How To Repeat The Tabindex From 1 After It Has Gone To The Last Element With A Tabindex

Tabindex is a helpful attribute in web development that allows you to control the order in which elements are focused when the "tab" key is pressed while navigating a webpage. In this article, we will discuss a common issue faced by many developers - how to ensure that tabindex starts over from 1 after reaching the last element with a tabindex value specified.

One straightforward way to achieve this behavior is by leveraging JavaScript to loop back to the first tabindex. First, we need to identify when the last element with a tabindex is reached. We can do this by adding an event listener for the "keydown" event and listening for the "Tab" key press. When the last element is focused, we need to capture the event and prevent the default behavior of moving the focus to the next element.

Next, we need to find the first element with a tabindex and set the focus on it. This way, we ensure that the focus loops back to the beginning after reaching the last tabindex. To achieve this, we can use the `document.querySelectorAll()` method to select all elements with a tabindex attribute.

const elements = Array.from(document.querySelectorAll('[tabindex]'));
document.addEventListener('keydown', (event) => {
  if (event.key === 'Tab') {
    const lastTabIndex = elements[elements.length - 1].tabIndex;
    const currentTabIndex = document.activeElement.tabIndex;
    if (currentTabIndex === lastTabIndex) {
      event.preventDefault();
      elements[0].focus();
    }
  }
});

In the code snippet above, we first convert the NodeList returned by `document.querySelectorAll()` into an array for easier manipulation. Then, we add an event listener to the document for the "keydown" event. When the "Tab" key is pressed, we check if the currently focused element has a tabindex value equal to the last tabindex in our array of elements. If it does, we prevent the default behavior of tabbing and set the focus on the first element with a tabindex.

This simple yet effective JavaScript solution ensures that tabindex cycles back to 1 after reaching the last element, providing a seamless navigation experience for users interacting with your web application. By understanding and implementing this technique, you can enhance the usability and accessibility of your websites.