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Re: Tab widgets

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From: Tim Harshbarger
Date: Jul 6, 2011 9:39AM

OK, I am going to be difficult--not because I necessarily disagree, but because whatever guidance I provide to others, I need to be able to defend--well, not defend...the process isn't adversarial, but I have to be able to address concerns with the approach.

I know that in discussions about RIA widget interactions and how they should work, they looked at how various OS's handled those interactions. With regards to tabs and tab panels, the different OS's do not handle the revealing of new tab panel content the same way. So, the recommended approach in this document isn't necessarily recommended because its universal.

The recommended approach works very well if the tab panel content is preloaded. If it isn't, there is a possibility that the tab panel update can fall behind whatever the current tab focus is. Is that likely to cause issues for people using the keyboard to interact with tab widgets who can see what is happening? It might be an issue for screen reader users too--but since someone using a screen reader will have to select a tab and then move to the panel, enough time should pass for the DOM to be updated with the current content.

So is the potential delay in the update for the tab panel an issue that might cause problems for users or is it a non-issue? If it is a real concern, how are people addressing it?

Thanks!
Tim
Your Friendly Neighborhood Accessibility consultant
State Farm Insurance Companies