Re: MobileOK Tests (was [agenda] Agenda for BPWG Call 2008-02-07)

On 08/02/2008, Sean Owen <srowen@google.com> wrote:
>
> Again the logic was: it's overwhelming useful to provide something
> machine-testable. So let's put into Basic everything that is easy to
> comply with or important, and also machine testable. But then there
> were repeated claims that the suite was too easy -- this is the reason
> you are looking for. So it became everything machine testable. I think
> that's fine. It's a simple condition, and has resulted in a useful
> specification and tool.

I think that calling it Basic implies that compliance with it is a
first step for developers. What it's really useful for is
benchmarking, for determining whether sites haven't done "something"
relevant, but that something is not related to whether the content
will really be useable. It implies that when a user sees a "pro" label
that means that the site has striven hard to be mobile-friendly, while
really as far as the user is concerned the difference is baffling
because the choice has been determined by something internal to the
tester that the user knows nothing about about. The MOK Basic document
perpetuates this misconception "mobileOK Basic is the lesser of two
levels of claim, the greater level being mobileOK Pro". It's not about
greater or lesser, but rather about the resources available to the
testing body.

So I think that this is an opportunity to create a label that will be
meaningful to end users looking for good mobile-friendly sites, and
for clients wanting to commission them from developers. It should
incorporate the basic tests, as they are a prerequisite, to create a
new set that is as complete as possible.

Alan

-- 
Alan Chuter,
Senior Web Accessibility Consultant, Technosite (www.technosite.es)
Researcher, Inredis Project (www.inredis.es/)
Email: achuter@technosite.es
Alternative email: achuter.technosite@yahoo.com
Blogs: www.blogger.com/profile/09119760634682340619

Received on Monday, 11 February 2008 12:34:54 UTC