RE: Should accesskey focus or activate?

But common HTML practice is to provide an accesskety for the collection of
radio buttons, rather than the individual buttons. I am abivalent on this for
checkboxes and radio buttons, but I think it is important for links that they
only focus. Likewise buttons like reset/submit in a form.

Anyone got better usability backgrounds?

Charles

On Tue, 24 Apr 2001, Dean Tessman wrote:

  Standard windows behavior is that an access key clicks a button/radio
  button/check box, and focuses an object where more input is required, such
  as an edit box/combo box/list box.  If we deviate from this, it's going to
  become really confusing to anyone that uses programs other than Mozilla
  (read: everyone).

  > -----Original Message-----
  > From: Charles McCathieNevile [mailto:charles@w3.org]
  > Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2001 2:13 PM
  > To: Aaron Leventhal
  > Cc: w3c-wai-ig@w3.org; mozilla-accessibility@mozilla.org;
  > joki@netscape.com
  > Subject: Re: Should accesskey focus or activate?
  >
  >
  > Hi Aaron,
  >
  > In my opinion they should focus. The problem if they activate
  > without warning
  > is one of discovery, and also of reducing the value of
  > accesskey (which
  > enables you to move from chunk to chunk in the "tab order" in
  > a way that
  > tabindex does not do properly).
  >
  > cheers
  >
  > Charles
  >
  > On Tue, 24 Apr 2001, Aaron Leventhal wrote:
  >
  >   Hello all, a Netscape developer wanted to know whether
  > accesskey should
  >   focus or activate controls, or whether it depends on the
  > type of control.
  >   Here's his question in detail:
  >
  >   > Hey Aaron,
  >   >
  >   > I wanted to get your opinion as accessibility guy on bug
  > 55020, it's a
  >   > question of whether or not access keys should just focus
  > the element in
  >   > question or focus and activate it.  You're cc'd on the
  > bug, I'm not sure
  >   > if you've read it.  The bug has some valid points about accidental
  >   > activation of access key based items, especially since we
  > allow the
  >   > accesskeys to beat out things like alt-F for menu opening.
  >   >
  >   > So currently we focus and activate everything.  I tend to
  > agree with the
  >   > bug writer that we should move to only focusing things.
  > All of the
  >   > items can be keyboard triggered from there so a full
  > keyboard solution
  >   > still works.
  >   >
  >   > And just for extra info's sake, IE's solution is, I
  > think, a bit unusual.
  >   > They use a mix of focus and activation.  Buttons, for example, are
  >   > activated.  Links, however, are not.  Text fields just
  > get focus but
  >   > what does activation of a text field mean anyway.  IE
  > also overrides
  >   > stuff like alt-F when an accesskey of that letter is in use.
  >   >
  >   > So anyway, I'm just curious if you have an opinion from
  > an accessibility
  >   > point of view.  My current stance is to go with the bug's
  > solution and
  >   > start doing focus only unless more arguments arise in favor of
  >   > activation.
  >   >
  >   > 	-tom
  >
  >
  >
  >
  > --
  > Charles McCathieNevile    http://www.w3.org/People/Charles
  > phone: +61 409 134 136
  > W3C Web Accessibility Initiative     http://www.w3.org/WAI
  > fax: +1 617 258 5999
  > Location: 21 Mitchell street FOOTSCRAY Vic 3011, Australia
  > (or W3C INRIA, Route des Lucioles, BP 93, 06902 Sophia
  > Antipolis Cedex, France)
  >


-- 
Charles McCathieNevile    http://www.w3.org/People/Charles  phone: +61 409 134 136
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative     http://www.w3.org/WAI    fax: +1 617 258 5999
Location: 21 Mitchell street FOOTSCRAY Vic 3011, Australia
(or W3C INRIA, Route des Lucioles, BP 93, 06902 Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France)

Received on Tuesday, 24 April 2001 16:27:26 UTC