Welcome to the Trackpad Commander Page.
VoiceOver for the Mac offers multiple ways to control the cursor. For some, making gestures on the trackpad or using an external Number Pad mounted to their wheelchair may be the best way for them to interact with their computer.
The Keyboard, Trackpad, NumPad, and QuickNav Commanders will become available in the VoiceOver Utility when you connect the needed device to your Mac.
QuickNav is covered on a separate page, please see the link to the Mac VoiceOver Lesson List above.
Turn on the Trackpad Commander by using the Rotor Gesture to the Right while holding Down the VO keys. Use the Rotor Gesture to the Left to turn it off.
Swipe Right with One Finger to go forward, all of the VoiceOver for iOS gestures will work, try it out.
Note: To edit the VoiceOver Commanders settings, open the VoiceOver Utility by pressing Command + F5 to turn VoiceOver on, then press VO + F8.
The Trackpad Commander
The Trackpad Commander offers a great way to interact with your Mac. Even if you don't use it often, some users could expect a smooth transition from using VoiceOver on an iOS device to VoiceOver on a Mac.
You can use the Trackpad pane of the Commanders category in VoiceOver Utility to turn on the Trackpad Commander and set other options for using VoiceOver gestures on the Mac. The Trackpad pane is available only when VoiceOver detects a trackpad.
When the Trackpad Commander is on, its commands are included in the Commands menu. To display the Commands menu, press VO-H-H.
Explore the Trackpad Commander Pane options below.
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Enable Trackpad Commander | Turn the Trackpad Commander on or off. |
| Automatically select items in lists and tables. | Have VoiceOver automatically select the list or table item you’re touching when you lift your finger from the trackpad. Note: If you don’t want VoiceOver to select an item, drag your finger off the list or table before lifting your finger. |
| Pause speech when not touching the trackpad. | Have VoiceOver pause speech when you lift your finger off the trackpad while dragging. For example, if you’re dragging a finger to navigate lines of text and you lift your finger, VoiceOver pauses speech. |
| Scroll gesture moves content instead of scroll bar | Scroll the content (not the scroll bar) down or up. Note: Normally when you move the scroll bar down or up, the content moves in the opposite direction. When this option is selected, the content moves in the same direction you’re scrolling. |
| Assign Commands | Displays the Trackpad Commander Assignments Pane. Note: This is covered in the next section. |
The Trackpad Commander Assignments Pane
This lesson will cover the options on the Trackpad Commander assignments pane in VoiceOver Utility and how you can use them to assign VoiceOver commands to trackpad gestures.
To open VoiceOver Utility, press Command + F5 to turn VoiceOver on, then press VO + F8.
Note: VO represents the VoiceOver modifier.
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Modifier pop-up menu | Choose a modifier key to use with gestures. By default, no modifier is used. |
| Trackpad Gesture | Gestures to which VoiceOver commands can be assigned. Command |
| Commands assigned to gestures | To assign a different command to a gesture, click the command field to display pop-up menus for the different types of commands, then choose a command. |
Assign VoiceOver commands to gestures on Mac
You can customize some VoiceOver gestures by assigning specific VoiceOver commands to them.
- Make sure Enable Trackpad Commander is selected, then click Assign Commands.
- Click the pop-up menu, then choose a modifier key, such as Command or Shift, to use with your customized gestures.
- Interact with the Trackpad Gesture Commands table, then navigate down the Trackpad Gesture column until you hear the gesture you want to customize.
- In the Command column, click the pop-up menu of commands, navigate the available commands until you hear the one you want, then press Return.
Use the Custom Commands menu to assign scripts and Automator workflows to gestures.