RE: SVG - A thought

Apologies if I've not picked up something but it sounds like XML/XSLT + SVG
(mixing in one "page"?) combination could be where browsers are heading? I
was originally thinking that SVG could be an opportunity for the visually
impared to possibly get some useful information from a graphical
presentation? I know it's been said that it is not a Adobe replacement for
Flash but if I use flash as an example then we are talking about something
which is completely inaccessible correct? It obviously doesn't make sense to
provide an actual alternative but if we could even get the information out
then that would be an improvement? I recently came across 3 fantastic offers
on books but they were in Flash and so completely useless to me. Is it
possible or likely to be possible to say get the text from such a book if it
were in SVG format? I'm concerned that we might be missing an opportunity to
possibly define specific standards (as opposed to the general guildelines
given in the SVG specification on Accessibility) before SVG becomes more
commonly used?

I'm getting the feeling that my fundatmental lack of understanding of
exactly what SVG is and how it works may be letting me down so apologies if
the above is simply rubbish!! But my concern is genuine.

Cheers
Ian



-----Original Message-----
From: Vadim Plessky [mailto:lucy-ples@mtu-net.ru]
Sent: 20 December 2001 15:24
To: David Woolley; w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
Subject: Re: SVG - A thought


On Thursday 20 December 2001 07:34, David Woolley wrote:
|   > BTW: What is also quite visible from your list is absence of
Microsoft.
|   > What are in fact Microsoft plans concerning SVG?
|   > So far, MS bundles Macromedia Flash plugin with every copy of MS IE,
|   > and this
|
|   I note that they also don't bundle Acrobat and that Adobe is, to me,
|   the apparent prime mover for SVG.  I draw some conclusiions from that.

Necessity to support PDF (Acrobat) is still questionable to me.
PDF is not W3C standard/recommendation, and is based on PostScript which is 
good but aged technology.
I think XML+CSS, plus SVG for vector-based pictures suites needs of modern 
desktop much better than PDF.

Besides, missing PDF/PS support in Windows is not critical at all - as you 
can install GhostScript and it will do all this stuff for you.
To prevent (possible) questions about Linux - GhostScript comes as standard 
with all major Linux distributions, and KDE/QT uses it for printing and 
"printing to PDF" (PDF generation)

My major concern with Microsoft is SVG support. MS supports XML and 
(partially) CSS2, and there are even some CSS3 properties implemented. 
XHTML support is not listed among "available features" of MS IE, but so far 
it works ok.
If MS is kind enough and can add SVG to MS IE - it would be great for 
everyone.
 
|
|   > Without wide availability of SVG plugins (or other form of SVG
|   > support), this wonderful specification/standard will fail (or go to
|   > niche markets)
|
|   This is why I tend to qualify reservations about SVG by "if it becomes
|   widely adopted".   I would go further than plugins and say that unless
|   it is included directly in IE, or, at the very least, a reccommended
|   update in Windows Update, it will not achieve general market
penetration.

That's what I was keeping in mind speaking about Microsoft.
I wrote "plugin" but exact packaging of "SVG-enabler" application is not so 
important.
Adobe's plugin for MS IE/Windows is an ActiveX control, if I remeber 
correctly. But it works also with Netscape6 if you copy 3 DLL's manually to 
Netscape's Plugins directory.
Was my second mail (clarification to first one) is again not clear enough?..
Than I probably should switch to Russian ;-)

-- 

Vadim Plessky
http://kde2.newmail.ru  (English)
33 Window Decorations and 6 Widget Styles for KDE
http://kde2.newmail.ru/kde_themes.html
KDE mini-Themes
http://kde2.newmail.ru/themes/


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Received on Thursday, 20 December 2001 10:02:24 UTC