Introduction.
Welcome to the Microsoft Teams Scripts documentation. Teams is an accessible conferencing client which has become widely used particularly within employment during recent years. A release of Teams for friends and family has been launched. It provides plenty of opportunities for visual and audio interaction, together with screen and file sharing and recording capabilities, to name but a small number of its features.
Despite the high level of accessibility included, there are a number of features which the scripts provide so as to make it more convenient for you to work within the application with confidence.
This documentation is quite short and will attempt to get you up and running in just a few minutes. However, Microsoft Teams is a huge application enabling you to carry out many tasks. We highly recommend that you purchase our training course in the use of this application, containing over nine hours of content. Details of this are available on our Training page.
This is an in depth training course which will not only teach you how to use Teams but also the functions of the scripts.
It is recommended that people start working towards using Teams version 2. Updates are being made frequently to these scripts and Teams version 2 is going to be the platform moving forward.
Downloading and Installing the Scripts.
The Teams Scripts can be downloaded from this page. They consist of a program which will allow the scripts to be installed into the version of JAWS you are using.
Please download the scripts here.
Download the script binaries for a manual install.
The zipped binary option is useful particularly if installing applications within the workplace is not permitted or for IT administrators to deploy them. Please refer to the next section of this documentation if this applies to you.
In most cases, installing the scripts is extremely straightforward. Simply run the installer program, the majority of prompts for which will be announced by your JAWS screen-reading software automatically.
In most cases, pressing Enter to activate the “Next” Button on each screen should be sufficient. Following the opening screen, the scripts installer detects the versions of JAWS which are installed onto the machine and presents you with a series of Radio Buttons, inviting you to choose which release you would like to install the scripts into. You can select JAWS 2021 onwards. Press the Down Arrow key to select the version of JAWS you wish to use,, then press Enter.
If you wish to install the scripts into another JAWS version at a later date, this can easily be achieved by running the installer a second time and choosing a different version of JAWS from the list.
You will next be asked for a language folder into which the scripts should be installed. This refers to the JAWS language settings to be used. You should press the Down Arrow key until “enu (English US)” is selected, then press Enter. Indeed, this is usually the first item in the list.
Prior to copying the necessary files to the computer, you will be asked to confirm the location of the installation of JAWS script files. If JAWS is being used by a person with an alternative Windows account to the one shown, you should correct this in the Edit Field before proceeding, changing the text so it points to the scripts user’s account instead. The majority of users will not have to be at all concerned with this screen and can just press Enter to continue with the scripts installation.
When the installer has completed creating the additional folders required for the scripts , and copying files to them, you will be asked to restart the computer and you should comply with this request. Press Enter to do this.
Installing the Script Files Manually.
It is quite possible that the organisation or company you work for offers tight security restrictions preventing installer programs of this type being used to install files. Therefore they could be installed manually or someone could do this for you by working through the following procedure.
Prior to working through these steps, download the zipped script binary archive as listed above for manual copying.
The following notes describe how to locate your JAWS Settings/ENU folder where all your JAWS scripts live. This will allow you to place the JAWS scripts into the required location in order that the screen-reader can use them.
- First of all, locate the zipped archive with which you have been provided.
- If you are using the standard unzip utility for Windows, pressing Enter will open up this file.
- Press Control+A so as to select the contents of the entire zipped archive.
- Press Control+C to copy the contents of the zipped archive to the Windows clipboard.
- Press Insert+J to move to the JAWS window.
- Press ALT+U for the Utilities menu.
- Locate the item, Explore Utilities Folder, found on the Utilities menu and press Enter.
Alternatively, press the shortcut key, letter X. - From the list of folders which appears, select, Explore My Settings and press Enter.
- This is the folder you need to place the scripts into. Press Control+V to paste the content of the zipped archive into this folder. If Windows prompts you as to whether files should be replaced, press the Space Bar on the Replace All Button.
- Finally, press ALT+F4 to close the Settings/ENU screen.
Activating the scripts .
Please start the Microsoft Teams client, usually by activating a shortcut on the Windows desktop or by locating Teams on the Windows Start Menu.After a short pause, the scripts will check the Hartgen Consultancy server to determine whether or not an activation file for the product is available for you. This is based on your JAWS for Windows serial number.
If an activation file is not found, a Dialog Box will appear with an “OK” Button in focus, stating that an activation file could not be found.
you will then hear messages periodically given, stating that the scripts are running in “Demonstration Mode”.
“Demonstration Mode” is designed as a temporary measure to allow you to use JAWS so as to contact us to alert us to the fact that there is a problem.
If an activation file is found, it will automatically be downloaded to your computer and placed in the correct location on the machine. You will be advised of this with the words “Product Activated.
If you have purchased an activation file, and you find that the scripts are operating in “Demonstration Mode”, please contact Hartgen Consultancy immediately, whereupon a manual activation file can be sent to you.
Please note: You can install the scripts onto multiple machines provided the same JAWS serial number is being used. In other words, JAWS must be activated with the same serial number on each of the computers to host the scripts .
Optional Microsoft Outlook Scripts.
If you are a user of our Leasey product, please disregard this section entirely!
An additional set of scripts to improve your productivity within Microsoft Outlook can also be installed. Please use the following links to read about (or install) them.
Read Outlook Scripts Documentation.
Download the JAWS Scripts for Outlook, full installer.
Download the JAWS Scripts for Outlook, Binary.
Notifications and Global Usage.
If you are busy within a place of work, the chances are high that you will want to be alerted to anything which arrives by email or through Teams in the form of messages or notification of events. Our scripts allow for just such a situation. From any application based upon what you hear as a result or read in braille, you can take action on it if you wish to do so.
In order for this to work, there is some setting up to do. You only need to go through adjusting the settings in this section if you would like to be notified of events from within any application.
Within Microsoft Teams, enable Windows-style notifications:
- Press Control+Comma to enter Teams Settings.
- In the list of categories, press Down Arrow to reach the option “Notifications” and press Enter to select.
- Press the Tab key until you reach the option “Notification Style”. Depending upon your Teams configuration, you will need to press the Tab key two or three times.
- If the option “Teams Built-In” is selected, press Down Arrow to select “Notification Style Windows”.
- Press Shift+Tab to reach the “Close Settings” Button and press the Space Bar to activate it.
Optional Configuration of Microsoft Outlook Notifications:
Finally, we will configure Microsoft Outlook so that when Email messages arrive, you will receive notifications.
- Ensure focus is within the Inbox of messages.
- Press ALT+F then T to move into “Options”.
- Press the letter “M” to select the “Mail” category.
- Press Tab repeatedly until the Check box “Display a Desktop Alert” is selected.
- Press the Space Bar to check this option if it is not already checked.
- Press Enter to save the settings.
Notification Rules.
If you are working with JAWS version 2023 or 2024, you can take advantage of our special Notification Rules. These are designed to provide more concise information when notifications arrive. For example, in the case of Microsoft Teams, ordinarily JAWS might say: “New notification from Microsoft Teams, John Jones is calling you.” It will then go on to recite the keystrokes you can press to interact with the call. If you’re a regular user of Teams, you hopefully know how to answer the call so you do not need reminding!
With our rules in place, JAWS will say, “Teams, John Jones is calling you” and nothing further.
If a new message is received, JAWS will say “Teams, Message from John Jones” and nothing further.
Similarly in the case of Microsoft Outlook, JAWS might vocalise “New notification from Outlook, John Jones, this is a good message”, then a preview of the message.
With our rules in place, JAWS announces “Outlook, John Jones, this is a good message”.
Notification rules are in place for Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Edge, the JAWS Message Centre, FileZilla and WhatsApp.
To import the notification rules:
- With Teams in focus, press Insert+H for Hotkey Help.
- Near the bottom of the virtual viewer screen you will find two options: “Import Notification Rules” and “Reinstate Notification Rules”.
- If you choose the option to import the notification rules, we take the latest rules from our server. This means that if we produce a new rule, or someone sends us a good rule, we can make it available without the need to update the scripts.
- When the link is activated, you are asked if you are sure you would like to import the rules. Press Enter to activate the “Yes” Button.
- If on the other hand you do not like our rules, you can reinstate those you had previously. Go back to the Hotkey Help screen and activate the link to reinstate those rules you had before. Having used our new rules, we cannot think why you would want to go back to the old ones! But the option is there.
If you do not have JAWS 2023 or 2024, you can still use the JAWS Notifications Manager so as to browse those notifications you have received. Press Insert+Space, (or Caps Lock+Space within the Laptop Keyboard Layout), followed by letter N.
Bookmarking Windows.
You can bookmark up to 10 application windows to return to at a later date. These are likely to be applications you wish to return to frequently. Good examples might be Microsoft Outlook, a web browser or an application window which is a derivation of Microsoft Teams, such as the CC4Teams app.
To bookmark up to 10 windows, ideally focus upon the application you wish to return to and then press JAWS Key+Space then Windows +1 through to Windows+0.
When you do this, an Edit Field appears. The title of the application is placed in the Edit Field for verification purposes.
In the vast majority of cases however, the title is unsuitable. For example, if you do this within Microsoft Word, the text which is likely to be displayed in this Edit Field would be “Document1 – Word”. It is extremely unlikely that you would want to return to Document 1 each time, so you will want to edit this to reflect a generic title for this application, such as “Microsoft Word”. This term is always displayed no matter the document being worked upon.
Always try to find a word or phrase which will appear in the window title no matter the circumstances. Change the text as necessary and press Enter.
This application is now set to your preferred keyboard shortcut and will be available even if you restart JAWS or your computer.
To return to the previously bookmarked windows press JAWS Key+Space then ALT+1 through to ALT+0.
Assuming the application assigned to the slot is running then it will be focused.
Script Functions.
Determining the Scripts Build Number.
When requesting technical support or submitting a bug report, it is often helpful to include the scripts build number. In this way, we can determine whether you are using the latest version of the scripts. To obtain the build number, ensure Microsoft Teams is focused and press Insert+Q (or caps lock+Q if you are using the JAWS laptop layout).
JAWS Specific Features.
While all the shortcut keys for use within Microsoft Teams appear below for convenience, some of them require special explanation. This section of the documentation is concerned with this.
Pressing Insert+H (or ALT+Windows+H) from inside Teams will bring into view a list of keystrokes which have been specially scripted for use within JAWS.
However, you can also use any of the following keystrokes. Each one brings into view a Dialog Box containing a list of the keystrokes relative to the category. Use the Up and down Arrow keys to move to the keystroke of interest and press Enter to cause it to be pressed. The keystroke categories are activated by pressing Grave Accent then:
G for General Keys.
M for Messeging Keys.
N for Navigation Keys.
C for Calls, Calendar and Meetings.
Sounds to indicate various events within a Teams meeting can be enabled, disabled and auditioned.
Activate Hotkey Help by pressing Insert+H or ALT+Windows+H.
There are a number of hyperlinks at the top of this screen. You simply press Enter on the link depending upon which item you wish to activate or deactivate.
There is a special link in Hotkey Help called “Open the Configuration File”. Please only use this if recommended to do so by Hartgen Consultancy.
You will notice at the bottom of the Hotkey Help screen is a link entitled “Check for Updates.” Press Enter on this link to check to see if there are any
new Teams Script updates available. Due to ongoing changes to Teams, updates are likely to be quite frequent.
In the below list of keystrokes, you will notice reference to “Condensed Mode” in relation to the Teams calendar. Activating this mode means that only the day of the week is spoken when you move through the calendar of days, followed by whether events exist. Pressing Up or Down Arrow keys will announce the time slot only, followed by whether an event exists.
This only applies to Teams version 1 at present.
The other keystroke which requires special explanation is Control+JAWS Key+1. This enables or disables tutorial information emanating from Teams from being spoken or sent to Braille. As you become more familiar with using Teams, you will almost certainly wish to disable such announcements.
Muting and Unmuting Speech.
In the event you wish to mute speech entirely, press JAWS Key+Space then ALT+S. This can be pressed from within any application and is a toggle keystroke. When pressed, and the synthesiser is muted, you will hear a “clunk” sound to indicate this. JAWS cannot say anything if you have requested that it should be muted!
Bookmarking a Channel.
Best results are achieved if you are using Teams version 2.
It is possible to bookmark a channel to return to at a later time.
In order to bookmark a channel, you must first ensure that you copy the link to the channel to the Windows clipboard.
- Open up a Team which contains channels. For the avoidance of doubt, this does not mean a conversation within your chats area.
- When the desired channel is located, activate the Context Menu by pressing the Context Menu key or Shift+F10.
- Press Down Arrow until you reach Copy Link to Channel and press Enter.
- An Edit Field is displayed containing the link to the channel. Select all the text in the Edit Field by pressing Control+A and copy it to the Clipboard by pressing Control+C.
- Press Escape to exit the Edit Field.
- Press Control+Shift+Dash. When prompted, enter a channel number from 1 to 0. This will be important when you come to locate the channel.
- Press Enter and the channel is saved.
- In order to set focus back to the channel at any time, be sure that Teams is focused and press Control+Shift, together with the number associated with the bookmarked channel, from 1 to 0.
Technical Support.
If you require Technical Support, please email
brian@hartgenconsultancy.com.
If necessary we can use the JAWS Tandem feature or preferably Remote Incident Manager to remote onto your computer with your permission and rectify any problem which may have arisen.
Please note that Microsoft Teams changes on a very frequent basis. Moreover, it is also possible that some companies or organisations have not deployed a particular build or even version of Teams. In short, there are many variables at play.
It is quite likely that problems will have arisen that we know nothing about.
Please be patient and your difficulty will eventually be resolved.
List of Keystrokes.
The following is a complete list of all JAWS-related keystrokes relative to Teams.
Note that the JAWS Key is the Insert Key when using the desktop layout and Caps Lock for the laptop layout.
This is also the area to enable, disable and preview sounds for users’ mute status and whether hands are raised. A link to the Check for updates facility is also listed in this area.
Grave Accent then:
G: General keys.
M: Messeging keys.
C: Calls, calendar and meeting keys.
N: Navigation keys.
When the required List Box is activated, the function and corresponding keystroke is announced so you can learn the keystroke for the future. Press Enter to activate a keystroke.
Chat Typing Sound.
To rotate between the options for when someone is typing a chat message press Shift+Alt+F12.
To verify whether someone is typing a message regardless of the above setting press f12.
Activate this link to preview the Chat Typing sound .
Calendar, Teams Version 1:
To toggle abbreviated mode in the calendar press control+Windows+C.
To speak and Braille the currently selected date in the calendar press control+JAWSKey+D.
In Calls or Meetings:
To make a call to the focused chat press Control+Shift+C.
To activate the More Actions Button press control+windows+m.
To activate the Show Conversation Button press control+windows+o.
To toggle the announcement of raised hands being spoken press alt+Windows+K.
To review the names of the people who have their hands raised press control+Shift+l.
Press twice quickly to virtualise.
To activate the Show Participants Button press control+windows+p.
To report whether the microphone is muted or unmuted press control+Windows+a.
To report whether the video is active press control+Windows+V.
To report the elapsed time say Shift+Alt+T.
To put a call on hold press control+Windows+h.
To resume a call press control+Windows+R.
To transfer a call press control+Windows+T.
General Keystrokes:
To place the content of the currently focused control into the Results Viewer press f9.
to move to the Tree View of teams or chats press .
Use Alt+1 through to 5 on the numbers row to move to the first 5 tabs.
Use Insert+f5 to select a tab.
Use JAWSKey+f8 to select a button.
Use alt+LeftArrow to go back to the prior screen.
Use alt+windows+p to move focus to the Profile area.
Use ALT+Windows+S to move focus to the Settings and More area.
Use Shift+Alt+E when inside the Teams Editor to open the file in an Office application.
Lists of Messages:
It is possible to abbreviate the spoken and Braille output when reviewing messages:
Typically this is tutorial-based information.
Once this is configured it will stay in place until you change it.
Press control+Windows+C to enable or disable the tutorial information.
When reviewing text chat messages:
To move to the list of messages when inside the chat window press Alt+Windows+M.
Within chats, press ALT+Windows+1 through to ALT+Windows+0 to read the 10 most recent messages.
Channel Bookmarking:
To bookmark a numbered channel press control+Shift+-.
Be sure the link to the channel is on the clipboard before you bookmark it.
To move to a numbered channel press Control+Shift+1 through to Control+Shift+0.
Useful JAWS Utilities:
To move into Split Braille options in JAWS 2024 press alt+Insert+v.
To move into Manage Call in JAWS 2024 press Alt+Windows+c.
Window Bookmarking:
To bookmark up to 10 windows press JAWS Key+Space then Windows +1 through to Windows+0.
To return to the previously bookmarked windows press JAWS Key+Space then ALT+1 through to ALT+0.
Global Keystrokes:
Press Grave Accent then:
ALT+Comma to set focus to Microsoft Teams.
ALT+Full-Stop or Period to speak and Braille the Teams status derived from the System Tray.
Press JAWS Key+Space then ALT+S to mute or unmute speech.