Re: HEADERS, FOR whom - any ID?

Robert Burns wrote:
> That is I can't imagine any reason to not place an INPUT inside a LABEL

Having a control in content of it's own label is illogical, imho. The label 
ends up being the thing it is a label for as well as the text which labels 
it. :-P

Not only, but also:

* The most recent version of 3 popular screen readers (sadly not named, but 
probably JAWS, Home Page Reader and either Window-Eyes or HAL) did not 
support implicit label association at the times of testing [1][2].
* The for+id method (explicit association) is reported to work fine in [2].
* Internet Explorer 6 and below does not support implict labelling [3]. The 
<label> does not become clickable.
* Clickable labels increase the clickable area of controls. This is a 
usability aid to all users of pointing devices (Fitt's Law [4]).
* The significance of the clickable area will likely increases as the 
accuracy of the user decreases. So a pointer user with a motor disability 
[5] is helped to a greater degree by clickable labels.
* Expecting screen readers to associate text with controls merely by 
proximity, without <label> markup for either implied or explicit 
association, is reported as being unsuccessful [6].

I can ask around [7] for better references and more up-to-date testing, if 
necessary. And you can search for them yourself, of course.

In the accessibility communities I visit, for+id is considered a must-have 
feature for its compatibility with current devices and the usability 
benefits it provides to such a wide range of users.

[1] <http://blog.whatwg.org/?p=31#comment-3727>
[2] <http://www.jimthatcher.com/webcourse8.htm#wc8.3.2> (Find in page: "For 
screen reader users".)
[3] <http://www.trovster.com/form-label.php#browser-support>
[4] <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fitts'_law>
[5] <http://www.webaim.org/articles/motor/motordisabilities.php>
[6] <http://www.visionaustralia.org.au/info.aspx?page=765>
[7] <http://www.accessifyforum.com/>

--
Ben 'Cerbera' Millard
Collections of Interesting Data Tables
<http://sitesurgeon.co.uk/tables/readme.html>

Received on Tuesday, 7 August 2007 09:52:08 UTC