- From: Jason White <jasonw@ariel.ucs.unimelb.EDU.AU>
- Date: Tue, 1 Jul 1997 12:22:05 +1000 (AEST)
- To: Harvey Bingham <hbingham@ACM.org>
- cc: w3c-wai-wg@w3.org
Harvey's proposal raises the important question of which attributes should be optional, and which should be required by the HTML specification. It would be interesting to know why it was originally decided, when HTML 2.0 was drafted, that the alt attribute would be merely an option, and whether the issue could and should be decided differently today. The same questions can be asked with respect to other aspects of HTML Cougar that are of importance to people with disabilities, such as labels in tables and the proposals relating to forms. At least one positive outcome of making an attribute mandatory is that software which verifies the validity of HTML documents would report non-compliance as an error, thereby creating a strong incentive for authors to include the attribute in question. Such issues can only be decided by considering arguments on both sides. I would assume that the status of attributes has been thoroughly debated as part of the HTML development process. Now that the WAI has been established, would it be possible or desirable for such decisions to be reconsidered? Jason White.
Received on Monday, 30 June 1997 22:22:30 UTC