Bug: Accessibility regression: new “user onboarding” confusing for Orca users
Status: NEW
Priority: --
Created: 2021-11-03 17:59:53+00:00
Resolved: 2024-01-01 12:23:46+00:00

I humbly submit that bug 1706746 needs to be revisited  
with regard to accessibility.

If you have a screen reader such as Orca running, when first launching FF  
this is what your experience’ll be like (from FF 90 onward) :

`<launching the app>`
> Welcome to Firefox — Mozilla Firefox (frame).
> Finished loading Welcome to Firefox.
> Page has 1 landmark, 2 headings.
> Welcome to Firefox (heading level 1).
> Finished loading New Tab.
> Finished loading Firefox Privacy Notice — Mozilla.

Yes indeed, that’s quite a mouthful.  (And the Privacy  
Notice tab as a surprise guest does not help.)

What am I supposed to do now? Let’s try hitting some keys:  
`<return>` -> nothing happens.  
`<space>` -> nothing happens.

`<tab>`
> Make Firefox my default browser (push button).

`<tab>`
> Not now (push button).

Ok, let’s go with that.
`<space>`

And… nothing happens. Again: what am I supposed to do now?

`<tab>`
> Import from previous browser (push button).

`<tab>`
> Not now (push button).

`<space>`

Nothing happening. I’m starting to get the hang of it; let’s Tab.

`<tab>`
> Vibrant new colorways. Available for a limited time. (panel)  
Explore default themes. (selected radio button; 1 of 7)

Where on Earth am I? What is this about?

`<tab>`
> leaving panel.  
> Auto. (selected radio button; 2 of 3)
> Follow the operating system theme for buttons, menus, and windows.

Curiouser and curiouser.

`<tab>`
> Save colorway (push button).

What might a “colorway” be? Nothing to let me know.

`<tab>`
> Not now (push button).

Note that unlike previously where I had to Tab twice to get to  
the “Not now” button, here I had to Tab four times.

`<space>`

Again: nothing happens. Let’s try hitting Tab?

`<tab>`
> Start browsing push button.

Yes please!

`<space>`
> Finished loading New Tab.  
Page has 1 landmark, 8 unvisited links.
Personalize new tab (push button).  
Personalize new tab (push button).

No idea why that last button’s always read twice.  
I don’t know about you, but when I hit a button called  
“Start browsing”, I’d expect to (at long last) be in the  
urlBar or something. Not so here, and that’s not all:

`<tab>` -> nothing happens. Let’s try again:

`<tab>`
> Amazon Sponsored (link).

Oh. That is NOT what I was expecting.

`<tab>`
> Open context menu for Amazon (push button).  
Open menu.  (opens menu)  
Focus mode

`<tab>`
> eBay Sponsored (link).  
Browse mode

(Not sure why that switch between focus and browse mode.)

Quite frankly, _all_ of that could be easily avoidable if the  
urlBar were focused by default, as it used to be until late April 2021.  
As it is, the first impression for visually-impaired users is  
nothing short of terrible, and the oh-so-crucial “onboarding”,  
“engagement”, “creating value” and other all-important  
marketing gimmicks shouldn’t translate into such a hassle  
with regard to accessibility.

Even without rolling back 7655d08b10, there could be ways of  
making that first user experience much less terrible, merely by  
taking into account keyboard navigation and screen reader output.