First of all, don’t panic!
We understand that it’s very stressful when your access to a computer suddenly stops.
This could be because JAWS crashed, or because of a completely separate issue.
But sadly crashes do happen with JAWS, so you need to stay calm and know what to do.
If you are in a Word document, web browser or other window, try just pressing the Windows key.
If JAWS wakes up and says “Search box edit” at this point, then you’re back up and running! Just Alt+Tab back to your window and keep doing what you were doing.
If JAWS still isn’t responding, don’t worry. Just type the word “JAWS” in the search box (which your focus will already be in as soon as you press the Windows key). If you have multiple versions of JAWS on your computer, type the version number here as well (e.g. JAWS 2022).
If all goes well, JAWS should open a few seconds after you press enter.
Another thing you could try is pressing Windows+D to go to the desktop, then the letter J to jump to the JAWS icon, and then the enter key to open it.
If JAWS is still quiet, you should check to see if it is actually running already, but just not outputting sound.
If you think your computer sound is muted, try and use F1 or Function+F1 to unmute it.
If nothing else works, you will need to restart your computer either by holding down the power button or asking a sighted person.