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codex - 💡(How to fix) Fix Add a screen-reader-friendly Codex TUI mode [4 comments, 3 participants]

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openai/codex#20489•Fetched 2026-05-01 05:42:42
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Fix Action

Fix / Workaround

I have a branch with a first patch that starts by making the no-animation path quieter for active exec/status rows and removing box drawing from exec output prefixes.

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I know external contributions may not be open right now, but I have a local fix ready if the team wants it or wants to use it as a reference.

VoiceOver users currently hear decorative terminal UI as content while Codex is working. For example, active command/status rows can be announced as repeated spaces, bullets, "running", and box-drawing characters. This interrupts reading code and makes it hard to review terminal output while Codex is still producing updates.

The main pain points:

  • Live command/status rows are re-rendered with spinner/bullet/shimmer-style decoration.
  • Box drawing such as │ and └ is announced as "box drawing".
  • When new content arrives, VoiceOver may re-read older completed transcript content, causing the user to lose their place.

Recommended behavior:

  • Add codex --screen-reader or codex --accessible.
  • Disable spinner/shimmer/decorative bullets in that mode.
  • Render plain indentation instead of box drawing.
  • Minimize redraws that cause completed history to be treated as new spoken content.
  • Keep the current visual TUI unchanged for users who want it.

I have a branch with a first patch that starts by making the no-animation path quieter for active exec/status rows and removing box drawing from exec output prefixes.

extent analysis

TL;DR

Implementing a screen reader mode, such as codex --screen-reader or codex --accessible, can help mitigate the issue by disabling decorative elements and minimizing redraws that interfere with VoiceOver.

Guidance

  • To address the issue, consider adding a command-line flag to enable a screen reader mode, which would disable spinner, shimmer, and decorative bullets.
  • In this mode, replace box drawing characters with plain indentation to prevent VoiceOver from announcing them as "box drawing".
  • Review the rendering logic to minimize redraws that cause completed history to be re-read, potentially by only updating the relevant parts of the UI.
  • Test the changes with VoiceOver to ensure that the fixes do not introduce new accessibility issues.

Example

No code example is provided as the issue does not contain specific code snippets, but the fix would involve modifying the terminal UI rendering logic to accommodate the screen reader mode.

Notes

The provided information suggests that a local fix is available, but its details are not shared. The guidance provided is based on the recommended behavior outlined in the issue.

Recommendation

Apply workaround: Implementing a screen reader mode, as described, can help improve the accessibility of the Codex terminal UI for VoiceOver users.

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codex - 💡(How to fix) Fix Add a screen-reader-friendly Codex TUI mode [4 comments, 3 participants]