The lab’s researchers tested NVDA and Thunder for Microsoft Windows on common tasks users perform on a daily basis. They compared the two products in categories such as email, Microsoft Word and Excel, online banking, travel booking, iTunes, Amazon and Bookshare, as well as general web browsing.
The results of the comparison showed that NVDA handles most common tasks more effectively and efficiently than Thunder. The NVDA web browsing experience is very similar to that of commercial screen readers JAWS and Window-Eyes. It is faster and easier to use with the Microsoft Office suite than Thunder. While both screen readers had some problems navigating around iTunes and the travel site they were tested on, NVDA provided more accurate feedback via synthetic speech in both cases.
NVDA is an open-source screen reader that enables anyone to contribute to its development. Media Access Australia recently launched the first free training resource for the NVDA screen reader: a ‘wikispace’ that provides a step-by-step guide to installing and using the free assistive technology. The wiki is open to contributions from users who have knowledge about how people can easily use Windows applications with NVDA. For more information, please see our access review of NVDA.
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