microsoft / microsoft/terminal

{Freeway Bug} [Windows Terminal - Settings - New Tab Menu]: Screen reader does not announce confirmation or status updates when profiles are moved or deleted.

Open
#20,592 0 comments 0 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub
A11ySev3 A11yWCAG Area-Accessibility HCL-E+D HCL-WindowsTerminal Issue-Bug Product-Terminal WindowsTerminal_Win32
Dominant language
C++
Stars
105k
Forks
9.6k
Avg merge
3d 17h
Merged PRs (30d)
29

Description

### Windows Terminal version

1.25.1912.0

### Windows build number

28120.2760

### Other Software

**Test Environment:**
OS: Windows 11 Version Dev (OS Build 28120.2760)
App: Windows Terminal Preview
Screen Reader: Narrator

### Steps to reproduce

**Repro steps:**

1. Open the 'Windows Terminal' application.
2. Navigate to 'Settings' control and activate it.
3. 'Settings' page will open.
4. Turn on Narrator by pressing 'Ctrl + Win + Enter' keys.
5. Now navigate to 'New Tab Menu' tab in left navigation pane and activate it.
6. 'New Tab Menu' page will open.
7. Using a screen reader, navigate to the list of menu entries (for example, Windows PowerShell, Separator, Remaining Profiles).
8. Move focus to any profile entry (for example, Windows PowerShell).
9. Navigate to the Move Up, Move Down, or Delete action button.
10. Activate any of these controls using Enter or Space.
11. Observe the screen reader announcements after the action is performed.

**User experience:**
Screen reader users may be unaware whether their action was successfully executed. Without audible confirmation, users may repeatedly invoke commands, become confused about the current ordering of profiles, or be unable to confidently determine whether a profile has been deleted or repositioned, resulting in an inefficient and frustrating experience.

**Attachment:**
https://onedrive.cloud.microsoft/:u:/a@pz6xd287/S/IQD_ZRlZuhKYT4PEEPCSZlb3AXQYvBerinM2GXo9L1PmIbE?e=LdoVPu

**WCAG Reference Link:**
https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG22/Understanding/info-and-relationships

### Expected Behavior

Screen reader users should receive immediate confirmation when an action is completed. Examples include:

- "Windows PowerShell profile moved up by 1 position."
- "Windows PowerShell profile moved down by 1 position."
- "Windows PowerShell profile deleted."
- "Item moved to position 3 of 5."

Any equivalent status message that clearly communicates the outcome of the action should be announced programmatically through an appropriate live region or accessibility notification.

### Actual Behavior

After activating the Move Up, Move Down, or Delete controls, the action is performed visually, but no confirmation, status message, or feedback is announced by the screen reader. Users are not informed whether the profile was moved successfully, deleted, or how its position changed within the list.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Reproduce the issue in Windows Terminal Settings > New Tab Menu with Narrator, using the Move Up, Move Down, and Delete controls. Locate the handlers for these actions and the existing accessibility notification mechanism; done means each action announces a clear confirmation or resulting position to the screen reader.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Domain
accessibility, desktop
Issue type
Bug
Difficulty
3/5
Estimated time
1-2 days
Activity status
Active
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
55/100

Get new issues in your inbox

A short digest of beginner-friendly GitHub issues.