Question on “HTML5 Image Description Extension” Working Draft

Hi Chaals,

I took the CfC on the Image Description Extension spec as motivation
to give the spec another read to see where it got to.

I have a question about a non-normative statement and a successive example:

"One of the most common mistakes authors make that is easily repaired
by user agents is to use a description, instead of a URL that links to
a description. This means there is often plain text description in the
content of an invalid longdesc attribute. Converting such attributes
to data URLs is a simple repair strategy that can help recover from
cases where authors have made this mistake."

This explanation has a subtle implication that you would like to see
tools that implement fixing for broken longdesc attributes.

Further, in the example you provide some JavaScript code to explain
how a conversion of a plain text longdesc attribute value to a data
URI could be undertaken.

What are the intentions of these implications? Would you like browsers
to implement a fix? Would you like to see browser extensions
implemented to fix it? Or just some sort of greasemonkey script or
bookmarklet that can fix a page's longdesc values? Or do you expect
accessibility tools to make these fixes?

I am curious about this, because this seems to be a common cause of
trouble. Thus,wouldn't it make sense to make it a normative
requirement on browsers to use the data-URI fix for longdesc attribute
values that don't parse as a URI, and thus add a parsing step to the
attribute interpretation? Then, random text would still not be a valid
@longdesc value (i.e. validators need to flag an error), but it would
be dealt with by the browser in a useful manner.

Curious about your thoughts.

Cheers,
Silvia.

On Mon, May 27, 2013 at 12:27 AM, Paul Cotton <Paul.Cotton@microsoft.com> wrote:
> FYI.
>
>
>
> Paul Cotton, Microsoft Canada
>
> 17 Eleanor Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K2E 6A3
>
> Tel: (425) 705-9596 Fax: (425) 936-7329
>
>
>
> From: Paul Cotton [mailto:Paul.Cotton@microsoft.com]
> Sent: Sunday, May 26, 2013 10:22 AM
> To: public-html-admin@w3.org
> Cc: Charles McCathie Nevile; Janina Sajka <janina@rednote.net>
> (janina@rednote.net)
> Subject: CfC: to publish a revised “HTML5 Image Description Extension”
> Working Draft
>
>
>
> This is a Call for Consensus (CfC) to publish as a revised Working Draft of
> the following “HTML5 Image Description Extension” specification:
>
>
>
>
> https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/html-proposals/raw-file/fabd1f48c68e/longdesc1/longdesc.html
>
>
>
> As per “plan 2014” [1] since this A11Y Task Force deliverable is jointly
> owned by the HTML WG and the PF WG, a parallel CfC is being processed by the
> PF WG to endorse publication of this revised Working Draft.  The A11Y TF
> request to the HTML WG and the PF WG chairs for this publication can be
> found at [2].
>
>
>
> Also note that the A11Y TF is publishing this Working draft for 2 weeks of
> review and unless new bugs are raised that cannot be resolved in that time,
> the A11Y TF plans to request republication of this Working Draft as a Last
> Call Working Draft.
>
>
>
> Silence will be taken to mean there is no objection, but positive responses
> are encouraged. If there are no objections by Tuesday June 4, this
> resolution will carry.
>
>
>
> Considerations to note:
>
>
>
> - As a Working Draft publication, the document does not need not be
> complete, to meet all technical requirements, or to have consensus on the
> contents.
>
>
>
> /paulc
>
> HTML WG co-chair
>
>
>
> [1] http://dev.w3.org/html5/decision-policy/html5-2014-plan.html
>
> [2] http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/public-html-a11y/2013May/0079.html
>
>
>
> Paul Cotton, Microsoft Canada
>
> 17 Eleanor Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K2E 6A3
>
> Tel: (425) 705-9596 Fax: (425) 936-7329
>
>

Received on Sunday, 26 May 2013 23:04:52 UTC