- From: Janina Sajka <janina@rednote.net>
- Date: Mon, 9 Dec 2013 10:08:15 -0500
- To: W3C WAI Protocols & Formats <public-pfwg@w3.org>
The Protocols and Formats Working Group requests approval to transition
WAI-ARIA 1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide to Candidate Recommendation.
*Title: *WAI-ARIA 1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide
*Short name: *wai-aria-implementation
*Description: *Describes how user agents should support keyboard
navigation, respond to roles, states, and properties provided in Web
content via WAI-ARIA, and expose this to accessibility APIs.
*TR Categories: *Accessibility (All), Accessible Rich Internet
Applications (WAI-ARIA)
*Publication URI:
*http://www.w3.org/TR/2013/WD-wai-aria-implementation-20131217/
*Latest version URI: *http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/
We hope to publish this document on 17 December 2013.
== Document Abstract ==
This document describes how user agents
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria-implementation/#def_useragent> should
support keyboard navigation and respond to roles
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria-implementation/#def_role>, states, and
properties <http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria-implementation/#def_property>
provided in Web content via WAI-ARIA <http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria/>
[ARIA <http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria-implementation/#ref_ARIA>]. These
features are used by authors creating accessible rich internet
applications. Users often access the content using assistive
technologies that rely on platform accessibility APIs
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria-implementation/#def_accessibility_api> to
obtain and interact with information from the page. The WAI-ARIA User
Agent Implementation Guide defines how implementations should expose
content to accessibility APIs, helping to ensure that this information
appears in a manner consistent with author intent. This document is part
of the WAI-ARIA suite described in the WAI-ARIA Overview
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/aria.php>.
== Document Status section ==
/This section describes the status of this document at the time of its
publication. Other documents may supersede this document. A list of
current W3C publications and the latest revision of this technical
report can be found in the W3C technical reports index
<http://www.w3.org/TR/> at http://www.w3.org/TR/./
This is a Candidate Recommendation
<http://www.w3.org/2004/02/Process-20040205/tr.html#RecsCR> of WAI-ARIA
1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide by the Protocols & Formats Working
Group <http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/> of the Web Accessibility Initiative
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/>. It supports the Accessible Rich Internet
Applications (WAI-ARIA)
<http://www.w3.org/TR/2011/CR-wai-aria-20110118/> [ARIA
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#ref_ARIA>] Candidate
Recommendation, providing information about how user agents should
expose ARIA features to platform accessibility APIs
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#def_accessibility_api>.
The accessibility API relationships defined here are important to
WAI-ARIA, and this document has been tested as part of the testing
effort for WAI-ARIA.
WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide was published as a second Last
Call Working Draft on 5 November 2013
<http://www.w3.org/TR/2013/WD-wai-aria-implementation-20131105/>.
Testing has been completed and minor editorial clarifications made. It
is being advanced to Candidate Recommendation to signal implementers of
its maturity and facilitate preparation for the next stage. Because
testing is complete, it is expected to transition to Proposed
Recommendation as soon as the 60-day patent review period, that began
with the publication of the second Last Call Working Draft, has ended. A
history of changes to WAI-ARIA 1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria-implementation/change-history> is available.
=== Exit Criteria ===
The Protocols and Formats Working Group intends to submit this document
for consideration as a W3C Proposed Recommendation
<http://www.w3.org/2004/02/Process-20040205/tr.html#RecsPR> as soon as
the following conditions are met:
1. Define *test cases*: Identify a set of unit tests, feature tests,
dynamic tests, and any additional tests needed to cover all
normative absolute (RFC2119 "MUST") requirements;
2. Prepare *test files*: Prepare test files consisting of HTML 4
content enhanced with WAI-ARIA, or HTML 5 content when features are
not supported in HTML 4, to cover all the test cases;
3. Test *implementations*: Perform these tests on multiple user agents
supporting multiple accessibility APIs to demonstrate implementation
in at least two user agents and in at least two accessibility APIs;
4. *Evaluate* test results: Examine results in accessibility APIs and
user agents;
5. Verify *interoperable* results: Find at least two independent
interoperable implementations of each requirement where the defined
behavior is observed.
The main purpose of the WAI-ARIA 1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide is
to define concrete accessibility API mappings for the features of
WAI-ARIA 1.0. Consistent with the plan for WAI-ARIA, the requirement to
demonstrate implementability is to find /any two/ accessibility API
mappings for each WAI-ARIA feature, regardless of platform, as defined
by this specification. The guide defines mappings for multiple
accessibility APIs, but demonstration of complete mapping of a given API
is not feasible because each API is supported by only one or two
implementations. To demonstrate that each API referenced in the guide
can be supported, at least two ARIA features must be mapped to that API
by a user agent.
Most of the testing for the above has been carried out during the
testing effort in progress for the WAI-ARIA 1.0 Candidate
Recommendation, using this document as a normative supporting resource,
and those test results are applicable to the test requirements of this
document. During this phase, 683 test cases were defined and have passed
in at least two implementations. The completion of the testing for the
User Agent Implementation Guide will complete the final step for the
ARIA Candidate Recommendation phase. These tests address requirements
specific to the User Agent Implementation Guide such as error handling
requirements as well as some host language dependencies. 103 test cases
have been prepared and 96 of them have at least two passing
implementations at the time this documented entered Candidate
Recommendation. The seven tests that have not yet met this bar relate to
features that have been marked as at risk.
The WAI-ARIA 1.0 Implementations <http://www.w3.org/WAI/ARIA/1.0/CR/>
page contains further explanation of the terms and expectations above.
It also contains up-to-date information about the test suite, test
harness, user agents being examined, and interim test results in the
draft implementation report
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/ARIA/1.0/CR/implementation-report>. Implementers
who wish to include their tools in the test process will find
instructions to submit their implementation for consideration. Several
implementations have already been tested; the Protocols and Formats
Working Group requests that additional implementations be submitted by
17 January 2014. The Working Group targets 28 January 2014 to complete
the testing process and produce the implementation report.
=== Features at risk ===
The Protocols and Formats Working Group has identified four features at
risk <http://www.w3.org/2005/10/Process-20051014/tr.html#at-risk-feature>:
1. Steps 10 and 11 of Controlling focus with |tabindex| (Section 4.2)
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#keyboard-focus_tabindex>,
which broaden keyboard accessibility by event simulation, may be
removed as a normative requirement if interoperable implementations
are not found. The remaining steps in this section are not at risk
and would not be removed.
2. The Microsoft UIA column in the mapping tables for sections 4.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#focus_state_event_table>,
5.4.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_role_table>,
5.5.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_state-property_table>,
5.8.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_state-change>,
5.8.2
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_visibility>,
5.8.3
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_selection>,
5.8.4
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_menus>
may be removed if an implementation is not found. The remaining AAPI
columns would not be removed.
3. The Text Alternative Computation (Section 5.6.1.1)
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_additional_nd_name>,
step 2B, may be changed from a normative requirement to an
informative recommendation if interoperable implementations are not
found. This does not affect the rest of the Text Alternative
Computation.
4. Section 5.8.4 Special Events for Menus
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_menus>
is only implemented on one platform. If an additional implementation
is not found, this section will be removed. It would be reconsidered
for a future version of this specification.
=== Feedback ===
The Working Group plans to advance this document to Proposed
Recommendation as soon as possible, as a key step in advancing the
WAI-ARIA 1.0 suite to Recommendation. Therefore, it it plans to process
and close comments close to the closing date. The PFWG asks in particular:
* Are the accessibility APIs in common use today covered?
* Are all the features needed by accessibility APIs to make rich
content accessible addressed?
* Is the relationship of this document to the WAI-ARIA specification
clear?
* Is it acceptable to remove features marked as at risk if
interoperable implementations are not found? If not, are
implementations likely?
To comment, send email to public-pfwg-comments@w3.org
<mailto:public-pfwg-comments@w3.org> (comment archive
<http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/public-pfwg-comments/>). Comments
should be made by *24 January 2014*. In-progress updates to the document
may be viewed in the publicly visible editors' draft
<file:///WAI/PF/aria-implementation/>.
=== Publication Information ===
Publication as a Candidate Recommendation does not imply endorsement by
the W3C Membership. This is a draft document and may be updated,
replaced or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is
inappropriate to cite this document as anything other than work in progress.
This document was produced by a group operating under the 5 February
2004 W3C Patent Policy
<http://www.w3.org/Consortium/Patent-Policy-20040205/>. W3C maintains a
public list of any patent disclosures
<http://www.w3.org/2004/01/pp-impl/32212/status> made in connection with
the deliverables of the group; that page also includes instructions for
disclosing a patent. An individual who has actual knowledge of a patent
which the individual believes contains Essential Claim(s)
<http://www.w3.org/Consortium/Patent-Policy-20040205/#def-essential>
must disclose the information in accordance with section 6 of the W3C
Patent Policy
<http://www.w3.org/Consortium/Patent-Policy-20040205/#sec-Disclosure>.
The disclosure obligations of the Participants of this group are
described in the charter
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/charter201006#patentpolicy>.
== Record of the decision to request the transition ==
The Protocols and Formats Working Group has been working actively to
prepare this document for publication but neglected to take a formal
resolution. A pro forma resolution to confirm this request will be
recorded before the Director meeting.
== Report of important changes to the document ==
The Working Group received comments
<http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/public-pfwg-comments/2013OctDec/0001.html>
from one commenter. A few minor editorial corrections were made in
response to these comments, but the majority of them were deferred to
the next version in order to avoid making post-Last Call changes.
== Evidence that the document satisfies group's requirements ==
General requirements for WAI-ARIA 1.0 are described in the Roadmap for
Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA Roadmap)
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-roadmap/>, which was last updated 4
February 2008 (http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/WD-wai-aria-roadmap-20080204/).
These are described in more detail in the WAI-ARIA 1.0 Primer
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-primer/>
(http://www.w3.org/TR/2010/WD-wai-aria-primer-20100916/). While WAI-ARIA
1.0 only fulfills part of the solution for rich internet application
accessibility, it is the opinion of the Working Group that the 1.0
version is complete. Expanded requirements are expected to be met in
future versions of WAI-ARIA.
== Evidence that dependencies with other groups met ==
WAI-ARIA 1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide depends on Accessible Rich
Internet Applications 1.0 <http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria/>, which is
itself a Candidate Recommendation and developed by the same Working
Group. There are not dependencies for this technology on other Working
Groups. The HTML Working Group does depend on this technology to support
the incorporation of WAI-ARIA 1.0 into HTML 5. This has been done in a
closely coordinated process over the past few years via the HTML
Accessibility Task Force <http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/html-task-force>.
== Evidence that the document has received wide review ==
Review requests for the past several publications explicitly requested
careful review, and are typically announced on several public lists
including w3c-wai-ig <http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/w3c-wai-ig/>
(which has over 800 subscribers), posts on the W3C
<http://www.w3.org/blog/news/> and WAI
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/highlights/archive> site, and tweets
<https://twitter.com/w3c_wai> that are widely retweeted. However, the
WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide has received few comments. This
may be because most comments are received on the WAI-ARIA specification
itself, while the User Agent Implementation Guide is oriented primarily
at user agent implementers. Several implementers have participated
actively in the development of this specification. Testing,
specification, implementation, and review have therefore been carried
out together. The test results
<https://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/testharness/testreport?testsuite_id=2>
indicate broad implementation of the requirements, with the exception of
a few items that have been marked as at risk.
== Evidence that issues have been formally addressed ==
Responses to public comments are visible on the PF public comments
archive <http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/public-pfwg-comments/>.
== Objections ==
There are no Formal Objections.
== Implementation information ==
The Protocols and Formats Working Group intends to submit this document
for consideration as a W3C Proposed Recommendation
<http://www.w3.org/2004/02/Process-20040205/tr.html#RecsPR> as soon as
the following conditions are met:
1. Define *test cases*: Identify a set of unit tests, feature tests,
dynamic tests, and any additional tests needed to cover all
normative absolute (RFC2119 "MUST") requirements;
2. Prepare *test files*: Prepare test files consisting of HTML 4
content enhanced with WAI-ARIA, or HTML 5 content when features are
not supported in HTML 4, to cover all the test cases;
3. Test *implementations*: Perform these tests on multiple user agents
supporting multiple accessibility APIs to demonstrate implementation
in at least two user agents and in at least two accessibility APIs;
4. *Evaluate* test results: Examine results in accessibility APIs and
user agents;
5. Verify *interoperable* results: Find at least two independent
interoperable implementations of each requirement where the defined
behavior is observed.
The main purpose of the WAI-ARIA 1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide is
to define concrete accessibility API mappings for the features of
WAI-ARIA 1.0. Consistent with the plan for WAI-ARIA, the requirement to
demonstrate implementability is to find /any two/ accessibility API
mappings for each WAI-ARIA feature, regardless of platform, as defined
by this specification. The guide defines mappings for multiple
accessibility APIs, but demonstration of complete mapping of a given API
is not feasible because each API is supported by only one or two
implementations. To demonstrate that each API referenced in the guide
can be supported, at least two ARIA features must be mapped to that API
by a user agent.
Most of the testing for the above has been carried out during the
testing effort in progress for the WAI-ARIA 1.0 Candidate
Recommendation, using this document as a normative supporting resource,
and those test results are applicable to the test requirements of this
document. During this phase, 683 test cases were defined and have passed
in at least two implementations. The completion of the testing for the
User Agent Implementation Guide will complete the final step for the
ARIA Candidate Recommendation phase. These tests address requirements
specific to the User Agent Implementation Guide such as error handling
requirements as well as some host language dependencies. 103 test cases
have been prepared and 96 of them have at least two passing
implementations at the time this documented entered Candidate
Recommendation. The seven tests that have not yet met this bar relate to
features that have been marked as at risk.
The WAI-ARIA 1.0 Implementations <http://www.w3.org/WAI/ARIA/1.0/CR/>
page contains further explanation of the terms and expectations above.
It also contains up-to-date information about the test suite, test
harness, user agents being examined, and interim test results in the
draft implementation report
<http://www.w3.org/WAI/ARIA/1.0/CR/implementation-report>. Implementers
who wish to include their tools in the test process will find
instructions to submit their implementation for consideration. Several
implementations have already been tested; the Protocols and Formats
Working Group requests that additional implementations be submitted by
17 January 2014. The Working Group targets 28 January 2014 to complete
the testing process and produce the implementation report.
The Protocols and Formats Working Group has identified four features at
risk <http://www.w3.org/2005/10/Process-20051014/tr.html#at-risk-feature>:
1. Steps 10 and 11 of Controlling focus with |tabindex| (Section 4.2)
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#keyboard-focus_tabindex>,
which broaden keyboard accessibility by event simulation, may be
removed as a normative requirement if interoperable implementations
are not found. The remaining steps in this section are not at risk
and would not be removed.
2. The Microsoft UIA column in the mapping tables for sections 4.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#focus_state_event_table>,
5.4.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_role_table>,
5.5.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_state-property_table>,
5.8.1
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_state-change>,
5.8.2
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_visibility>,
5.8.3
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_selection>,
5.8.4
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_menus>
may be removed if an implementation is not found. The remaining AAPI
columns would not be removed.
3. The Text Alternative Computation (Section 5.6.1.1)
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_additional_nd_name>,
step 2B, may be changed from a normative requirement to an
informative recommendation if interoperable implementations are not
found. This does not affect the rest of the Text Alternative
Computation.
4. Section 5.8.4 Special Events for Menus
<http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation/#mapping_events_menus>
is only implemented on one platform. If an additional implementation
is not found, this section will be removed. It would be reconsidered
for a future version of this specification.
== Patent disclosures ==
The public list of patent disclosures
<http://www.w3.org/2004/01/pp-impl/32212/status> indicates that no
patent disclosures have been made.
--
Janina Sajka, Phone: +1.443.300.2200
sip:janina@asterisk.rednote.net
Email: janina@rednote.net
Linux Foundation Fellow
Executive Chair, Accessibility Workgroup: http://a11y.org
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)
Chair, Protocols & Formats http://www.w3.org/wai/pf
Indie UI http://www.w3.org/WAI/IndieUI/
Received on Monday, 9 December 2013 15:08:43 UTC