Voiceover on the iPhone and Mac Basics, Wednesday, May 13, 2026

Workshop Introduction and Housekeeping

Siena formally opened the session, outlined the day’s agenda, and reviewed meeting housekeeping guidelines.

Details
- Siena: Introduced the session as a VoiceOver basics workshop covering iPhone first, then Mac, with Ali as the tutorial host. Also announced the next day’s Textravaganza 2.0 on Uber Eats (7–9 p.m. Eastern).
- Siena: Reviewed muting/unmuting shortcuts — Command-Shift-A (Mac), Alt-A (PC) — and hand-raise shortcuts — Alt-Y (PC), Option-Y (Mac), Star-6 and Star-9 for phone lines.
- Palmer: Added that on iPhone with VoiceOver, a two-finger double-tap can mute/unmute in Zoom, though the first use may briefly drop audio before stabilizing.
- Siena: Confirmed and elaborated on Palmer’s tip, noting the brief audio drop is a known glitch on first use.
Conclusion
- Participants were reminded to stay muted during tutorials and unmute with raised hands during Q&A.
- The two-finger double-tap method for muting on iPhone with VoiceOver was confirmed as functional after the initial use.

VoiceOver iPhone Tutorial — Basic Navigation Gestures

Ali demonstrated core VoiceOver gestures on the iPhone, including navigating the home screen, activating apps, and understanding flick gestures.

Details
- Ali: Explained that a short flick left moves to the previous item and a short flick right moves to the next item; emphasized “short” to distinguish from a long swipe.
- Ali: Demonstrated a one-finger double-tap to activate a focused item, opening the Entertainment folder and then YouTube as a live example.
- Ali: Showed how to organize apps into folders (e.g., Entertainment, Social, Utilities) and noted his folder structure is preserved via iCloud backup across devices.
- Ali: Clarified that folder structures and organization would be covered in a future tutorial.
Conclusion
- Core gestures covered: short flick left (previous item), short flick right (next item), one-finger double-tap (activate item).
- Folder organization on the home screen is a planned future tutorial topic.

VoiceOver iPhone Tutorial — Accessing Home Screen and App Switcher (Devices Without Home Button)

Ali demonstrated how to return to the home screen and access the app switcher on Face ID iPhones using VoiceOver.

Details
- Ali: Instructed participants to touch the bottom middle of the screen; a blip sound indicates entry into the gesture mode. A quick flick up from that position navigates to the home screen; holding longer triggers “Lift for home” or “Lift for app switcher” prompts.
- Liz: Asked whether going to the home screen closes the open app; Ali clarified it does not — the app moves to the background in the app switcher.
- Liz: Mentioned she prefers closing apps to keep things tidy; Ali noted some apps must remain open in the background to function properly.
- Siena: Added a practical use case — keeping two apps open simultaneously (e.g., Safari and Mail) facilitates copy-pasting between them via the app switcher.
- Jeroo: Reported difficulty performing the gesture; Ali and Siena advised touching the bottom edge (not left or right corner) and performing a quick flick.
Conclusion
- The bottom-middle touch + quick flick up gesture is the standard method to access the home screen or app switcher on Face ID iPhones with VoiceOver.
- Some apps require background operation; closing all apps is not always recommended.

VoiceOver iPhone Tutorial — Flick Up/Down and the Rotor

Liz raised a question about the function of flick up and flick down gestures, prompting a discussion on the VoiceOver rotor.

Details
- Liz: Asked what a flick up does in general, noting she had recently learned the flick down and found it very useful.
- Ali: Explained that flick up and down interact with the rotor — for example, if the rotor is set to “Characters,” flicking up moves to the previous character and flicking down to the next.
- Liz: Confirmed understanding and expressed appreciation for learning new gestures through the workshop.
Conclusion
- Flick up/down behavior depends on the current rotor setting; this enables granular navigation (e.g., by character, word, or line).

VoiceOver iPhone Tutorial — Notification Center

Ali demonstrated how to access and navigate Notification Center using VoiceOver.

Details
- Ali: Explained that touching the top middle of the screen and performing a quick flick down accesses Notification Center; a second flick down accesses Control Center.
- Ali: Showed live notifications including grouped Gmail, Mona, Discord, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, and sports news items.
- Ali: Explained that notifications from apps with five or more items are grouped by app; this grouping behavior is configurable and will be covered in a future tutorial.
- Ali: Recommended using Notification Center or the lock screen rather than asking Siri “Do I have any new messages?” for more reliable and accurate results.
- Ali: Advised against using the mute switch to ask the voice assistant about messages, as this can cause missed notifications; instead, recommended setting up Focus modes with haptics and sounds enabled.
- Jeroo: Asked for a repeat of the Notification Center access steps; Ali clarified the top-middle touch + flick down sequence.
- Jackie: Asked if there is a way to prevent the phone from locking while reading notifications; Ali confirmed there is currently no way to change this behavior in iOS.
Conclusion
- Notification Center is accessed via top-middle touch + quick flick down; it is the recommended method for checking messages accurately.
- Grouped notifications appear when five or more notifications exist from a single app.
- Phone auto-locking during notification reading is a current iOS limitation with no known workaround.

Suppressing VoiceOver Passcode Announcement

Liz raised a privacy concern about VoiceOver announcing her passcode aloud in public.

Details
- Liz: Asked how to prevent VoiceOver from speaking her passcode when unlocking the phone in public, noting she is deaf and uses VoiceOver at high volume.
- Siena: Suggested sharing the screen only after the phone is already unlocked, or using keyboard/braille screen input to enter the passcode silently.
- Siena: Recommended using a three-finger double-tap to toggle speech off before entering the passcode, then toggling it back on afterward.
Conclusion
- A three-finger double-tap toggles VoiceOver speech on/off, allowing silent passcode entry in public settings.

VoiceOver iPhone Tutorial — Control Center

Ali navigated through Control Center, demonstrating its layout and available toggles.

Details
- Ali: Accessed Control Center via the top-middle touch + two flick downs; demonstrated three pages of controls including Airplane Mode, AirDrop, Wi-Fi, brightness, volume, screen lock rotation, and connectivity options (Bluetooth, cellular data, VPN, personal hotspot).
- Ali: Noted his Braille display (Brilliant BI40X) appeared in the Bluetooth section and expressed appreciation for the device.
- Liz: Asked about clearing a recurring Visa payment notification; Ali said he would address notification clearing shortly.
- Liz: Asked about VPN and hotspot usage; Ali advised against leaving hotspot on due to data and battery drain, recommending Wi-Fi at home and cellular data only when needed.
- Palmer: Added that using cellular data is acceptable when Wi-Fi quality is poor.
- Lily: Suggested going into cellular data settings to disable data for high-consumption apps (e.g., video streaming, maps) while keeping it on for email and messages.
- Ali: Confirmed he had done this and thanked Lily for the tip.
Conclusion
- Control Center provides quick access to key device toggles; accessed via top-middle touch + two flick downs.
- Hotspot and VPN should be used sparingly due to data and battery impact.
- Disabling cellular data for specific high-usage apps is a recommended data-saving strategy.

Background App Refresh

Jackie asked about the impact of Background App Refresh on battery life.

Details
- Jackie: Asked whether turning off Background App Refresh saves battery, having heard this recommendation online.
- Ali: Recommended leaving Background App Refresh on, as some apps require it to update content while running in the background.
Conclusion
- Background App Refresh should remain enabled to ensure apps function correctly and stay updated.

Ali encountered persistent issues with Zoom screen sharing not transmitting VoiceOver audio, leading to a workaround using Loopback and QuickTime.

Details
- Ali: Attempted to share his iPhone screen via Zoom but VoiceOver audio was not coming through despite the screen being visible.
- Ashlyn: Noted similar issues had occurred in previous sessions.
- Ali: Decided to route VoiceOver audio through the call directly using Loopback (a Mac audio routing app) and QuickTime Player for audio capture.
- Siena: Assisted with setup, advising Ali to select the Loopback device in QuickTime and set volume to 100%.
- Ali: Encountered an echo after initial setup; resolved by switching the QuickTime input from the Loopback device back to Ali’s iPhone microphone directly.
- Macara: Confirmed audio was working correctly after the fix; Ashlyn also confirmed.
- Ali: Explained that Loopback allows routing of audio from sources that cannot natively come through a call, such as VoiceOver output.
Conclusion
- VoiceOver audio was successfully routed through the Zoom call using Loopback and QuickTime after screen sharing failed.
- Loopback is a useful tool for routing non-native audio sources into calls.

VoiceOver Mac Tutorial — Dock Navigation

Ali transitioned to the Mac and demonstrated VoiceOver navigation of the Dock.

Details
- Ali: Used Command-Tab to switch to Finder, then Control-Option-D to navigate to the Dock.
- Ali: Demonstrated Control-Option-Left Arrow (previous item) and Control-Option-Right Arrow (next item) to move through 53 Dock items, reading each aloud including Finder, Contacts, FaceTime, Mail, Messages, Safari, Zoom, Reaper, GoldWave, Loopback, Discord, and others.
- Ali: Used Control-Option-Home to jump to the beginning of the Dock.
- Ali: Noted that first-letter navigation also works in the Dock (e.g., pressing “G” to jump to Google Chrome).
Conclusion
- Mac VoiceOver Dock navigation uses Control-Option-Left/Right Arrow; Control-Option-Home jumps to the start.
- First-letter navigation is also available in the Dock.

VoiceOver Mac Tutorial — Web Browsing on CELA

Ali demonstrated web browsing using VoiceOver on the Mac, navigating to the CELA library website to search for a book.

Details
- Ali: Opened Google Chrome using first-letter navigation (“G”) from the Dock and pressed Enter to launch it.
- Ali: Used Command-L to access the address bar and navigated to the CELA website.
- Ali: Used Control-Option-Command-J to access the accessibility jump menu and navigated to the search field using heading and list navigation.
- Siena: Suggested searching for “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” by Mark Haddon.
- Ali: Encountered a search error on the first attempt due to a spelling issue; Lily suggested “nighttime” may be one word, which resolved the search.
- Ali: Found multiple results and navigated through available formats: Braille (contracted), Electronic Braille, DAISY Audio (Direct to Player and Zip), DAISY Text, Word, and EPUB.
- Ali: Selected EPUB Zip as his preferred format for the demonstration.
- Ali: Explained that one-finger double-tap (on iPhone) and Control-Option-Space (on Mac) are used to activate items and expand menus.
Conclusion
- Web browsing with VoiceOver on Mac uses heading navigation, list navigation, and the accessibility jump menu (Control-Option-Command-J).
- CELA offers multiple accessible formats; EPUB and DAISY Audio Zip are commonly preferred.

Accessible Book Formats — EPUB vs. DAISY Audio vs. Synthetic Audio

A discussion arose about the differences between accessible book formats available on CELA and how they work with Voice Dream Reader.

Details
- Lily: Asked whether EPUB files can be imported into e-book readers like Kindle; Ali confirmed they can and noted he uses Voice Dream Reader.
- Makara: Asked whether EPUB and DAISY Audio Zip function similarly in Voice Dream Reader; Ali confirmed they do, noting EPUB provides the text copy and allows use of a preferred TTS voice.
- Palmer: Asked about the difference between synthetic audio and DAISY Zip formats.
- Ali: Explained that DAISY Zip is preferred when human-narrated audio is available, as it packages audio and text together for Voice Dream Reader. Synthetic audio uses a pre-rendered TTS voice and is less preferred.
- Siena: Clarified that with synthetic audio, users are limited to the voice embedded in the format, whereas EPUB in Voice Dream Reader allows selection of any preferred voice.
- Siena: Added that Voice Dream Reader also works with VoiceOver and Braille displays, enabling Braille reading of books.
- Ali: Noted that CELA has reduced its human-narrated audio content over time; he prefers audio formats for consistent position tracking.
- Lily: Pointed out that CELA does not prioritize human-narrated audio in search results but that filters at the bottom of the page allow users to filter out synthetic audio.
Conclusion
- EPUB and DAISY Audio Zip are both compatible with Voice Dream Reader; EPUB allows custom voice selection.
- Synthetic audio is limited to the embedded voice and is generally less preferred.
- CELA’s filter options can be used to show only human-narrated audio content.

Audiobook Platforms and Services

Participants discussed various audiobook platforms, their pros and cons, and accessibility considerations.

Details
- Ashlyn: Mentioned using Audible and Libby; noted Libby waitlists can be months long for popular titles, which is a key advantage of Audible.
- Ali: Acknowledged he has an Audible monthly membership and a growing library; mentioned he used to monitor Audible Daily Deals but has stopped to avoid impulse purchases.
- Lily: Noted her family accumulated 120–130 Audible titles over 10 years and retained them after cancelling membership.
- Ali: Expressed interest in the Harry Potter Full Cast Edition on Audible.
- Makara: Suggested a Libby tutorial for a future session.
- Ashlyn: Mentioned Hoopla as another Hamilton library option.
- Palmer: Mentioned using Cloud Library through his library board; noted some e-book navigation issues (e.g., large page chunks, getting stuck between pages).
- Palmer: Confirmed Libby replaced OverDrive.
- Jackie: Suggested Google Play Books as an option for purchasing individual audiobooks or e-books without a subscription.
- Siena: Mentioned Apple Books as another potential source.
- Palmer: Looked up the audiobooks app Liz mentioned; confirmed it is free to download but books are purchased individually.
- Jackie: Noted she has Spotify Premium, which includes 15 hours of free audiobook listening per month; mentioned she used all 15 hours for the first time last month.
- Ali: Noted 15 hours per month is insufficient for heavy readers.
- Liz: Asked about a specific book — “Expert Tips for Travelers with Vision Loss” — not available on CELA; Ali suggested signing up for Audible for one month, using a credit to get the book, then cancelling.
- Ashlyn: Confirmed she had to use an Audible credit for the same book.
- Ali: Mentioned he had a 5-credit bundle offer from Audible for $35 but declined it.
- Ashlyn: Highlighted that Audible offers full-cast productions and Great Courses content.
- Siena: Mentioned she has done accessibility testing for Libby at her sister’s request and may pursue a library card to use it.
Conclusion
- Multiple audiobook platforms were discussed: Audible, Libby, Hoopla, Cloud Library,

Future Tutorial Topics

Participants collectively proposed a range of future tutorial topics throughout the session.

Details
- Ali: Proposed a future tutorial on customizing VoiceOver commands (tentatively scheduled for June).
- Ali: Proposed a tutorial on iPhone folder structures and home screen organization.
- Makara: Suggested a Goodreads tutorial.
- Makara and Ali: Agreed to do a Voice Dream Reader tutorial.
- Ali: Suggested revisiting Audible in a future session.
- Ashlyn: Requested more book app tutorials generally.
- Lily: Expressed interest in a Voice Dream Reader tutorial.
- Siena: Added a Libby tutorial to the reminder list.
- Ashlyn: Mentioned Hoopla as a potential tutorial topic.
- Ali: Noted the upcoming books panel and expressed enthusiasm for the overlap between book content and Textravaganza.
- Siena: Mentioned the Musa Slobodia Network has a Textravaganza commercial; Ali noted a link to a recent episode featuring Becky Coles would be included in the Textravaganza posting.
Conclusion
- Confirmed upcoming topics include: customizing VoiceOver commands (June), Libby, Voice Dream Reader, Audible, Goodreads, folder organization, and book app tutorials.
- Makara agreed to update the tutorial topic list.