This appendix describes accessibility features in Oracle E-Business Suite.
Set the Accessibility mode on the login page under Accessibility.
Alternatively, the accessibility mode can be set on the Preferences page under "Accessibility" or by using the profile option Self Service Accessibility Features.
Once the Accessibility mode is set, it does not need to be set again for future sessions.
The options are:
None: Pages include behaviors that are not accessible.
Standard Accessibility: Pages are accessible to keyboard-only users and those using assistive technologies such as screen magnifiers.
Screen Reader Optimized: Pages are accessible to screen reader users.
When Screen Reader Optimized mode is on, it adds extra information and may move content around so that pages work better with a screen reader.
In Screen Reader Optimized mode, tip text is displayed on the left side of the input field, depending on language session being used. In None or Standard mode, tip text is displayed below the input field.
To specify look and feel for HTML-based applications, set the profile option Oracle Applications Look and Feel. See My Oracle Support Document 1315510.1, "Oracle Application Framework Profile Options," for more information. Colors can also be set by choosing different operating system color schemes and specifying that the browser should use them.
The following components are covered:
Access keys can be enabled or disabled using the Disable Access Keys check box on the Preferences page.
The following hot keys are supported in HTML-based applications.
The following table lists actions and associated keys. To perform the action in Windows Internet Explorer, press the Alt key + the key listed in the table.
In Firefox, press Shift + Alt + the key listed in the table. Note that in Windows Internet Explorer, for buttons, the access key "activates" the button. That is, typing the access key moves the focus to the button and submits the associated action. In Firefox, for buttons, the access key puts the focus on the button but does not submit any action.
| Action | Key |
|---|---|
| Apply | p |
| Back | k |
| Cancel | l |
| Continue | c |
| Finish | i |
| Next | x |
| No | n |
| Save | s |
| Search | r |
| Submit | m |
| Yes | y |
| Right Subtab | > |
| Left Subtab | < |
Enabled inline attachment pop-ups are focusable and are accessible by the Tab key. They may also be closed by pressing the Escape key.
A Hide/Show subtab region contains a subtab layout that appears vertically on the page.
Using the keyboard, you can access the Hide/Show subtab layout by pressing the Tab key until focus reaches the first subtab of the layout. Pressing Tab again focuses on the subsequent component within that subtab.
To navigate between subtabs, use the navigation keys. Use the Down arrow key or Right arrow key to focus on the next subtab. Use the Up arrow key or the Left arrow key to focus on the previous subtab.
When one or more date fields appear on a page, an Inline Date Picker may be displayed on the page, allowing users to quickly select dates for those fields.
If you have the Self Service Accessibility Features profile set to "Screen Reader Optimized", the feature is not enabled. The date can be entered manually into the field without using the Inline Date Picker.
If you have the Self Service Accessibility Features profile set to "Standard Accessibility" and there is more than one date field associated with the Inline Date Picker, you may need to enter the date manually into the fields or use the Date Picker pop-up window.
A list box lets a user select one or more values from a list.
With the focus on list box, pressing the Up or Down arrow key will shift the focus to the next item and select it. If Multi-Select Allowed is enabled, then holding the Shift key while pressing the Up/Down arrow key will select multiple items, if applicable.
The List of Values component has type-ahead search capabilities. As a user types in characters in the LOV search field, the results are fetched and displayed. The user can select a value from this look ahead window just as in the classic LOV window.
Keyboard navigation is as follows:
Down arrow - Moves the focus to the first record if no record currently has the focus, or moves the focus to the next record if a record already has the focus.
Up arrow - Moves the focus to the previous record. If the current record with focus is the first record, the Up arrow removes the focus from that record. If no record currently has focus, the Up arrow has no effect.
Tab - Selects the current record with focus.
Escape - Dismisses the Look Ahead LOV window without selecting a record.
Alt+< or Alt+Shift+, (comma) - Navigates to the previous page of records.
Alt+> or Alt+Shift+. (period) - Navigates to the next page of records.
Alt+r - Opens the LOV window where you can refine your search.
Spacebar - Selects the current value with focus.
Note: The Look Ahead LOV is not available for Screen Reader Optimized mode.
If you have the Self Service Accessibility Features profile set to "Standard Accessibility" or "Screen Reader Optimized", use the following keys to interact with the panel splitter region.
Tab - navigates focus onto the collapsible/expandable icon.
Left arrow or Down arrow - with focus on the collapsible/expandable icon, moves the position of the splitter bar left or down.
Right arrow or Up arrow - with focus on the collapsible/expandable icon, moves the position of the splitter bar right or up.
Enter - with focus on the collapsible/expandable icon, expands or collapses the collapsible panel.
Modal and non-modal pop-up windows are invoked by pressing the Enter key and navigable with the Tab and Shift+Tab keys. For modal pop-up windows, the focus stays within the pop-up until it is cancelled or submitted. For non-modal pop-up windows, pressing the F6 key moves the focus between the base page and current opened pop-up. They may be closed by pressing the Escape key.
A Processing page lets users know that a long-running process is working in the background. When Screen Reader Optimized mode is on, the user gets a Refresh Status button and must press it to continue.
A rating bar allows users to rate a product, service, or entity.
Use the following keys to interact with an updatable rating bar:
Left arrow or Down arrow - moves the focus to the previous rating image of the rating bar. If the focus is already on the first rating image, pressing either of these keys shifts the focus to the last rating image of the same rating bar.
Right arrow or Up arrow - moves the focus to the next rating image of the rating bar. If the focus is already on the last rating image, pressing either of these keys shifts the focus to first rating image.
Tab - moves the focus to the next page element. If the current focus is on the rating bar, pressing the Tab key shifts the focus to the next element on the page. If the current focus is on an element prior to a rating bar, pressing Tab moves the focus to the rated image of the rating bar. For example, if a rating bar rates a three out of five, then pressing Tab from a previous page element shifts the focus to the third image of the rating bar.
Shift+Tab - moves the focus to the previous page element from the rating bar. If the previous page element is another rating bar, pressing Shift+Tab shifts the focus to rated image of the previous rating bar.
Spacebar or Enter - if focus is on a rating image on a rating bar, pressing the Spacebar or Enter key rates the current rating bar with that rating value. For example, if the focus is on the fourth star of a rating bar, pressing either of these keys rates the rating bar with four stars.
If you have the Self Service Accessibility Features profile set to "Standard Accessibility" or "Screen Reader Optimized", you may still take advantage of the following rich table interactions through a simpler user interface that does not require a mouse (except for resizing a column).
Use the Tab key or Shift+Tab key combination to move the cursor focus to the Detach Table, Refresh Table, Reset Table, Table Settings, or Column Freeze icon in the control bar.
To move the cursor up or down between form fields of the same column of a detached table, use Alt+Up arrow or Alt+Down arrow key combinations, respectively. To move the cursor forwards or backwards between form fields, use the Tab key or the Shift+Tab key combination, respectively.
Use the Escape key to reattach the table to its base page.
Users can scroll vertically and horizontally with Up/Down arrow keys and Left/Right arrow keys, respectively. In Screen Reader Optimized mode, rather than vertical scrolling, there is pagination so user may select the "Next" and "Previous" links to display next or previous sets of rows.
Use the Tab key or the Shift+Tab key combination to move the cursor focus to the Table Settings icon in the control bar.
Press the Enter key to toggle the display of the menu.
Alternatively, with the focus on the Table Settings icon, you may press the Down arrow key to display the menu and move the focus onto the first item of the menu.
Note: Accessibility behavior may differ based on the language session used. For example, in an Arabic session Left arrow functions like the English Right arrow.
Press Enter to display the Table Settings menu that lists the columns of the table.
Use the Up arrow key or the Down arrow key to navigate between column names, "wrapping" at the top and bottom of the menu.
With focus on a column name, press Control+Up arrow to move the column up the menu list, keeping focus on the moved column.
With focus on a column name, , press Control+Down arrow to move the column down the menu list, keeping focus on the moved column.
With the focus on a column name, you can apply the change by pressing the Escape key which also closes the menu.
Press the Enter key to display the Table Settings menu that lists the columns of the table.
Press Tab to move the focus to the column names in the menu.
Use the Up arrow key or the Down arrow key to navigate between column names, "wrapping" at the top and bottom of the menu.
With the focus on a column name, press the Spacebar key to check or uncheck the focused column name. A check shows the column.
With the focus on a column name, you can apply the change by pressing any of the following:
Escape - which also closes the menu and returns focus to the menu-enabled item.
Tab - which also closes the menu and navigates to the next item on the page.
Shift+Tab - which also closes the menu and moves focus back to the menu- enabled item.
Column resizing is not supported if the Self Service Accessibility Features profile is set to "Standard Accessibility" or "Screen Reader Optimized".
If you have the Self Service Accessibility Features profile set to "Screen Reader Optimized", the column freeze feature is disabled.
If you have the Self Service Accessibility Features profile set to "Standard Accessibility", you can use the following keyboard commands.
Use the Tab key or Shift+Tab key combination to move the cursor focus to the Column Freeze icon in the control bar.
Press Enter to display a menu that lists the columns of the table.
Press Tab to move the focus to the column names in the menu.
Use the Up arrow key or the Down arrow key to navigate between column names, "wrapping" at the top and bottom of the menu.
With the focus on a column name, press the Spacebar key to select the column to freeze.
With the focus on a column name, you can apply the change by pressing any of the following:
Escape, which also closes the menu and returns focus to the menu-enabled item.
Tab, which also closes the menu and navigates to the next item on the page.
Shift+Tab, which also closes the menu and moves focus back to the menu-enabled item.
Use the Left arrow or Right arrow keys to scroll the table horizontally.
The tri-state check box is used to select or deselect all of the rows in a table. The tri-state check box may be selected or deselected with the Spacebar key.
See: Querying and Viewing Data for more information.
Accessibility of the Rich Text Editor is determined by the Accessibility mode as follows:
Standard Accessibility: Strict accessibility compliance is met and the Rich Text Editor is always rendered in Text Mode.
Screen Reader Optimized: Content is optimized for screen readers and the Rich Text Editor is always rendered in Text Mode.
None: Code is optimized to strip out Accessibility-specific constructs and the Rich Text Editor is rendered in Rich Text Mode, along with a Switch Mode hyperlink.
A shuttle component is used to assemble a list of items, by moving or adding items from one list to another.
Keyboard navigation is as follows: press Tab or Shift+Tab to navigate through leading lists, trailing lists, and buttons.
For selection: with the focus on either the leading list box or trailing list box, pressing the Up arrow key or the Down arrow key will shift the focus to the next item and select it. If Multi-Select Allowed is enabled, you can select multiple items by holding the Shift key while pressing the Up or Down arrow key.
With the focus on any of the buttons (Move, Remove or Reorder), you can take the corresponding action on selected items by pressing Space.
A spin box allows a user to select a numeric value from a predefined range.
With the focus is on the spin box input field, the following keystrokes result in the given actions:
Up arrow - increases the current value by the defined step size, as long as the maximum value has not been reached. If the maximum value displays, nothing happens.
Down arrow - decreases the current value by the defined step size, as long as the minimum value has not been reached. If the minimum value displays, nothing happens.
Tab - triggers the action associated with the spin box, if any.
Page Up - same as Up arrow.
Page Down - same as Down arrow.
Home - set to maximum value.
End - set to minimum value.
A subtab allows you to access a single page's contents in a tabbed layout.
At runtime, users can navigate from one horizontal subtab to the next by using accelerator keys on the keyboard. Note that the accelerator keys do not cycle to the first subtab from the last subtab or to the last subtab from the first subtab.
For Microsoft Internet Explorer, use [Alt] + [.] and [Alt] + [,]. These keys only focus on the subtab elements but do not activate them. To display the subtab content, you also need to press the [Enter] key.
For Google Chrome, use [Alt] + [.] and [Alt] + [,]. These keys select and also activate the next and previous subtab in the browser respectively.
For Mozilla Firefox, use [Alt] +[Shift]+[.] and [Alt] +[Shift]+[,]. These keys select and activate the next and previous subtab in the browser respectively.
Users can navigate from one vertical subtab to the next by using the up, down, left or right arrow keys and then press [Tab] to access the content within the vertical subtab layout.
In general, keyboard interaction for tiles is similar to that for subtabs. The keyboard interactions common to both vertical and horizontal display mode of tiles are:
Tab - moves focus to next page element. Note that only the active tile is in the tab order. If the current focus is on the active tile itself, pressing the Tab key shifts focus to the first "tab-able" element in the active tile's content region.
Home - with focus on active tile, pressing the Home key shifts focus to the first tile of the tile list and activates that tile.
End - with focus on active tile, pressing the End key shifts focus to last tile of the tile list and activates that tile.
Control+Page Up - with focus anywhere within the tile's content region, pressing Control+Page Up shifts focus from the current tile to the previous tile and activates it. If the currently selected tile is the first tile, then this action shifts the focus to the last tile and activates it.
Control+Page Down - with focus anywhere within the tile's content region, pressing Control+Page Down shifts focus from the current tile to the next tile and activates it. If the currently selected tile is the last tile then this action shifts the focus to the first tile and activates it.
Keyboard interactions for horizontal display mode:
Left or Right arrow - with focus on the active tile, pressing the Left/Right arrow key shifts focus to the previous/next (next/previous in a right-to-left session) tile in the tile list and activates it. If the currently selected tile is the last tile, pressing the Right arrow key (Left arrow key for a right-to-left session) shifts focus to the first tile. If the currently selected tile is the first tile, pressing the Left arrow key (Right arrow key for a right-to-left session) shifts focus to the last tile.
Control+Up arrow- with focus anywhere within the tile's content region, pressing Control+Up arrow shifts focus to the currently selected tile.
Keyboard interactions for vertical display mode:
Up arrow or Down arrow - with focus on the active tile, pressing the Up/Down arrow key shifts focus to the previous/next tile in tile list and activates it. If the currently selected tile is the last tile, pressing the Down arrow key shifts focus to the first tile. If the currently selected tile is the first tile, pressing the Up arrow key shifts focus to the last tile.
Control+Left arrow (Right arrow in a right-to-left session) - with focus anywhere within the tile's content region, pressing Control+Left arrow (Right arrow in a right-to-left session) shifts focus to the currently selected tile.
With the Top-level Menu Display Style set to "Icons and Links", you can use the keyboard to navigate the top-level menu as follows:
Tab - moves focus to the next page element. Only the active menu item of the top-level menu is in the tab order. With the focus on an active menu in the top-level menu, pressing the Tab key again shifts the focus to the next tab-able element in the content region.
Home - with focus on an active menu, pressing the Home key shifts the focus to the first menu item of the top-level menu and activates that menu.
End - with focus on an active menu, pressing the End key shifts focus to the last menu item of the top-level menu and activates that menu.
Control+Page Up - with focus anywhere within a content region of a selected menu, pressing Control+Page Up shifts focus from the currently selected menu to the previous menu and activates it; if the currently selected menu is the first menu item in the top-level menu, then focus shifts to the last menu item in the top-level menu and activates it.
Control+Page Down - with focus anywhere within a content region of a selected menu, pressing Control+PageDown shifts focus from the currently selected menu to the next menu and activates it; if the currently selected menu is the last item in the top-level menu, then focus shifts to the first menu item in the top-level menu and activates it.
Left arrow/Right arrow - with focus on the active menu, pressing the Left arrow key or Right arrow key shifts focus to the previous or next (or next/previous in a right-to-left session) menu item in the top-level menu and activates it. If the currently selected menu is the last menu item in the top-level menu, pressing Right arrow (or Left arrow for a right-to-left session) shifts focus to first menu and vice versa.
Control+Up arrow - with focus anywhere within a content region, pressing Control+Up arrow shifts focus to the currently selected menu.
Users with low vision can:
Run forms with any color scheme set on the operating system by using the Generic look and feel or use one of several pre-defined schemes with the Oracle look and feel
Turn off hard-coded colors
Set operating system Font Size with DPI which affects the overall size of all items in a form
Use a screen magnifier that supports Java.
Users with physical limits can:
Run forms with just the keyboard
Use access keys to activate menu items, push buttons, radio buttons, checkboxes
Invoke the "List Tab Pages" function (typically mapped as F2) to switch tab pages
Change forms keystroke mappings that are displayed in the "Keyboard Help"
Use operating system accessibility features such as Sticky Keys and Toggle Keys
Use a voice recognition program to give commands and enter data
Screen reader users can:
Run forms with just the keyboard
Use access keys to activate menu items, push buttons, radio buttons, checkboxes
Invoke the "List Tab Pages" function (typically mapped as F2) to switch tab pages
Change forms keystroke mappings that are displayed in the "Keyboard Help"
Use operating system accessibility features such as Sticky Keys and Toggle Keys
Run forms with a screen reader that supports Java such as JAWS or SuperNova
Use Oracle E-Business Suite features that display all items and push buttons in a window
Key-F9 function -- Prompt/Value LOV (typically mapped as Ctrl+Shift+F9)
Key-F8 function -- Actions LOV (Typically mapped as Ctrl+Shift+F8)
Use Oracle E-Business Suite feature called Forms Personalization to change "speakable prompts"
Hearing impaired users can:
Turn on operating system accessibility feature SoundSentry to generate a visual warning when the system makes a sound
Oracle Forms supports the Java Access Bridge, which allows integration with screen reader assistive technologies that also support Java. The Java Access Bridge must be enabled or installed (dependent on version) so that Oracle Forms, the JRE and the Java enabled screen reader may interact. Java Access Bridge is included with JRE Release 7 Update 6 (7u6) and later. By default, Java Access Bridge is not enabled. For information how to enable the Java Access Bridge, please see the Java Accessibility Guide at http://docs.oracle.com/javase/7/docs/technotes/guides/access/index.html. When using versions of JRE before Java 7 Update 6, you will need to get Java Access Bridge from http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/tech/index-jsp-136191.html as a separate download and install it.
Oracle E-Business Suite incorporates a feature that allows any user to see the current screen in a compressed, text-only pop-up window format called LOV (List of Values). Fields which cannot take focus because they are 'non-navigable' will not allow a screen reader to read their value and prompt. To account for this, Oracle E-Business Suite has special code that presents all fields in the current window, as well non-navigable fields in the window in special LOVs. Included in the LOVs are the values of display items, which otherwise would not be easily discernible with a screen reader because they are not keyboard navigable. These special text-only pop-up windows allow a screen reader user to quickly identify all widgets in the current window (but just the current row for multi-row blocks).
The 'Actions' LOV is invoked through the "KEY-F8" function and is a list of all push buttons in the current window. The 'Values' LOV is invoked through the "KEY-F9" function and is a list of all other widgets in the current window like text items, radio buttons, checkboxes and poplists. Each row in the LOV will be spoken by a screen reader. The LOVs are in alphabetical order. Both LOVs also show access keys for radio buttons, checkboxes and push buttons. Choosing a value from either the Actions or Values LOV will not cause focus to move to those fields or buttons.
The access keys displayed in the LOVs are within braces for translations purposes. For example, access key c is displayed as {C} and a screen reader will speak the text as "brace C brace". Check with the screen reader manufacturer if there is a way to change it to speak "Alt C" instead of "brace C brace" if this is annoying.
Note that the "KEY-Fn" function is not necessarily the "Fn" button on the keyboard. The current key mapping for the function can be shown in the "Keyboard Help" window. Typically the "KEY-Fn" function is mapped to Ctrl+Shift+Fn via the Oracle Terminal resource file.
Oracle E-Business Suite users can take advantage of a powerful feature called Forms Personalization if they don't like some of the "speakable prompts". My Oracle Support Note 395117.1 is available that explains Forms Personalization.
Users with low vision may set the desired colors using the operating system's provided schemes, then set profiles Java Look and Feel and Java Color Scheme.
To specify the look and feel, set profile Java Look and Feel to either "generic" or "oracle".
If the "oracle" look and feel is used, the profile Java Color Scheme can be specified as follows: "teal", "titanium", "red", "khaki", "blue", "olive", or "purple".
The Java Color Scheme profile has no effect if Java Look and Feel is set to "generic".
Oracle E-Business Suite by default renders:
Required fields are displayed in yellow.
Queryable fields are displayed in a different color while in enter-query mode.
Read-only fields are rendered in dark gray.
To turn off these features when running Oracle E-Business Suite Forms-based applications, set profile FND: Indicator Colors to "No".
Operating system settings such as Font Size, will affect the overall size of all items in a form. Often this is the only technique to adjust font sizes within a form, as they typically are hard-coded.
Windows 7 operating system instructions:
Go to Windows Control Panel ] Fonts ] Change font size ] Set custom text size (DPI) = 200%
Restart the computer.
Launch Forms and you should have a larger font.
All items used within Oracle Forms follow the standard operating system conventions for keyboard use. For example, on the Microsoft Windows operating systems use Alt+[letter] to activate items with access keys, Alt+down to open a poplist, and Alt to move focus to the menu. Oracle Forms should inherit operating system accessibility functions such as Sticky Keys. Tabs can be switched by invoking the "List Tab Pages" function (typically F2), in addition to using access keys on each tab label.
The "Keyboard Help" window displays the keystrokes to achieve normal Forms operations, such as 'Next Block' and 'Clear Record'. This window can be viewed at any time by pressing Ctrl+K. The keyboard mappings can be customized by the System Administrator. For more information, see the Oracle E-Business Suite Setup Guide.
A user running a screen reader will most likely need a modified keyboard mapping file, or will have to change the Assistive Technology keystrokes, as some of the default function mappings may conflict.
The following table lists common default Forms keystrokes on Microsoft Windows:
| Action | Keystroke |
|---|---|
| List of Forms Keys | Ctrl+k |
| Next Field | Tab |
| Previous Field | Shift+Tab |
| Next Block | Shift+Page Down |
| Previous Block | Shift+Page Up |
| Actions LOV | Ctrl+Shift+F8 |
| Values LOV | Ctrl+Shift+F9 |
| Activate default push button in a window if one exists | Enter Pressing the Enter key with the focus on a button will activate that button. If the focus is not on a button (or menu item), then the Enter key should activate the default button if one exists. |
| Save Record (Commit) | Ctrl+S |
| Clear Record | F6 |
| Create Record | The standard keystroke may be consumed by the screen reader, so you need to run with different terminal resource file to map Ctrl+Down Arrow to something else or just use the pull-down menu. |
| Close Window | Ctrl+F4 |
| List of Tab Pages | F2 |
| Activate Menu | Alt and then navigate with up/down and left/right arrow keys |
| Activate push buttons, radio buttons, checkboxes and topmost menu items | Alt+access key |
| Toggle between open/close poplist | Alt+Up/Down arrow keys |
| Activate current push button, Toggle checkbox yes/no | Spacebar |
| Cycle through and select a radio button within a radio group | Left/Right arrow keys and then Spacebar |
| Move to beginning of line | Home |
| Move to end of line | End |
| Select to end of line (there is no keystroke for "Select All") | Shift+End or Shift+Insert+End |
| Cut | Ctrl+x |
| Copy | Ctrl+c |
| Paste | Ctrl+v |
| Select the current tree node | Spacebar |
| Activate the current tree node (this expands or contracts the node if it is not a leaf node) | Enter |
| Move up the tree | Up arrow |
| Move down the tree | Down arrow |
| Move up the tree branch one parent at a time collapsing nodes | Left arrow |
| Move down the tree expanding parent nodes | Right arrow key |
| Move focus within tree without selection | Ctrl+Up/Down arrow keys |
| Move focus up/down the tree branch but not the selection | Ctrl+Left/Right arrow keys |
Oracle E-Business Suite includes a feature that renders an iconic button next to each field that has an LOV. The LOV can also be invoked from the keyboard by pressing the "List of Values" function (typically Ctrl+L).
Tabs in Oracle E-Business Suite can only be changed from the keyboard using the "List Tab Pages" function. Individual tab labels do not have access keys due to translation issues.