WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

E-mail List Archives

Re: do you call a combo box a "combo box" in userdocumentation?

for

From: JP Jamous
Date: Mar 22, 2018 11:48AM

Glen,

The term Combo box comes from the Windows environment and not the Internet. It used to refer to the list box that has a text area where you can type the information and the list is populated as you type. A good example would be the Address bard in a browser or the edit combo in the Run dialog box in Windows.

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ee671622(v=vs.85).aspx

As this is no longer the case on the internet, I agree with your content editors. Dropdown is what I use to refer to combo boxes. I have been using this term for the last 5 years and eliminate the Combo box term from my head unless I am talking about a Windows application. I may refer to an edit field such as the Google search box as a combo box, because it let's you type and as you type it pulls the list of results in a dropdown menu.

I think that the reason why combo box still exists in screen readers such as JAWS is because of Windows. If I am writing JAWS scripts for a Windows UI, I still refer to objects as combo boxes. The moment I am developing a web application or writing about one, I use dropdown element. While this is my own personal language, it does stay close to the intent of each type of object. Also, most web developers and UX designers say dropdown rather than combo box. In fact, I cannot recall any UX Designer or Developer stating combo box in the last 2 corporates I have worked at.

I hope that helps.



--------------------
JP Jamous
Senior Digital Accessibility Engineer
E-Mail Me |Join My LinkedIn Network
--------------------


-----Original Message-----
From: WebAIM-Forum < <EMAIL REMOVED> > On Behalf Of glen walker
Sent: Thursday, March 22, 2018 11:56 AM
To: WebAIM Discussion List < <EMAIL REMOVED> >
Subject: [WebAIM] do you call a combo box a "combo box" in user documentation?

We are writing user guides and describing what actions you have to take to change settings or print a report, etc. My advice to the documentation writers is to use the "accessible name" (normally the label for the object) and to include the object's type. So, for example, we'd say "Select the Settings link" or "select the Start Date button".

But I'm not sure what to do with combo boxes (<select>/<option>). We want the guides written for everyone. Technically, JAWS and NVDA call the objects a "combo box". Voiceover calls them a "pop up button". But a sighted user doesn't care what a screen reader calls them. "Combo box" is kind of a technical term.

The writer's a leaning towards "drop down menu". That sort of explains the behavior of the object. It does drop down and usually gives you a menu or list of choices. Perhaps "drop down list"? Would either of those terms makes sense to all users? If you're used to hearing AT say "combo box", and then you listen to the user documentation and it says "drop down list", is that ok?