Telegram Desktop Accessibility for NVDA
Overview
Telegram Desktop Accessibility is an NVDA add-on for Telegram Desktop on Windows. It adds two direct navigation commands while leaving Telegram's native accessibility behavior and accessible names unchanged.
Features
Alt+1 moves focus to the selected chat in the chat list, or to the first chat when no chat is selected.Alt+M opens Telegram's main menu.- Chat detection uses Telegram's stable UIA class information rather than a translated control name, so the commands do not depend on Telegram's interface language.
- Telegram continues to provide the names of chats, messages, buttons, and list items. The add-on does not replace or rewrite them.
Usage
Install the add-on, restart NVDA when prompted, and use the two add-on shortcuts from the main Telegram window. No configuration is required.
If Alt+1 cannot find a chat list or the list is empty, NVDA reports that condition. If Alt+M is unavailable on the current Telegram screen, NVDA reports that the main menu is not available.
Implementation
Telegram Desktop's patched Qt accessibility provider exposes RTTI-based UIA class names. The add-on identifies the chat list as Dialogs::InnerWidget, allowing it to work independently of the localized accessible name. The main menu command locates Telegram's native menu button inside Dialogs::Widget and invokes its existing action.
Keyboard Shortcuts
Add-on
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Alt+1 |
Add-on |
Move focus to the chat list |
| Alt+M |
Add-on |
Open the main menu |
Chats
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Up / Down / Page Up / Page Down |
Telegram Desktop |
Navigate within a chat |
| Shift+Scroll |
Telegram Desktop |
Speed up in-chat navigation |
| Up / Left / Right / Down |
Telegram Desktop |
Navigate suggested stickers |
| Left / Right |
Telegram Desktop |
Navigate suggested emoji |
| Ctrl+Tab / Ctrl+Page Down / Alt+Down |
Telegram Desktop |
Move to the chat below |
| Ctrl+Shift+Tab / Ctrl+Page Up / Alt+Up |
Telegram Desktop |
Move to the chat above |
| Esc |
Telegram Desktop |
Exit, go back, or cancel the current action |
| Ctrl+O |
Telegram Desktop |
Send a file |
Folders
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Ctrl+Shift+Down |
Telegram Desktop |
Move to the folder below |
| Ctrl+Shift+Up |
Telegram Desktop |
Move to the folder above |
| Ctrl+1 through Ctrl+7 |
Telegram Desktop |
Jump directly to a folder |
| Ctrl+8 |
Telegram Desktop |
Jump to the last folder |
Messages
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Ctrl+Up / Ctrl+Down |
Telegram Desktop |
Reply to a message |
| Ctrl+Down / Esc |
Telegram Desktop |
Cancel a reply |
| Up |
Telegram Desktop |
Edit the last message sent |
| Delete |
Telegram Desktop |
Delete the currently selected message |
| Ctrl+Numpad Plus / Ctrl+Numpad Minus |
Telegram Desktop |
Zoom an image or video in or out |
| Ctrl+Click the name |
Telegram Desktop |
Open a bot profile from an inline message |
Search
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Ctrl+F |
Telegram Desktop |
Search the selected chat |
| Esc |
Telegram Desktop |
Exit search |
| Ctrl+J |
Telegram Desktop |
Search for a contact |
Quick Share Panel
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Up / Down |
Telegram Desktop |
Navigate the panel |
| Enter |
Telegram Desktop |
Select a chat |
| Backspace / Delete |
Telegram Desktop |
Remove a chat |
| Ctrl+Enter |
Telegram Desktop |
Send the message |
Jump To
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Alt+Enter |
Telegram Desktop |
Jump to the bottom of the chat or scroll the chat list to the top |
| Ctrl+0 |
Telegram Desktop |
Open Saved Messages |
| Ctrl+1 through Ctrl+5 |
Telegram Desktop |
Jump directly to a pinned chat when there are no folders |
| Ctrl+9 |
Telegram Desktop |
Open Archived Chats |
Window
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Ctrl+W / Alt+F4 |
Telegram Desktop |
Minimize to the system tray |
| Ctrl+Q |
Telegram Desktop |
Quit Telegram |
| Ctrl+L |
Telegram Desktop |
Lock Telegram |
| Ctrl+M |
Telegram Desktop |
Minimize Telegram |
Selected Text
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Ctrl+B |
Telegram Desktop |
Bold |
| Ctrl+I |
Telegram Desktop |
Italic |
| Ctrl+K |
Telegram Desktop |
Create a link |
| Ctrl+U |
Telegram Desktop |
Underline |
| Ctrl+Shift+M |
Telegram Desktop |
Monospace |
| Ctrl+Shift+N |
Telegram Desktop |
Remove formatting / plain text |
| Ctrl+Shift+P |
Telegram Desktop |
Spoiler |
| Ctrl+Shift+X |
Telegram Desktop |
Strikethrough |
| Ctrl+Shift+Period |
Telegram Desktop |
Quote |
Mouse Shortcuts
| Shortcut |
Provided by |
Function |
| Double-click a message |
Telegram Desktop |
Reply |
| Drag outside the messages |
Telegram Desktop |
Select messages |
| Hover over the timestamp |
Telegram Desktop |
Show message information |
| Hover over a poll percentage |
Telegram Desktop |
Show the number of votes |
| Drag a message to a chat in the list |
Telegram Desktop |
Forward the message to that chat |
| Back |
Telegram Desktop |
Exit Archived Chats |
| Upload a picture and click its preview |
Telegram Desktop |
Edit media |
| Right-click the Send button |
Telegram Desktop |
Send silently or schedule a message |
Community and Support
Supported Versions
- Telegram Desktop for Windows 7.0.1 or later.
- NVDA 2024.1 or later.
Build From Source
From this repository:
powershell
uv run scons
The generated .nvda-addon package can be installed through NVDA's Add-on Store.