1. Microsoft Office and ATHEN Collaboration
Microsoft Ignite
6/10/2018
Microsoft Office and ATHEN Collaboration
November 2016
Hadi Rangin, University of Washington
David Gorelik, Microsoft Outlook
© 2015 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries. The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

2. Background from U of Washington

3. Prior collaboration with software companies
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Prior collaboration with software companies
“Reactive accessibility" doesn't work
Working with vendors for 12 years
LMS: blackboard, D2L, Moodle & Canvas
Library: Elsevier, Ebsco & Ex Libris
Conf system: Eluminate & Zoom
HR: Elucian, PeopleSoft & Workday
Misc: Qualtrics, ServiceNow, PollEverywhere, Trumba, Panopto & many more
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

4. Collaboration with Microsoft Office: A journey
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Collaboration with Microsoft Office: A journey
Tested & evaluated Outlook and Lync at UIUC
Failed to engage MS in constructive collaboration; VPAT was their main concern
Tried to engage Outlook client and OWA in a collaboration at UW
Failed again
We were approached by Outlook team earlier this year
We were very skeptical but agreed to test the water
Found Microsoft this time very genuine & serious
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

5. Goals of Collaborations
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Goals of Collaborations
Educate software companies in Universal Design
Engage designers & engineers in accessibility discussions
Make accessibility a part of Design, Development and Quality Control processes
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

6. How our Group Functions
Reaching out to the Accessibility community
Using Athen Pro collaboration application environment
Conducting survey on participants' MS Office experience
Signing NDA to enable more open discussions
Communicating via mailing list
Monthly calls

7. Starting with Outlook…
Working with two completely separate teams for Windows & Mac
Compiling functional tasks for each application
Assigning tasks to members to try
Reporting back to the group
Compiling issue list and prioritizing for each application
Monthly meetings: update on issues, elaborating on difficult issues

8. Issue List Construct Bugs Priority: 1-3 1 = show stopper Owner
Title/Description/Comment
Status
ETA fix
Bugs

9. Background from Office

10. Accessibility is about people, not about compliance
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Accessibility is about people, not about compliance
We had an epiphany. I’ll say it again. It’s a small change. But it changes everything.
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

11. Office 365 accessibility strategy (1/4)
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Office 365 accessibility strategy (1/4)
Thinking about accessibility as a part of the design process, not an afterthought.
Most widely used features
This is our secret sauce. I’m going to share it with you.
Design features with accessibility in mind and have them tested by the teams that build them
Verify conformance based on accessibility standards under the U.S. Dept of Homeland Services Trusted Tester Program
Working with focus groups
Including accessibility from Day 1
Getting and acting on customer feedback
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

12. Office 365 accessibility strategy (2/4)
6/10/2018 8:05 PM
Office 365 accessibility strategy (2/4)
Thinking about accessibility as a part of the design process, not an afterthought.
Working with focus groups
Usability studies with people with disabilities run by our own Research teams and via engagement with NGOs such as the ACB
Monthly call feedback programs with representatives from the WBU and ATHEN groups
Most widely used features
Including accessibility from Day 1
Getting and acting on customer feedback
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

13. Office 365 accessibility strategy (3/4)
6/10/2018 8:05 PM
Office 365 accessibility strategy (3/4)
Thinking about accessibility as a part of the design process, not an afterthought.
Including accessibility from Day 1
Have increased membership by people with disabilities in Office Insider/First Release programs
Most widely used features
Working with focus groups
Getting and acting on customer feedback
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

14. Office 365 accessibility strategy (4/4)
6/10/2018 8:05 PM
Office 365 accessibility strategy (4/4)
Thinking about accessibility as a part of the design process, not an afterthought.
Getting and acting on customer feedback
Broad customer feedback through UserVoice
Support Disability Answer Desk
100+ help articles updated on
Most widely used features
Working with focus groups
Including accessibility from Day 1
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

15. Office 365 accessibility strategy
6/10/2018 8:05 PM
Office 365 accessibility strategy
Thinking about accessibility as a part of the design process, not an afterthought.
Most widely used features
Working with focus groups
Including accessibility from Day 1
Getting and acting on customer feedback
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

16. Using a screen reader with Office 365 is more
Desktop
Mac
Online
Universal
iPad
Phone
iPhone
Tablet
Reliable
Consistent
Usable
Efficient
Everywhere you use Office
At Microsoft, we’ve shifted from looking at accessibility, and screen reader usage, as a compliance requirement to a usability requirement - and we're taking this requirement very seriously. We have more engineers working on accessibility now than ever before. If you're on Office 365, you're going to be seeing improvements every single month on whatever platform you use-- Windows, Mac, iOS, or Android. The screen reader experience on Office 365 will be the latest, greatest and most accessible screen reader experience we offer for all apps and for all common screen readers.
To help tackle such large scale improvements across our large eco-system, we’ve spent tons of time talking to customers, we've run focus groups and we've look at data about the most important features in our apps to make sure that we're working on the most important problems first.
Our focus around improvements can be thought about in 4 parts: reliability, consistency, usability, and efficiency.
Reliable: You can trust your experience. We’ve cleaned up the area and fixed many of the bugs. Ex: Scan mode and navigation on Word: Fewer dead ends, focus traps, etc. Don’t have to restart Narrator or your AT. We’ve made hundreds of improvements here, and there isn’t one of them that will stand out as an outstanding demo, but in general, the quality in our products is so much better.
Consistent: announcements have the appropriate information for the platform and verbosity level. The experience feels the same across Office and similar apps. Ex: Tables on Mac.
Reliability and consistency are the core of what we’ve been focusing our energy on for the past year. We had a lot of work to do in these areas, and without a solid foundational experience that our users can trust, any other improvements wouldn’t be worthwhile.
Usable: You can access all of the important features in Office and get your work done. We've started making improvements here and there are even more that we'd like to make
Efficient: You can efficiently complete the core tasks in Office. This is an area that we're very proud of the progress we've made and we can't wait to do even more.
As we continue to move forward and more our apps more usable and efficient with screen readers, we are looking to continue to engage with our customers and the accessibility community. Accessibility is something we’re committed to ingraining in our culture long term, and we’re committed to continually improving it.
So now I'm going to walk you through a demo that shows some of the improvements we've made that can enable to student who depends on assistive technology to collaborate with others on a group project.

17. Back to our Collaboration

18. Outlook for Windows by the #’s
Identified 100+ issues
Prioritized “top 5” show stoppers
5 total issues fixed / 4 issues in progress
David & Hadi met a few times face-to-face
A site-visit scheduled for December

19. Top 5 Outlook for Windows issues (actually 6 )
Requires “detective work” and lots of collaboration to succeed
Issue
Effort
Status
When installing Outlook and Office all-up, do not get audible prompts
Worked with Office installation team
Talked through solution
Prioritized work
Fixed by making progress available by keyboard
More aggressive alert options available based on additional users feedback
Jaws doesn’t read the F1 help menu in any Office app
Worked with both the Jaws (VFO) and F1 menu teams
Fixed and shipping in the next month
The TellMe text box (Alt Q) arrowing is confusing and leads to getting users stuck in any Office app
Working with Office TellMe team
Will work through Design while here at AHG
Outlook doesn’t provide appropriate prompts when in Conversation view. In progress
Outlook work complete but the experience is not yet working
Working with Windows platform to light up
Top issues with NVDA (“no associated drafts,” signatures, reading too much for calendar invites, not reading date pickers, not reading message flagged status
Worked with NVDA
Documented issues in their GitHub environment
“No associated drafts” bug fixed
Remaining issues are in discussion – believe will be fixed in the next set of months
The spell checker experience is inconsistent and unreliable
Worked with Word and Proofing teams to build a path for Outlook to get a new, more accessible experience
In prioritization phase, with an view towards the next several quarters

20. DEMO Accessibility Checker
6/10/2018 8:05 PM
DEMO Accessibility Checker
&
F1 Help
Additional enhancements are becoming available this year to make it easy to work with data in High Contrast mode.
If you have been working in Excel Online on a PC with this mode turned on, you’ll notice that tables, active cell & cells selection outlines are more visible, that hyperlinks in sheets are respecting High Contrast theme colors and that Sparkline, slicers, shapes and charts are being rendered using High Contrast theme colors.
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

21. Outlook for Mac by the #’s
60+ issues gathered from collaboration group
By Assistive Tech
40: Keyboard only
15: VoiceOver and keyboard
7: Zoom
By status
21: Able to reproduce and can move forward
41: Clarification needed / in progress

22. Outlook for Mac: Where we are today
Issue
Effort
Status
1. Unable to enter the body of an can’t access links (keyboard only)
Now able to tab into message body and activate links with keyboard
Fixed
2. Inconsistent keyboard interaction: use of tab vs. arrows and space vs. return
Starting in the calendar view
In progress
3. Attachments: preview and remove not accessible (keyboard only)
New attachment UI/UX as part of Cloud Attachments feature, with preview, remove, and other actions accessible
4. Context menu can’t be activated (keyboard only)
Outlook work complete but the experience is not yet working
Working with Windows platform to light up
5. Heading styles are not supported
Worked with NVDA
Documented issues in their GitHub environment
“No associated drafts” bug fixed
Remaining issues are in discussion – believe will be fixed in the next set of months
Other:
On-site meeting helped with influence redesign of Outlook, starting with Message List and Folder Pane (improving accessibility and usability for all users while making more Mac platform appropriate).
Received feedback on new features, including Accessibility Checker, now in Insider program and coming soon to production

23. Now expanding the collaboration to Word
Working with both Windows and Mac
Meeting with the group
Seeing the application in action
Multiple issues in discussions
Current focus on ensuring the current set of improvements are both better and not worse (no regressions)
Next month’s set of improvements is the largest accessibility push Word has ever had

24. What’s new in Microsoft Office 365
Conclusion
Proactive vs. reactive accessibility
Engaging software companies in collaboration (we don’t bite)
Shape the future of your IT
Please join us at 4pm for
What’s new in Microsoft Office 365

25. Appendix

26. Resources Related to Office 365 Accessibility
Tech Ready 15
6/10/2018
Resources Related to Office 365 Accessibility
Blogs on Office 365 Accessibility Plans and Progress
Support Articles on Office Accessibility Capabilities
Demonstrations of Office 365 Accessibility Capabilities
Accessibility conformance reports for customers
EN Reports:
WCAG 2.0 AA Reports:
US Section 508 VPATs:
© 2012 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

27. Resources to Learn More or Get Help
6/10/2018 8:05 PM
Resources to Learn More or Get Help
Overview of Commitments and Offerings
Twitter to Stay Connected
@MSFTEnable
Accessibility Support Service
Enterprise Disability Answer Desk
© 2014 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

28. Videos Worth Watching Video to learn about Accessibility in Windows 10
Tech Ready 15
6/10/2018
Videos Worth Watching
Video to learn about Accessibility in Windows 10
Video series to Explain EN
Video series to Explain Accessible Authoring in Word aligned with US Federal government’s Electronic Document Accessibility initiative (AEDCOP)
Customer story - a teacher uses Skype for Business and Yammer to teach mathematics to her blind and visually impaired students across the Washington-Oregon border:
Customer story - two students with hearing impairments experience Skype Translator in the classroom:
© 2012 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries.
The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.