Dragging and Dropping Items with VoiceOver on macOS

For macOS Sequoia

Intro

If you use a Mac, at some point or another, you will need to drag an item from one place to another. You could be, among other things, trying to move a file, reorder a list, or attach photos and other files to a document.

While there is no “Magic solution” to drag and drop with VoiceOver on macOS, there are several methods you can employ that just might work to accomplish the task at hand. These tips come predominantly from my own personal use, as literature on drag and drop operations with VoiceOver on macOS is rather scarce. Therefore, if you know of additional tips and tricks, sound off in the comments.

Option one: find an alternative to drag and drop

While instructional materials for apps and macOS itself may say to perform a task by dragging and dropping something, there may be alternatives depending on the task. The most common of these is copy and paste, which can, among other things, be used to move files in Finder and attach files to messages. The process of copying and pasting items generally involves selecting them as you normally would, choosing Edit > Copy (or pressing Command-C), opening or focusing on the destination location, and choosing Edit > Paste (or pressing Command-V).

Tip: If you’re moving files in Finder, you can press Command-Option-V instead of Command-V to move, rather than copy, the files, so they only appear in the new location.

If you want to cut text or images in a document, select them and choose Edit > Cut (or press Command-X). Then, focus on where you want to paste them and choose Edit > Paste (or press Command-V).

Option two: use VoiceOver’s drag and drop facility

With the release of OS X Lion in 2011, Apple added drag and drop functionality to VoiceOver. In theory, this feature allows you to mark an item, navigate to the location you want to drag it to, and drop it either before, on, or after the position of the VoiceOver curser using a series of keyboard commands.

In my experience, however, it has not proven to be particularly reliable, with VoiceOver frequently reporting that it is unable to mark or drop marked items. Furthermore, this feature is somewhat poorly documented by Apple and has received very little attention or refinement since its introduction, making its precise utility and expected behaviors unclear to me. However, if you come upon a situation where copy and paste is not available, it just might work; who knows.

To mark an item, focus on it and press VO-Comma. If the item is inside a table or other element, you may need to interact with that element first. Then, focus on where you want to drop the item and do one of the following:

• Drop item before VoiceOver curser: VO-Shift-Comma
• Drop item on VoiceOver curser: VO-Period
• Drop item after VoiceOver curser: VO-Shift Period

Sometimes, it is necessary to hold down a specific modifier key, like Shift or Option, in order to alter the default behavior. To do this with VoiceOver, focus on the item you want to drag, hold down VO Comma, select the key from the drag and drop modifier menu, and drop the item as described above.

Option three: use the “Mouse down” command

As an alternative to VoiceOver’s standard drag and drop facility, items can be dragged by locking the mouse down and focusing on where you want to drop them. To do this:

1. Turn Cursor Tracking off by pressing VO-Shift-F3.
2. Focus on the item you want to drag. If it is inside a table or other element, you may need to interact with that element first.
3. Route the mouse pointer to the item by pressing VO-Command-F5, and lock the mouse down by pressing VO-Command-Shift-Space.
4. Focus on where you want to drop the item, route the mouse pointer by pressing VO-Command-F5, and unlock the mouse by pressing VO-Command-Shift-Space.

When you're done dragging, you can press VO-Shift-F3 to turn Cursor Tracking back on.

Conclusion

As alluded to in the beginning of this guide, the process of moving items via drag and drop as a VoiceOver user on macOS is, well, quite a drag. However, with these tips, I hope you figure out something that allows you to complete a given task.

This happens to be an area where I think Apple could improve by taking cues from VoiceOver on iOS and iPadOS. On those platforms, VoiceOver users can drag and drop items in a variety of contexts using the Actions rotor. In a similar approach, I think VoiceOver users should be able to use the Actions menu (accessed by pressing VO-Command-Space) on macOS to accomplish similar tasks. This, in my view, would be a much better destination for easy-to-use, reliable drag and drop options than what current implementations provide.

More information is available in your Mac's user guide, Apple Support, and the AppleVis Forum, and if you have any questions or believe any of the information in this guide is inaccurate, sound off in the comments.