NVDA’s system caret does not change position when keyboard focus is moved via JS

[Chiara De Martin]

Hi everyone, I’m writing to get some feedback on an issue related to focus movement within a web app.

I’m conducting tests with NVDA to evaluate the accessibility of a digital reading app. The app includes a button that allows users to switch between the fixed-layout version and the reflowable-layout version of the text, without changing the web page’s URL.

Keyboard focus is moved to the reflowable text container using JavaScript. NVDA’s system caret does not change position and remains in the same area of the page where the button was located, even though the page content has changed. From my perspective, this can be quite disorienting for blind users who use a screen reader.

I would expect the cursor to automatically follow the movement of the keyboard focus—as happens when a modal dialog box opens.

Any thoughts on this?

[jacob kruger]

First step might be to double-check settings in the review cursor category, and see if they make any changes/difference.

Jacob Kruger
"Resistance is futile...acceptance is versatile..."

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[Andrew Downie]

Hi Chiara

You mentioned that NVDA goes to a modal dialog when the modal is launched.  That is only true if the person who wrote the modal puts focus on it.  You must have been lucky, as I have encountered plenty where that does not happen.  I suspect that, in the example you are testing, the JS does not include an instruction to put focus where it needs to be.  For demonstration purposes, I have written modal dialogs where focus goes to the modal when launched and where it does not.  The other thing to check for in your reflow example is whether focus is appropriately shifted when switching back to the fixed layout and my guess is that it doesn't.  Back to modal dialogs, it is also important that, when dismissed, focus returns to the button that launched it.  As a bytheway, creating accessible modal dialogs has become a great deal easier with the advent of the dialog element.

Andrew