Forum Discussion
Bug: The screen reader is reading the table contents incorrectly
Hi Team,
I developed the Storyline module using version 3.91.33139.0 and tested it with the NVDA 12.3.1 screen reader. The screen reader is reading the table contents incorrectly in version 3.91, unlike in the older versions 3.87 and 3.86.
The screen reader reads as follows in older versions:
Take a look at the correct answer.
Table with 2 columns and 5 rows
columns 1 and row 1 Forgetting common words when speaking
columns 2 and row 1 Potential symptom of dementia
columns 1 and row 2 Mixing up words
columns 2 and row 2 Potential symptom of dementia
columns 1 and row 3 Occasionally forgetting names
columns 2 and row 3 Normal age-related change
columns 1 and row 4 Asking the same questions repeatedly
columns 2 and row 4 Potential symptom of dementia
columns 1 and row 5 Misplacing items Occasionally
columns 2 and row 5 Normal age-related change
However, the screen reader incorrectly reads the table order in version 3.91 of Storyline as follows
Take a look at the correct answer.
table with 5 rows and 2 columns Table with 2 columns and 5 rows
row 1 column 1 columns 1 and row 1 Forgetting common words when speaking
column 2
row 2 columns 1 and row 1 Forgetting common words when speaking column 1 columns 1 and row 2 Mixing up words
column 2
row 3 columns 1 and row 1 Forgetting common words when speaking column 1 columns 1 and row 3 Occasionally forgetting names
column 2
row 4 columns 1 and row 1 Forgetting common words when speaking column 1 columns 1 and row 4 Asking the same questions repeatedly
column 2
row 5 columns 1 and row 1 Forgetting common words when speaking column 1 columns 1 and row 5 Misplacing items Occasionally
out of table columns 2 and row 1 Potential symptom of dementia
columns 2 and row 2 Potential symptom of dementia
columns 2 and row 3 Normal age-related change
columns 2 and row 4 Potential symptom of dementia
columns 2 and row 5 Normal age-related change
button CONTINUE
I have attached a screenshot showing the bug and the focus order that I set.
Could you please check and provide a solution ?
RajaramanS: If it helps, in your two examples above, it seems like a simple matter of the 'Header Row' checkbox turned on, when it really shouldn't be. When the 'Header Row' setting is turned on, it not only tells you what column # and row # you are in, it repeats the contents of each column's header row in front of the contents for each cell (in this case, repeating 'Forgetting common words when speaking' for every cell in column 1, 'Potential symptom of dementia' for every cell in column 2, etc).
That said - Can you tell me which version of Storyline were you using that read like your first example?
I haven't been keeping up with each release (we often have to postpone updates until we can test and make sure a new release doesn't have any show-stopping bugs). I'm on the Oct 8 version, and the only way to get the new enhancement of screen readers telling you what row and column # you are in (along with annoucing 'out of table' at the end) is when the Header Row setting is turned on, which obviously isn't appropriate if the table doesn't have a header row.
(Note, if you cut/paste a table with Header Row off, it turns the Header Row setting back on)
Articulate:
IMO, the accessibility improvements to how a table reads shouldn't be completely disabled if the Header Row is turned off - the user should still be told what column/row they are in, how many columns /rows a cell spans, and when they have reached the end of the table regardless of whether the table has a header.
Here are some more bugs I'm finding with the way tables read in a screen reader (Again, I'm on the Oct 8 version, but the release notes for newer versions don't mention any table-related fixes)
- I consider it a bug that the table is announced twice; # rows # columns, then # columns # rows (table with 5 rows and 2 columns Table with 2 columns and 5 rows) - Why not just one or the other?
- Some tables that have been completely removed from the focus order (both the table announcement [table with # columns/rows] plus all individual lines for each cell) are still reading after all other content. I've tried to 'add all objects back to the focus order', reset order, save/close/reopen, and re-delete all parts of the table, but it Still reads.
- If you delete the table announcement row from the Focus Order, the rest of the table doesn't read where it is placed in the focus order but instead reads at the very end.
- Checking and unchecking the 'Object is visible to accessibility tools' checkbox has odd results. It seems to only control the table announcement, not the rest of the focus order entries for the table. I have noticed that many of the tables I have issues with reading correctly have had the checkbox toggled at some point. Seems it is irreversibly breaking things.
- Tables are sometimes reading twice in JAWS (not NVDA). Once where the table is in the focus order, and again at the very end.
- If a table is the first item in the focus order in a popup layer, the screenreader first reads the next item AFTER the table before reading the table.
