When dealing with a significant amount of data in audio graphs in numbers, voiceover becomes sluggish and crashes multiple times

By TheBllindGuy07, 4 December, 2024

Forum
macOS and Mac Apps

Disclaimer, this report was heavily corrected and refined using chatgpt and sent to apple afterwards.
FB16040223
**Issue Summary:**
When working with large datasets and utilizing the audio graph feature in macOS Numbers, VoiceOver becomes sluggish, unresponsive, and crashes frequently. This severely impacts usability and makes the feature impractical, especially for blind users who rely on VoiceOver for data interpretation in academic or professional settings.

**Steps to Reproduce:**
1. Generate a substantial dataset in Numbers for testing purposes.
2. Insert a 2D chart by selecting the chart option in the menu bar. By pressing command + space
3. Attempt to navigate the chart and interact with the audio graph using VoiceOver commands (e.g., VO-Cmd-Comma, VO-Cmd-Period).

**Observed Behavior:**
- After pressing Command + Space to insert the chart, VoiceOver becomes unresponsive for 3-4 seconds.
- Repeated error messages such as "Numbers is not responding" and "VoiceOver is not responding" are heard.
- VoiceOver re-reads the application layout, as if relaunching the app, when switching focus between the app and other windows (e.g., using Command + Tab).
- Navigation within the table (cell view) remains responsive, but issues arise when moving out of the table:
- Pressing VO-Right after de-interacting with the table causes VoiceOver to crash or produce significant delays.
- Interaction with the audio graph results in a 3-4 second delay, accompanied by error messages.
- Navigating between elements of the audio graph is excessively slow, with delays before sound playback or numerical value announcements.
- The table summarizing the audio graph (summary, statistics, min/max, etc.) is highly unresponsive:
- VoiceOver often misreads content, stating “cell: cell,” requiring interaction to sometimes reveal the actual content.

**Impact:**
This issue renders the audio graph feature effectively unusable, particularly for STEM students who rely on this functionality for interpreting data. The lack of responsiveness and frequent crashes make it unsuitable for academic work or professional use. As a blind STEM student, I had high hopes for VoiceOver's audio graph capabilities, but the current implementation falls short of expectations and disrupts productivity.

**Request for Action:**
I strongly urge the team to prioritize addressing these issues. The audio graph feature is a vital tool for blind users in STEM fields, and its current state undermines its potential. Timely fixes and improvements will significantly enhance accessibility and support for blind users in academia and beyond.

Thank you for addressing this issue. I look forward to updates and follow-ups on the progress of this matter.

PS: I obviously sent the .numbers file in question to Apple. Basically generate random numbers and autofill for about 100+ cells in whatever direction and create a chart.

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Comments

By TheBllindGuy07 on Thursday, December 5, 2024 - 06:27

It's worst with an actual school work I did awhile ago, I heard something like voiceoverserverui? voiceoverserviceui? ... does not respond. Sent to Apple with the new details.

By TheBllindGuy07 on Friday, December 6, 2024 - 06:27

I tested this on my iphone 14 as well and while the error messages of vo aren't there there is a noticeable slow down. Worst, after the audio graph has finished playing vo becomes completely unusable despite many restarts of VO and extensive waiting time between restarts, it's just as good as if it wasn't enabled. Even when I asked siri to restart it it didn't work despite opposite status of vo from siri. I was litteraly forced to ask siri to reboot my iphone for me (without hoping it'd work but it does and it's the first time in awhile siri gives me this wow effect)... I reported this to apple.