Jaws and Cp 7.01.237 - not BFFs?

[Justenuf2bdangerous]

Building for a 508 requirement that uses IE and JAWS 14 on a Windows 7 machine using the Captivate 7.01.237 version. I'll state out front that we made 508 accessible pdfs that were given extremely high marks by our mobility and sight impaired user groups, but are not considered other than "ancillary" accessibility by the government tester (not sure why)

Currently running into this laundry list when testing to the SCORM Cloud and applying JAWS:

1. JAWS reads the variable script in a text box instead of the output (example reads: "$$cpInfoCurrentSlide$$ of $$rdinfoSlideCount$$" instead of "1 of 2" and reads "$$cpInfoProjectName$$$$cpInfoDescription$$" rather than "Lesson1 - JAWS is Evil")
2. If a button has three states (selected, rollover, and not selected) JAWS reads this as three buttons, and two don't have name, role, and state information.
3. JAWS won't read the feedback boxes on any question slide, period.
4. If you set up an action to reveal information after the user makes a choice by selecting a button or menu item, any resulting change on the page is not necessarily read immediately following the selection.
5. Opening a TOC from the playbar is easy, closing it is nearly impossible in JAWS
6. An overlay TOC creates an expand/collapse button as a tab on the upper corner of the TOC that cannot be given an accessibility tag.
7. Accessing a TOC immediately reduces JAWS effectiveness. The focus and flow of the course is lost and cannot be reset - all slides begin at the of the TOC and JAWS reads "end flash" - the only way back to the beginning is to press the up arrow key repeatedly until you reach the beginning of the slide.
8. Opening a linked swf or document is a high wire act - if you close it and JAWS isn't focused over the open project, it's difficult to get back to the project, let alone get back to where you left off.
9. Using a glossary widget works, but it's difficult at best to get out of it and close it without running through every active letter and the title and content bars, which gets old fast.
10. Smart shape buttons can't be accessed without using shortcut keys.

Yes, sent all of this in as a bug report today. Just looking for any ideas/workarounds as I continue to be "that silly old ant, trying to move that rubber tree plant..."

Justenuf

[Justenuf2bdangerous · Accepted solution]

PLEASE NOTE: If you are lucky enough to have a 508 testing service that reads the law in a manner that allows you to create JAWS (or other screen reader) accessible .pdf documents to meet the requirements of the law, none of the information below should be an issue, since visually impaired users will have access to your content through the document. However, my experience has been that there is no agreement on whether the pdf document meets the requirements of Section 508 (for example, one department I worked for did not allow pdfs to be used at all, another department saw them as a "nice supplement" - after initially being exceptionally enthusiastic about their use as the primary alternative.)

FYI - heard back from Adobe and wanted to share with other 508-challenged designers - "[Sankaram]" = Adobe

1. JAWS reads the variable script in a text box instead of the output (example reads: "$$cpInfoCurrentSlide$$ of $$rdinfoSlideCount$$" instead of "1 of 2" and reads "$$cpInfoProjectName$$$$cpInfoDescription$$" rather than "Lesson1 - JAWS is Evil")

[Sankaram]: This is a bug. (not 508 compliant - so lose your slide counter, could be a deal breaker)

2. JAWS won't read the feedback boxes on any question slide, period.

[Sankaram]: It is suggested to have audio attached to feedback captions, so when it is appeared corresponding audio is read. (So, it's a bug unless you record audio for each feedback box on each question slide - no TTS option available)

3. If you set up an action to reveal information after the user makes a choice by selecting a button or menu item, any resulting change on the page is not necessarily read immediately following the selection.

[Sankaram]:Objects are read by JAWS based on the Z-index in timeline. Say for example you want a text caption to be shown on click of a button make sure you place text caption up in the Z-index next to button. (So, set up your reading order from the bottom of the timeline to the top... or maybe not - I'm still working with this)

4. Opening a TOC from the playbar is easy, closing it is nearly impossible in JAWS An overlay TOC creates an expand/collapse button as a tab on the upper corner of the TOC that cannot be given an accessibility tag.

[Sankaram]:This is bug. (As stated by numerous folks here, the TOC is tricky - as stated by Adobe - it just isn't 508 compliant)

5. Accessing a TOC immediately reduces JAWS effectiveness. The focus and flow of the course is lost and cannot be reset - all slides begin at the of the TOC and JAWS reads "end flash" - the only way back to the beginning is to press the up arrow key repeatedly until you reach the beginning of the slide.

[Sankaram]: I could see the issue here. (Since its already not compliant from #4, this is just another nail in the TOC coffin)

Justenuf

[TLCMediaDesign]

Thanks for sharing. I contract with the US Air Force and we always always use a PDF for our Captivate courses under the guide of "Equivalent Experience". Too bad your coustomer doesn't see it that way. Tests are then proctored over the phone.

[Justenuf2bdangerous]

Thanks for sharing about the USAF contracts - I knew I wasn't crazy, the law looks like a text equivalent is more than adequate, as long as it is accessible. A well designed and accessibility-tested pdf is so much more accessible and useable than designing all the workarounds and compromises these last couple of contracts have forced on my team. Usability and accessibility definitely go hand-in-hand, but cutting features that are effective learning paths for sighted learners seems to be a trade-off that was never intended under 508. Maybe we should start looking at their specs for accessibility before bidding the contract....

Justenuf

[rosm2004]

Justenuf,

I feel your pain! (You know who I am).

[Justenuf2bdangerous]

amen, my fellow designer, amen...

[TLCMediaDesign]

I know this is a very old thread, but I have created a couple of fixes for some of the items addressed.

!. For the displayed page numbering, this JavaScript will solve the issue. I implement mine in an external JS file but it can  also be implemented on Slide Enter of each slide.

document.getElementById( page_numaccStr' ).childNodes[0].innerHTML = window.cpInfoCurrentSlide+" of "+window.cpInfoSlideCount;

The bold text is the name of the Text Caption used to display the Slide numbering.

What this does is change the accessibility string in the paragraph to not be the variable names.

2. Using a TOC that is overlay mode will be the first  object JAWs encounters in the presentation forcing the project to shift by the width of the TOC.

To fix this issue as well as the TOC expand/collapse button you will need to use some CSS and JavaScript. I add a custom CSS and JavaScript file to all projects.

In the CSS add the following:

.tocExpandCollapse{

display: none;

}

This will hide the expand/collapse button so that JAWs will never encounter it.

Next, for the TOC itself, I use a JavaScript function to change the display of the TOC:

var tocOpen = false;

function toggleMenu()
{
var myTOC = document.getElementById( 'toc' );
myTOC.style.zIndex = 20000; 

if ( tocOpen === false )
{
  myTOC.style.display = 'block'; 
  window.cpCmndTOCVisible = 1;
  tocOpen = true;
}
else
{
  myTOC.style.display = 'none';
  window.cpCmndTOCVisible = 0;
  tocOpen = false;
}
}

My real script does more, but this will stop the project from shifting when JAWs encounters the TOC while it is "hidden";

It also bring the TOC above any CC if it is used.

I also use a script to close and hide the TOC on enter of each slide so that it does not remain open if used to navigate.

The custom variable tocOpen is used because I don't trust CP's variable. If you have tried using the any "cmnd" variables for pause/resume tracking you'll know what I mean.

Hope this helps.

[leonorab75997843]

I can't believe we are still having these issues in CP 2019. 

[Gyandeo_Mishra]

Hi All,

I have created a tutorial in captivate 8 and now I want to make this 508 compliance.

So I have searched on the net and found below link:

Adobe Captivate Help | Creating accessible projects

I enable accessibility to the project and also put the accessible text to buttons and some of the object. Make navigation by help of shortcut key like N for Next, P for Previous in each slide.

Now i have published the course in SWF (with seamless tabbing) and HTML5. But when I play it on IE then screen reader not working.

I want to share few thing that i have found in output.

1. Shortcut navigation is working fine.

2. Close captions and audio is working.

3. IE screen reader not working(which is enabled by the Advance setting in IE menu)

4. Tabbing work in swf only not in HTML5.

5. What is the use of Tab order? Is the tab order read the accessible text placed on objects like button etc.?

Please let me know am i working in right direction and steps which i miss.

Thanks in advance

Gyan