Revision of standard ISO/IEC 20071-11 on text alternatives for images

ISO/IEC JTC1 SC35 (User interfaces) has resolved to revise its Technical
Specification ISO/IEC TS 20071-11:2012
<https://www.iso.org/standard/59423.html>  (Guidance on text alternatives
for images) to become a full International Standard (IS).  For this purpose,
the editors have produced a working draft, with the goal to develop this
into an International Standard.  

 

The current scope of 20071-11 is as follows:

 

ISO/IEC TS 20071-11:2012 applies to all static images that are used in any
type of electronic document. It also applies to individual images within a
slide show of electronic images.

ISO/IEC TS 20071-11:2012 does not apply to moving images (e.g. movies).

The guidance contained in ISO/IEC TS 20071-11:2012 is intended to be used by
the person who creates content to be placed in an electronic document. There
is no expectation that this person will have any additional expertise beyond
understanding the contents of the document and why an image was chosen to be
placed within the document.

While the main intent of the guidance within ISO/IEC TS 20071-11:2012 is the
creation of text alternatives, the information identified in this guidance
could be placed in the main document text, reducing the length of the
resulting text alternatives. However, placing information in the main
document text does not fully replace the function of having some text
alternatives for each image.

 

For more information on the content of this working draft, please see the
table of contents below.  

 

The editors are asking for feedback by Feb. 5.  The next working draft
version will be discussed at the SC35 meeting in Geneva, in the week of Feb.
12.  

 

If you are interested in providing feedback on this working draft, please
contact me.

 

Best regards,

Gottfried

 

Gottfried Zimmermann

Liaison from ISO/IEC JTC1 SC35 to W3C

___________________________________________________

 

 Prof. Dr. Gottfried Zimmermann

Mobile User Interaction

___________________________________________________

 

Table of Contents

Foreword
............................................................................
............................................................................
................... v

Introduction
............................................................................
............................................................................
........... vi

1 Scope
............................................................................
............................................................................
............1

2 Normative references
............................................................................
........................................................1

3 Terms and definitions
............................................................................
........................................................1

3.1 Text alternatives and related definitions
............................................................................
...................1

3.2 Image and related definitions
............................................................................
.........................................2

3.3 Importance and related definitions
............................................................................
..............................3

3.4 Information relationship definitions
............................................................................
...........................4

3.5 Image content and related definitions
............................................................................
.........................4

3.6 Image sources and related definitions
............................................................................
.........................5

3.7 Information type definitions
............................................................................
...........................................5

4 Framework for describing images and creating text alternatives
................................................6

4.1 Uses of text alternatives
............................................................................
....................................................6

4.2 Structure of descriptions
............................................................................
..................................................7

4.3 Structure of text alternatives
............................................................................
..........................................8

5 Requirements and recommendations for describing images
.........................................................9

5.1 A procedure for creating text alternatives
............................................................................
.................9

5.2 Purposes
............................................................................
............................................................................
.. 10

5.2.1 Introduction to purposes
............................................................................
............................................... 10

5.2.2 Informative purposes
............................................................................
...................................................... 11

5.2.3 Control purposes
............................................................................
.............................................................. 12

5.2.4 Decorative purposes
............................................................................
........................................................ 12

5.2.5 Formatting purposes
............................................................................
....................................................... 12

5.2.6 Brevity of statements of purposes
............................................................................
.............................. 13

5.2.7 Context of an image
............................................................................
.......................................................... 13

5.3 Images and image components
............................................................................
................................... 14

5.4 Identification of content
............................................................................
................................................. 15

5.4.1 Introduction to identification of content
............................................................................
................. 15

5.4.2 Subjective content
............................................................................
............................................................ 15

5.4.3 Objective content
............................................................................
.............................................................. 16

5.4.4 Relationships of images and their
components..................................................................
............... 17

5.5 Levels of importance
............................................................................
....................................................... 18

5.5.1 Importance is context dependent
............................................................................
............................... 18

5.5.2 Importance
............................................................................
..........................................................................
19

5.6 Organizing and writing text alternatives
............................................................................
................. 21

5.6.1 Organizing information into text alternatives
............................................................................
....... 21

5.6.2 Writing text alternatives
............................................................................
................................................ 22

5.7 Evaluating text alternatives
............................................................................
.......................................... 23

6 Expanding on the identification and elaboration of content
........................................................ 23

6.1
Introduction................................................................
............................................................................
........ 23

6.2 Detailed questions relating to identification ("what")
................................................................... 24

6.2.1 Classifying the image (or image component)
............................................................................
......... 24

6.2.2 Elaborating on textual content
............................................................................
.................................... 24

6.2.3 Elaborating on physical objects
............................................................................
................................... 25

6.2.4 Elaborating on people
............................................................................
..................................................... 25

6.2.5 Elaborating on perceptual objects and perceptual properties of other
objects ................... 25

6.2.6 Elaborating subjective descriptions
............................................................................
.......................... 26

6.2.7 Elaborating on logical relationships / interactions and actions
................................................. 26

6.2.8 Elaborating on locations/places
............................................................................
................................. 27

6.3 Detailed questions relating to temporal elaboration ("when")
.................................................. 27

6.3.1 Introduction to temporal properties
............................................................................
........................ 27

6.3.2 Elaborating about time periods
............................................................................
.................................. 28

6.3.3 Elaborating about events / activities
............................................................................
........................ 28

6.3.4 Elaborating sequential relationships
............................................................................
....................... 28

6.3.5 Elaborating on states
............................................................................
...................................................... 29

6.3.6 Elaborating on slide shows
............................................................................
........................................... 29

6.4 Detailed questions relating to physical (spatial) relationship
elaboration ("where") ...... 30

6.5 Detailed questions relating to quantitative elaboration ("how much")
.................................. 30

6.6 Detailed questions relating to procedural elaboration ("how")
................................................. 31

6.6.1 Elaborating on the intended use of the image
............................................................................
....... 31

6.6.2 Elaborating on control
............................................................................
................................................... 31

Bibliography
............................................................................
............................................................................
......... 32