WAI IG list info and Re: Amazon and Sony Are Requesting That The Accessibility Requirement Be Waved for E-Book Readers

On 8/8/2013 8:31 AM, Charles McCathie Nevile wrote:
...
> As a global community the wai-ig has something of an ill-defined role
> in seeking support for non-technical work in particular communities.
> I think this information is important to many in this community and
> is probably in scope. However, I would appreciate some clarification
> from W3C, who is responsible for this group and what is considered in
> or out of scope for the list. (Again, I have a personal opinion that
> leans towards a broad interpretation of what is appropriate here, but
> I don't make the decisions).
...

Hi Chaals and all,

I'll take this opportunity to update Chaals and others about WAI IG. I am responsible for this list as Chair of the W3C WAI Interest Group (WAI IG). The role of WAI IG "is to provide a forum for review of deliverables under development by other WAI groups; for exploration of barriers to accessibility of the Web and potential solutions for accessibility of the Web; and for *exchanging information about activities related to web accessibility around the world*." These are spelled out in the WAI IG home page at <http://www.w3.org/WAI/IG/#about>. As stated on that page and periodically on this list (e.g., <http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/w3c-wai-ig/2013JanMar/0178.html>), I welcome anyone to contact me directly if you have questions about the scope of the WAI IG mailing list. (fyi, when I see e-mails that are not appropriate, I usually contact the authors off-list.)

Given that HTML and EPUB (which is related to XHTML) are common formats for eBooks, eBooks generally are sufficiently related to web accessibility to be appropriate for the WAI IG list. Also, W3C is active in digital publishing <http://www.w3.org/dpub/>. While this topic is specifically about hardware, it directly relates to the availability of accessible eBook content to people with disabilities.

I have been watching this thread carefully and am comfortable that the topic is appropriate for the W3C WAI IG mailing list and the messages so far are fine.
I do ask that everyone be extra careful when writing WAI IG e-mails on this topic.

*To everyone on the list*: Whether or not you intended to comment on this thread, *please take a minute* to review "Using the WAI Interest Group (IG) mailing list" under:
 http://www.w3.org/WAI/IG/#mailinglist

As always, feel free to contact me by e-mail or phone if you have any questions about WAI IG.

Warm regards,
~Shawn



-----
Shawn Lawton Henry
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
e-mail: shawn@w3.org
phone: +1.617.395.7664
about: http://www.w3.org/People/Shawn/

Received on Friday, 9 August 2013 02:19:03 UTC