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Making SAS Java Applications Accessible on
Microsoft Windows
For Window-based assistive technologies to interoperate with SAS Java-based desktop applications, the Java Access Bridge (JAB) is required. According to Sun Microsystems:
"The Java Access Bridge is a class which contains "native methods." Part of the code for the class is actually supplied by a dynamically linked library (DLL) on the Microsoft Windows system. The assistive technology running on the host platform (for example, a screen reader running in Windows) communicates with the Microsoft Windows native DLL portion of the bridge class. In turn, the native code of the Access Bridge Class communicates through the Java Virtual Machine with the Java Accessibility utility support and the Java Accessibility API on the individual user interface objects of the Java-based application."
Customizations to the standard install procedure are required to facilitate access to the JAB. This setup assumes that Java is already installed on the machine. A known risk is that SAS applications can get polluted by jar files that may be installed in the jre/lib/ext directory. To solve this problem, SAS implemented a custom class loader to replace the system class loader. The custom class loader loads only approved extensions that SAS configures based on the JRE the vendor provides. A consequence of hiding the existing directory is that it disables installed accessibility-related applications.
To configure SAS Java applications to permit access to the Java Access Bridge:
- On the client machine, locate all copies of the file sas.java.ext.config.
- In each instance of the file, edit the file in a plain text editor, such as Microsoft® Notepad.
- Add the following two lines to the bottom of the file:
access-bridge.jar
jaccess-1_4.jar
Note: The filename of the jaccess*.jar file depends on the version of the JRE. Listed here is the filename for Version 1.4 or later. If you are using a different version, your filename may vary.
- Save the changes and close the file.
Next, verify that the Java Access Bridge installation successfully copied the jar files into the JRE directory pointed to from the SAS client application initialization file.
For example, for the SAS Management Console, open the file sasmc.ini and locate the line beginning CommandToExecute. The path following CommandToExecute is the location of the JRE used by the SAS client application. One possible value for a local install is:
CommandToExecute=C:\Program Files\java\jre1.5.0_11\bin\java.exe
Navigate to the library directory for the JRE, in this case C\Program Files\java\jre1.5.0_11\lib\ext, and verify that the directory contains the files referenced from the sas.java.ext.config above, access-bridge.jar and jaccess-1_4.jar. If the files are not present, copy them there from the Java Access Bridge folder.
If you have questions or concerns about the accessibility of SAS products, send e-mail to accessibility@sas.com.
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Federal Government