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Re: Accessible jQuery UI DatePicker

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From: Alastair Campbell
Date: Sep 30, 2013 3:37AM

The article is interesting and I'm sure the techniques presented are useful
in some scenarios. However, given that the focus is never moved into the
date-picker, I struggling to see how useful it is to announce changes to
it? If it is, the issue Bryan outlined then become an issue.

When we've used a date-picker (jQuery UI or otherwise) the effort/reward
ratio of making it keyboard accessible seemed very low.

As a keyboard user, the effort of tabbing around the date-picker
(especially with multiple years available) was a big hassle. It required
many key-presses to complete a simple task. It is somewhat easier if you
have a screen reader and can use table-based navigation, but still a hassle
compared to typing in the date.

Therefore we took the approach of allowing keyboard entry on the input and
making very clear the format required. I.e. treating it as though there
were no date-picker, and applying good validation to the input. E.g.
<label for="date">Date (yyyy-mm-dd)</label><input...

From a general usability point of view the date-picker is useful if you are
using the mouse and the date you want is in the default set shown (e.g.
this month). Otherwise most people are going to find typing the date in as
easy as using date-picker, although some people will prefer to use the
mouse anyway.

But overall, if you treat it as a non-required enhancement, that seems to
be the most effective approach.

Is that what other people have done for this?

-Alastair