Storyline Tab order for Accessibility.
Oct 03, 2012
I’m currently working on a compliance module, trying to convince the Powers that Be at my agency that Storyline will produce accessible trainings, so we can buy it and use it (so I don’t have to keep using SoftChalk). I’m on a trial version.
I need help with tabbing.
I'm attaching a zip file that has a storyline .story that has the slides in question. Since I wrote this originally a few days ago to Articulate support, I've tried some twists on my original slides to try to improve their usability. Those trials, with some descriptions in the Notes section, are also included in the attached .story.
I’ve got a page of interactions, for example, that has 3 tabs on the left. You click each one to view info on that subject (borrowed from a downloaded template). Works like a charm for mouse-and-sight users. Sort of works OK for a sighted keyboard user (3 tab example.png attached). The problem is with JAWS.
Problem is, for a screen reader, to read what’s in the big explanatory text field that's on the layer that opens when you click the tab, you have to tab to that object/text box. Ideally it would be the next thing that came up when you hit TAB. Is it? No. I improved things a LOT by unchecking the “visible to screen reader” checkbox in Size and Position for all the colored shapes, etc., but it’s still problematic. The text that the user needs to read, and logically should come next, is 6 tabs away.
It’s even worse on this other slide, where there are 10 circles, each with a name of a group protected from discrimination (Race, Religion, Disability, etc.), and every circle opens a different layer containing info on that group (screenshot in word doc).
Sometimes you have to tab 12 or more times to get from the original circular button to where the JAWS user can actually "see and read" the text on the new layer.
Any suggestions?
So, one enhancement I want to suggest or +1 is to make the tab order adjustable by the developer. I've submitted this as an enhancement request. But this is beyond that I think – I need to dynamically adjust tab order (and/or visibility to screen reader) as part of a trigger.
With the Protected Groups slide (the one above with the circle of circles), one of the alternate versions for JAWS is where all other group circles are disabled except the next one that you will click. This reduces the total number of tabs to “get to the goodies” but is involving a TON of triggers.
This work (with a dozen triggers for each of a dozen layers) causes me to want another enhancement: macros that allow me to bundle multiple triggers. What I came up with is to put dozens of triggers on an invisible layer and call it up every time someone clicks on a button. A numeric variable ultimately tells that invisible "macro layer" where to go next after it's done its work.
I'd really like some feedback about how other people are handling tab order, or how specifically you would modify these slides so they're not frustrating for a JAWS user.
90 Replies
Thanks for that info, Luke. My wording was misleading. Storyline’s Flash-based output is 508 compliant, in so much as the many ways we’ve optimized Storyline to meet requirements of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. You can learn more about that here. Of course, as a content author, you’ll make design decisions that impact Section 508 compliance.
Content published for HTML5 and the Articulate Mobile Player is not 508 compliant.
Hi Luke,
I will try some of your suggestions and send the file to Peter and let you know how that works.
Thanks.
Hi Peter,
I wanted to know if you received my submission via the link you provided earlier and if there is a possible resolution.
Thanks,
L.
Hi L,
I'm actually not seeing a case associated with your user name or email. Did you receive a case number after submitting it? If you're behind a corporate firewall or other security setting, it may have blocked the submission. Let me know if you are still unable to get your case submitted via this link, and I'll be happy to open one on your behalf. Thanks!
You may want to check Matthew's answer here:
http://community.articulate.com/forums/t/18628.aspx
In other words:
Select the non-entry objects (those you don't want the tab key to highlight) > right click > select size and position > go to the alt text tab > uncheck "object is visible to accessibility tools"
Select the non-entry objects (those you don't want the tab key to highlight) > right click > select size and position > go to the
alt text tab > uncheck "object is visible to accessibility tools"
Good tip, Manuel. This is a great way to remove "decorative" items from the tab order, such as background images, border lines, and illustrative elements that evoke the topic but don't really need to be "mentioned" to visually impaired users and don't need to be tabbed to for any reason at all.
However, in my case, the items that are getting tabbed to "out of order" (i.e., out of the order I prefer them to be in depending on the situation) are items that do need to remain tabbable in other situations.
I no longer have a working copy of Storyline -- can anyone confirm -- is it possible to change the "object is visible to accessibility tools" status as a state? If so, then some variables and state changes could temporarily disable "tabbability" and then restore it later, perhaps!
Hi Luke, there is no state for this. It would be a great feature.
That might be an easier-to-accomplish enhancement than adding the new functionality of adjusting tab order, since it would just involve changing one of the object property values. On the other hand, it might not work dynamically, since perhaps the tab order is already "set" when the page loads; in that case changing the accessibility visibility on the fly might not actually affect the target of the very next tab action.
Hello every one,
I want to know How to disable accessibility(section 508) options in articulate storyline,
any idea how to disable.
Sameer
One frustraion I have with the tab order is when you are using keyboard navigation within a course and you present a question, i.e. a multi choice or multi response. You can tab through the answer fields in order, use the space bar to select your answer but then when you want to submit the answer your tab order runs through all the sidebar/topbar tabs etc first.
Is there a way of disabling the player features from the tab order, or rearranging them?
Sorry, Helen. Right now it's not possible to disable the accessibility box from cycling through the player features (though I think that would be a great option to have). As a workaround, you could build your own submit button that users could navigate to with the tab key, and then submit their answer using the space key.
I have a project pending on finding out more about Storyline's compatibility with screen readers such as jaws. Has any more progress been made up to this point? Many thanks.
Hey Mark, welcome to the community!
What specific JAWS information are you looking for?
Storyline’s Flash-based output is 508 compliant, including support for the following:
To view Storyline's Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT), click here.
Note: Content published for HTML5 and the Articulate Mobile Player is not 508 compliant.
Peter, I am a bit confused.
On Nov 1/2012, you stated that ( I paraphrase here): "Articulate does not official support Jaws or other readers etc"
But, in you post of today (April 11/2013) you state the following:
" Storyline’s Flash-based output is 508 compliant, including support for the following:
Does this mean Articulate does support JAWS??
Also, can you provide me an update on what ( if anything) will be done about providing some kind of developer control over tab order? This is probably one of the major issues with making an Articulate Storyline fully accessible.
Right now, to create good accessible content, that is also usable to all users, I am having to almost create two pathways through any given module. One that is followed by the sighted and one for the visually impaired. That involves disabling many of the on screen items ( so they cannot be read by JAWS) and then providing hidden text boxes ( that are read by JAWS). There are many issues that arise when doing this. One, in particular, is designing the module so that the visually impaired user does not get blocked, on a more complex slide, when you are trying to force the sighted to, say click (or visit) 3-5 text boxes and not let that user advance before they have visited all text boxes ( useful when clients what the slide locked down until user has read everything).
Another point, just because an authoring tool meets all the tick marks for 508 compliance does not make it a good tool to create accessible content. It just means that it has met a certain standard. In Canada, and other parts of the world, our standard is much higher (WCAG 2.0) and, by just aiming your development at Section 508 Compliance, in my opinion, actually lowers the quality of your product. You should be aiming at WCAG 2.0 and beyond.
Please do not take this as a compliant. I do like Storyline and what Articulate has achieved with it. I have been using it to develop content for several clients. I still develop in Captivate, Lectora and Sumtotal but my current favorite is Storyline. Good job but do not rest on your laurels. You need to take it up a notch, in particular when it comes to accessible content.
Last Story on Section 508 Compliance and SPECS
I did some work for a client a while ago. They had purchased a hosted LMS solution which they were told, by the supplier, that it was Section 508 compliant. I joined the team to help them implement their first major online module - which was built to be accessible. I tested the content thoroughly - it looked good on the system and I was able to use my keyboard to navigate the course, on the vendors LMS. We had a manager, who is visually impaired and a user of JAWS. She called me, and stated that while the programs we had created, were running on the LMS, and were accessible. But... the LMS itself was not accessible. She could not, login and navigate the LMS itself to get to the accessible programs. My point, technically the vendor was correct. The content running on the LMS was 508 compliant. They just forgot to mention ( or never considered) that the front end of their LMS was not accessible.
Hi Steve,
Thanks for your feedback
Storyline does indeed support JAWS in its Flash output, not for HTML5 and the Mobile Player. Sorry for any confusion there.
By design, the yellow accessibility box is supposed to navigate from top-left to bottom-right, but we've discovered that in some cases, the order becomes random. It's an issue our QA team is currently exploring. We apologize for any inconvenience there.
Any accessibility feature outside the realm of 508, like WCAG 2.0 for instance, would need to be logged as a feature request.
Thanks again for your feedback.
I submitted a case in October 2012 (#00300112) regarding an issue with Storyline and JAWS 13. When using JAWS to test my story, the reader says the word "graphic" after every text box it reads. This is the response I received:
"I was able to replicate the issue with JAWS reading text boxes and adding the word "Graphic" in the end. Unfortunately, we were unable to determine a workaround. We have reported this issue to our Quality Assurance team for their review. I cannot offer a time frame for when or if this issue will be addressed. I would recommend, at this time, to take a different approach so that you continue working on your project."
Any remedy yet? Thanks!
Peter, thanks for your reply.
Tab Order Problem
Any change, update, news on what is or isn't happening with this issue?
FYI- I can get around just about every other issue, (for the most part) that would stop me from making courses 100% accessible using
Storyline. But, what I cannot get around, and what is causing my clients grief, is the lack of control of Tab Order. Doesn't sound like that complex an issue to solve or to get on the road to solving.
Can you update me on the status of this please? This came to me as a request from one of my large banking clients who have purchased multiple copies of Storyline.
Hi Nicole,
I've just updated your particular issue with a note and will hope to hear something back - will definitely let you know when I do.
Hi Steve,
I don't have any updates to share on the progress of getting this fixed, but if we're able to work it out in our next version, I'll be sure to let you know. Really sorry for the inconvenience this is causing.
After reading through the forums to find a way to specify the tab order, it appears that there is no way at all to change the tab order. Is that true? Are there no advanced scripting methods that would allow me to specify a custom tab order? No matter how advanced or how technical, I need a method to be able to do this.
Even if the answer is "it's impossible," please let me know.
Thanks for your feature request, Paul.
I'm still not aware of a way to control the exact behavior of the tab order once it's become randomized.
It surely would be a great feature to be able to specify it exactly how you'd like.
I found by putting all my Data entry box / Buttons on a separate layer it would tab correctly.
And simply have a "Show layer when timeline starts" trigger to display everything as if it was the one layer.
Captivate 7 now allows you to control tab order.
If there is one thing, I dislike about Storyline, that is the lack of control of tab order. You guys seriously need to make this change.
have a look at this demo from Iconlogic. http://iconlogic.blogs.com/weblog/2013/06/adobe-captivate-7-tab-order.html
Articulate developers and marketers, you really need to pay attention to the need for this. For example, I have two major accounts, that bought into Storyline, but when I showed them Captivate 7, and its ability to control tab order, they are considering dropping Storyline and moving back to Captivate. This one feature really makes that much of a difference.
.
......Steve Chorny
This looks great Steve. I wish Articulate would do something like this for Storyline. I had to jump through hoops to get the tab order working in my last project.
Nancy,
i fully understand your pain! Just completed several modules, English and French versions, and had great difficulty ( which eqauls time which equals cost to project/client) to make them accessible. Having control over tab order would have easily reduced the time I logged, designing/developing these modules by about 25 %. I was really excited to learn that Adobe finally understood the need for tab order control, when they released Captivate 7. Hopefully, Articulate will follow. Overall, I think Storyline is a great product, but there are holes in the product,that will hurt sales and continuity of the product!
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