SuperNova Magnifier & Screen Reader 24

Released:

Please note: The features and improvements listed on this web page are available in SuperNova Magnifier and Screen Reader version 24.01.
Some features are not available across all SuperNova Editions. 

SuperNova Version 24 is now available

SuperNova version 24 is now available. This upgrade contains both new features and usability improvements to help you get more from your assistive technology. It features improvements for connecting to cameras and whiteboards, a streamlined installation process and a new way to use Help, which incorporates AI Technology.

 

The new and improved SuperNova features include: 

  • Improved SuperNova Help - now with AI technology
  • Improved usability in the Connect & View feature
  • Improved support for Google Apps
  • New magnification system for improved compatibility with Windows 11
  • Clearer announcements for website navigation
  • Improved layered Hotkeys with new hotkey layers
  • Streamlined installation and start up experience
  • Improved experience with Be My Eyes App
  • Plus additional fixes and improvements that ensure SuperNova versions continue to stay up to date with Microsoft 365.  

 

 

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IMPROVED: SuperNova Help, now with AI Technology

Save time and get more from SuperNova - with instant answers to your Help queries - powered by AI.  

Save time as you learn to use the SuperNova features you need, with instant Help and Support information at your fingertips. You can now ask SuperNova Help a question - rather than searching and reading longer documents - for the answer you need.  

‘Ask SuperNova Help’ incorporates AI, which is trained on SuperNova manuals, the Dolphin Knowledge Base, SuperNova training materials and product information. You simply type in a question you would like the answer to, and the AI Help system will search all information available, to give you an answer instantly, with steps that are easy to follow and links to further information.

NEW: To help you communicate technical issues, you are now able to ‘Report a Bug’ through the SuperNova Help Menu.

 

IMPROVED: Better usability in the Connect & View Feature

Learning is more accessible with easier camera and whiteboard connection in classrooms

To make learning and teaching more accessible, improvements to Connect & View mean it’s easier for teachers and students to connect to the camera, whiteboard and doc reader.  

Students can use the Connect & View feature in their Connect and Learn Kit to read and learn from printed documents and information from the classroom whiteboard in real time, so they have the same learning opportunities as their sighted peers. Improvements include:

  • Camera and whiteboard are now easier to turn on from the main control panel
  • It’s easier to switch whiteboards when you move to different classrooms
  • Usability improvements in the viewer and doc reader make it easier to view and interact with both print and whiteboard content.

 

IMPROVED: Support for Google Apps

Improved accessibility for Google Docs, Sheets and Slides  

Improvements in SuperNova mean Google Apps: Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides are now more accessible through SuperNova Magnification, Speech and Screen Reading in Chrome.

Visit the in-product Help or the SuperNova Support pages for further information.
 

NEW: Magnification compatible with latest updates to Windows 11    

Dolphin has introduced improvements to the magnification system, to ensure SuperNova screen magnification keeps up to date with the latest version of Windows 11.

These new features are also used in Dolphin ScreenReader, to ensure its compatibility with visual effects and visual highlights in Windows 11.

To future proof your SuperNova edition and ensure continuous performance, please make sure you have an up-to-date Software Maintenance Agreement (SMA) or SuperNova Upgrade Plan (SUP). This ensures your SuperNova technology is compatible with all rolling updates to Microsoft 365.  

 

IMPROVED: Clearer announcements for website navigation  

Fixes and improvements to verbosity, together with more ARIA tags and attributes mean you’ll hear more announcements in lists, forms and websites. These help you navigate using SuperNova with Speech or Braille.

When you land on an ARIA landmark – such as a banner, navigation, main or footer - it now announces the ARIA region at the start of the announcement rather than after reading the focus at the end. This helps you tell straight away if this is an area you are interested in, or if you should move on to find the area on the page you need.

  • When you land on a list, the speech now announces how many items are on that list, and which point in that list you are on (e.g. item three of four)
  • In Outlook 365, the presence of the auto-suggestions list the speech now announces and reads each item on the list as you navigate it.
  • In a form, speech will now announce whether edit areas are a single line or a multi-line edit area in a box, so you are aware of the amount of text you can enter.
     

Hotkey ImprovementsGraphic of a keyboard with highlighted buttons to indicate layered hotkey commands

User interface improvements and new layers have been added to the Layered Hotkey Sets, so they are now more memorable and intuitive than ever before.

IMPROVED: Layered Hotkeys

User interface improvements and new layers have been added to the Layered Hotkey Sets, so they are now more memorable and intuitive than ever before.  

Layered hotkeys, first introduced in SuperNova version 23.01, provide simple, intuitive keyboard commands. Layered hotkeys has been expanded in this release, to include layers and many more commands, which include:  

Braille Layer

A new Braille layer enables you to quickly modify Braille settings without the need to remember less intuitive keyboard commands, or to navigate through the Control Panel to change a setting. You can access the Braille layer by pressing CAPS LOCK + SPACEBAR, B. 

NEW: Item Finders Layer

A new Item Finder layer enables you to easily list the items you want to review without the need to remember specific keyboard commands for different elements. You can access the Item Finder layer by pressing CAPS LOCK + SPACEBAR, I.

NEW: Reader Layer

A new Reader layer enables you to activate the reading mode you want to initiate. To access the Reader layer, press CAPS LOCK + SPACEBAR, R.

NEW: System Layer

A new System layer enables you to find out information such as the time, date, battery status etc using memorable keyboard commands. To access the System layer, press CAPS LOCK + SPACEBAR, Y.

Additional Commands

Commands have also been added to existing Hotkey Layers, for example:

  • The Magnification Layer now includes commands to modify primary Views and create and modify Hooked Areas.  
  • The Speech Layer now includes the ability to change language, directly access the Voice and Language Configuration dialog box and a new Capitals layer.  
  • You can now also find information such as the time, date, battery status etc using Layered Hotkeys.
     

TIP: Press F1 then ask SuperNova Help to find you the Hotkeys for the function you’d like to use!

 

 

NEW: Streamlined installation and start up experience  

For faster, more frequent updates

SuperNova version 24 has a new, streamlined installation process, which enables Dolphin to push updates out quickly. This ensures your SuperNova software stays up to date with Windows’ rolling updates, which now occur more frequently.

NEW: Choose and install additional Text to Speech (TTS) voices at the point of installation. This helps you personalise your SuperNova Speech or Screen Reading experience. 

 

Improved: Be My Eyes Be My Eyes logo


To save you time, SuperNova now automatically reads responses to your questions in the Be My Eyes app.  

Simply use the shortcut Right Alt + 1 to 9 to read past responses in order of recency.

Find out more about how to use SuperNova with Be My Eyes and other Communication and Collaboration Apps in the Dolphin Learning Zone.

 

 

Additional Bug Fixes and Improvements

 

FIX: ‘Page’ renamed to ‘Tab’ in the Control Panel and Web, for clearer navigation.

FIX: Improved performance in Word 365 Fonts menu. It now speaks the contents of the Font dialog box in Word 365 correctly.

FIX: Read From Here now moves along sentences word-by-word, as expected.

FIX: Word. Workaround for using speech in Word and Outlook. Turn Braille > Layout > Tracking ON to ensure the speech works as expected.  

FIX: Word. The speech no longer announces a word twice after the spacebar is pressed when typing.

FIX: Magnification now correctly tracks the mouse at the Windows Log on screen.  

FIX: When using Tesco for online shopping, the date and time of the booking slot now announces as expected.  

CHANGE: The Window Hotkey to move the Dolphin Cursor has changed to RIGHT CONTROL to reduce a Hotkey conflict.

FIX: German prompt ‘Buchstabiergeschwindigkeit’ now displays in full.

NEW:  Magnification Engine Settings:
A new ‘smart’ Magnification Engine Settings option enables configuration of the magnification system and performance settings. This is available through the General Advanced Options dialog box. These options enable you to customise magnification settings to maximise performance. Please note that these changes should only be performed following consultation with Dolphin Product Support, because it will default to an optimal performance, based on the current operation system (OS) setup and power availability.

IMPROVED: In Outlook 365, improved access to the auto-suggestion list when composing an email, so it will suggestion contacts as you start typing their names.

NEW: Support available for three new Braille displays: Activator, Activator Pro 80, and Activator Pro 64.

Complete Version History