Introduction to Email and Gmail

What Is Email?
The term email is short for Electronic Mail.
Early in the life of email as a service, concepts from regular, post office mail were transferred to email.
Therefore, think of email as the paper based system you are already familiar with.
First, when you establish an email account, you will have an email address.
The email address is in two halves.
The first half you choose.
It is a user name that will be unique to you.
The second half is the email provider you use.
Therefore, think of the first half as your address, and the second half as the street.
That said, your address most likely should not be solely a number.
It can be a combination of letters and numbers if you want.
If it is not already taken, it can be anything of your choosing.
For instance, a common example is the last name combined with the first two initials.
For example, Jane Ann Smith may choose her email username as smithja.
If smithja is already taken, she can add her birth month and day.
For example, smithja0312.

What is Gmail?

Gmail is an internet based email provider.
This means, you can access your email using a website, and this gives you access to all your messages from any computer connected to the internet.

Creating a Gmail Account.

First, Begin at the desktop with no other windows, except Jaws running.

Tap the Windows Key.

The Start Menu should open.

Tap on the Down Arrow Key until you reach the All Programs option.

Press Enter.

Tap on the Down Arrow Key until you reach Internet Explorer.

(Note: do not to hold down on the arrow keys, but to gently tap each one).

Press Enter when you reach Internet Explorer.

Quickly, press the Ctrl Key to stop JAWS from reading continuously through the web page.

Now, hold onto the Ctrl Key and press O.
This opens the internet address window in Internet Explorer
Type www.gmail.com.

There will be a pop sound and JAWS will say Username Edit.

This means users who have a gmail account can enter their username in that field.
The username is also the first half of your email address.

To set up a new account, open the Links List.
Hold onto the Insert Key and press F7.
Press C until you hear JAWS say Create an Account.
Press Enter.
You are in a website so press Ctrl to stop JAWS from speaking through it.

Hold onto the Insert key and press F5.
This opens the Forms Fields List.
Forms Fields are spaces to type text.
Down Arrow through each item to become familiar with the fields.

There is a space to type the First Name.
There is a space to type the Last Name.
There is a space to create a Username.
There are two spaces to create a Password.
There is a space to create a Security Question.
There is a space to answer the Security Question.
There is a space to enter a Birth Date.
There is a space to type in characters.

After hearing the options, press the Home Key or 7 on the number pad to go the top of the list.
Tap on the Down Arrow Key until you hear JAWS say First Name.
Press Enter.
There should be a pop sound and JAWS should say First Name Colon Edit Type in Text.
Type the first name.
Hold onto the Insert key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Tab on the Down Arrow key until you hear Jaws say Last Name.
Press Enter.
There should be a pop sound and JAWS should say Last Name Colon Edit Type in Text.
Type the last name.
Hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow once until JAWS says Desired Logon Name.
This is the Username and the first half of your email address.
The second half will be the @ symbol and gmail.com.

Usernames should be as simple as possible so that when someone sends an email to the address they are less likely to make mistakes.
Also, it is best that usernames are not provocative.
This means no strange sounding names that may offend or disturb others.
This is especially true for email users who will use their email address on there employment applications.
A common example of a proper username is the last name combined with the first two initials of the email user.
For example, Jane Ann Smith may choose her email as smithja.
If smithja is already taken, she can add her birth month and day
For example, smithja0312.

After a username is chosen, hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow twice until JAWS says Choose a Password.
A password should be something you are able to remember that no one else is able to guess.
This is the key to the address.
Gmail will not allow for a password to be less than eight characters.
A password can be a combination of letters and numbers.
Commonly, email users will choose birth months and days of a loved one.
For example, January01.
Or your favourite president.
For example, Lincoln16.
Notice there are no spaces.

As the password is typed, JAWS will say star for each digit.
This represents the symbols on the screen preventing others from seeing your password.

Because this prevents normal proof reading, and due to the password’s importance, users are required to retype it to make sure you typed it correctly the first time.

Hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow once and Jaws should say Re-Enter Password.
Press Enter.
Retype the password.
As the password is typed, JAWS will say star for each digit.
If the passwords you typed do not match, Gmail requires users to retype them.

After typing the password twice
Hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow until you hear Jaws say Security Question Combo Box.
Press Enter.
Security questions exist in case email users forget their passwords.
Gmail offers several options from which to choose from.
Users who do not want to choose one of the questions Gmail gives them can Down Arrow to the bottom of the list and Gmail will prompt them to create a question.
Questions should be something only the user can answer.
For example, What is your mother’s maiden name?
In the event that users forget their passwords, Gmail will ask them the security question they chose.
After choosing the security question
Hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow once and JAWS will say Answer.
Press Enter.
Type the answer to the security question chosen.

Hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow several times until Jaws says Birthday.
The birthday should be typed with a two digit day, two digit month and four digit year with slashes separating each.
For example 01/12/1980.

Hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow until JAWS says Type the Characters you See or Numbers you Hear.
Below that is an editable field.
Press Enter.
This is in response to a captcha.
A captcha is a series of randomly generated characters displayed in a format that computers are unable to read.
Its purpose is to prevent fraudulent email accounts from being created.
Unfortunately, JAWS is unable to read captchas
Gmail attempts to find a way around this problem by having an audio file read off a series of numbers and letters.
However, even for expert JAWS users, this is not easy.
Therefore, it may be simpler for the volunteer to type the captcha for the user.
If there is no volunteer, assistance is available from the reference desk.
If at home, ask a trusted friend or loved one to type the captcha.

After the captcha is entered
Hold onto the Insert Key and press F5 to return to Forms Mode.
Down Arrow until JAWS says I Accept, Create My Account Button.

If all the required forms fields are filled out, the passwords match and the captcha is entered correctly then users should be taken to a web page congratulating them for signing up with Gmail.

From there, hold onto the Insert Key and press the F7.
This will bring up the links list.
Down Arrow until you hear JAWS say Take me to My Account.
Now users should be in the Inbox.

Please see the next lesson on how to best set up a Gmail account to read email.


Introduction to Email and Gmail by Chris Corrigan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at atthdc.blogspot.com.

Checking Email on Gmail

JAWS reads Gmail best when it is switched to Basic HTML.
After signing in for the first time, users need to switch to Basic HTML.

To do so
Hold onto the Insert Key and press F7.
This will bring up a Links List.
Type the letter B.
Press Enter when JAWS says Basic HTML.

If doing this for the first time, users should set Basic HTML as a default.
Hold onto Insert and press F7 again for the Links List.
Press S until JAWS says Set Basic HTML as Default.
Press Enter.
From then on Basic HTML will be a permanent feature of the user’s inbox.

Users are taken immediately to the Inbox after signing in.
From here users are able to immediately check for new messages, and compose messages of their own.

Gmail stores email messages in a Table.
The first email in the inbox is at the top of the table.

Therefore, JAWS quick keys for finding tables on the internet are a shortcut for going to messages in the user’s inbox without having to listen to the whole page first.

Press the letter T by itself and JAWS will say Colum One, Row One, Check Box not Checked.
Check boxes are a tool for managing mail.
Down Arrow once and JAWS will say who the email is from.
Down Arrow again and JAWS will announce that the user is on a link, and say the subject of the email.
That link is your email.
Press the Enter to select the link.
Users should be redirected to the inside of their email message.
Remember the subject of the email from the previous page and press the H key for headings.
The Subject of the email is re-listed as a heading.
Continue to press H until JAWS reads the subject of the email.

From there, hold onto Insert and press Down Arrow to read the email.
Before users hear the body of the email message, there will be information informing users who sent the message.
When it was sent.
If it was sent to anyone else.
The times etc.
There is also a list of links.
These links give you options for what to do with the email.
While JAWS is reading those links, users should listen for JAWS to say Show Original.
The Show Original link is the last link before JAWS comes to the body of the email message.
It will read the message all the way through unless the user presses the Ctrl key.

After JAWS has completed reading the body of the message, it will say Quick Reply.
Press Ctrl to stop JAWS from speaking.


Checking Email on Gmail by Chris Corrigan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at atthdc.blogspot.com.

Replying to Email Messages

To reply to an email, users should be in the webpage containing the email to which they are replying.
Gmail gives users the option to reply to an email as a link.
Therefore, to activate that link, users should use the Links List.
Hold onto the Insert key and press F7.
Press the R key until JAWS says Reply.
Press Enter.

Users are taken to a webpage where they can compose a message of their own.
JAWS will say To colon Edit.
JAWS will also say Contains Text and Forms Mode.
This means that first area users are taken to is a section to type the email address where the message is going.
In this case, there is already an address in that field which is why JAWS said Contains Text.

In order for users to type a response, they need to go the appropriate field.
To get there, they should tap on the Tab key 7 Times until they hear JAWS say Message Body Edit.

This indicates that they have arrived at the appropriate section to type their response.

To send the response
Tap on the Tab key once.
JAWS will say Out of Table, Send Button.
To activate the send button, press the Space Bar or Enter
The message should have been sent.


Replying to Email Messages by Chris Corrigan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at atthdc.blogspot.com.

Composing an Email Message

Gmail gives users the option to compose an email of their own as a link.
Therefore, to activate that link, users should use the Links List.
From the Inbox, hold onto the Insert key and press F7.
Press the R key until JAWS says Compose.
Press Enter.

Users are taken to a webpage where they can compose a message of their own.
JAWS will say To colon Edit.
This means that first area users are taken to is a section to type the email address where the message is going.

Email addresses are in two parts.
The first is before the @ symbol.
The second is after the @ symbol.l
The part before the @ symbol is the user’s username.
As with the username users create when establishing an email account, this part is unique to the individual user.
The part after the @ symbol is the name of the email service provider.
This could be gmail, yahoo, hotmail or a number of others.
They will end similarly to web address with a .com, .gov, .edu etc.

So for example, an email address could look like this:
smithja@gmail.com.

After users have typed the address they what their email to go to, they need to type their message.
In order for users to type a message, they need to go the appropriate field.
To get there, they should tap on the Tab key 7 Times until they hear JAWS say Message Body Edit.

Before users arrive at the appropriate field they hear a number of other options.

The first is the CC Field.
JAWS will say CC Colon Edit.
This stands for Carbon Copy
This allows users to send their email to others.

The second form field is the BCC Field.
JAWS will say BCC Colon Edit.
This stand for Blind Carbon Copy.
It allows users to send their email to others.
However, the difference between blind carbon copy and carbon copy is that blind carbon copy will prevent the original recipient from knowing the message was copied.

The next section users come to as they are tabbing down to the message body is the Subject Field.
Users want to stop here and type a subject for their email.
It could be a title of their message or simply HI.

The next two sections deal with attachments.
This may be advanced for new email users.
However, they are methods for sending computer files with emails.

Once users tap on the Tap key one more time, they will hear JAWS say Message Body edit.

This indicates that they have arrived at the appropriate section to type their message.

To send the message after it is typed.
Tap on the Tab key once.
JAWS will say Out of Table, Send Button.
To activate the send button, press the Space Bar or Enter.
The message should have been sent.


Composing an Email Message by Chris Corrigan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at atthdc.blogspot.com.

Introducing the Internet with Jaws

Begin at the desktop with no other windows, except JAWS running.

Tap the Windows Key.

The Start Menu should open.
The Start Menu consists of individual items and two groups of items:

The first group consists of:
Frequently Used items: These are updated by Windows based on the frequency of use of programs.

When the Windows Key is pressed, Frequently Used items is where users are taken first.

Pinned items: these items remain in the Start Menu permanently.
All Programs: This contains all the programs installed on the computer.

You can navigate the menu using:
The UP and DOWN ARROW keys. Like all menus, if you move past either end of the menu, you cycle to the beginning.

You are also able to use the access keys and first letters. Some of the menu items have an access key, for example the access key for All Programs is P. For all the other items, you can use the first letter. If you press a single letter, and there is only one item in the menu with that letter as its access key, Windows will open it automatically, therefore there is no need to press ENTER.
However, if there are multiple matches, then press the single letter till you find the item, and then press ENTER.

Tap on the Down Arrow key until you reach the All Programs option.

Press Enter.

Tap on the Down Arrow key until you reach Internet Explorer.

(Note: do not to hold down on the arrow keys, but to gently tap each one).

Press Enter when you reach Internet Explorer.

Quickly, press the Ctrl key to stop Jaws from reading continuously through the web page.

Even if Google is the homepage on the computer you are using, it is important to practice typing internet addresses.

Therefore, hold down on the Ctrl Key, then (while holding the Ctrl Key) press the O Key.

This opens the Internet Address Window in Internet Explorer.

An internet address is the location of specific web pages.

Type www.google.com
Many (if not most) web addresses will end in .com
But they also may end in .edu for educational institution’s web sites. For example, www.udc.edu is the web address for the University of the District of Columbia.
.org is the end of web addresses for non-profit organizations. For example, www.clb.org is the web address for the Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind.
.gov is the end of web addresses for government websites. For example, www.loc.gov is the web address for the Library of Congress.
and .com is the end of web addresses for commercial, for-profit institutions. For example, www.amazon.com is an internet based book seller.

With this in mind, after pressing Ctrl O type, www.google.com
This should take you to Google’s webpage.

People use Google when they either do not know the exact internet address they want to enter or the address may be too complicated for them to remember.

It may be best to think of the computer as a phone.
The internet as a phone line.
And Google as a phone book.

Once the Google page loads, you will hear a pop sound. That means you are able to type text into the search field.

To practice using Google, type Jim’s Café at Innisport.
Jim’s Café at Innisport is a fictional website created by Freedom Scientific to help teach web-navigation to JAWS users.

After typing Jim’s Café at Innisport, press Enter.
After a query, Google will respond by giving a listing of internet links that, based on the information entered, will best meet the user’s needs.

These links are listed as Headings.
To browse the results, press H.
Every time a user presses H by itself, Jaws will navigate by Headings.

Press H until you hear JAWS say Search Options.
Every heading below Search Options are links Google found based on your query.
Therefore, continue pressing H until Jaws reads the link to the result that best meets your query.

The first one should be Jim’s Café at Innisport.
Because this site best matches your query, it is probably the site you want to go to.

Before you do that, Down Arrow a few times and notice that the further down you go the more different and diverse the links will become from the original query.
This is because the link you want will most likely fall within the first 1 to 5 links. If you do not find a site within the first 1 to 5 links, you should refine your search.

Now, Up Arrow until you come back to the Jim’s Café at Innisport link.

Press Enter.

After the website has loaded, JAWS will begin reading it from the top.
Let JAWS read the website to the end (this should take about 5 minutes).

Note that not all websites will be as straight forward, or short, as this. Instead of reading a web page all the way through, there are other ways to navigate a website using JAWS.

First, is by Headings.
Headings are how most web pages are divided on the internet.
Think of headings to an outline or index.

Hold onto the Insert Key and tap on the F6 to display the Headings List.
At the top of the headings list, Jaws will display and say Jim’s Café at Innisport colon 1.
The colon 1 indicates that you are at a level one heading.
Level one headings are the main headings on a page.
There is usually only one and they are usually found at the beginning of websites.

Down Arrow through each heading on the list.
There are several headings at level 2 and level three.
These are subheadings on the page.
As with an outline of a paper, the main heading will be the title and the subheadings are elements of interest beneath the title.
A web user is able to select any of the headings on the page that interest them and when they are selected, Jaws will focus its attention to that area of the web page.

Once at the bottom of the list, Arrow Up back to the top.
Once you reach Jim’s Café at Innisport:1 then press Enter.

There are several ways for a Jaws user to navigate web pages from the top of the page.

First Down Arrow
This moves Jaws’ attention to the first line below the first heading.
After Jaws finishes reading the line press the Down Arrow again for the Jaws to read the second paragraph down.
Continue to do this until you reach the end of that section of the web page.

Press Insert F6 to bring up the headings list again.
Down Arrow to the second heading in the list.

Down Arrow to the line below that heading.

Continue this pattern until you reach the end of the webpage.


You should know that many web pages will not be as straight forward as this one.
Therefore to get to where you want to go in the web you may want to navigate various sites through their links.

Again press Insert F6 to bring up the headings list. As you did before, press Home on the 6-pack or 7 on the number pad to go to the top of the headings list.

Once there press Enter.

You should now be at the top of the web page.
Hold on to the Insert Key and press F7 to bring up the Links List.

You should now down arrow through each item on the links list and listen to each one.

Links consists of a group of words, or an image, and a web address which is stored behind the scenes. When you open the link by pressing Enter, you are taken to a location specified by the web address. The types of web addresses stored in the link include the following:
The address of another page.
The address of another location on the same page. JAWS says Same Page Link.
An email address.
Once you reach the bottom of the list, have them press Home on the 6-pack or 7 on the number pad to go to the top of the list.
The first link on the links list should be Reputation for Quality Service.
Press Enter.
JAWS will immediately begin reading the page.
The section ends with a list of three items.
Press Ctrl to stop Jaws from reading once they reach the end of the list of three items.

Now, go back to the links by pressing Insert F7 and selecting Reputation for Quality Service again.

Press Ctrl right away to stop Jaws from reading
Now, press P to read the first paragraph.

If there is more than one paragraph press P again to read paragraph by paragraph.

Afterwards, go back to the links list again by pressing Insert F7 again. And repeat this method.

After you read the Driving Directions section you’ll notice a link to send an email.

Press Enter.
You will be given a notice that the link is a sample link and is for demonstration purposes only.

While this is not a real link, you are able to send email messages to individuals, organizations, businesses etc. through links.

This concludes this portion of Introducing the Internet with Jaws. You may wish to repeat this lesson, or portions of it, before branching out to other websites.


Introducing the Internet with JAWS by Chris Corrigan is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.