Innovation through Collaboration: Microsoft and AT Companies Work Together to Make Windows Vista More Accessible

Microsoft's Assistive Technology Vendor program makes AT companies part of the product development process at Microsoft

People worldwide are eagerly awaiting the release of Windows Vista, the new computer operating system from Microsoft that will provide unparalleled security and functionality. Yet for millions of people with disabilities and age-related impairments, the release of a new operating system or major application often has created more anxiety than excitement, more problems than solutions—at least initially.

Why? Because, historically, such advances have left people with disabilities—who often require the use of assistive technology (AT) to access their computers—wondering whether the AT products will work well with the new technology, or how long it will take AT manufacturers to develop compatible versions of their software and devices—a process that can easily take 12-18 months from the time a new operating system or an application is released.

That won't be a problem with Windows Vista.

"In the past, there were sometimes serious concerns among AT companies whenever Microsoft was set to release a new Windows or Office product," says Steve Menagh of Texthelp Systems, Inc., which creates software programs to assist people with literacy and learning disabilities. "But with Windows Vista and Office 2007, Microsoft has done such a good job of reaching out to its AT partners, keeping us all up to speed, and helping everyone get prepared in advance that there is a lot of confidence throughout the AT industry about these new products."

Microsoft Assistive Technology Vendor Program

What is making the difference is the Microsoft Assistive Technology Vendor Program (MATvp), started by Microsoft early in 2001 to ensure the immediate and widespread accessibility of new Microsoft products by enabling ongoing collaboration between Microsoft and the many companies that develop assistive technology. To achieve that goal, Microsoft uses the MATvp to provide AT vendors with the engineering assistance and technical support they need to make their products compatible with new Microsoft operating systems and applications before they are released.

"The whole point of the MATvp is to be sure these companies get all of the information they need to make their products work well with our operating systems and applications," says Gary Moulton, a product manager in the Accessibility Business Unit at Microsoft, who founded the MATvp. "Most of these companies are very small; many have just one or two employees. There is no way they can keep up with the evolution of technology on their own."

"This program has helped us turn the corner on our relationships with AT vendors," adds Bonnie Kearney, group product manager in the Accessbile Technology Group at Microsoft. "For years, AT manufacturers saw Microsoft as the problem, because every time we released a new product it created difficulties for them and their customers. Now, they see us as a solution provider, because we have made them an integral part of our development process."

Consultation and Support

Doug Geoffray of GW Micro, a company that specializes in assistive technology for people who are blind or have low vision, including the popular Windows-Eyes screen reader, agrees with Kearney's assessment.

"The MATvp allows us to have an excellent relationship with Microsoft, and to get involved in the product development cycle much earlier," Geoffray says. "In the past, we were often consulted after it was too late to make any coding changes. So if there were compatibility problems between our products and the new Microsoft technologies, we would have to find ways to hack around them.

"With Windows Vista, Office 2007 and IE7, we saw very early versions and worked closely with Microsoft at every step, so there was time to resolve issues during development," he says. "That was a huge advantage for us."

Geoffray points out that another benefit the MATvp offers AT manufacturers is Premium Support Service (PSS), which he calls "perhaps the biggest benefit of the program."

"Usually, PSS is a service that only very large corporations can afford, but through the MATvp we get free access to this great resource, which we use over and over to work through issues," he says. "There is simply no way any of these small AT companies could have access to that level of support and collaboration except through MATvp membership. And if there are bugs or other issues in the way our software and devices work with Microsoft products, our involvement in PSS means that Microsoft can get them fixed so we can get those solutions out to our customers right away."

Access and Communication

According to Moulton, approximately 150 AT vendors are members of MATvp, and they represent more than 300 AT products that are used by people around the world with nearly every type of disability.

The products include solutions such as text-to-speech screen readers for people who are blind, technology that enables people with severe mobility issues to operate computers with their breath or eye movements, and software programs that help people with dyslexia and other learning disabilities read and write more easily. Meanwhile, many AT manufacturers are expanding their product offerings to include not only AT solutions built on Windows and Microsoft Office, but also incorporating mobile and smart phone technologies, creating a new generation of tools for people with disabilities.

Access and communication are what make the program work so well. Microsoft hosts meetings, which bring together many of the AT manufacturers and key people from Microsoft product groups. Microsoft also hosts conference calls to brief representatives from the AT companies on new developments, answer questions, and maintain an ongoing dialogue.

"AT vendors keep us updated about the things they're working on, send email or call to provide information," Moulton says. "And in addition to our annual meetings and member conference calls, we keep in touch by attending several conferences each year where a lot of AT manufacturers gather."

Moulton says Microsoft does many other things for AT manufacturers through the MATvp, such as scholarships to developer conferences.

"The registration fees for developer conferences can add up to thousands of dollars. Our AT manufacturers often can't afford that, so we cover the registration fee to make it easier for them to attend the conference and to get the information they need," Moulton says.

The only requirement AT companies must meet to keep their membership in the program is to maintain a valid subscription to MSDN, the Microsoft Developer Network.

"We really want these AT companies to be tuned into the developer network here at Microsoft," Moulton says. "We try to give them as much information as we can through the program, but we want them to have a direct link into MSDN so they can get that additional information from the horse's mouth, so to speak."

During development of a major new product such as Windows Vista, Microsoft also hosts occasional "porting" labs, which are intensive engineering sessions designed to help AT manufacturers identify and begin the work they must do to make their products compatible with the new operating system or application.

The Road to Windows Vista

Even with the help AT manufacturers receive through the MATvp, however, making hundreds of assistive technology applications and devices compatible with a new operating system like Windows Vista is a challenge—for the AT companies and for Microsoft.

With Windows Vista, Microsoft took an early and proactive approach to make sure there would be widespread AT compatibility with the new operating system. Shortly after Windows XP was released in October 2001, Microsoft surveyed the entire MATV membership, asking for confidential information about how the AT companies were building and running their products on Windows.

"Previously, when a new Microsoft operating system or application came out, the AT manufacturers would be taken by surprise because of something that was working just fine with a previous version didn't work with the new one," Moulton says. "So as we started developing Windows Vista, we wanted to find out everything they were depending on, and to learn all of the supported or unsupported strategies and techniques they were using."

Microsoft used the survey results to decide which AT companies to include in Windows Vista design reviews and which were likely to need special help with new work to make their products compatible with the operating system. Microsoft identified approximately 50 AT companies—about a third of the MATV membership—that would need extra attention or help preparing for Windows Vista.

Microsoft brought the selected AT vendors to its corporate campus for two weeks, providing training and in-depth briefings on Windows Vista with computers supplied by HP. HP was an integral partner in the porting labs and Windows Vista development process for AT vendors; HP provided hardware, and engineering and developer support to help AT vendors make their products compatible with HP computers and devices running Windows Vista.

AT Vendor Feedback

Overall, AT vendors appreciate the MATvp and Microsoft's longstanding commitment to making technology easier to see, hear and use, but some also see room for improvement.

As Steve Menagh of Texthelp Systems, Inc. observes, however, what makes the MATvp work so well is the same thing that has made Microsoft a successful global technology leader.

"I believe the partnership strategy Microsoft has adopted with other companies is the right one," he says. "Companies can specialize in different things, and if you keep them on board as Microsoft has done then you get the benefit of that diversity. Microsoft is a big company now, and it does some things extremely well, but by partnering with other companies that excel in other ways, Microsoft gets the best of both worlds—and so do their customers."