Re: Macro application for Gnome

[Alejandro Leiva <aleiva emergya es>]

El 11/11/10 19:04, Ken Starks escribió:
> I've been discussing this with a talented developer off-list and he's
> suggested that this might well be a project for the keyboard stack in
> the Kernel.  My idea mimics the Hotkey app so that is the direction I
> was hoping to go.  Remembering that this app would be for the end user,
> I was hoping we could gui it to that end, but again, I am a layman so I
> don't know the ramifications or difficulty level of this project.  In
> that Linux is more of a modular DE and Windows is, well...Windows, their
> apps work across the DE and into Word and other addon apps.  Finding a
> way for it to encompass the entire system might be a problem...unless of
> course the keyboard kernel driver was written.
>
> There is no sense in reinventing the wheel and Macaroon looks like it
> could be adapted to work.
>
> Anyway, your input is important to me as I would like to pursue this
> possibility.
>
> "A child's exposure to technology should never be predicated on the
> ability to afford it."
>
>
> On Thu, Nov 11, 2010 at 11:20 AM, Steve Lee <steve fullmeasure co uk
> <mailto:steve fullmeasure co uk>> wrote:
>
>     Hi Ken
>
>     There are a couple of macro programs available that I have heard of
>     but not tried
>
>     xnee - http://www.gnu.org/software/xnee/
>     Macaroon - http://live.gnome.org/Orca/RegressionTesting/W*The HeliOS
>     Project
>     308A Highland Estates Drive
>     Round Rock Texas 78664
>
>     512 689 6556*ritingTests#Macaroon
>     <http://live.gnome.org/Orca/RegressionTesting/WritingTests#Macaroon>
>
>     Macaroon is a developer tool but with a little wrapper code and polish
>     it could become an end user friendly tool
>
>     Mind you it would be great to see something as awesome as autohotkey
>     [1] available on GNOME as this is a really powerful accessibility aid.
>
>     Finally the specific problem you describe is browser specific and as
>     most distros include Firefox or it's easy to install you should also
>     look at the many accessibility features and pugins it has on Ken
>     Saunder's excellent access firefox site [2]
>
>     1:http://www.autohotkey.com/
>     2:http://accessfirefox.org
>
>     --
>     Steve Lee
>
>     Full Measure - open source accessibility - http://fullmeasure.co.uk
>
>
>     On 11 November 2010 16:49, Ken Starks <helios fixedbylinux com
>     <mailto:helios fixedbylinux com>> wrote:
>      > Hello all.  I joined this list in order to receive feedback and
>     hope to
>      > generate a conversation about a much-needed feature in Linux and
>      > specifically Gnome.
>      >
>      > I am the founding director of The HeliOS Project.  We accept
>     broken or
>      > decommissioned computers, refurbish them and then give them to
>     kids who's
>      > family cannot afford a computer.  You can see a bit about what we
>     do at
>      > http://www.heliosinitiative.org.
>      >
>      > We deal with many people with disabilities as well and some of
>     the most
>      > prominent disabilities are muscular or coordination-limited
>     people.  If you
>      > notice the URL I gave you as an example, it is a fairly long URL
>     and many
>      > people we encounter would have problems in typing it.  As loathe
>     as I am to
>      > mention it, in the Windows world, there is a freeware app called
>     shortkeys
>      > lite.  Simply put, it is a macro app that can be set to type a
>     line of text
>      > by calling on a system key plus the hook key.  When I set the
>     program up for
>      > instance, the alt key pressed in conjunction with any chosen
>     letter or
>      > number key, my url would automatically appear.  Of course, it can
>     be set to
>      > do any number of macros.
>      >
>      > I realize my lack of dev skills blind me to the complexity of
>     writing such a
>      > program but as a long-time Linux advocate, I have spent enough
>     time in the
>      > field to know that this would be an important and appreciated
>     addition to
>      > the Gnome or Linux user.
>      >
>      > I appreciate your time and your hard work.
>      >
>      > "A child's exposure to technology should never be predicated on
>     the ability
>      > to afford it."

Hi Ken,

	I think can be faster to implement a prototype for GNOME using caribou 
[1] (a on screen keyboard that actually can send input events to the 
desktop) and maybe some current development with assistive input like 
WiiCan [2] or maybe more state-of-the-art like opengazer [3]

	In fact, I know another foundation that provides computers for kids 
(kids on computers) [4] is thinking about something similar, maybe it's 
worth contacting with them.

[1]: http://www.inference.phy.cam.ac.uk/opengazer/
[2]: http://fontanon.org/wiican/
[3]: http://www.inference.phy.cam.ac.uk/opengazer/
[4]: http://www.kidsoncomputers.org/

Cheers,
--
Alejandro Leiva