Use a screen reader to share and collaborate on notebooks in OneNote

Read out loud symbol with the label Screen reader content. This topic is about using a screen reader with Office

This article is for people with visual impairments who use a screen reader program with the Office products and is part of the Office Accessibility content set. For more general help, see Office Support home.

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Use OneNote with your keyboard and a screen reader to share your notebooks and efficiently collaborate with your colleagues. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques. You'll also learn how to make copies of specific notes, such as a single page or section from a notebook, and share them.

Notes: 

In this topic

Save a notebook to OneDrive

If you want to share a notebook, make sure it is saved to OneDrive.

Save a new notebook to OneDrive

When creating a new notebook you want to share, save it directly to OneDrive.

  1. Press Alt+F. With Narrator, you hear: “File menu.” With JAWS, you hear: “Backstage view. File info tab.”

  2. Press N. With Narrator, you hear: “Selected. New tab item.” With JAWS, you hear: “New tab.”

  3. To select the saving location, press the Tab key, and use the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the OneDrive location you want.

  4. To name the new notebook, press the Tab key. You hear: “Enter a notebook name.” Type in the new notebook name.

  5. To create the notebook, press Enter. With Narrator, you hear: “Microsoft OneNote dialog. Invite people button.” With JAWS, you hear: “Your notebook has been created. Would you like to share it with other people?”

  6. To share the new notebook with other people, press Enter.

You are directed to the Share tab, where you can choose the people with whom you would like to share your notes. To learn more about sharing your notebook, refer to Share a notebook.

Move a notebook to OneDrive

If you have a notebook that you would like to share, but it’s not saved to OneDrive, you can move it.

  1. Make sure the notebook you would like to move is opened.

  2. To move the notebook to OneDrive, press Alt+F, and then press H. With Narrator, you hear: “Selected. Share tab item.” With JAWS, you hear: “Share tab.”

  3. To select a location, press the Tab key, and use the Up and Down arrow keys, until you hear the OneDrive location you want.

  4. If you want to change the name of the notebook before saving it to OneDrive, press the Tab key. You hear: “Enter a notebook name.” Type in a new name.

  5. To move the notebook, press Enter. The notebook is saved to OneDrive. You hear the syncing progress. If syncing to OneDrive succeeds, with Narrator you hear: “Microsoft OneNote dialog. OK button,” and with JAWS, you hear: “Your notebook is now syncing into the new location.” Press Enter.

You can now choose the people with whom you would like to share your notes. To learn more about sharing your notebook, refer to Share a notebook.

Share a notebook

Select the notebook you want to share and invite people to collaborate on it.

  1. Make sure the notebook you would like to share is opened.

  2. To share the notebook, press Alt+F, and then press H. With Narrator, you hear: “Selected. Share tab item.” With JAWS, you hear: “File. Share tab.”

  3. To invite people to collaborate via email, press S. You hear: “Share with people tab.”

  4. To select the people you want to invite, press Y, 1. You hear: “Type a contact name.” Type in the names or emails of people you want to invite.

  5. By default the people invited can edit your notebook. If you want them to just be able to view the notebook, press Alt+H, then press Y, 4, and then the Down arrow key. You hear: “Can view.” To select it, press Enter.

  6. Press the Tab key until you hear “Share button,” and press Enter to share the notebook.

Share a part of your notes

Sometimes you want to share a specific part of your notes, such as a page or section. To do that, you can export the page or section you want to share to a location on OneDrive.

  1. Make sure the page or section you want to share is active. You can only export the current page or section in your notebook.

  2. Press Alt+F, S. With Narrator, you hear: “Selected. Export tab item.” With JAWS, you hear: “Backstage view. File. Export tab.”

  3. Choose what you want to export:

    • To export the current page as a OneNote file (*.one), press P, O. You hear: “Save as dialog.” To save in other formats, press P, then press the Tab key, and use the Up and Down arrow keys until you hear the desired format.

    • To export the current section as a OneNote file (*one), press S, O. You hear: “Save as dialog.” To save in other formats, press S, then press the Tab key, and use the Up and Down arrow keys until you hear the desired format.

    Note: You can export your notes to other formats: Word document (*.docx or *.doc), PDF (*.pdf), XPS (*.xps), or Web Page (*.mht).

  4. If you want to change the file name, type in a file name, and press Enter to save.

  5. You can now share the saved document with other people. To learn how to share OneDrive files with others, refer to Share items using a context menu section in Basic tasks using a screen reader with OneDrive.

See the author, date, and time of an update

Any changes introduced by any of the authors of a shared notebook are automatically updated in OneDrive. When you edit your notes, you can check the author of an update and when the update was made.

  1. In the editable text, use the Up or Down arrow key to browse your notes. The screen reader reads the items for you as you browse.

  2. To check who made a change and when, press Shift+F10, and then Shift+Tab. You hear the name of the author, as well as the date and time of the update.

See also

Use a screen reader to insert content to notebooks in OneNote

Use a screen reader to organize notebooks, sections, and pages in OneNote

Keyboard shortcuts in OneNote

Basic tasks using a screen reader with OneNote

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Learn how to navigate OneNote using accessible features

Use OneNote for Mac with your keyboard and VoiceOver, the built-in macOS screen reader, to share your notebooks and efficiently collaborate with your colleagues. You can also make copies of specific notes, such as a single page from a notebook, and share them.

Notes: 

In this topic

Share a notebook

Select the notebook you want to share and invite people to collaborate on it.

  1. Make sure the notebook you would like to share is opened in OneNote for Mac.

  2. To share the notebook, press F6 until you hear: "Redo typing button."

  3. Press the Tab key until you hear "Share menu button," then press Control+Option+Spacebar. You hear: "Invite people to Notebook button."

  4. To invite people to collaborate via email, press Spacebar. You hear: “Type names or email addresses, edit text, blank.”

  5. Type in the names or emails of people you want to invite.

    If this is the first time you share a notebook, you may get a pop-up requesting access to your contacts.

  6. Press the Tab key. You hear: "Include a message (Optional)." If you want to send a message with you invitation, write it now.

  7. By default the people invited can edit your notebook. If you want them to just be able to view the notebook, press the Tab key, then press Control+Option+Spacebar to deselect the Can Edit checkbox.

  8. Press the Tab key. You hear: “Share button.” Press Control+Option+Spacebar to share the notebook.

Share a part of your notes

Sometimes you only want to share a specific page in your notes. To do that, you can send the page as an email message or attach it as a PDF.

  1. Make sure the page you want to share is active. You can only export the current page in your notebook.

  2. Press F6 until you hear: "Redo typing button."

  3. Press the Tab key until you hear "Share menu button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. You hear: "Invite people to Notebook button."

  4. Press the Tab key until you hear: "Send page button."

  5. Press Spacebar. You hear: "Message... button."

    • If you want to send the page in email, press Spacebar. This opens a new message window in the Mail app with the page content already pasted in, formatting included. Simply add the email address and subject before sending the page.

    • If you want a send the page in email as a PDF attachment, press the Tab key, then press Spacebar. This opens a new message window in the Mail app with the page attached as a PDF. Simply add the email address and subject before sending the PDF.

Hide author information

By default, OneNote for Mac displays other authors' initials alongside the text area, and VoiceOver reads them out in the reading mode.

  1. Press F6 until you hear: "Home, selected, tab."

  2. Press the Right arrow key until you hear "View, tab," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.

  3. Press the Tab key until you hear: "Hide authors, unchecked, check box." Press Control+Option+Spacebar to turn the setting on.

  4. To return to the page canvas, press the Tab key until you hear: "Page canvas, period."

See also

Use a screen reader to insert content to notebooks in OneNote

Use a screen reader to organize notebooks, sections, and pages in OneNote

Keyboard shortcuts in OneNote

Basic tasks using a screen reader with OneNote

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Learn how to navigate OneNote using accessible features

Use OneNote for iOS with VoiceOver, the built-in iOS screen reader, to share your notebooks and efficiently collaborate with your colleagues.

Notes: 

  • New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

  • This topic assumes that you are using the built-in iOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, visit Apple accessibility.

  • This topic assumes that you have added an email account to your phone.

In this topic

Share a notebook

When you create a new notebook, OneNote for iOS saves it automatically to OneDrive, so just select the notebook you want to share and invite people to collaborate on it.

  1. Make sure the notebook you would like to share is opened in the Sections view.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Share menu button" and then double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear "Invite people to notebook button" and then double-tap the screen.

  4. Swipe right until you hear "Type names or email addresses text field" and then double-tap the screen.

    If this is the first time you share a notebook, you may get a pop-up requesting access to your contacts.

  5. Type in the email address of the person you want to invite. If OneNote can access your contacts, you can also select a contact from the drop-down list that appears as you type an address.

  6. Tap the lower half of the screen with 4 fingers. You hear: "Return." Double-tap the screen.

    Tip: By default, the people invited can edit your notebook. If you want them to only be able to view the notebook, swipe right until you hear: "Can Edit, switch button, on." Double-tap the screen to turn the setting off.

  7. Swipe left until you hear "Send button" and then double-tap the screen.

    An email is sent to your collaborator, inviting them to work with the notebook.

  8. Swipe left until you hear "Done" and then double-tap the screen to return to the Sections view.

Email a page

If you only want to show a single page in your notebook to others, you can send it as a PDF attachment by email.

  1. Open the notebook page you would like to send by email.

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Page actions button" and then double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear "Email page button" and then double-tap the screen.

  4. Swipe right until you hear "To text field" and then double-tap the screen.

  5. Type in the email address of the recipient. If OneNote can access your contacts, you can also select a contact from the drop-down list that appears as you type an address.

    The subject field is automatically filled with the title of the page.

  6. Tap the lower half of the screen with 4 fingers. You hear: "Return." Double-tap the screen.

  7. Tap the upper half of the screen with 4 fingers. You hear: "Cancel button."

  8. Swipe right until you hear "Send button" and then double-tap the screen.

The email is sent, the menu closes, and you are returned to the page view.

Hide author information

By default, OneNote for iOS displays other authors' initials alongside the text area, and VoiceOver reads them out in the reading mode.

  1. In the notebooks list view of OneNote for iOS, swipe left until you hear: "Settings button." Double-tap the screen.

    Tip: If you are not in the notebooks list view, tap the upper half of the screen with four fingers. VoiceOver says where you are returning, followed by "Back button." Double-tap the screen to go back one level. The focus stays on the Back button, so you can simply keep double-tapping until you hear "Settings button."

  2. Swipe right until you hear "Edit and view button" and then double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear: "Hide authors, switch button, off." Double-tap to turn the setting on.

  4. Swipe left until you hear "Back button" and then double-tap the screen.

  5. You hear: "Close button." Double-tap the screen to return to the top level view.

See also

Use a screen reader to insert content to notebooks in OneNote

Use a screen reader to organize notebooks, sections, and pages in OneNote

Basic tasks using a screen reader with OneNote

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Learn how to navigate OneNote using accessible features

Use OneNote for Android with TalkBack, the built-in Android screen reader, to share your notebooks (via OneDrive) and pages to efficiently collaborate with your colleagues.

Notes: 

  • New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

  • This topic assumes that you are using the built-in Android screen reader, TalkBack. To learn more about using TalkBack, go to Android accessibility.

  • Make sure you turn on TalkBack before launching OneNote for Android.

In this topic

Share a notebook

When you create a new notebook, OneNote for Android saves it automatically to OneDrive. If you have the OneDrive app on your phone, you can use it to share the whole notebook.

Note: If you are using a work or school account, the steps may be slightly different.

  1. After creating the notebook you want to share in OneNote, open the OneDrive app.

  2. In OneDrive, to browse files and folders, swipe right or left until you hear the name of the item you want. OneNote files are announced as: "Notebook, <notebook name>." To open an item, double-tap the screen.

  3. When on the notebook you want to share, swipe right. You hear: "File commands button." To open the menu, double-tap the screen.

  4. Swipe right until you hear "Share," and then double-tap the screen. The Share menu opens.

  5. Swipe right until you hear "Invite people," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "Editing, add people to share with, edit box."

  6. Type in the email address of the person you want to invite using your on-screen keyboard. When done, drag your finger on your keyboard until you hear "Done," and then lift it (and double-tap the screen if needed).

    Note: You can find the keyboard by exploring the items on the screen. To explore, place a finger on the screen and drag it around. TalkBack announces the items as you land on them. To select an item, when on the item, lift your finger. Depending on your device settings, you may need to double-tap the screen to insert the character.

  7. By default, the people you invite can edit your notebook. If you want them to only be able to view the notebook, swipe right until you hear: "Checked, Allow editing, checkbox." Double-tap the screen to turn the setting off.

  8. Swipe left until you hear "Send," and then double-tap the screen.

    An email is sent to your collaborator, inviting them to work with the notebook. The Share menu closes.

Email a page

If you only want to show a single page in your notebook to others, send it in an Outlook for Android email.

  1. In OneNote, open the notebook page you want to send by email.

  2. Swipe left until you hear "More options button," and then double-tap the screen.

  3. Swipe right until you hear "Share page," and then double-tap the screen. The Share as dialog opens.

  4. Do one of the following:

    • To share the page as a PDF attachment in an email, swipe right until you hear "PDF," and then double-tap the screen.

    • To share the page as plain text in the message body, swipe right until you hear "Plain text," and then double-tap the screen.

    Swipe right until you hear "Outlook," and then double-tap the screen. A New message opens in Outlook for Android with the focus on the To field. You hear: "Editing, To field, enter recipients email address, edit box."

  5. Type in the email address of the recipient using the on-screen keyboard.

    Note: The subject field is automatically filled with the title of the page.

  6. To send the email message, swipe left until you hear "Send," and then double-tap the screen.

    Note: To learn more about how to compose and send an email in Outlook for Android, refer to Create and send email section in Basic tasks using a screen reader with email in Outlook.

  7. The email is sent, Outlook closes, and the focus moves to the page view in OneNote.

See also

Use a screen reader to insert content to notebooks in OneNote

Use a screen reader to organize notebooks, sections, and pages in OneNote

Basic tasks using a screen reader with OneNote

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

Learn how to navigate OneNote using accessible features

Use OneNote for Windows 10 with your keyboard and a screen reader to share your notebooks and efficiently collaborate with your colleagues. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques. You'll also learn how to make copies of specific notes, and share them.

Notes: 

In this topic

Share a notebook

When you create a new notebook, OneNote for Windows 10 saves it automatically to OneDrive, so you just select the notebook you want to share and invite people to collaborate on it.

  1. Make sure the notebook you would like to share is opened in the editing mode.

  2. To open a notebook, press Ctrl+G to open notebook navigation.

  3. Use the Up and Down arrow key to navigate to the notebook you want to open. When you have found the correct notebook, press Esc. The notebook opens.

  4. To share the notebook, press Alt+H. You hear: “Home tab .” Then press the Tab key until you hear: “Share button.” Press Spacebar to select. The Share tab is opened. You hear: “Send a copy.”

  5. Press the Tab key. You hear: “Type email addresses.”

  6. Type in the email address of the person you want to invite.

  7. By default, the people invited can edit your notebook. If you want them to be able to only view the notebook press the Tab key. You hear: “Can edit.” Press the Down arrow key twice. You hear: “Can view.” Then press Enter.

  8. Press the Tab key until you hear “Share button,” and then press Spacebar to share the notebook.

  9. To stop sharing the notebook with someone, in the Share tab, press the Tab key until you a name of one of the collaborators. Then use the Up or Down arrow key to navigate to the person with whom you would like to stop sharing. Press Spacebar, and then press the Tab key until you hear: “Stop sharing button.” Press Spacebar to stop sharing.

Share a page

Sometimes you want to share a specific part of your notes. To do that, you can create a sharing link to a notebook page.

Note: If you are using a work or school account, you may not be able to share a page. Use a Microsoft account instead.

  1. Make sure the page you want to share is active. You can only create a sharing link for the current page in your notebook.

  2. To open a specific page, press Ctrl+Shift+G to go to section navigation. Press the Tab key until you hear the name of a section. Then use the Up and Down arrow keys to navigate to the section containing the page you want to share.

  3. Press Ctrl+Alt+G to open page navigation. You hear the name of a page. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to navigate to the page you want to share. When you have found the correct page, press Spacebar to go to the page editing mode.

  4. To share the page, press Alt+H. You hear: “Home tab.” Then press the Tab key until you hear: “Share button.” Press Spacebar to select. The Share tab is opened. You hear: “Send a copy.”

  5. To create a sharing link to the page, press the Tab key, and then use the Up or Down arrow key until you hear “This page” and the page title. Press Spacebar to select.

  6. Press the Tab key. You hear: “Create button.” Press Spacebar to create the link.

  7. To copy the link, press the Tab key until you hear: “Copy button.” Press Spacebar to copy.

    Note: People who receive the link can only view the page.

  8. To stop sharing the page, in the Share tab, press the Tab key until you hear: “Anyone with the link can view the page.” Press Spacebar. You hear: “Stop sharing button.” Then press Spacebar to select.

Send a copy by email

With OneNote for Windows 10, you can easily email a copy of your notes by email.

  1. Make sure the page you want to share is active in the editing mode.

  2. To send a copy of the page, press Alt+H. You hear: “Home tab.” Then press the Tab key until you hear: “Share button.” Press Spacebar to select. The Share tab opens. You hear: “Send a copy.”

  3. Press Spacebar to select. Narrator announces: “Share window.” With JAWS you hear: “Share, app list.”

  4. To send the copy by email, press the Down arrow key until you hear “Mail,” and then press Spacebar to select.

  5. The Mail for Windows 10 app opens, with the focus in the To field, where you can type the emails of the people to whom you would like to send the copy. To learn how to send an email message using a screen reader, refer to Use a screen reader to write and send a new email message in Mail for Windows 10.

See also

Use a screen reader to insert content to notebooks in OneNote

Use a screen reader to organize notebooks, sections, and pages in OneNote

Keyboard shortcuts in OneNote

Basic tasks using a screen reader with OneNote

Learn how to navigate OneNote using accessible features

Use OneNote for the web with your keyboard and a screen reader to share your notebooks and efficiently collaborate with your colleagues. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.

Notes: 

  • New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

  • To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft Office.

  • When you use OneNote for the web, we recommend that you use Microsoft Edge as your web browser. Because OneNote for the web runs in your web browser, the keyboard shortcuts are different from those in the desktop program. For example, you’ll use Ctrl+F6 instead of F6 for jumping in and out of the commands. Also, common shortcuts like F1 (Help) and Ctrl+O (Open) apply to the web browser – not OneNote for the web.

In this topic

Share a notebook

Select the notebook you want to share and invite people to collaborate on it.

  1. Make sure the notebook you would like to share is opened in OneNote for the web.

  2. Press Ctrl+F6 until you hear the name of the currently selected ribbon tab.

  3. Press the Tab key until you hear "Share button," and then press Enter. The Share dialog opens.

  4. Press the Tab key until you hear: "People in your organization with this link can edit." If you want to change who the link you want to share works for, or whether the recipient can edit the shared notebook, press Enter. You hear: "Link settings." To restrict the link to a particular user or users, press the Up arrow key until you hear the option you want and press Enter to confirm the selection. To change the link to a view link, press the Tab key until you hear "Checked, allow editing checkbox," and press Enter.

    To confirm the new link settings, press the Tab key until you hear "Apply," and press Enter.

  5. Press the Tab key until you hear: "Enter a name or email address." Type in the names or emails of people you want to invite, separated by a comma if there are more than one.

  6. Press the Tab key. You hear: "Enter your optional message here." If you want to send a message with your invitation, write it now.

  7. To share the notebook, press the Tab key until you hear "Send button," and then press Spacebar. To close the Share dialog, press Esc.

Check collaborator presence

OneNote for the web lets you check if other people are working on the notebook at the same time.

  1. While viewing a shared notebook in OneNote for the web, press Ctrl+F6 until you hear the name of the currently selected ribbon tab.

  2. Press the Tab key until you hear "Give feedback to Microsoft, button," and then press the Tab key one more time to find out if your co-authors are currently viewing the notebook.

    • If a collaborator is viewing the notebook, you hear their name, followed by "Is also here." If you press Enter, your screen reader tells you which part your co-author is viewing, for example "This page."

    • If nobody else is viewing the notebook, you hear: "It's just you here now."

  3. To return to the text area of your notebook, press Ctrl+F6 until you hear: "Editing area, editing."

Tip: To display author information alongside the text area, press Ctrl+F6 until you hear the name of the currently selected ribbon tab and then press W. You hear: "Selected, View tab item." Press S to show the author information.

See also

Use a screen reader to insert content to notebooks in OneNote

Use a screen reader to organize notebooks, sections, and pages in OneNote

Keyboard shortcuts in OneNote

Basic tasks using a screen reader with OneNote

Learn how to navigate OneNote using accessible features

Technical support for customers with disabilities

Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.

If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.

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