Am I alone in preferring Windows?

I have tried everything, Mac, android, I have an iPhone and Windows machines right now, and you’re right. The Mac definitely has its uses, but I find that I do more on windows.

I am a creative writer using Scrivener, which is entirely inaccessible on Windows. So I will guess that if I were to switch to Windows, I would have completely the opposite experience as you described.

Believe it or not, I still have my old Windows 7 system. I also have a Linux system. I have never bought into the marketing hype that you have to choose one, or the other, the whole, "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" debate. Use the platform that works best for the task at hand.

I use Windows with jaws. Like it because is easy to use windows. Simple and no issues. I do like my iPhone. I had one since 4 came out, from them I went from the 4 s, 5, 7, x s, 11 pro max, 12 pro and my current 13 pro that I got in Nov of last year. Have an iPad, nice but using a bluetooth keyboard is OK. Nothing to write home about and the experience is OK. Still like my windows. Not changing ever.

I totally agree. I have no respect or use for people who judge others, and totally make fun of them just because of their choice.

I know Windows OCR may not be as functional as the image description feature on MacOS, assuming it's identical to the one on iOS, as I've not ever used MacOS myself.

I'm a windows user and prefer it over mac but if mac has image description that's awesome!

I use mack for music and other audio things.
iver then that I use windows for everything els.

I never liked fighting with the ribbon menus that Micro Soft inflicted on the system. I've been having to use my iPhone as my main computer a lot lately because the wired connection to the internet somewhere in all the local switches and cables keeps failing for hours and hours at a time and they never can find the part that is causing it out there on the poles. IOS isn't too bad if I throw in a keyboard, but it's a shock to my old brain to have to switch between several systems, so I haven't touched the notebook over there on the table that runs Windows 8.1 or something since support was dropped for it. I use Linux/Mate, which reminds me a whole lot of Windows XP and 7.

Since Apple suppose to open third party apps, I would love to see jaws making it for the Mac or iPhone. If we get choice of apps that make our lives easy be nice. JAWS would make money if they get it to work for iOS or the Mac. Picture it, jaws for iPhone. How many be using it instead of Voiceover?

I am familiar with Windows, and recently got a Mac mini for work purposes and was gravely mistaken in how it functions compared to iOS. I can't get simplest stuff to work like see the app descriptions on the app store, the only thing that wants to happen is to buy/get an app. I have tried ever solution people have told me to and nothing works. It is not at all intuitive like iOS is.
I will endeavor to master it for work, but I would have been happier with an iPad and magic keyboard case I think, though it would not have allowed me to do the same for work purposes as testing a website for accessibility on iOS/iPad OS and Mac are very different things.

Windows is just second nature and makes more sense, the way Mac seems to be in layers just makes it odd. Ithinkt he problem is the sheer overwhelming amount of keys you need to hold down to do things that really makes it complicated though.

I want to love the Mac, I really do, but until it acts more like iOS with VO, I may never.

If Microsoft made a full windows phone with windows 11, I’d be using that. Even with the various difficulties I’ve had with Windows 11. It’s not as intuitive as iOS or macOS, in terms of finding settings or setting up certain functions. However, it’s generally an easier experience to write notes, search the web, download Files.

There’s a lot of rumors about windows 12. Namely that they’re going to make it much more intuitive to use. There are also some rumors that Microsoft windows 12 might be implemented into phones. If that happens, I’m probably going to switch completely.

For me, as someone who owns both a Mac and Windows PC, I can tell you things about both platforms that I like and dislike.

On macOS, I like the integration with my iPhone, being able to answer and receive calls and text messages, and natively sync files and settings via iCloud. I use Pages for my admittedly basic word processing needs, and I like not having to subscribe or buy a license to use it, as opposed to Microsoft Word on Windows.

However, while I broadly like the stability and relative ease of use of macOS, the bugs and quirks of VoiceOver can be very frustrating. Furthermore, being built into the operating system, there's no saying how long a given accessibility bug will persist, with some lasting for years. This is where JAWS and NVDA outshine VoiceOver in my opinion, as while I am no fan of Windows, I like how predictable the third-party screenreaders behave.

In short, with macOS, I like the operating system, but feel that VoiceOver often gets in the way. Conversely, with Windows, I like the ecosystem of third-party screenreaders, but feel the operating system often gets in the way. When it comes to desktop computing, I think you're really just picking your poison and hoping for the best.

I go more in-depth with these opinions in this AppleVis blog post from May 2022, which aside from some improvements to VoiceOver performance and the addition of new information commands, still largely holds up.

I love Mac OS and miss my macbook. I used to have one, and had to sell because I desperately needed the funds. I kick myself every day for that! I can audio edit on Windows, and get the job done, but nowhere near the level of greatness I could manage with Amadeus Pro. I didn’t really have any of the Safari bugs, and didn’t ever do much word processing and certainly never did any coding, so never had those frustrations. I use Windows for online radio stuff, and the VM experience on Mac OS could be better, but I imagine that could improve with a bump in ram. Right now, I have a Windows laptop and ipad pro with bluetooth keyboard case. But, if there is a chance to acquire another macbook, especially if I could make payments on it, I would jump at that! So, if you ever get to the point where you’re absolutely done, want nothing to do with the Mac, hit me up, and hopefully we can du business.

The phone integration with the mac is cool, and I wish it would be done with Windows. As long as the experience with MS office on the mac is anything less than what it is with Jaws on Windows, I'll be sticking to a pc. I know just enough about Excel and Word to not want to learn something else, especially not knowing if it will do everything I'm used to doing.

The Android integration with Windows is coming along, and if I hit an IOS version with at least three major life-changing bugs in it, I'll have to try Android again.

To me, it is all about how well the speech can be made to work with the programs I want to use. Windows beats mac on that, and the iPhone beats Android. I'm okay with it.

Adaria,
Have you tried routing the mouse pointer to a search result in the App Store by pressing VO-Command-F5, and then simulating a mouse click with VO-Shift-Space? For me, this works to access the product page for apps when searching.

As for the possibility that JAWS or other third-party screen readers be made available on iOS, I think it's more likely that other alternatives resembling Jieshuo or other third-party screen readers for Android will make it to iOS much sooner than JAWS or NVDA, even if Freedom Scientific or NVAccess do decide to develop screen readers for iOS at some point. JAWS or NVDA may finally be available for MacOS, but not iOS or iPadOS, I guess. But then VoiceOver for MacOS appears more robust and functional than Narrator for Windows, and is free despite that. Given we also have NVDA for Windows at no cost, I doubt Freedom Scientific will be convinced that JAWS will be preferred and purchased by a sufficient number of users and will bring enough profit worth the investment, which may hold them back, especially should NVDA be ported to MacOS.

Not at all. I've personally using a system where I combine MacOs and Windows. I run Windows 11 in parallels on my macbook. Windows handles my web browsing and microsoft office, along with windows specific apps. On Mac side, I handle email, socials, document organisation, task management etc. You can configure your system to open windows apps for certain filetypes, so the experience is very seamless. Klick a link in an email in macos, firefox on windows focuses itself and NVDA or Jaws takes over. Open a .docx file in finder, and it opens in Microsoft word on Windows. I love Apples hardware and stability. I've seen too many windows laptops which decide to not boot properly, wake from sleep, crash and do various nasty things at critical moments. However with this setup, apple hardware and software combined to Microsoft software, I am very happy.

I am in total agreement with those of you who actually do respect people who prefer one operating system over the other. For me personally, I don't quite know where I stand in this debate but I'm leaning towards Apple. The Windows laptop I used had a bunch of crapware on it, and someone was going to try and repair it but it just wasn't worth anything. I used and still use Microsoft apps on my iPhone, so I think that's something else to consider. Regarding Apple making another screen reader or rebuilding VoiceOver from the ground up, I myself don't think this is necessary but to each his/her own. But don't count on me using a 3rd-party screen reader on Mac OS or iOS anytime soon. VoiceOver is good enough for me. Having said all that, I am rather curious as to what the future holds for voices and would like to see more ported from Windows etc. . I love eSpeak and Eloquence on my Mac and have had absolutely no issues with them thus far. One complaint I do have though about Apple, is that their dictation could stand some improvements. I've been trying to dictate a message to a counselor who seems to prefer texting. This is my first ever correspondence with her, and it would be good if the message came out properly. I am considering whether or not to take advantage of her services, and they say first impressions are key.

I very rarely use a computer now, I seem to do most things on my iPhone or iPad. But when I do use a computer, I prefer Windows. I bought a MacBook Air in 2017 and really tried to get used to it and like it. Neither happened.

Hello. The Mac and the PC are just a tool to make your life easier!

I really think you should use what is what is comfortable to you. If you ask me, I love both.

I switched from Windows and JAWS to a Mac in 2021 and have never wanted Windows back since then. I especially love the consistency in Navigation with VoiceOver. Once you know how to navigate and use the most important controls (like buttons, sidebars, toolbars etc), you can use any application as easy as on iPhone. With JAWS, I must sometimes tab around, sometimes I have to use arrow keys and so on, no consistency there. And the best thing on windows (irony): When a dialog box in modern applications pops up, only yes or no are focusable without special navigation quirks or other stuff. Even text areas are not navigable easily in windows settings app without using Touch Cursor or how this thing was called. On Mac, I have quick nav turned on, and can simply press left and right arrow to navigate element by element, so easy.

Whatever's clever for your needs. i.e. If you are the most productive/entertained/efficient/<insert adjective/verb here> with Windows, then so be it. And vice versa. 😇
Personally I enjoy the continuity of the Apple Eco system. Having said that, I use both MacOS and Windows OS because the sad truth is; there really is no end all, be all single system out there.... yet. At least not for the sightless.

Regarding OCR for Windows..

NVDA has you covered:

Screenshot Wizard:
https://nvda-addons.org/addon.php?id=258

CloudVision:
https://nvda-addons.org/addon.php?id=261

Nao:
https://nvda-addons.org/addon.php?id=254

Someone above mentioned QuickNav on MacOS. I too use that and I agree it is very handy. Just know Windows has a counterpart with the following NVDA add-on:

Easy Navigation:
https://nvda-addons.org/addon.php?id=10

Anyway, both Windows and Mac are great, and if one, or both is great "for you", then fantastic. One should "never" feel ashamed or wrong for having a personal preference. 😃

/end 2 cents

I was just used to the way the pull-down menus of old were organized, and found myself having to hunt for what I was looking for after they came up with the ribbons. The ribbon menus are a little trickier to look through and navigate than the pull-downs.
I have run into difficulties with word processors and reading large, novel-sized files continuously with screen readers, whether IOS Pages or others. For writing, I now keep things in either text format with markdown, or RTF, and divided into smaller files that can be moved to IOS Scrivener for finishing format and conversion into MS Word if I want to show someone. But I only write as a hobby and personal entertainment, and not for trying to get published (yuck).

You can easily get round the MS ribbons issue if you learn the keyboard shortcuts. For efficiency, I prefer Windows. However, I'd be tempted to go to Mac if I ever found I wanted into the content creation space — particularly video, as I believe Final Cut Pro is still the best one for accessibility. If I could afford it, I'd use Mac for audio and Windows for all else. However, my Windows machine also works satisfactorily for everything. Although I do like my iPhone, I'm old school and will always prefer physical buttons when I can get them.

I personally prefer Windows. I'd still like to buy a Mac and install Windows on it so I don't have to get two separate laptops. Does anyone use Bootcamp and is it easy enough to install and work with?

On Macs with Apple Silicon, the only type of Macs Apple sells, Bootcamp isn't supported. In order to run Windows on these Macs, you must use virtualization software like Parallels or UTM.

Or you can get your self a nice Refurbished intel-based Mac and still work with Bootcamp. I have been running an old MBP with a Bootcamp partition of Windows 10 for a number of years now. It is definitely the way to go if you want the best of both worlds and are on a budget.
Unfortunately it has been so long that I do not remember if I needed help installing and setting up Windows 10 with Bootcamp. 🤷🏻‍♂️