to the beginning of the line; end takes you to the end of the line.
35. Spell Check—tap the F7 key one time, then tab through to learn the options.
36. Tables—insert a table by pressing alt a, tap the letter I, tap the letter t, then enter—or, you can do this faster by pressing control and tapping F12 one time.  Tab through to set columns and rows, etc.
37. Envelopes—press alt i then tap the letter v, then enter one time.   You will be placed in the Sender edit box—type your name, tap enter, type your street address, tap enter; type your city, state, and zip code.  Press alt e to go to the Addressee edit box, type the name of the person you are sending the letter to, tap enter, type their street address, tap enter, type their city, state, and zip code. Press shift tab then right arrow one time to format, press alt o then up and down arrow to select the size of envelope you want.  Press shift tab until you hear Format, then right arrow one time, then right arrow one time and tab down to set up your printer.
38. Page Formatting—press alt o, then p, then tap enter.  Press shift tab one time, then right arrow to hear Page, Background, Header, Footer, Borders, Columns, and Footnotes.  Tap tab one time on any of these to explore that area.  You can change the background color of a page, set the number of columns (newsletters), and even make a border around the page.
39. Insert Menu—Press alt and the letter i then down arrow to explore this menu.
40. Saving the file—Press control and the letter s.  Type a name for the document.  Tap enter.  You will want to explore this area to explore saving to different folders, and saving in different file types—You must save the file in text, RTF, or Word format to have it cross over to other word processors.
41. Press alt F4 to leave the word processor.
42. Press alt F1 to open the Linux menu, then down arrow to Office, right arrow one time, down arrow to spreadsheet, then tap enter one time.
43. Right arrow two times to cell c1.  Type =a1+b1 then tab one time.  You have just created a simple addition formula!  Left arrow to cell a1 and type the number 3 then right arrow one time and type the number 2 then right arrow one time to hear the answer.  This works very similar to Excel, and files can be saved in Excel format, and Excel files can be read in this program.
44. Press alt F4 to leave the Spreadsheet program.
45. Press alt F1, down arrow to Office, tap the right arrow key one time, down arrow to Presentation, press alt n for Next, press alt n again, then press alt c to create a blank Presentation file.  This program works very similar to PowerPoint.
46. Press alt F4 to leave this program.
47. Press alt F1, down arrow to Office, right arrow one time, then down or up arrow until you hear Evolution.  Tap enter, and you will be in a setup area.  Once you have set up Evolution, you will have an email program similar to Outlook.  Control 1 takes you to Inbox, Control 2 takes you to Contacts, Control 3 takes you to Calendar, and Control 4 takes you to Tasks.
48. Press alt F4 to leave Evolution (Evolution is also found in the Internet menu).
49. Press alt F1, down arrow to internet, press right arrow, down arrow to Firefox Web Browser, and tap enter one time.
50. Press F6 to go to the address bar.
51. Type www.brlsts.com and tap enter one time.
52. Press control home.
53. Tap the plus key on the numeric keypad, with the keypad turned off, and Orca will read the page from the start to the finish.  Tap your way through the links, and tap enter on a link that interests you.  Press control home, and then tap the plus key to read that page.  You can highlight and copy text, just as you would in Windows, then paste it into you word processor document.  To do this, leave the internet open, press alt F1, down arrow to Office, right arrow, then down arrow to the word processor, and tap enter.  Press and hold the alt key and tap the tab key one time to go back to the internet.  Press and hold the control and shift keys, and right arrow five or more times.  Release these keys.  Press and hold the control key and tap the letter c.  Press alt tab to go back to the word processor.  Press and hold the control key and tap the letter v and the internet text will be pasted into your word processor document.
54. Press alt F4 to leave the internet, then alt F4 to leave the word processor.  If you do not want to save the word processor file, press alt d to Discard.
55. Press alt F1 and down arrow to Sound & Video.  Right arrow one time, then down arrow to hear what programs are there.  You can be sure there will be a CD player in this area.  Linux will play movies, so you might select a movie player—these can be tricky, and you may have to load extra codecs.
56. Press alt F4 to leave whatever program you opened.
57. Press alt F1, right arrow two times to System, up arrow one time, or until you hear Quit, tap enter, then press alt s to shut down, or alt r to restart, or alt l to logout, or alt w to switch user, or alt h to hibernate, or alt o to lock screen.