Use a switch, keyboard, or eye gaze

Not every communicator taps a screen. Some press a switch, some use a keyboard, and some select with their eyes or a head mouse. SpeakAnyWay works with the accessibility tools already built into iPad and other devices, so a communicator can reach and speak every tile without touching the screen.

This article explains what works today, how to set it up, and what SpeakAnyWay doesn't do yet.

What you'll need

• SpeakAnyWay 1.15.0 or newer on iPad, or the web app at app.speakanyway.com. Older app versions highlighted tiles but couldn't press them. To check your version, look for SpeakAnyWay in the App Store and update it if there's an Update button.
• A communicator with at least one board (Set up your first communicator)
• Your switch, keyboard, or eye-gaze device, already paired with the device

How it works

SpeakAnyWay doesn't have its own scanning. Instead, it works with the scanning built into the device. On iPad that's Switch Control, which highlights one item after another. When the highlight lands on the tile you want, you press your switch and the tile speaks.

Everything a communicator uses can be scanned and pressed:

• Tiles on every board, in reading order (left to right, top to bottom)
• Folder tiles that open another board
• The Speak, Clear, and Back buttons next to the message bar
• Board cards on the communicator's dashboard, so they can open a board without help

Each press speaks the word once. Holding a switch down doesn't repeat it.

Set up Switch Control on iPad

1. On the iPad, open Settings → Accessibility → Switch Control.
2. Add your switch under Switches, and give it an action like Select Item.
3. Turn on Switch Control.
4. Open SpeakAnyWay and go to the communicator's board.

Switch Control first highlights the whole board as a group, then the tiles inside it once you select the group. Switch Control's own settings (like scan speed, auto vs. manual scanning, and highlight size) are where you adjust how scanning feels. Apple's guide covers them in detail: search "Use Switch Control on iPad" on support.apple.com.

Use a keyboard

A keyboard, or a switch interface set up to act like one, works on every board:

• Tab moves to the next tile. Shift+Tab moves back.
• Enter or Space speaks the tile you're on.

A visible outline shows which tile has focus.

Use eye gaze or a head mouse

Eye-gaze devices and head mice select with a "dwell": you hold your gaze or pointer on a tile until it clicks. A little drift while you dwell won't cancel the press.

If the board scrolls when it shouldn't, turn on Disable Scroll in the board's settings. That locks the board in place so every small movement counts as a press, not a scroll.

What to expect

• SpeakAnyWay doesn't have its own scanning. There's no scan speed or highlight setting inside SpeakAnyWay. All of that lives in the device's accessibility settings.
• Android Switch Access should work, but we haven't fully tested it yet. The app answers the way Android presses a button. If something doesn't work for you on Android, email us, because we want to know.
• Arranging tiles still needs touch or a mouse. Moving tiles around in the layout editor is drag only. Everything else in the editor, like selecting and deselecting tiles, works with a switch.

Common questions

• Does SpeakAnyWay have built-in switch scanning, like step scanning or row-column scanning? Not yet. SpeakAnyWay works with the scanning built into the device (iPad Switch Control), which does support auto and step scanning. Set those up in the iPad's Settings.
• Switch Control highlights the board, but pressing a tile does nothing. Update SpeakAnyWay to 1.15.0 or newer from the App Store. Older versions had this exact problem. If you're on the web, refresh the page.
• Can a communicator open their own boards with a switch? Yes. Each board card on their dashboard is a single item Switch Control can highlight and press.
• Does it work in the web browser, or only the app? Both. Switch Control and keyboards work in Safari on iPad and in the SpeakAnyWay app.
• Something on screen won't highlight. Email hello@speakanyway.com and tell us which screen and which button. Anything a communicator needs should be reachable, and we'll fix what isn't.