Fortunately Soronel addressed the JAWS question, I use NVDA. I daily use an
Ubuntu 20.04 bash shell from wsl2. It works great. I use object navigation to
review any text on the console.
Though they're starting to support some Linux GUI apps via wsl2, I haven't
tried it and don't suggest starting there. It's most likely if/when you're
working in a tech job, your interaction with Linux will be via the command line.
I'm an old guy thus still use bash(at least I moved on from csh). There are
newer shells the kids are using these days, zsh, which I've heard about fancy
stuff. When I hear about fancy stuff though, I have a nagging suspicion there
will be accessibility problems.
If the term shell isn't one you know don't worry, it's just another way of
saying command line. A shell is simply a program with a command line interface
enabling you to interact with the operating system (think of cmd on Windows).
On Windows, the shell will run within a console, or terminal, the GUI structure
within which the shell runs.
For development, I use VS Code with the WSL extension. If you run vscode and
have wsl enabled on your system, I think vscode checks that and suggests the
wsl extension. If not, it should be easy to find in the extension search.
Assuming you already have vscode installed on your Windows machine, you should
be able to start it from within the bash shell by typing 'code' (without single
quotes). If you cd (bash command to change directory( into a directory with
your source code, you can type, 'code .' and vscode will open in Windows and
connect to your Linux distribution and let you edit the files in the Linux
filesystem.
There are lots of good tutorials on DigitalOcean regarding Ubuntu and bash.
All the ones I've seen are text based and very accessible.
Cheers,
Joel
-----Original Message-----
From: program-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <program-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf
Of gmelconian619@xxxxxxxxx
Sent: Tuesday, April 5, 2022 2:31 PM
To: program-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [program-l] Re: Getting started with Linux and WSL
What is WSL. Is it windows system for sub system linux and are you saying it
will work with JAWS.
-----Original Message-----
From: program-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <program-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf
Of Soronel Haetir
Sent: Tuesday, April 5, 2022 2:21 PM
To: program-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [program-l] Re: Getting started with Linux and WSL
At least using jaws the WSL console is perfectly accessible. I have not tried
running a windows-side X server and clients from the WSL side, that pretty much
seems like a nightmare (I hated X even when I could see).
On 4/5/22, zachtidwell0331@xxxxxxxxx <zachtidwell0331@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Hey all,
I've been coding for about a year now, and my interest in tinkering
with Linux has been increasing. I've finally started poking around on
the internet for information on how to get into started, and it looks
like Microsoft's WSL application is the way to go for me. Plus, given
Microsoft's current outlook on accessibility, I figured there's a good
chance it'll be accessible.
With that, I'm a JAWS user, and was curious if anyone has experience
with Linux and WSL, can speak to WSL's accessibility and use with a
screen-reader, and knows of accessible learning sites for Linux?
Thank you for your time,
Zach
