As the web continues to be the medium for all users, standards bodies need to continue to provide new APIs to enrich user experience and accessibility. One underused API for unsighted users is speechSynthesis, an API to programmatically direct the browser to audibly speak any arbitrary string.
The Code
You can direct the browser to utter speech with window.speechSynthesis and SpeechSynthesisUtterance:
window.speechSynthesis.speak(
new SpeechSynthesisUtterance('Hey Jude!')
)
speechSynthesis.speak will robotically tell the user anything you provide as a SpeechSynthesisUtterance string. Support for this API is available in all modern browsers.
I wouldn’t consider speechSynthesis as a replacement for native accessibility tools, but this API could be used to improve what native tools provide!
Conquering Impostor Syndrome
Two years ago I documented my struggles with Imposter Syndrome and the response was immense. I received messages of support and commiseration from new web developers, veteran engineers, and even persons of all experience levels in other professions. I’ve even caught myself reading the post…
Create a CSS Cube
CSS cubes really showcase what CSS has become over the years, evolving from simple color and dimension directives to a language capable of creating deep, creative visuals. Add animation and you’ve got something really neat. Unfortunately each CSS cube tutorial I’ve read is a bit…
Add Site Screenshots for External Links Using MooTools Tooltips
Before you send your user to an unknown external website, why not provide them a screenshot of the site via a tooltip so they may preview the upcoming page? Here’s how you can do just that using MooTools. The MooTools JavaScript The first step is to grab…
Record Text Selections Using MooTools or jQuery AJAX
One technique I’m seeing more and more these days (CNNSI.com, for example) is AJAX recording of selected text. It makes sense — if you detect users selecting the terms over and over again, you can probably assume your visitors are searching that term on Google…
Source link
