Guides
Assistive technology on a Mac for students with physical disabilities
This guide is for special education teachers, occupational therapists, AT specialists, and aides who support a student who cannot use a standard mouse or keyboard reliably, and whose school has Macs. It covers what the Mac already does, how switches, adaptive controllers, and gamepads reach it, three classroom setups that work, and the practical part: getting the app onto managed school Macs, keeping student data private, and documenting the setup so it follows the student. I built InputConfig because my own hands do not work well, and it is free, with nothing to buy and no account to create.
What the school Mac already has
Check these first. They are built in, free, and IT has already approved them.
- Switch Control scans the screen and a switch picks what is highlighted.
- Voice Control runs the Mac by voice, and Dictation turns speech into text.
- Head pointer moves the pointer with head movement through the camera.
- Accessibility Keyboard is an on-screen keyboard, with Dwell for clicking by resting the pointer.
- Sticky Keys and Slow Keys help with modifier combinations and accidental presses.
They are in System Settings, Accessibility. Where a student can press a switch, move a stick, or hold a controller, InputConfig adds what these do not: each input does exactly the job you give it, every time.
How switches and controllers reach the Mac
- Adaptive controllers. The Xbox Adaptive Controller takes 3.5 mm switches in its 19 ports and a USB joystick; the PlayStation Access controller has its own stick, eight buttons, and four expansion ports for switches. Both show up on a Mac as game controllers, and every switch becomes a button. See the Xbox Adaptive Controller guide and the PlayStation Access controller guide.
- Game controllers. A DualSense, an Xbox controller, a single Joy-Con, or an 8BitDo pad, for a student who can hold one.
- USB switch interfaces. If the interface shows up as a gamepad or joystick, each switch is a button. If it shows up as a keyboard, the key it sends still types as normal, because InputConfig listens alongside macOS and cannot hold a key back. Set such an interface to a key nothing else uses, such as F13 to F19, where it allows that, then give the key its job in InputConfig.
- MIDI pads. Sixteen large, soft pads under one hand, with no force needed.
To test any device, open the Live Visualizer and press each control. If it lights up, it can be mapped.
InputConfig is free on the Mac App Store. macOS 14 or later, no account, no tracking, open source.
Three classroom setups
| The student can | Setup | Start from |
|---|---|---|
| Move a joystick or stick, and press one or two big buttons | The stick is the pointer, slow near the centre, with a deadzone for a resting hand. A big button clicks; a hold on it right clicks. Dictation on a second button. | The Adaptive Desktop layout in the Xbox Adaptive Controller guide, or the built-in Desktop Navigation preset on a standard controller |
| Press two switches | Switch 1: click, right click on a hold, Return on a double press. Switch 2: start dictation, Escape on a hold, Tab on a double press. Pair it with Switch Control or a joystick for the pointer. | The Two Switch layout in the switches guide |
| Present a slideshow | Next and previous slide, start and end the show, on any controller or two switches. | The built-in Presentation Remote preset |
Two additions help in most classrooms. Type Text on a hold can type the student's name or school email in one press. Spoken feedback can say each button's job aloud while the student learns the layout.
Getting it onto school Macs
- Install InputConfig from the Mac App Store, or ask IT to deploy it the way it deploys other App Store apps. It needs macOS 14 or later and runs on Apple silicon and Intel Macs.
- Allow the Accessibility permission in System Settings, Privacy and Security. This needs someone with admin rights, or IT through device management. The app's identifier is com.inputconfig.app.
- Build the student's layout as a preset, and give each row a note in the student's own words.
- On a shared Mac, a separate macOS user account per student keeps each student's presets apart. A student who moves between Macs can take a single preset file, exported and brought back in with Import.
- In Settings, General, turn on Launch at login. InputConfig starts with no preset running, so switch the student's preset on from the menu bar at the start of the lesson, or list the apps they use in the preset's Automation panel so it switches on by itself.
Student privacy
InputConfig makes no network connections, has no account, and has no analytics. There is nothing for a student to sign up for and no student data to review in a privacy agreement: presets, notes, and the Statistics sheet stay on that Mac. The source code is public under the MIT licence, so district IT can read exactly what it does.
Documenting the setup
- Every row has a note field, and each preset has a notes box. Write what each control does and why, so a substitute or next year's teacher can follow it.
- Export the student's preset and keep the file with their assistive technology records. It restores the exact setup on any Mac.
- Settings, Advanced, Data & storage, Export Backup saves every preset and setting on that Mac in one file.
Safety in the classroom
If a layout ever gets stuck or the pointer runs away, the emergency stop turns the preset off and lets go of every key and click. Three ways: hold Back / Share / View on the controller for three seconds (the button and hold length are in Settings, General), press Control Option Command and the period key on the keyboard, or click the InputConfig menu bar icon and choose Emergency Stop. For a switch user, put Emergency Stop on a hold of a switch that staff can reach.
Questions
Is InputConfig free for schools?
Yes. It is free on the Mac App Store with nothing locked. There is an optional tip jar that unlocks nothing, so there is no purchase order to raise.
Does it work on Chromebooks, iPads, or Windows?
No. InputConfig is a Mac app and needs macOS 14 or later.
Can InputConfig scan the screen like Switch Control?
No. Switch Control does the scanning. InputConfig gives each switch fixed jobs, a press, a hold, and a double press, which suits a student who is faster pressing a known switch than waiting for a scan.
Will it work in our learning platform in the browser?
It sends ordinary keys, clicks, and scrolling, so it works in any app or website that takes a keyboard and mouse, including web apps in Safari or Chrome.
Does it work at the login window?
No. It runs after someone logs in, so the Mac's own login options, such as the Accessibility Keyboard at the login window, are needed for that step.
Related
Free. macOS 14 or later. No account, nothing leaves your Mac. Open source on GitHub.