RE: Looking at SC 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation with "UI Context"

I can see this applying outside web environment, but Peter is correct in his characterization of what I think this one means.  Same navigational order when found in multiple places.  Not same names.  To some extent if names were different this would not be the same controls so would probably not invoke this requirement.




From: Peter Korn [mailto:peter.korn@oracle.com]
Sent: Thursday, July 12, 2012 10:14 PM
To: Gregg Vanderheiden
Cc: public-wcag2ict-tf@w3.org
Subject: Re: Looking at SC 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation with "UI Context"

Hi Gregg,


<PK> Hi gang,

SC 3.2.3<https://sites.google.com/site/wcag2ict/home/3-understandable/32-make-web-pages-appear-and-operate-in-predictable-ways/323-consistent-navigation> was not one we reached consensus on, nor have we had much discussion about it.

My thoughts on that can be found at the Applying UI Context<https://sites.google.com/site/wcag2ict/cross-cutting-issues-and-notes/user-interface-context/applying-ui-context> page in the seventh row, but to facilitate discussion, I reiterate them here.

The software portion of the UIC Proposal is:
This applies to software aspects of products directly as written and as described in INTENT from Understanding WCAG (above) with the word "user interface context" substituted for Web Page and "software program" substituted for "Set of Web Pages".
I don't think this SC really make sense in software.

GV: I don't follow you here.   It makes lots of sense to me.   This says that if you have two controls that do the same thing that they should be named consistently.     It is always done with good design. (But then many of the SC would be met with good design).   The purpose is to avoid bad design.

PK: The text of the SC is:
Success Criteria 3.2.3: Navigational mechanisms that are repeated on multiple Web pages<http://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/consistent-behavior-consistent-locations.html#webpagedef> within a set of Web pages<http://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/consistent-behavior-consistent-locations.html#set-of-web-pagesdef> occur in the same relative order<http://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/consistent-behavior-consistent-locations.html#samerelorderdef> each time they are repeated, unless a change is initiated by the user. (Level AA)
I don't read that as "controls that DO the same thing should be NAMED consistently", I read it as (a) only applying to navigational mechanisms, and (b) speaking to their relative order on the screen (or web page).

I very much like your reading, but I see your reading as doing exactly what I argue for this (and a few other) SC: going back to Understanding and Intent and apply the purpose to software rather than a straight language substitution.  The straight language substitution (abbreviated) reads:
Success Criteria 3.2.3: Navigational mechanisms that are repeated on [user interface contexts] within a [software application] occur in the same relative order each time they are repeated, unless a change is initiated by the user. (Level AA)
So if I have things like "next" and "previous" buttons that appear in multiple modal dialog boxes, they must appear in the same relative order (e.g. next on the lower right, previous on the lower left).  If we say that "Cancel" is a navigation mechanism, then this might require that Cancel and perhaps OK must likewise appear in the same relative locations.

But I don't see how this says that the printer icon/button must always be named "Print" if it appears in multiple modal dialog boxes.  Or really anything about naming.  This seems to be only about layout.




  I find it to be a lot like Bypass Blocks.  It is either generally automatically satisfied

GV:  how would it be automatically satisfied.   There is nothing automatic that I can see about naming buttons or controls.

PK: If this were really about consistent use of controls & control behaviors (as I think we would both apparently like it to be) rather than just relative layout, then so long as developers always used buttons for button things and checkboxes for checkbox things, etc., it would be automatically satisfied.  It is pretty rare for this not to be the case - hence "automatically satisfied".




(and so of little added value),

GV:  based on what?   This can be very confusing cognitively.


or it can be looked at based on Intent and Understanding, and applied more thoughtfully to software (e.g. for cognitive disabilities, some variant of "things that look the same should behave the same, things that behave differently should look different").

GV:  What do you mean "applied more thoughtfully".    Do you mean write a new SC?
Isn't what you propose essentially what this SC says already?

PK: I mean moving beyond "relative order layout" into exactly your first paragraph above in this e-mail: consistent naming and use of controls - beyond simply position.




  I think the right thing to do is go back to WCAG and see if we have their blessing to either say this doesn't really apply, or to develop something more fitting and appropriate to software.

GV: Again - the WCAG has no authority to do either of these - so it cannot grant that authority to the task force.   I hate to see us continually not working on language we can use -- instead of trying to rewrite WCAG or get permission to write new SC or cut SC.

There are examples in the previous items as to how to handle things that are a problem _--- by pointing out the problem.

I don't see any problem with this one though.


Regards,

Peter
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