Re: 48-Hour Consensus Call: InstateLongdesc CP Update

On Tue, Sep 18, 2012 at 4:49 PM, Joshue O Connor <joshue.oconnor@cfit.ie> wrote:
> Silvia Pfeiffer wrote:
>>
>> On Tue, Sep 18, 2012 at 8:26 AM, John Foliot<john@foliot.ca>  wrote:
>>>
>>> Joshue O Connor wrote:
>>>>
>>>> I think we need to step back further John. We need to work out what it
>>>> should be before we ask any vendor to implement a solution. They will
>>>> certainly support some form of long descriptor if it is present in the
>>>> spec.
>>>
>>> If that were only true Josh.  We've had a "solution" for this issue for
>>> over
>>> a decade in the previous Specification, and have not seen any
>>> implementation
>>> in browsers worth noting. Instead I sadly note that many engineers at the
>>> various browser vendors want to instead obsolete a solution they've never
>>> even tried to implement, and yet have not come forward with anything to
>>> replace it.
>>
>>
>> The thing is: if you read the HTML4 spec, there really is nothing
>> stated about how the UA is supposed to expose it.
>> http://www.w3.org/TR/html401/struct/objects.html#h-13.2
>
> [...]
>
>>
>> This paragraph creates a problem without solving it. It states that
>> the UA should expose a longdesc link differently when on an img than
>> when on an a. But there is no hint as to how that can be done.
>
> [...]
>
>
>> If we re-introduce it into HTML5, we need to be quite clear about how
>> this has to be implemented. Otherwise we will fall into the same trap
>> again.
>
>
> To be frank Sylvia, in my experience, the previous editor of the HTML5 spec
> was rather ambivalent/ambiguous about where and when the spec would/should
> define the user experience. There are parts of the spec where this is
> defined in a granular way, and then other parts where Ian would openly say
> "We should not define the user experience".
>
> Note, this was usually when talking about a11y, and when he may not have
> fully understood the implications of that mantra. So do you think that the
> HTML5 spec should clearly define the user experience of its a11y related
> elements?
>
> Would it help you if we did try to define it more clearly?
>
> It would be great if so, as it makes this whole conversation more practical.

Please note that I was not speaking as an editor here and I do not
want to influence the outcome of this discussion by using whatever
(perceived) influence I have as an editor.

Ian also was not in a position to stop text from getting into the W3C
HTML spec - what the WG decided was what happened, even if Ian
disagreed and did not apply all changes to the WHATWG spec.

Similarly, I will apply whatever changes the WG decides are necessary
to clarify the situation and help resolve it. This is independent of
whether I agree or disagree with the decision.

In this discussion I was merely voicing my opinion as a participant in
this task force, as I have done before becoming a co-editor.

Regards,
Silvia.

Received on Tuesday, 18 September 2012 07:04:39 UTC