- From: Charles McCathieNevile <charlesn@sunrise.srl.rmit.edu.au>
- Date: Thu, 30 Jul 1998 10:50:08 +1000 (EST)
- To: WAI GL <w3c-wai-gl@w3.org>
A table used for layout is still presenting data. It is even presenting data in a tabular format. A UA which can linearise tables (Lynx has a basic system for this, which works even better with layouts, which are usually structurally very simple, than complex tabular data) will not have a problem linearising most layout tables. The problems wth tables are: 1. Screen readers don't cope 2. The use of them is based on an assumption about the visual nature of the UA as a rectangular space in which to layout content. This breaks down for audio UAs, for small screen UAs, etc. 3. They increase bandwidth requirements and the complexity of HTML unnecessarily. So I don't see that the concern is over marking them as layout. The concern is over convincing people that they do not render well, and that they should not be used for layout. The fact that people will insist on using them since there is 'no alternative' is not relevant. There is an alternative, which is to produce very accessible websites. They are generally not everything the designer wants. But there are designers who feel that door handles are unattractive too. My 2c worth Charles
Received on Wednesday, 29 July 1998 21:12:13 UTC