Google Docs and VO in Safari

By Jurgen, 16 January, 2024

Forum
macOS and Mac Apps

Hi,
a friend sent a link to a Google Docs sheet. I clicked it and it opened in Safari. I activated accessibility improvements but couldn't find the sheet itself. I found the toolbar and the menuebar and some other elements but no sign of the wanted sheet.
I then searched on Applevis for formu topics and found the last one from 2019. Long time ago.
So: Is anyone aware whether Google Docs accessibility broke down or am I doing something wrong?
Or would you recommend to use Google Docs on iPhone rather than on the Mac?
Thanks and all the best
Jürgen

Options

Comments

By PaulMartz on Wednesday, January 17, 2024 - 09:45

I'd like to direct you to this blog I wrote, which covers Google Drive and Google Docs. The information might be helpful. I wanted to write a similar article about Google Sheets, but I never quite got around to it.

Note that Google Drive has a huge problem on MacOS in Safari. VoiceOver doesn't read the document name. I use VO+F3 as a workaround, or I use Google Chrome instead of Safari.

But now, about your problem. When you open a document, either a Doc or a Sheet, what you want to hear is the phrase "screen reader mode enabled." When you hear that, everything is working normally and your focus is at the first line of the Doc or in the upper left cell of the Sheet.

About one out of every three times I open a Doc or Sheet, that doesn't happen. I don't know why. Like you, no amount of navigating brings focus to the document content.

Things to try.

  • Press Escape. If you hear "screen reader mode enabled," you should be good. Unfortunately, pressing Escape often has no effect.
  • Refresh (Command+R).
  • Close the Doc or Sheet, and reopen it from Drive.

It's frustrating. I hope this helps.