Accessible Email client Mozilla Thunderbird

There may be other accessible email clients out there on the web, but the most accessible that I have found so far with the NVDA screen reader is Mozilla Thunderbird.  In this tutorial, I am going to cover the basics of downloading and installing Mozilla Thunderbird.  The tutorial will also be covering how to send and receive emails, attachments and so on. If there is no email client on your computer, Mozilla Thunderbird is a good free alternative for sending and receiving your emails.

If you would like to try Mozilla Thunderbird, you can get a copy from http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/.  There will be different versions for the different operating systems. The default is English for Windows, so to get Mozilla Thunderbird for Mac or Linux, or in another language other than English, click on the link called Other Systems and Languages and choose the correct one for your system. (Please remember that NVDA only works on Windows and this is the version I am using for this tutorial). Once you have found the correct file, download a copy to your desktop, so it is easy to find when you go to set it up.

Training material and phone support for NVDA from the NV Access online shop

Are you aware that NV Access have put together an online Shop where you can buy training material for the NVDA screen reader?
You can also get phone support.


Please stay tuned for more training material as it becomes available.
For more information please visit the NV Access Online Shop at the following link https://www.nvaccess.org/shop/

NVDA expert certification

To find an NVDA certified expert near you, please visit the following link https://certification.nvaccess.org/. The certification page contains the official list of NVDA certified individuals from around the world, who have sat and successfully passed the NVDA expert exam.

Have you got a good grasp on the NVDA screen reader? Have you got what it takes to sit the NVDA expert exam? You can test your knowledge for free. If you pass the exam in the required time frame, then you can purchase an official certificate and be acknowledged on the above webpage under the list of worldwide NVDA experts.

Find out about NVDA progress via the nvaccess In Process blog

To find out what is happening within the NVDA project, visit “In-Process” - the new NV Access blog, where you can be informed of happenings within the organisation, staff and of course, NVDA.
http://www.nvaccess.org/category/in-process/

NVDA related webpages


NVDA tutorials

NVDA screen
reader



How to install additional
NVDA components





NVDA audio tutorials





Migrating to NVDA from
other screen readers





NVDA screen reader related resources

For a variety of NVDA related resources from around the world, please visit the NVDA screen reader related resources page at the following link
NVDA screen reader related resources

Promotional video on the NVDA screen reader

If you are unsure what a screen reader is, please click on the following link to listen to a promotional video on the NVDA screen reader https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks7AwV_uxO0&feature=youtu.be   Please feel free to pass this information onto others that you think may be interested or who may want to find out more.

How to install Mozilla Thunderbird

Once you have downloaded the latest Mozilla Thunderbird from the link above, you will need to click on the file to set it up. Follow the prompts on screen. Setup may give you the option to import email addresses from another mail client - if you already have one on your computer (For example Outlook or Windows Mail). If it doesn't, just follow the on screen prompts until it says that it has been successfully installed. It should automatically load once the setup process is successful. Remember to familiarise yourself with the layout of the programme so you know where menu items are.

How to navigate Mozilla Thunderbird with NVDA

When Mozilla Thunderbird has been set up, it will automatically make some folders for you.  For example Inbox, Sent, Drafts and so on.  You will need to Tab until you hear tree view.  This is where your folders are located.  Arrow up and down to see what is there.  To go into a folder, press the Tab key and it will put you inside that folder. Here, you can arrow up and down to see what messages you might have there.   To get yourself back out of that folder, use the Shift and Tab keys to reverse back out.  Some people may want to use the F6 key to do the same thing. The Alt key is used a lot to get up into the file menus where you can perform different functions (such as forwarding on an email or checking for new emails etc). The most underused key in any programme is always the F1 key! Use the F1 key to access the help files for Thunderbird. The help files can usually answer most questions that people have. On the odd occasion you may need to go to the online forum for new or more difficult issues.

Quick folder key navigation

Have you just started using Mozilla Thunderbird and miss jumping to each folder quickly (rather than arrowing down or up the tree) to locate the folder that you want? There is an add on that can be installed into Mozilla Thunderbird that will do this.

The link to where you can get the extension can be found at https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/addon/quick-folder-key-navigation/?src=cb-dl-created and will need to be installed into Mozilla Thunderbird. Mozilla Thunderbird will then have to be restarted for it to work.

How to setup your email account

Click on the link below to go to Mozilla Thunderbird's help page on automatic account configuration.
http://support.mozillamessaging.com/en-US/kb/automatic-account-configuration


Click on the link below to go to Mozilla Thunderbird's help page on manual account configuration.
http://support.mozillamessaging.com/en-US/kb/manual-account-configuration?s=set+up&as=s

How to set up Thunderbird to sync to your Outlook.com account

Below will be an example of setting up an Outlook.com account in Mozilla Thunderbird. This is done after you have signed up for an Outlook.com account and have your user details ready.

The same process will be used to set up another account from another email client (for example Gmail).  Doing it this way will save you going to the online web platform (which might be hard to navigate); and doing it this way will bring the emails down to your Thunderbird email client where you can send and receive those same emails.

1. Open Thunderbird.

2. Press the Alt key until the file menu comes up, then arrow right until you hear NVDA say tools. Next, arrow down until you hear NVDA say account settings, then press the Enter key. You will then be put into a tree view. You can arrow up and down this section.  You will be given a list of options. You will need to use the Tab key until you hear NVDA say account actions. This is a combo box. Use the Alt key + the down arrow key to open it. Arrow down until you hear NVDA say “Add mail Account” then press the Enter key.

3. Input your account information (such as your username, email address and password).

4. Tab to Continue.

5. Tab to Manual config.

6. You will need to set the Incoming settings as follows. (The following sections can be tabbed through to enter your information and the Shift/Tab key can be used if you miss a section):

          a. Server hostname: imap-mail.outlook.com.

          b. Port: 993.

          c. SSL: SSL/TLS.

          d. Authentication: Normal password.

 7. Set the Outgoing settings as follows:

          a. Server hostname: smtp-mail.outlook.com.

          b. Port: 587.

          c. SSL: STARTTLS.

          d. Authentication: Normal password.

8.   Click Done.

For more information on connecting your app to Outlook.com, visit this link: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/outlook/send-receive-from-app.

If you choose to use another email address, then you will need to grab the settings to set up that account (for example Gmail).

Setting up your Gmail account with Mozilla Thunderbird

Have you just bought an Android phone (and it wanted you to setup a Gmail account so that you can get your emails on your phone)? Or, maybe you set up a gmail account for spam emails or generic emails. Whether you have it as a main account or as a secondary account, if you are using Mozilla Thunderbird instead of using a phone, you can have these emails brought down to your computer in Mozilla Thunderbird.

To set up Mozilla Thunderbird so that it can use your gmail account (to send and receive emails from gmail)

you will need to do the following:

When Mozilla Thunder bird is open, press the Alt key until the File menu comes up. Arrow to the Tools menu, then down to Account settings, then press the Enter key. You will now be put into a tree view. If not, then you might have to look for the following.  You will need to tab once and you should hear NVDA say account actions sub menu button. This is a combo box. Use the Alt key + down arrow key to open it up (or the space bar will do the same thing to open it up); then arrow until you hear the following… Add mail account… then press the Enter key. It will then ask for your name. Here, you can enter in a nickname for the account (for example: Accessibilitycentral.net). This will make it easier to find if you have more than one account set up in Mozilla Thunder bird. When done, tab once and it will ask for your gmail email address. Enter this in here (for example: accessibilitycentral.net@gmail.com). Tab once again, then enter in your password for your gmail account (for example: nvdarules1). You will need to tab a couple of times.  You can leave the check box that says remember password checked. Tab to the continue button, then press the Enter key, then tab to the done button, then press the Enter key.     

Now all of your gmail emails will come down to Mozilla Thunder bird, and you can then send and receive them like normal (instead of having to navigate the web interface).

Please note: There is now an extra step, where you have to enable Imap and Pop (up on the gmail servers). For more information about setting up gmail with Mozilla Thunderbird, please see the following link http://pop2imap.com/thunderbird-gmail.php

Help for configuring Mozilla Thunderbird to work with gmail

The following page will help you to configure your Gmail account to work with Mozilla Thunderbird. Please go to https://support.mozilla.org/t5/Set-up-email/Thunderbird-and-Gmail/ta-p/14181


Navigating Mozilla Thunderbird (if you have more than one account)

If you want to set up more accounts please follow the steps above for setting up a new email account.

When the extra accounts have been set up (when you first open Mozilla Thunderbird), you will need to tab about 3 times until you hear NVDA say tree view. You should hear the name of your account. You may hear it say collapsed.  If so, you can arrow down to hear the names of the other accounts. Use the right arrow twice until you hear NVDA say the name of a folder (for example inbox).

Here you can arrow up and down the tree view to hear the names of the other folders for example drafts, sent, and so on.

To go into any of the folders, press the Tab key, then arrow down or up the messages to see what is there. Press the Enter key on a message that you want to read. The Escape key should close the message if it has been set to a new Window.

Using the left arrow key twice (when you are on the folders name) will collapse the branch where again you can arrow up or down to your other accounts.

Accessing your email messages

When you first open Thunderbird, you will need to tab 3 times to get to the list of messages.

The layout of Thunderbird is similar to Outlook and Outlook Express. You have a treeview of folders, so as you're tabbing listen out for treeview.

Arrowing up and down navigates you to the different folders such as inbox, sent, trash, junk etcetera.

Unfortunately, you cannot use Control + Y, or the first letter of a folder to jump to a particular folder. You have to arrow through all the folders to get to the one you want.

Following are some common shortcuts for Thunderbird, as well as a link at the bottom for the lot

Control + N = Create a new message

Control + Shift + A = Attach a file to a message

Control + R = Reply

Control + Shift + R = Reply to all

Control + L = Forward

Control + Enter = Send

Mozilla Thunderbird new shortcuts


When you go into your email account, you might have heard the following "inbox 1 of 6 spaces", then it gives you the options to use the down or up arrow keys. You should be given the following options "mail Alt + 1, address book Alt + 2, calender Alt +3, tasks Alt + 4, chat Alt + 5, settings button, hide spaces tool bar button.
If you want the last 2 options you can get to them with the up arrow key quickly while in that area. For the others, you can use the Alt + whichever number to get to that section quickly.Control + Shift + B = Address book

Incorrect number of emails showing

There might be cases when you have read all the unread emails in your inbox and the number should go back to zero. In some cases, when you check for those emails that are unread, there will be none to read, but you will still hear a number saying that they have been not read yet.
If this is the case, while on the inbox for example, use the applications key, and if you do not have one the Shift key + F10 key will do the same trick. Locate the properties menu, then press the Enter key. You will need to tab a few times until you hear NVDA say repair folder. The shortcut is Alt + R to repair the folder, then tab down to the OK button and press the Enter key. Wait a little while, while it reindexes the folder and those unread emails will appear. You can now read them and then delete them and the number of unread emails should go back to zero.

To send a message from a different email account

If you have set up other email accounts in Mozilla Thunderbird, when you first open it you will need to tab about 3 times. You should hear NVDA say tree view. Here you can arrow down to the other accounts and hear their names.

You can then either open the branch with the right arrow key (to see the other folders there under that account), or use the left arrow key to collapse the branch.

You can then use the shortcut key Control + N, to start a new message.

NVDA will default to the To: field. This is where you can enter in an email address or press a letter to bring up a list of names starting with that letter. Use the down or up arrow keys to pick the name you want. Next, tab to the subject field and type in what the message is about. Tab again and this will put you into the message body. Here, type in whatever it is about.

Use the Ctrl key + the Enter key to send the email from that account.

Press F7 and the spell checker will be displayed.

NVDA will spell out the word that is wrong.

You will then need to Tab to the list of suggestions, arrow to the one you want to change and then press the Enter key on it.

You can also tab to ignore if you do not wish to make any changes.

Moving messages from one folder to another

Arrow to the message you wish to move.

Press the applications key, and a context menu will appear.

Arrow down to the “move to” menu, then press the Enter key. You will now be given some options - the first one is recent. This is where you last moved your messages to. Underneath the recent menu will be your account (or if more than one account/s).

You can use the arrow keys to navigate these menus.

Arrow to the section or account you wish to move the message to and press Enter.

Next, arrow down to the folder you wish to move the message to and press Enter.

Now your message is in the folder you moved it to.

If you would like to move more than one message at a time, highlight the messages you want to move and repeat the process.

To send a message to multiple people

Control + N = New message.

Select the first person you want to send a message to (by typing the first few letters of their name).  Then, press Enter (once you have the right person).

A second box will be displayed and your screen reader will say: to edit combo blank.

To tell thunderbird we want this box to be a CC box, press Shift Tab once and use your arrows to select the option you'd like CC, BCC, etcetera.

When you have selected the right option, press Tab to go back to the edit box.

Instead of to edit combo, your screen reader should now say, BCC edit combo, or the option that you picked.

Find the person you'd like to add to the email by typing their name, and press Enter again if you'd like to select a third person to send it to.

Keep doing this until you've selected all the people you'd like to send it to.

Then, tab to Subject, fill in the subject field and Tab to the main message body.

Type your message and press Control + Enter to send.

Creating a basic filter in Mozilla Thunderbird

There may be times when you join groups etcetera and you want your emails filtered into other folders. This might be in the case where your emails from the NVDA list come into your inbox and you want them filtered into another folder called NVDA emails.

In your email account you will need to setup a folder first. Make sure a folder is not highlighted as it will create a sub folder off it. So, when you look down the branch you should be able to see the folder by itself.  When it has been created, you will then need to go to the inbox. Here is where you will create your filter in the inbox. Tab into it where your messages are. To have all emails from the list go to the folder you created in the header of the email, tab until you hear NVDA say to nvda@nvda.groups.io. Next, push the Windows application key until the context menu comes up. Arrow down until you hear NVDA say create filter from, then press the Enter key. A new screen will come up giving you different options and you will hear NVDA say message rules.

The details below will need to be followed and are basic settings.

Filter name. You will need to give it a name (for example NVDA emails).

Apply filter manually. Uncheck this box with the spacebar.

Getting new mail. Leave this one checked.

Filter before junk classification. You can leave this one.

Archiving. Leave this one unchecked.

After sending. Leave this one unchecked.

Match all of the following. There is a table after this where you can specify if you want, but this was left blank. The edit box after them had the following in it nvda@nvda.groups.io

There is then a plus button (add a new rule). Tab past this one and the next option will be combo box which will give you two options. You will need it to say move message to. The next option will be combo box and will be the name of your account. Open it up then you will need to use the arrow keys to navigate to the folder you want the emails to go into (for example NVDA emails).

Tab to the ok button, then press the Enter key. The next screen it comes up with will have the name of the filter you gave it (for example NVDA emails). Here, there will be other options. As you tab, these will be: new, edit, delete, and run selected filter. When you find the run now button, press the Enter key or space bar on it. There will be a couple of other options but do not touch them. Press the Escape key and this should put you back into your inbox.

The filter must be done on the inbox of the account you are using for it to work. You can also go through the tools… manage filters way as well to get to the same screens.

To listen to an audio tutorial on setting up a basic filter in Mozilla Thunderbird please go to https://www.dropbox.com/s/gbjdzcw2pazkrh6/creating%20a%20basic%20filter%20in%20mozilla%20thunder%20bird.MP3?dl=0

Organise your messages by using filters

For information on how to create filters for your messages when they come in please go to the following web page at https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/organize-your-messages-using-filters

Recommended views for Thunderbird

Best viewing options. For ease of use, set your Thunderbird message viewing options to the following:

Sorting emails via preferences in Mozilla Thunderbird

In Mozilla Thunderbird there are a whole host of ways you can sort your emails as they come into your inbox. In most cases people will sort them by date and usually have the newest emails at the top of the inbox and have the rest of the emails in descending order in the inbox. The emails may be threaded or unthreaded.

Mozilla Thunder bird can sort them according to your preferences. To locate the sort menu press the Alt key (until the file menu comes up), then arrow to the View menu, then down to the Sort by menu. A sub menu will appear. Any of the items that are checked under this section, will be how they are sorted. So if you want to sort your emails by date, this menu will need to be checked, and if you want them in descending order, then this menu will also need to be checked. If you would like the emails to be unthreaded, then check the unthreaded menu item. Press the Enter key on any of the menus you want checked.

You will be able to arrow down and up this section with the arrow keys. Some sections will only let you make the one choice when trying to sort them.

Mozilla Apps Enhancements

If you are using either Mozilla Firefox or the Mozilla Thunderbird email client the following add on will be of use to you. For more information on this add on and how it could help you please go to the following link https://addons.nvda-project.org/addons/mozillaScripts.en.html


How to show or hide columns in your Mozilla Thunderbird email header

When you first download a copy of Mozilla Thunderbird and set it up, your messages will go to your inbox. The information being read out will be in the column headers (for example the time, subject, etcetera).

These will be set to a default, which is read out by NVDA. To add in extra columns or hide them, locate your inbox, then tab into it. Here is where your messages are and you could arrow up and down these messages. If you choose the first message, make sure your review cursor is set to simple review mode. This menu can be found under the NVDA preferences section called review cursor menu. This box will need to be checked.  

Next, you will need to go into object navigation mode in NVDA. Use the NVDA key + the number 1 on the numeric keypad to do this.

Next, you will need to use the NVDA key + the number 4 on the numeric keypad. Do this until you hear NVDA say List. Next, use the NVDA key + the number 2 on the numeric keypad to go down a level, and you should hear NVDA say thread column header display message threads. Next, you will have to press the NVDA key + the number 6 on the numeric keypad until you hear it say select columns to display button. When you hear NVDA say this, press the NVDA key + the Enter key on the numeric keypad. A menu will drop down and here you can arrow down and up the list. The columns that are checked are the ones you hear in the column header being read out. The ones that are not checked are not read out. If unchecked, and you want it to be read out, press the Enter key on it to check it. If it is checked and you do not want it to be read out, press the Enter key on it to uncheck it. The above process will need to be done each time for each column you want to show or hide.

So, if I wanted NVDA to tell me when I have read emails, have unread emails, attachments, or the status of an email, I would make sure these are checked. If the status one is done as well, it will tell you when they are forwarded, replied to and so on.

Using drag and drop with NVDA to rearrange column headers in Mozilla Thunderbird

If you would like to move a column from one area to another in the email header, you will need to tab from tree view into your email message list. Next put NVDA into object navigation mode.  Use the NVDA key + the number 1 on the numeric keypad to do this.

If I wanted to move a particular column to another location (IE before or after the current column) I would do the following in the header of the email.

From the message list, I would press the NVDA key + the number 4 on the numeric keypad until I heard the name of the column I wanted to move (for example Status). I would then press NVDA + Numpad divide (above the number 8 on the numeric keypad) to route the mouse pointer there. Then you would press Shift + Numpad divide again to lock the left mouse button. Press the NVDA key + Numpad 4 again a number of times until you hear the name of the column immediately before the column I want to move the selected column to (for example next to unread). Press the NVDA key + Numpad divide to put the mouse pointer there, and press the Shift key + Numpad divide to unlock the left mouse button.

Please note: You can also use the NVDA key + the number 6 on the numeric keypad to move it back the other way then unlock it in that position.

Now, when you arrow down or up your messages, you will notice the difference when NVDA reads it out.


For an audio tutorial on how to insert and remove columns in Mozilla Thunderbird, as well as moving your column from one position to another using drag and drop with NVDA, please visit the following link

https://www.dropbox.com/s/2hxhyjwt1cwbrhm/adding%20or%20removing%20columns%20plus%20drag%20and%20dropping%20in%20mozilla%20thunderbird.MP3?dl=0

Adding a person to your address book

There are a couple of ways to add a person to your address book. The first way is if someone gives you an email address and you would like to add it to your address book. Press the Alt key to bring up the File menu, then arrow right to the Tools menu, then arrow down to Address Book and press Enter. The next screen that comes up will be your address book.  In the address book, you could either use the existing address book or add another one later on if you want it for a specific purpose (For example for work contacts).  To add a person to the existing address book, press the Alt key to bring up the File menu, arrow down to New, then arrow right to Address Book contact, then press Enter.  Here you can fill in the details for that person.  (For example name, email and so on).  Once they have been entered and saved, more can be added at a later date following the same process.

If you have received an email and wish to save the persons email address, firstly find the message you want.  While it is closed, Tab to the From: field.  It should say their email address.  Next, press the Insert and Numpad divide keys to route the mouse to that area. Then, right click with the Numpad Multiply key (which can be located above the numeric number 9). A menu will appear, then arrow down to Add to Address Book, then Tab to Ok.  That person should now be in your address book.

Message saying that the remote content has been blocked

When you are browsing through your emails, are you getting the message “the remote content has been blocked”? If so (and if this is driving you crazy) press the Alt key (until the File menu comes up). Next, arrow right to the Tools menu then arrow down to the Options menu; and press the Enter key. The next screen that comes up will be broken up into different sections (for example general, display, and so on). These are tabs. Under each of these tabs, it will give you some options. You can arrow left or right through the tabs, but you need to use the Tab key to go through each section.

Locate the privacy tab, then use the Tab key to go down to one called Allow remote content in messages. Check this box (using the spacebar). Next, tab down to the OK button, then press the Enter key. You should not get this message now.

How to send and receive emails with NVDA

To send an email, press the Alt key (to get to the file menu)... arrow down to New (where a submenu will come up). You will need to find the word Message... press enter (and a new window will come up).  NVDA will default to the To: field.  In this field, type in the email address you wish to send your email to.  For example freddofrog@xtra.co.nz  Once done, Tab down to the Subject: area and type in a general topic for your email.  (For example: Have you heard of the NVDA Screen reader?).  The next time you tab, you will be put into the body of the email; this is where you will type the information you want to send. (For example: Hi Freddo, I have come across a neat screen reader that works well with Thunderbird if you want to try it. Regards, Jiminy Cricket).  Once your email has been typed up, it is time to send it. You can press the Alt key (to bring up the File menu)... arrow down to Send now... then press Enter to send it.

In most cases, when you open Mozilla Thunderbird, it will automatically get your new emails for you.  The other way to get your emails, is to press the Alt key (to bring up your File menu), arrow down to Get new messages for... all accounts... and press Enter. This should bring down your new emails from the server if there are any there. You may or may not have any new emails.

How to read emails

Assuming you have just downloaded your emails to your Inbox, to read any of the new emails, locate your Inbox if you are elsewhere within Mozilla Thunderbird. (For example you may be in the Trash folder or in the Sent folder and need to get back to your Inbox). Press Shift + Tab until you hear tree view (and whatever the name of the folder is that you are in). Next, arrow up until you hear Inbox. Once you have found it, you may have to Tab a couple of times to get into your messages.  Press the Enter key to open the message. Use your arrow keys (either the up or down) to locate  the emails you are looking for.  Once found, press the Enter key and a new window will come up.  NVDA will automatically start reading your email for you.  If it doesn't, use the Insert and down arrow keys to read out the email for you.  Once read, you can use the Alt and F4 keys to close the email.

How to reply to emails

Locate the email you wish to reply to and press Alt... (to get into the File menu)... arrow right to Message... arrow down to Reply. Press the Enter key. A new window will come up; here will be where you will type your reply in the body text of the email.  NVDA will automatically default to this area.  Type in your message and then send it. (You can press the Alt key (to bring up the File menu)... arrow down to Send now... then press Enter to send it).

How to forward emails

Assuming that you are still in the message area of your Inbox (and you would like to forward on a email to someone else), you will need to do the following. Locate the message you want to forward on, then press the Alt key (to bring up the File menu)... arrow right to the Message submenu... then arrow down to the Forward tab... and press Enter.  A new window will come up. Type in the persons email address you want to send it to (this should be in the To: field).  When you Tab, it will say fwd, short for forward and the subject line it used before.  When you Tab again, you will be in the body text. Here you can type whatever it may be.  (For example: I thought you might like this email).  Then, it is ready to be sent. (You can press the Alt key (to bring up the File menu)... arrow down to Send now... then press Enter to send it).

How to put your reply above the last message in an outgoing email

If you would like your replies to an email to be above the one you are replying to, you will need to do the following: Press the Alt key (the file menu will come up). When it does, arrow right to the tools menu. Once there, arrow down to account settings, then press Enter. In the next screen that comes up, arrow up or down to composition and addressing. Once there, tab to a combo box where you can change it to put your reply above the original email.

Finding out if you have any attachments in your incoming emails

When scanning through your emails, if any of the emails have an attachment, NVDA will automatically alert you of this by saying attachment or has attachment. To open or save your attachments, you will need to do one of the following.

To open an attachment

To open an attachment in Mozilla Thunderbird, press the Alt key and the letter M. This will open the message menu. You will need to arrow down to attachment. Once you are there, you can see the attachments that were sent in the email and you have the option of either opening them or saving them to your computer. There may be more than one there. Arrow up or down to see what they are. You will hear the file attachment name. If you wish to open the attachment, you will need to open it with a compatible program. For example, if the file was a .txt file, you would most probably read it in a word processing programme such as Word or Open Office.  If however it was a .pdf file, you might use Adobe reader to open it! Locate the programme you need to open that particular file extension with, and press Enter and it should come up in it.

Saving attachments from your incoming emails

To save an attachment from your email, the following will need to be done.  Press the Alt key to bring up the File menu... arrow right to Messages... then arrow down to Attachments... finally, arrow right.  You will hear the name of the file... arrow right again.  You will hear Open. This time, arrow down to Save... and press Enter.  A different dialogue box will come up giving you the option to browse to where you would like to save the file.  Tab around until you hear either "Save in" (in Windows XP) or "Browse for folder dialogue" (in Windows 7).  Locate where you would like to save your file, then Tab around to Save and press Enter.  Your file should now be saved.

 How to add and send attachments to your outgoing emails

Assuming that you have typed up your email ready to add an attachment to it, you will need to do the following.  Press the Alt key (to bring up the File menu)... arrow down to Attach... arrow right to File... then press Enter.  This time a dialogue box will come up.  It will usually default to where you type your file name.  Tab around until you hear either "Look in" (in Windows XP) or "Address" (in Windows 7).  When locating the folder you want, you may have to Tab a couple of times to get into it before looking for the individual file. You will need to locate the file you are sending by using the arrow keys.  Once found, press the Enter key and the file will be attached for you.  Repeat the process if you want to send more than one file.

If starting an email from scratch it would be... Alt... File... New... Message. Enter the email address you wish the attachment to go to. Tab to the subject line and enter a subject for your email.Tab to the body text and type in whatever you would like to say in your email. Alt... File... Attach... File... Tab until you hear "Address" (this is the address that your folder is at Example C:\desktop\my photos etc). In Windows XP this will say "Look in". Arrow down if this is not the correct folder and locate the folder where the file is that you wish to attach. Tab until you hear the name of a file and arrow to locate the file or photo. Once you have found the one that you want to attach, click Enter and it will automatically attach it. Press Alt... File... Send Now (or Ctrl + Enter) to send.

Shortcut keys

For a full list of Mozilla Thunderbird shortcut keys, please press the  F1 key (while in Thunderbird) and once the online help page appears, type the words shortcut keys in the search edit box. You should find a link which will take you to a page full of shortcut key combinations for Thunderbird. You may want to bookmark the page for future reference, or even copy and paste the information into a text file so you can revisit it later on. Using this search function is also great for assisting you to locate help topics.

Facebook chat client using NVDA and Mozilla Thunderbird

This Facebook chat client will only work if you have a copy of the Mozilla Thunderbird email client set up on your computer. If you haven’t obtained a copy yet please go to the following link to obtain a copy of it  https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/thunderbird/?icn=tabz 

Setting up and connecting to Facebook Chat with NVDA and Mozilla Thunderbird

Once you have downloaded and set up your copy of Mozilla Thunderbird you are ready to use the Facebook chat client. Open Mozilla Thunderbird. Press the Alt key to bring up the file menu. Arrow right to tools.  Arrow down to Chat Status. Right arrow, then arrow down to show accounts. A chat network wizard will appear with a list of 5 options. These are: Facebook chat, Google talk, IRC, Twitter and XXMC. Choose Facebook chat.  Tab to next and press Enter. Have a look under the (account...settings) section in Facebook to locate your proper username. Once there, under username, it should say http://www.facebook.com/freddo.frog12). Enter only this last bit (for example freddo.frog.12 or whatever yours is). Once you have entered this, click on next. Be careful that this is the username (for your Facebook Chat ID) that Facebook has previously assigned you, not necessarily the alias you have displayed. Tab to next and press Enter. Enter your real Facebook password and tab to Next. Press Enter. Next, it will ask you for an alias - enter whatever you would like it to appear as (for example freddos text chat). To connect, tab to connect and press Enter. It will now download your contacts and connect you to your Facebook friends via text chat. Tab to close and press Enter to close this screen.

Using the Facebook Chat client with NVDA and Mozilla Thunderbird

To use Facebook chat from your Mozilla Thunderbird email client, you will need to press Alt (to bring up the file menu). Arrow across to the Go menu. Arrow down to Chat and press Enter. Your chat screen will appear with a list of online contacts. You can also see who is offline. Tab until you hear contacts, then arrow up and down to hear who is online. Press Enter on the name of the person you wish to chat with. Type in your message and press Enter. When they reply you will hear their response automatically read out to you. These are the main keystrokes that you will need to use (namely tab, shift tab, arrow up or down, Enter and the applications key to perform certain functions such as Start A Conversation, Rename, or Remove contact).

Closing out of Facebook Chat with NVDA and Mozilla Thunderbird

To close out of Facebook chat, press Alt. Arrow right until you hear Tools. Arrow down until you hear Chat status. Right arrow once, then down arrow until you hear Show Accounts. Press Enter. It will default to the Disconnect button if you are connected. Press Enter and it should disconnect you from Facebook chat.

Removing Facebook Chat from Mozilla Thunderbird

Should you wish to remove this Facebook text chat feature from your Mozilla Thunderbird email client, press Alt to bring up the file menu. Arrow right to tools. Arrow down to account settings, then arrow down to Facebook chat. Tab once to account actions. Press the space bar. Arrow down to remove account. Press Enter and then tab to OK. It should now be gone.


Please note, as with any tutorial, there may be many ways to achieve the same goal using shortcut keys and so on.
This is designed purely as a step by step guide for those using NVDA who are not familiar with Mozilla Thunderbird.
Facebook chat no longer works with Mozilla chat, but there are other programs that you can use with it!


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