Hi all,
I've been noticing that NVDA's browse mode has been jumping around when trying to read ebooks in Thorium. I've been noticing this since the more recent alpha builds of Thorium 3.1 (the behavior is still present in the stable 3.1 release and the alpha build of Thorium 3.2).
Anyone else using Thorium (especially the stable 3.1 release and the 3.2 alpha build) notice this behavior? Is there a way to stop NVDA from constantly jumping around when reading ebooks?
By Nut, 24 February, 2025
Forum
Windows
Comments
NVDA settings
Hi,
If you go to 'browse mode settings' in NVDA's preferences, and disable 'automatic focus mode for focus changes' and 'automatic focus mode for caret movement', that should stop NVDA from jumping around. This worked for me when reading PDF documents in Brave and Google Chrome. Incidentally, I found Thorium a bit buggy, and I've heard the latest version isn't great. If you're still having problems with Thorium after trying the steps above, I'd recommend Bookworm. It's a pretty good reader.
https://x0box.xyz/uploads/bookworm/
The latest update is about three months old, but it's pretty good. I read an EPUB file and it worked great.
Bookworm
Bookworm is a good app, but it can't open DAISY textbooks. So if you're reading those titles, Bookworm might not be the solution.
@Tara
I just checked in my NVDA settings just now and the two settings you mentioned are unchecked.
The main reason I use Thorium is because I can press ctrl+shift+k to know the page that I'm on (at least for most books) and formatting like blockquotes are at least preserved in Thorium. Bookworm, it seems, presents opened documents as plain text, without any kind of formatting and also I don't think there's a hotkey to have NVDA announce the page that I'm on.
This is a longshot, but…
Could it be possible that you are bumping your trackpad while reading your books? That would definitely cause NVDA to, "jump around", while reading.
re Nut
OK, so Thorium usually works well for you. No point in getting Bookworm then if you can avoid it. Brian might be right about the trackpad, particularly if this has only recently started happening.
I'm on a desktop
I'm on a desktop, not a laptop, and I have no trackpads connected, so surely that can't be an issue.
Both my keyboard and my mouse are housed in a small pull-out compartment under my table ()you know the ones you'd normally find in tables designed for desktop computers).
recent
I'm guessing this is a recent problem. I know Thorium had an update recently about a week ago, and someone said it was buggy. Maybe this is a bug with the software.
@Tara
That's what I'm suspecting. This bug has been there since the more recent alpha builds of Thorium 3.1, and it is still there in the alpha build of Thorium 3.2 and the stable 3.1 release that came out last week or so.
I wonder whether anyone has reported this bug to the developers...
Sounds frustrating
I'm glad to hear it's not a trackpad issue, but now I am banging my head trying to figure this one out. It could be, as you all have surmised, a bug in this latest software.
Some optional things you could try:
Turn off dynamic content. I believe the hotkey is NVDA + 5, or 6, on the numeric row. Not the NumPad.
Make sure mouse Tracking is disabled, and that you have disabled mouse navigation with the keyboard. I think this is NVDA + M, or NVDA + shift + M.
These may, or may not, have any effect on Thorium, but I figure it can't hurt to try. 🤷🏽♂️
@Brian
I just tried your suggestions and nope there is no difference.
Selecting the only for me option during install also makes no difference (previously I set it to install for all users).
Fair enough
I'm going to guess its just a software update issue then. I am out of ideas otherwise. 😣