Re: Allowing comments on Understanding and Techniques docs

On Fri, Jan 9, 2009 at 7:41 AM, Liam McGee <liam.mcgee@communis.co.uk> wrote:
>
> Hi all -- am making this suggestion here rather than in the online comment
> form as it doesn't really allow for this type of comment!
>
> My suggestion is that pages in the understanding and techniques
> documaentation such as...
>
> http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/NOTE-UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20-20081211/text-equiv.html
> http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/NOTE-UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20-20081211/text-equiv-all.html
> http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/NOTE-WCAG20-TECHS-20081211/G1.html
>
> ...should include their own blog-type comments section at the bottom of the
> page. This will allow members of the community to highlight any deficiencies
> or opportunities for improvement... and to do so *on the page* and *at the
> moment* that it is important to them (and where in many cases they can give
> a concrete example).
>
> This seems to me to be a good, user-centred way of obtaining interation with
> the community, especially as responses to query comments do not have to be
> by W3C staff! To this end it might be sensible to allow interested users to
> monitor comments on a technique etc. via RSS and/or email.
>
> The output would be plenty of data to help clarify, extend or otherwise
> improve individual entries, as well as a demonstration of the kind of
> co-operative, community based thinking that brought WCAG2.0 into being.
>
> Kind regards
>
> Liam
>
> P.S. note some formatting problems with the techniques doc H1 in Google
> Chrome. Needs to clear:left.
>
================================
Response from the Working Group
================================
This is a very interesting idea.  However, these documents are
official documents of the  W3C.  As such, adding information on the
bottom (that has not come through the W3C Process) would not be
consistent with W3C policy.

There is also the problem that people could start a blog discussion
that included inaccurate comments on how to interpret the
SC/Document/whatever. The only way to avoid this would be to censor
the comments - which we never want to do.

We might be able to put a link on the bottom of the page that would
take the person to a comment form.

We would also be happy to explore this idea further in coordination
with the Education and Outreach working group and are very interested
in improving and encouraging community feedback.

Loretta Guarino Reid, WCAG WG Co-Chair
Gregg Vanderheiden, WCAG WG Co-Chair
Michael Cooper, WCAG WG Staff Contact


On behalf of the WCAG Working Group

Received on Friday, 8 May 2009 20:07:20 UTC