PyScreenReader Official Documentation

PyScreenReader Official Documentation#

Important

PyScreenReader is still under active development. APIs are subjects to change.

Welcome to the official documentation for PyScreenReader, a cross-platform Python library for retrieving UI widget tree information.

PyScreenReader achieves platform compatibilities while maintaining the ability to interact with native system APIs by providing a unified abstraction layer that maps platform-specific accessibility data into a consistent virtual widget tree model.

Key Features#

  • Cross-platform support: Compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux.

  • Unified virtual widget model: Abstracts diverse native UI controls into a consistent data structure.

  • Easy access to widget properties: Such as bounding rectangles, text content, focus state, and more.

  • Highly Simplified API designs: Clean APIs, each focused on a single responsibility.

  • Lightweight and Pythonic: Designed to integrate seamlessly into Python applications.

Potential Use Cases:

  • Implementing screen readers to assist users with accessibility needs

  • Developing MCP servers that interact directly with user desktops

  • Gathering visual UI data for research and analysis

Supported Platforms#

The following table summarizes the platforms currently supported by PyScreenReader:

Operating System

Architecture

Supported Python Versions

Windows 10/11

x86_64

3.11 – 3.13

macOS 11+

arm64 (M1/M2)

3.11 – 3.13

Linux

x86_64, aarch64

3.11 – 3.13

Warning

  • Windows builds: Tested on Windows 10. Windows 11 expected to behave similarly.

  • macOS builds: Tested on macOS 14 and macOS 15. macOS 11+ are expected to behave similarly.

  • Linux builds: Tested on Ubuntu 24 and Ubuntu 22. Expect all the distros to have the same behavior based on at-spi framework.

Other combinations of OS, architecture, and Python version might be compatible but have not been tested. Use them at your own discretion.

PyScreenReader builds may be sensitive to the Python interpreter version due to various factors. If you would like us to support a specific OS, architecture, or Python version, please don’t hesitate to reach out (see the Useful Links section below). Your feedback is highly appreciated.

Installation#

PyScreenReader is a Python library. Currently, only PyPi installation via pip is supported.

pip install PyScreenReader
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