Re: Text presentation of image maps with <object> (detailed review of Semantics)

On Wed, 8 Aug 2007, Simon Pieters wrote:
> 
> (This is part of my detailed review of the Semantics and structure of 
> HTML elements section.)
> 
> The spec says about image maps:
> 
>    If the user agent intends to show the text that the img or input
>    element represents, then it must use the following steps.
> 
>    Note: In user agents that do not support images, or that have images
>    disabled, object elements cannot represent images, and thus this
>    section never applies (the fallback content is shown instead). The
>    following steps therefore only apply to img and input elements.
> 
> I think it should apply when an <object> doesn't represent an image 
> (perhaps regardless of what else it represents instead). Otherwise using 
> image maps together with <object> is inherently inaccessible when images 
> are disabled (unless the author jumps through hoops to duplicate the 
> links as both <area> and <a> inside the object, which I don't think is 
> realistic or particularly elegant).

The problem is that I don't understand how it would work. I can understand 
an image's alt text being displayed as a link and making that link bring 
up a window with a further list of links, but what do you do when the 
object includes a form, a plugin, a video, and a dozen other links? 
Inserting text into the page is a non-starter (it would break the intended 
rendering in author-uncontrolled ways). What else could you do?

-- 
Ian Hickson               U+1047E                )\._.,--....,'``.    fL
http://ln.hixie.ch/       U+263A                /,   _.. \   _\  ;`._ ,.
Things that are impossible just take longer.   `._.-(,_..'--(,_..'`-.;.'

Received on Thursday, 5 June 2008 09:33:47 UTC