Dialog: Add option to set which element gains focus on open

[slolife]

I have a jQuery UI dialog whose first tabbable element is an input textbox which is also a datepicker textbox.

So, when a user clicks on a link to open the dialog, the dialog UI code automatically sets the focus to the first element, which, in my case, triggers the datepicker widget to display as well. It is very confusing to the user.

Please add a config option to the dialog widget to disable the auto-focus feature if desired.

 StackOverflow discussion

[slolife]

Example of problem

[scott.gonzalez]

The option should let you set which element gains focus on open. If the specified element can't be found, the .ui-dialog element should be given focus. Not setting focus within the dialog would create an accessibility problem.

[htrex]

On some application contexts I've a jQuery UI dialog that is shown automatically when the user selects some text.

If focus is changed automatically in any way the selection is immediately lost, that's not the application intended behaviour.

I agree too, Please add a config option to disable the auto-focus feature if desired.

[scott.gonzalez]

Depends on #4957.

[ajcrews]

Dialog: Added "focusSelector" option which will be used to focus the desired element when the dialog is opened. Fixed #4731 - Add option to set which element gains focus on open.

Change located at:  http://github.com/ajcrews/jquery-ui/commit/e4e5c297fc63943d745fdc4a3fef2394f025b2ac

#5767 is also bundled into that commit.

[ajcrews]

Final version:  http://github.com/ajcrews/jquery-ui/commit/1d1de7fc70501c25c6ff3de204c04078602baa04

[ajcrews]

Sorry, wrong link to Final version:  http://github.com/ajcrews/jquery-ui/commit/405574d93211e2a419062ac0e39cbf9baefc79a8

[scott.gonzalez]

#6811 is a duplicate of this ticket.

[PlanetPratt]

Has this update been lost? I've checked both 1.8.7 and 1.8.14 and neither appear to contain this fix.

(*Chris*)

[scott.gonzalez]

Nothing has been lost. You'll notice this ticket is still open.

[PlanetPratt]

Since the ticket is still open, is there any way that the first fallback (if the focusSelector isn't specified) could be to look for the element with the lowest tabindex? That would blend in nicely with standard HTML syntax.

(*Chris*)

[scott.gonzalez]

That seems reasonable.

[bolerao]

There should be a simple option to just display the content and stay on top without automatic scrolling at all. Without a need to specify an "element" (tabbable element?). In the case I encountered this problem I just have a few links spread over the dialog content that are not intended to be clicked at all. It's variable content for debugging purposes that, by chance, includes fully qualified a href's. It drives me mad that the dialog scrolls down to them instead of staying on top. Each time I open the dialog I have to scroll it up. Similarly, another case might be that I use the dialog as a help dialog and provide information and then some links to more information. There is no reason to believe that the dialog should scroll down to the links, so that the reader cannot read parts of the help text anymore and has to actively scroll up. see example in http://bugs.jqueryui.com/ticket/8719

[Jörn Zaefferer]

Dialog: Extend autofocus, starting with [autofocus], then :tabbable content, then buttonpane, then close button, then dialog. Fixes #4731 - Dialog: Add option to set which element gains focus on open

Changeset: b27db7e3b9a857b8f0890e91ae9c8a2d33bf9919

[Ult Combo]

Sorry, but where is the feature to disable the autofocus behavior completely which has been asked for in this ticket?

In UI 1.10.2 I'm working around it with:

$.ui.dialog.prototype._focusTabbable = function(){};

[scott.gonzalez]

Replying to Ult Combo:

Sorry, but where is the feature to disable the autofocus behavior completely which has been asked for in this ticket?

Go read comment #1 again...