Discord Enhancements for NVDA

Version 1.0.0

This add-on enhances the experience of using the Discord Windows desktop application with the NVDA screen reader. It is inspired by Doug Lee's JAWS scripts for Discord and brings a similar command-layer navigation system to NVDA.

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Key Concepts

Browse Mode

Discord is an Electron (Chromium) application. By default, NVDA would present it in browse mode with virtual-cursor navigation, which can be confusing. This add-on disables browse mode by default so you interact with Discord's own controls directly.

You can still toggle browse mode at any time with NVDA+Space if you need virtual-cursor access.

The Command Layer (Prefix Key)

Most features are accessed through a command layer. Press the prefix key (default: [), then press a follow-up key to run a command. For example, press [ then A to hear the Active Now section.

• A short high-pitched tone plays when the layer is entered.
• A short low-pitched tone plays when a command is executed or the layer exits.
• Press Escape to cancel without running a command.
• Press the prefix key twice quickly to type it as a literal character.
• The layer auto-cancels after 5 seconds of inactivity.
• When you are typing in a message box the prefix key is passed through normally.

Exploring Commands with Tab

While the command layer is active, press Tab or Shift+Tab to cycle through all available commands. NVDA will announce the key and description of each command. Press Enter to execute the last announced command. A wrap-around tone plays when you reach the end or beginning of the list.

Window Title

When the Discord window is focused, NVDA reports the title with a window suffix (e.g. "My Server — Discord window"). Pressing NVDA+T gives an enhanced title that includes server name, channel, mute/deafen status, voice channel, badge counts, and on-screen alerts.

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Command Reference

General

Keys	Action
[ A	Announce the contents of the "Active Now" section (Friends page)
[ V	Report which visible servers have active voice channels or live events
[ B	List all buttons for activation (deduplicated, activates the chosen one)

Navigation

Keys	Action
[ E	Move focus to the message input box
[ S	Move focus to the server list
[ N	Cycle focus among Discord areas (servers → channels → chat → members → user area)
[ U	Move focus to the user area

Chat Message Navigation (Home-Row Keys)

Keys	Action
[ H	Jump to the first available message
[ J	Previous message
[ K	Read current message (press twice quickly to spell)
[ L	Next message
[ ;	Jump to the last available message

Chat Message Navigation (Arrow Keys)

Keys	Action
[ Home	Jump to first message
[ Left Arrow	Previous message
[ Numpad 5	Read current message (press twice quickly to spell)
[ Right Arrow	Next message
[ End	Jump to last message

Shift Variants

Keys	Action
[ Shift+H or Shift+Home	Jump to the "Unread" marker
[ Shift+K or Shift+Numpad 5	Move real focus to the current message
[ Shift+P	Open pinned messages
[ Shift+T	Toggle the thread list

Recent Messages by Number

Keys	Action
[ 1	Read the most recent message
[ 2 – 9	Read the 2nd through 9th most recent message
[ 0	Read the 10th most recent message

Voice & Call Management

Keys	Action
[ D	Disconnect from voice / stage channel
[ P	Report ping / latency to the Discord server

Information

Keys	Action
[ T	Announce who is typing and slow-mode status
[ W	Announce channel info (topic, server name, DM details)

Other Gestures

Keys	Action
NVDA+T	Enhanced window title (server, channel, mute/deafen, voice, badges, alerts)
NVDA+Space	Toggle browse mode on/off (standard NVDA command)

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Settings

Open NVDA menu → Preferences → Settings → Discord Enhancements to configure the add-on.

Command Prefix Key

Change the prefix key used to enter the command layer. The default is [. You may use any key or key combination (e.g. ], `). If the chosen key conflicts with an existing NVDA gesture, a warning dialog will appear.

Important: If you change the prefix key and then uninstall the add-on, the key binding is automatically reset to the default to prevent orphaned bindings.

Announce Incoming Chat Messages

When enabled (default), newly arriving messages in the focused channel are spoken automatically via live-region change events.

Verbosity Level

Controls how much detail is reported for various UI elements:

• Minimal (0) — bare essentials only
• Normal (1) — recommended for most users (default)
• Verbose (2) — extra details for power users
• Extra verbose (3) — maximum detail, useful for debugging

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Enhanced Speech Output

The add-on automatically enriches the information NVDA speaks for various Discord elements:

• Server list items — voice activity and live-event indicators appended
• Channel list items — voice channel participants with mute/deafen status; "Limited" access notes
• DM list items — online status, friend nickname, group member count
• Members list — section heading announced (e.g. "Online — 5")
• Chat messages — structured reading of author, timestamp, and content
• Forum posts — title, tags, pinned status, age, reactions, message count, author
• Polls — question, options, vote counts and percentages
• Inbox items — reformatted with age prefixes and summaries

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Tips and Tricks

• Quickly reach the Friends page: Press Ctrl+1 twice, then [ A to hear the Active Now section.
• Catch up with unread messages: Press [ Shift+H to jump to the unread marker, then use [ L to read forward.
• Discover commands: Press [ then Tab repeatedly to explore all available commands.
• Spell a message: Press [ K twice quickly to spell the current message character by character.

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Troubleshooting

• Commands not working: Make sure focus is on the Discord window and you are not typing in a text field. The prefix key passes through to Discord when an edit field is focused.
• "Element not found" messages: Discord updates may change the UI structure. Check the NVDA log (NVDA+F1) for debug warnings about missing elements — these help developers update the add-on's element selectors.
• Prefix key types a character instead: You may be in a text field. Press Escape or [ E to leave the text field first.

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Known Limitations

• Block quotes and code blocks are not specially indicated.
• Bullet points and numbered lists in messages may not be announced (use browse mode for full access).
• Braille output enhancements are not yet implemented.
• Some features depend on Discord's accessibility tree structure, which may change between versions.

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Acknowledgements

This add-on is inspired by Doug Lee's JAWS scripts for Discord. Thanks to the NVDA community for the screen reader and add-on framework.