Hi,
I'm trying to fix tvOS view for VoiceOver accessibility feature:
TabView { // 5 tabs
Text(title)
Button(play)
ScrollView { // Live
LazyHStack { 200 items }
}
ScrollView { // Continue watching
LazyHStack { 500 items }
}
}
When the view shows up VoiceOver reads:
"Home tab 1 of 5, Item 2" - not sure why it reads Item 2 of the first cell in scroll view, maybe beacause it just got loaded by LazyHStack.
VocieOver should only read "Home tab 1 of 5"
When moving focus to scroll view it reads:
"Live, Item 1" and after slight delay "Item 1, Item 2, Item 3, Item 4"
When moving focus to second item it reads:
"Item 2" and after slight delay "Item 1, Item 2, Item 3, Item 4"
When moving focus to third item it reads:
"Item 3" and after slight delay "Item 1, Item 2, Item 3, Item 4"
It should be just reading what is focused, idealy just
"Live, Item 1, 1 of 200"
then after moving focus on item 2
"Item 2, 2 of 200"
this time without the word "Live" because we are on the same scroll view (the same horizontal list)
Currently the app is unusable, we have visually impaired testers and this rotor reading everything on the screen is totaly confusing, because users don't know where they are and what is actually focused.
This is a video streaming app and we are streaming all the time, even on home page in background, binge plays one item after another, usually there is never ending Live stream playing, user can switch TV channel, but we continue to play. Voice over should only read what's focused after user interaction.
Original Apple TV app does not do that, so it cannot be caused by some verbose accessibility settings. It reads correctly only focused item in scrolling lists.
How do I disable reading content that is not focused?
I tried:
.accessibilityLabel(isFocused ? title : "")
.accessibilityHidden(!isFocused)
.accessibilityHidden(true) - tried on various levels in view hierarchy
.accessiblityElement(children: .ignore) - even focused item is not read back by voice over
.accessiblityElement(children: .ignore) - even focused item is not read back by voice over
.accessiblityElement(children: .contain) - tried on various levels in view hierarchy
.accessiblityElement(children: .combine) - tried on various levels in view hierarchy
.accessibilityAddTraits(.isHeader) - tried on various levels in view hierarchy
.accessibilityRemoveTraits(.isHeader) - tried on various levels in view hierarchy
// the last 2 was basically an attempt to hack it
.accessibilityRotor("", ranges []) - another hack that I tried on ScrollView, LazyHStack, also on top level view.
50+ other attempts at configuring accessibility tags attached to views.
I have seen all the accessibility videos, tried all sample code projects, I haven't found a solution anywhere, internet search didn't find anything, AI didn't help as it can only provide code that someone else wrote before.
Any idea how to fix this?
Thanks.
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I have a couple follow up questions after the "Accessibility technologies group lab".
I know it was briefly mentioned that user feedback is an excellent way to grow inclusivity in the design an app and utilizing these forums were one for example.
Is inviting folks here on the forum via test flight a reasonable approach to this for a solo developer?
Are there other strategies, avenues, or examples to promote user feedback?
Hi! I have noticed a few glitches as well as some overall unfortunate cons with the assistive access mode.
Alarms, timers, stopwatch, etc. do not sound or alert. However, I have an infant monitor app and I do get that sound alert so I know it is possible.. do I need to download a separate alarm app for it to work?
Cannot make FaceTime calls with favorite contacts.
Find My iPhone cannot jump to the maps app.
Camera cannot zoom in or out.
Photos cannot be deleted, edited, or shared in a shared album in the photos app.
Photos/videos cannot be sent in messages.
Spotify cannot be accessed from the lock screen.
Apps do not stay open if you lock the phone screen or leave it on too long without touching the screen (auto locks).
There is no flashlight option. I downloaded an app to have this feature but without being touched the screen will lock which shuts off the flashlight feature in the app until I unlock the phone again.
Please excuse me if this is obvious. I'm new to Apple development.
Is there a SwiftUI Accessibility Inspector? I run the standard one, in Xcode 26b3, and it shows me warnings for things that I didn't create in SwiftUI. I presume that "SwiftUI" is primarily implemented using macros and that these things are either generated or boilerplate lower-level things. But if so, then why would they trip Accessibility Inspector warnings? Is there something I can do from SwiftUI to clear them?
Or... is there a demangler somewhere that will translate from these names into something this human might recognize?
I'm targeting macos, btw, if that makes any difference.
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
Even though navigationBarBackButtonHidden is set, the back button appears when you swipe slightly.
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
Triple tap for screenshot->notification->triple tap detected becomes a part of the screenshot and obscures the top part of screenshot.
Thanks
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
I have subscribed to the developer program, but it’s already been a day and it still shows “is not enrolled in the Apple Developer Program.”
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
After replacing Big Sur OSX 11.0 with the latest 11.5, my app's AXObserverAddNotification methods fails. Here is sample code I tested from StackOverflow: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/853833/how-can-my-app-detect-a-change-to-another-apps-window
AXUIElementRef app = AXUIElementCreateApplication(82695); // the pid for front-running Xcode 12.5.1
CFTypeRef frontWindow = NULL;
AXError err = AXUIElementCopyAttributeValue( app, kAXFocusedWindowAttribute, &frontWindow );
if ( err != kAXErrorSuccess ){
NSLog(@"failed with error: %i",err);
}
NSLog(@"app: %@ frontWindow: %@",app,frontWindow);
'frontWindow' reference is never created and I get the error number -25204. It seems like the latest Big Sur 11.5 has revised the Accessibility API or perhaps there is some permission switch I am unaware of that would make things work. What am I doing wrong?
I have a product for designing particle emitters, which I suspect may be of limited interest to people with limited vision.
I'd still like to ensure I'm doing a good job with VoiceOver mode.
There's a related, simplified sample online, if you want to look at the code
As you can see from the picture below, a large part of the interface mimics Xcode's particle editor, with many value entry controls that combine up/down buttons with a tappable label. Tapping the label goes into edit mode.
Apart from changing how labels are stepped through in voiceover in my app, how should I handle these stepper buttons? Is this a good place to use a Custom Rotor?
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
I have a UIImageView as the background of a custom UIView subclass. The image itself does not contain any text. On top of this image view, I have added two UILabels.
To improve accessibility, I converted the entire view into a single accessibility element and set a proper accessibilityLabel. Additionally, I disabled accessibility for the UIImageView and the labels by setting isAccessibilityElement = false.
However, when VoiceOver's Accessibility Recognition's Text Recognition feature is enabled, VoiceOver still detects and announces the text inside the UILabels at the end after reading my custom accessibility properties. This text should not be announced.
It seems that VoiceOver treats the UILabel content as part of the UIImageView. Additionally, when using the Explore Image rotor action, the entire subview is recognized as a single image.
Is this the expected behavior? If so, is there a way to disable VoiceOver’s text recognition for this view while keeping custom accessibility intact?
class BackgroundLabelView: UIView {
private let backgroundImageView = UIImageView()
private let backgroundImageView2 = UIImageView()
private let titleLabel = UILabel()
private let subtitleLabel = UILabel()
override init(frame: CGRect) {
super.init(frame: frame)
setupView()
}
required init?(coder: NSCoder) {
super.init(coder: coder)
setupView()
configureAceesibility()
}
private func configureAceesibility() {
backgroundImageView.isAccessibilityElement = false
backgroundImageView2.isAccessibilityElement = false
titleLabel.isAccessibilityElement = false
subtitleLabel.isAccessibilityElement = false
isAccessibilityElement = true
accessibilityTraits = .button
}
func configure(backgroundImage: UIImage?, title: String, subtitle: String) {
backgroundImageView.image = backgroundImage
titleLabel.text = title
subtitleLabel.text = subtitle
accessibilityLabel = "Holiday Offer ," + title + "," + subtitle
}
private func setupView() {
backgroundImageView2.contentMode = .scaleAspectFill
backgroundImageView2.clipsToBounds = true
backgroundImageView2.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
backgroundImageView2.image = UIImage(resource: .bannerfestival)
addSubview(backgroundImageView2)
backgroundImageView.contentMode = .scaleAspectFit
backgroundImageView.clipsToBounds = true
backgroundImageView.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
addSubview(backgroundImageView)
titleLabel.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 18, weight: .bold)
titleLabel.textColor = .white
titleLabel.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
titleLabel.numberOfLines = 0
addSubview(titleLabel)
subtitleLabel.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 14, weight: .regular)
subtitleLabel.textColor = .white.withAlphaComponent(0.8)
subtitleLabel.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
subtitleLabel.numberOfLines = 0
addSubview(subtitleLabel)
NSLayoutConstraint.activate([
backgroundImageView2.leadingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: leadingAnchor),
backgroundImageView2.trailingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: trailingAnchor),
backgroundImageView2.heightAnchor.constraint(equalToConstant: 200),
backgroundImageView.centerYAnchor.constraint(equalTo: centerYAnchor),
backgroundImageView.topAnchor.constraint(equalTo: topAnchor),
backgroundImageView.leadingAnchor.constraint(greaterThanOrEqualTo: leadingAnchor),
backgroundImageView.trailingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: trailingAnchor),
backgroundImageView.bottomAnchor.constraint(equalTo: bottomAnchor),
titleLabel.leadingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: leadingAnchor, constant: 16),
titleLabel.trailingAnchor.constraint(lessThanOrEqualTo: centerXAnchor),
titleLabel.bottomAnchor.constraint(equalTo: centerYAnchor, constant: -4),
subtitleLabel.leadingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: leadingAnchor, constant: 16),
subtitleLabel.trailingAnchor.constraint(lessThanOrEqualTo: centerXAnchor),
subtitleLabel.topAnchor.constraint(equalTo: centerYAnchor, constant: 4)
])
}
override func layoutSubviews() {
super.layoutSubviews()
backgroundImageView.layer.cornerRadius = layer.cornerRadius
}
}
why did the screen recorder button disappear? It cannot be found anywhere.
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
Hello,
I'm currently unable to access App Store Connect. When I try to open https://appstoreconnect.apple.com, I receive the following error message:
“appstoreconnect.apple.com is currently unable to handle this request.”
I’ve tried the following steps, but the issue persists:
Cleared browser cache and cookies
Tried different browsers (Safari, Chrome)
Attempted from multiple devices and networks
Is this a known issue or is there any workaround available?
Would appreciate any help or update on the current status.
Thank you,
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
Watched videos, blog post and downloaded their projects and there the core spot lights works accordingly.
I copied code to an empty project and did the same as what they did but still is not working
os: macOS and iOS
on coredataobject I settled up a attribute to index for spotlight and in object it self I putted the attribute name in display name for spotlight.
static let shared = PersistenceController()
var spotlightDelegate: NSCoreDataCoreSpotlightDelegate?
@MainActor
static let preview: PersistenceController = {
let result = PersistenceController(inMemory: true)
let viewContext = result.container.viewContext
for _ in 0..<10 {
let newItem = Item(context: viewContext)
newItem.timestamp = Date()
}
do {
try viewContext.save()
} catch {
let nsError = error as NSError
fatalError("Unresolved error \(nsError), \(nsError.userInfo)")
}
return result
}()
let container: NSPersistentContainer
init(inMemory: Bool = false) {
container = NSPersistentContainer(name: "SpotLightSearchTest")
if inMemory {
container.persistentStoreDescriptions.first!.url = URL(fileURLWithPath: "/dev/null")
}
container.loadPersistentStores(completionHandler: { [weak self] (storeDescription, error) in
if let error = error as NSError? {
fatalError("Unresolved error \(error), \(error.userInfo)")
}
if let description = self?.container.persistentStoreDescriptions.first {
description.setOption(true as NSNumber, forKey: NSPersistentHistoryTrackingKey)
description.type = NSSQLiteStoreType
if let coordinator = self?.container.persistentStoreCoordinator {
self?.spotlightDelegate = NSCoreDataCoreSpotlightDelegate(
forStoreWith: description,
coordinator: coordinator
)
self?.spotlightDelegate?.startSpotlightIndexing()
}
}
})
container.viewContext.automaticallyMergesChangesFromParent = true
}
}
in my @main view
struct SpotLightSearchTestApp: App {
let persistenceController = PersistenceController.shared
var body: some Scene {
WindowGroup {
ContentView()
.environment(\.managedObjectContext, persistenceController.container.viewContext)
.onContinueUserActivity(CSSearchableItemActionType) {_ in
print("")
}
}
}
}
onContinueUserActivity(CSSearchableItemActionType) {_ in
print("")
}
never gets triggered. Sow What am I missing that they dont explain in the blog post or videos ?
I have just purchased an Apple developer Account from Bangladesh and it sent codes perfectly for the first 2-3 times for logging in, but after that no matter what I do it doesn't send verification code and I am stuck, I now cannot log in and this is extremely extremely frustrating
Hi,
I am setting an accessibilityLabel and accessibilityHint property of a UIAlertAction. However, VoiceOver is only reading the label out. Usually, the label is read out, followed by a short pause and then the hint. Is this a known issue, where hints do not work for this element? I can append the hint to the label, but interested to know if there's something I'm doing wrong.
Regards.
When VoiceOver reads decimal numbers with six or more digits after the decimal, it stops announcing the decimal separator and also adds pauses between each digit.
Text("0.12345") // VoiceOver: "zero **point** one two three four five"
Text("0.123456") // VoiceOver: "zero one, two, three, four, five, six"
How can I force VoiceOver to announce the decimal separator ("point") and not insert pauses regardless of the number of decimal digits?
there is no possibility to sett the allow mobile Data switch I have the latest update but still does not work and I realised it when I went to another country and I could not sett my Mobile data and when I came back still I could not.
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General
Say I have a UI element that moves on the screen. Is it possible to update its accessibility frame as it moves while VoiceOver is focused on it? From my tests, VoiceOver ignores UIAccessibilityLayoutChangedNotification if it's sent repeatedly in a short period of time on iOS, while sending NSAccessibilityLayoutChangedNotification on macOS triggers VoiceOver to reannounce the focused element repeatedly.
Good day!
I have a long-term project ported all the way up from old Think C through many versions of Xcode. Its source files are encoded in "Western (Mac OS Roman)".
Some of my error messages have characters outside the straight ASCII character set (i.e. "å"). The editor correctly displays these, but I get plenty of Illegal Character warnings and the messages do not display properly.
I imagine there's a way to have seperate files of localized text for internationalized applications, but I am the only end-user of this application, and it used to just plain work in earlier Xcode versions. Furthermore, there must be developers throughout Europe who use such characters in string literals, just typing in their native languages, straight off their keyboards.
I was thinking that there must be a Clang setting or something, but have been unable to find it, and an internet search turns up no solution except to cumbersomely escape each individual character. I can't imagine that a French programmer does that every time they want to type "è", "é", or "à"!
Any help? (Disclaimer: I'm an English speaker and only use such characters whimsically, but want to keep them for legacy's sake.)
Thanks....
p.s. using Xcode 15.3, and under Settings->Text Editing->Editing, "Western (Mac OS Roman)" is already selected as the default text encoding with "Convert existing files on save" checked.
Description
When calling AppStore.showManageSubscriptions(in:), the system modal for managing subscriptions appears visually. However, it is not automatically focused by VoiceOver, and in some cases, VoiceOver still allows interaction with elements in the underlying view controller, such as buttons and labels. This creates confusion and violates accessibility expectations.
Steps to Reproduce
1. In a UIKit app, present the system subscription sheet via AppStore.showManageSubscriptions(in:).
2. Ensure VoiceOver is enabled on the device.
3. Observe the focus behavior when the modal appears.
4. Try swiping right/left — VoiceOver continues to announce items in the presenting view controller.
Expected Result
The modal should automatically take VoiceOver focus, and all elements behind it should be non-accessible until dismissed.
Actual Result
VoiceOver continues to focus and interact with elements behind the presented modal.
Notes
• Tested on iOS 18.5
• Reproducible on device
• Using Swift/UIKit (not SwiftUI)
Topic:
Accessibility & Inclusion
SubTopic:
General