Skip to main content

Notice: this Wiki will be going read only early in 2024 and edits will no longer be possible. Please see: https://gitlab.eclipse.org/eclipsefdn/helpdesk/-/wikis/Wiki-shutdown-plan for the plan.

Jump to: navigation, search

Difference between revisions of "Platform UI/Accessibility Features"

 
Line 2: Line 2:
  
 
Since Eclipse 2.0 the Eclipse UI has tried to be as accessible as possible. There are two focusses here - making the IDE accessible and making it possible to write an accessible application using the Eclipse API with a minimum of work. This entry will focus on what you get without any extra work to be done on your part.
 
Since Eclipse 2.0 the Eclipse UI has tried to be as accessible as possible. There are two focusses here - making the IDE accessible and making it possible to write an accessible application using the Eclipse API with a minimum of work. This entry will focus on what you get without any extra work to be done on your part.
 +
 +
Most of the accessibility support comes direct from SWT. If you don't use any custom widgets and follow good accessibility practises (see the [http://w3-03.ibm.com/able/devtest/software.html IBM Accessibility checklist]) then you will get thier support as well.
 +
 +
Having said that there are places within the Platform UI that have been given some accessibility features.
  
 
'''TitleAreaDialog'''
 
'''TitleAreaDialog'''
Line 8: Line 12:
  
 
[[Image:Titleareadialog.png]]
 
[[Image:Titleareadialog.png]]
 +
 
'''IconAndMessageDialog'''
 
'''IconAndMessageDialog'''
  
 
Screen readers try and do thier best to read the content of a dialog but tend to give up when they hit the first non labelled child of the Shell. We changed the IconAndMessageDialog (parent of MessageDialog, ErrorDialog and many others) to have a label that is a direct child of the shell so that it is already read.
 
Screen readers try and do thier best to read the content of a dialog but tend to give up when they hit the first non labelled child of the Shell. We changed the IconAndMessageDialog (parent of MessageDialog, ErrorDialog and many others) to have a label that is a direct child of the shell so that it is already read.
 +
 +
[[Image:confirm.png]]
 +
 +
'''High Contrast Presentation Change'''
 +
 +
Eclipse ships with 2 presentations - the default presentation (which uses the font settings defined in the JFace resources properties for each platform and Locale) and the system default presentation which only uses the system fonts and colours. When you switch into High Contrast Mode Eclipse will prompt you for a restart and switch the presentation to the default one.

Revision as of 15:28, 3 November 2006

Accessibility Best Practises in the Eclipse UI

Since Eclipse 2.0 the Eclipse UI has tried to be as accessible as possible. There are two focusses here - making the IDE accessible and making it possible to write an accessible application using the Eclipse API with a minimum of work. This entry will focus on what you get without any extra work to be done on your part.

Most of the accessibility support comes direct from SWT. If you don't use any custom widgets and follow good accessibility practises (see the IBM Accessibility checklist) then you will get thier support as well.

Having said that there are places within the Platform UI that have been given some accessibility features.

TitleAreaDialog

The TitleAreaDialog is the abstract superclass of WizardDialog and PreferenceDialog among others. It has an area that is used to display status and error messages. When an error is displayed a user using an assistive technology such as a screen reader may need to give focus to the error in order to read it. We do this by using a non editable Text rather than a label in the message area of the dialog.

Titleareadialog.png

IconAndMessageDialog

Screen readers try and do thier best to read the content of a dialog but tend to give up when they hit the first non labelled child of the Shell. We changed the IconAndMessageDialog (parent of MessageDialog, ErrorDialog and many others) to have a label that is a direct child of the shell so that it is already read.

Confirm.png

High Contrast Presentation Change

Eclipse ships with 2 presentations - the default presentation (which uses the font settings defined in the JFace resources properties for each platform and Locale) and the system default presentation which only uses the system fonts and colours. When you switch into High Contrast Mode Eclipse will prompt you for a restart and switch the presentation to the default one.

Copyright © Eclipse Foundation, Inc. All Rights Reserved.