WhatsApp.

Introduction.

WhatsApp is a popular, free, multi-platform messaging app that lets users make video and voice calls, send text messages, share their status, and more with just a Wi-Fi connection. Part of what makes this app appealing is that it works on various phone and computer operating systems, so you can continue your conversation anytime, anywhere. It can also take advantage of Wi-Fi and cellular data to make one-to-one or group calls, reducing the need for expensive calling charges. You never miss messages, but even if you miss notifications while your phone is off, the app saves recent messages for when you re-open it.

WhatsApp can identify people in your contact list who currently use the app, so you typically don’t have to add them manually. You can also invite people who don’t have WhatsApp or connect with other users you know but who aren’t on your contact list.

This Chapter of the Leasey documentation does not consist of a full tutorial on how to use WhatsApp. It broadly outlines the support given specifically for use with JAWS and Leasey and the special functions which have been created. We will however describe the primary screen layout and how to carry out some simple tasks.

WhatsApp is downloadable (and can be installed) from the Microsoft Store. It is an official Microsoft app.

Starting WhatsApp.

WhatsApp is usually launched from the Start Menu. Into the Edit Field you can type "WhatsApp" and press Enter when JAWS announces it is in focus. When the app is launched, be sure to press Insert+Q or Caps Lock+Q. You will hear a build number of the WhatsApp scripts, followed by the fact that the WhatsApp settings are loaded. If you do not hear a build number, the Leasey support for WhatsApp is not being used.

Before You Begin.

When you start WhatsApp for the first time, there is a procedure where you need to link WhatsApp from your phone to the computer. However fortunately this is an accessible process. It involves using your phone number as the linking mechanism as follows:

  1. Start WhatsApp on the Windows PC.
  2. Press Tab to reach the Button entitled "Get Started" or similar, and press the Space Bar to activate it. Indeed it may already be the focused control.
  3. On your phone, open the app, select "Settings" and then "Link Device". You may then be asked to enter your PIN or use Face (or touch) ID for identification.
  4. On the computer, press Tab to the button labelled "Link with Phone Number" and press Space".
  5. On the next screen, type your phone number using the international format into the edit field and press Enter. An example of such a format might be +44 7654 321987.
  6. A code is then sent to the computer which you must type into the phone in order that the linking mechanism can take place. Press the Tab key repeatedly. You will find an item which states that the process for linking WhatsApp via your phone number has begun. Eventually, JAWS will speak the code we are wanting. In order to read the code a character at a time, press function key F9. This will place the code into the JAWS virtual viewer. Review each character and type it on the phone. As soon as the code has been entered, the link is complete and this screen will be dismissed.

Please note. We cannot assist you with, and do not provide any support for, the above process of linking your computer to your WhatsApp account.

Screen Layout.

The WhatsApp screen contains a number of controls through which you can press Tab and Shift+Tab. The primary components are:

Because there are quite a number of such controls to move through, keyboard shortcuts have been provided as part of the scripts to directly move to key areas of the application. Some of these are as follows:

You can obtain a complete list of all keyboard shortcuts by checking the scripts's Hotkey Help, Insert+H.

Moving Through Messages in a Conversation.

There are three ways of working through messages in a conversation.

By far the easiest way is to press Control+Tab or Shift+Control+Tab. Each time you do this, a new conversation is focused and JAWS will set focus to the Edit Field for typing a new message to the individual. It will also announce the text label for this, such as, "Type to Laura, Edit". You will then instantly know you are chatting with the person you intend.

To move through the messages in the conversation, press Tab repeatedly to move to the Messages List, or press ALT+M from anywhere to move to it directly. You can then use the Up and Down Arrow keys to move through the list to review activity. Note that when you do this, you will not be at the top or bottom of the list. the scripts contains special coding so that you are placed at the point in the list you last accessed. This is essential for efficient working and for voice messages referred to later.

The second method for moving to a conversation is as follows:

  1. Press Tab until you reach the Chats List, or press ALT+C from anywhere. Alternatively press ALT+L. If you were previously focused in the Chats List, this latter keystroke will place you at the point in the list where you left off reading.
  2. Use the Up and Down Arrow keys to find the Chat required.
  3. Press the Enter key to move into the Chat .
  4. Press Tab to the Messages List or press ALT+M to move to it directly.

Finally, you can press Control+1 through to Control+9. This will allow you to switch between the nine most recent chats which have been accessed.

We should make mention of the Filter Edit Field, activated with Control+F. When the field is focused, you can type the name of the person whose conversation you wish to access. The purpose of this field is to ensure you only see the messages relating to that person in the Messages List. When the text has been entered, press Tab, and you should find a list of chats which match your search. Press Enter to move into the chat, and then press ALT+M to move to the messages list.

Should you wish to check the conversation name on which you are focused, press ALT+N for Name. This is especially helpful prior to sending a message to ensure you are in the correct conversation. JAWS will announce or Braille the name of the user and the status, such as "Laura Online". Press the keystroke twice quickly so as to send the details to the JAWS Virtual Viewer for closer inspection. If JAWS says that no status is available, try maximising the window with ALT+Space then X or press Insert+Escape.

Sending a Text Chat Message to an Active Conversation.

If a conversation is already in progress, you can send a text chat message to it. Prior to doing this, we highly recommend you enable the typing sound indicator. This can be done by pressing Control+F12 repeatedly. This feature has four options:

Regardless of the above typing indicator setting, you can always check if a person is typing by pressing F12.

Assuming the feature is not disabled, when someone is typing a message to you, if you are focused within the WhatsApp application you will hear a report of this, even if the conversation pertaining to it is not focused. In other words, if you are having a conversation with Mary, and you have pressed Control+Tab to move into another conversation, when she begins to type you will be notified through the scripts of what is happening.

Similarly, if you have pressed ALT+C to activate the Chats List, as you move through your chats with the Up and Down Arrow keys, JAWS will announce if a person who is part of the chat or group is typing or recording audio.

As soon as the message is sent by the other participant in the conversation, the scripts instruct JAWS to announce it automatically if the option is set in the scripts to announce the messages. This can be enabled or disabled by pressing Control+Shift+F12. You will notice that sometimes, the typing indicator sound will stop, but no message is announced. This is because the other person has stopped typing for a moment but has not sent the message. The typing sound indicator will pick up again when the person resumes typing. the scripts understands that a new message has not been added to the conversation and so does not cause JAWS to announce anything new.

You will note that, when automatic reading of messages is enabled, JAWS reads the message followed by the time the message was sent together with its status, such as "Sent". This additional information can be disabled by pressing Control+Shift+F11. This is a toggle action and will enable or disable this reduction of information. Ensuring that JAWS does not speak this information is good because the overall output is like having a real conversation with someone.

If you are focused in an alternative conversation, or if you are working in an application other than WhatsApp, you are notified of the incoming message through the playing of a sound and through a standard Windows notification. The easiest way to review the details of the message would be:

  1. Press ALT+Tab to focus back on WhatsApp.
  2. Open up the chat concerned.
  3. Press ALT+1. JAWS reports the last message received. ALT+1 through to ALT+0 will report the most recent 10 messages in the list. These keystrokes can be used to read the most recent 10 messages in any WhatsApp chat. ALT+Windows+1 through to ALT+Windows+0 will report messages 11 through to 20. Press these keystrokes twice quickly for additional message actions described later.

To send a message yourself, press ALT+T to set focus to the typing Edit Field, type the message and press Enter. JAWS will announce the message which has been sent together with the status, such as, "Sent". You will also hear a sound play to advise you it has been sent.

Additional Message Actions.

As previously mentioned, pressing ALT+1 through to ALT+0 will report the details of the last 10 messages you have received. ALT+Windows+1 through to ALT+Windows+0 will report messages 11 through to 20. However, if you press any of these keys twice quickly, one of the following actions will take place.

If the item JAWS is reporting is an audio message, pressing the keystroke twice quickly will play it automatically.

If it relates to any other kind of message, such as text or a file attachment, details of the message are placed into the JAWS Virtual Viewer for closer inspection, perhaps word by word. At the bottom of the screen is a link to activate the "Context Menu" for the message. Pressing Enter on the link will activate the Context Menu for it. This is very useful for file attachments especially or to react to a message. These actions should mean that in most cases, you should not need to browse through the messages list at all.

Finding a Contact to Chat With.

We have already described how to find a conversation which is ongoing. There are three ways.

Alternatively, you can:

  1. Press Control+N for a new chat.
  2. Type the name of the person you would like to chat with. This person must be in your contacts list.
  3. Press Tab. A list of the people matching your search term should be displayed. Press the Up or Down Arrow keys to move through the list. If no results are found, focus is still in the edit field and you will hear that no results have been found.
  4. When you have found the desired contact to chat with, press Enter. You can then verify the name again by pressing ALT+N, which has the added advantage of reporting the status, such as "Online".
  5. You can then begin a text chat if you wish. Focus is immediately in the text entry field for this purpose.
  6. You could if you wish press F1 to record a voice message. This is described in the next section.
  7. Alternatively, press ALT+A to place an audio call or ALT+V to place a video call. While in a call, the controls are displayed in a separate window to the primary WhatsApp application. This is called the "WhatsApp Call" window. This is a simple Dialog Box containing only a few controls which are all self-explanatory. To query whether the microphone is muted or unmuted, press ALT+Windows+M. To query whether the camera is active, press ALT+Windows+C. To end the call, press ALT+Windows+E, or press Tab to reach the "End Call" Button and press the Space Bar.

When you have pressed Control+N for a new chat, you do not need to type anything into the Edit Field if you do not wish to. You could press Tab twice. This sets focus to the list of contacts. Press Down Arrow to move through the list. You will hear the name of the contact. Press Enter to start a new chat.

Sending a Voice Message.

It is possible to send someone a voice message. Upon careful research, it seems there is no limit as to the size of the voice message. Apparently people have sent entire church services for example as WhatsApp messages.

  1. Locate a contact or conversation as described in previous sections.
  2. Press Enter to move into the chat.
  3. Press F1 so as to begin recording a voice message. JAWS has been programmed not to say anything to ensure that speech output does not intrude into the voice message. An ascending tone will play to indicate recording is about to start. We have ensured this does not intrude into the recording. Start speaking after you hear the sound.
  4. Should you wish to pause the recording, press F1. A descending tone will be heard. We have ensured this does not intrude into the recording. If you explore the Dialog Box at that point with Tab and Shift+Tab, you will note that a "Play" Button is available which, when activated, will play back the Voice Message. Next comes a position slider. You can change the position of where the audio begins to play by pressing the Left and Right Arrow keys on the slider. Finally, there is a "Resume Recording" Button. Press Space on this Button to recommence recording or press F1 again. The voice message can be played back at any time by pressing F2 rather than having to Tab through the dialog. Press F5 to verify whether the recording has been paused or is ongoing.
  5. Prior to sending the message, we suggest you press the Space Bar on the "Pause Recording" Button or press F1. Then, press Tab to reach the "Send" Button and press Space or press F3.
  6. If you are creating a Voice Message, and you wish to cancel it, press F4. A Dialog Box will appear, asking if you are sure you wish to cancel. The focused Button is "Yes", so go ahead and press the Space Bar.

In summary, the keystrokes conveniently placed are:

Listening to Audio Messages You Have Received.

As you browse through your list of messages in a chat, (ALT+M), you may hear that someone has sent you a voice message. If this occurs, press Enter to play it. You will know if this is the case since JAWS will announce the presence of an audio message and it will play an audio cue.

Alternatively, use ALT+1 through to ALT+0 to review the 10 most recently received messages, or press ALT+~Windows+1 through to ALT+Windows+0 so as to review messages 11 through to 20. These keys will cause JAWS to read any text associated with the message and its type, such as "Document" or "Audio". If you hear "Audio", press the keystroke twice quickly so as to begin playing it.

If while playing an audio message you wish to change the speed of playback, press function key F6. This will cycle through the available playback speed options.

If you have used one of the message reading keystrokes twice quickly to play the audio message, and you wish to pause playback, press ALT+M. This should set focus to the point in the message list containing the audio message. Press Enter to pause and play the audio.

Answering An Incoming Call.

When you receive an incoming call, assuming WhatsApp is running, a simple Dialog Box is available with three controls. These are: "Accept Audio Call", "Decline Audio Call" and "Device Settings". Press the Tab key to reach the appropriate Button and press the Space Bar to activate it.

Making an Audio or Video Call.

If you wish to make an audio or video call, first find the conversation relating to the person you wish to chat with or create a new one.

Press Enter so as to move inside the chat, then press ALT+A for an audio call or ALT+V for a video call.

While in a call, the controls are displayed in a separate window to the primary WhatsApp application. This is called the "WhatsApp Call" window. This is a simple Dialog Box containing only a few controls which are all self-explanatory. To query whether the microphone is muted or unmuted, press ALT+Windows+M. To query whether the camera is active, press ALT+Windows+C. To end the call, press ALT+E, or press Tab to reach the "End Call" Button and press the Space Bar.

Accessing a Phone Number of a Contact.

You can access the phone number of one of your contacts which is associated with the WhatsApp profile.

  1. Focus on a conversation between you and the person whose phone number you need. Alternatively, you could create a new conversation with the person if you wish.
  2. When focused upon the conversation, press Enter to move into it. Then, press Tab to reach the "Conversation Info" Button and press Space.
  3. Press F8. This will place the details including the phone number into the JAWS Virtual Viewer for closer inspection.
  4. When you have read the phone number, press Escape twice: once to exit the Virtual Viewer and a second time to close the profile information screen.

Changing the About Box Text.

The text in the About section of your profile is important. People see this text as they are browsing through contacts.

  1. Press Control+P to move into "Profile and Settings".
  2. Press Shift+Tab and focus should be on a Button entitled "About, Start Editing". Press Enter.
  3. Focus is now in an edit field where the text can be edited or replaced. Type or edit the existing text and press Enter to save.

Working With File Attachments.

To attach a file from your computer to a message, ensure the relevant chat is open and press ALT+H. A number of options are presented to you, however the most likely one you will wish to access is the first of these which is "File". Press Enter. You are in a standard "Open" Dialog Box common to Windows applications. Browse to the relevant file and press Enter. Optionally, you can then type a "Caption" to explain the purpose of the file being sent. Finally, Tab to the "Send" Button and press the Space Bar.

A far easier way to attach a file however is to locate it using File Explorer. Copy the file to the Windows Clipboard with Control+C. Then, focus back on the WhatsApp message and paste it with Control+V. Optionally, you can then type a "Caption" to explain the purpose of the file being sent. Finally, Tab to the "Send" Button and press the Space Bar.

Setting a Nickname.

Have you ever been browsing through WhatsApp messages and you hear a long name or a phone number? If either of those belong to someone you chat with regularly, you want to hear the message as quickly as possible. Now you can by assigning a nickname to a WhatsApp user. So rather than hearing the phone number 001234567, you can hear the word John instead.

  1. Open up a chat from the list. It is important you are inside the chat.
  2. Press ALT+M so as to focus upon the message history. This can be within a group or individual chat.
  3. Use the Up or Down Arrow keys to find a message containing the long name or phone number.
  4. Press ALT+Windows_N for Name.
  5. An Edit Field appears containing the name or phone number which has been captured. In nearly all cases this should be correct. If it is not, you can edit it, but only do so if you are sure there is a problem.
  6. Press Enter and, when prompted, type the new name in its shortened form.
  7. Press Enter and it has an immediate effect.

Should you wish to remove the name previously stored, from anywhere in WhatsApp press ALT+Control+Windows+N. A list of previously stored names appears. Press Down Arrow to reach the name you wish to remove and press Enter. The name is removed. If you focus back on a message from the WhatsApp user, you should find it is being spoken again in full.

Keystroke Summary.

You can read a list of the Leasey-specific keystrokes for WhatsApp by pressing the Leasey Key then H, or by searching Leasey's Hotkey Help for the term "WhatsApp". Back to Help Index.