Re: Audience Based Validator User Interface (ISSUE-206)

Hi Mike,

On Tue, Aug 7, 2012 at 12:06 PM, Michael[tm] Smith <mike@w3.org> wrote:
> Laura Carlson <laura.lee.carlson@gmail.com>, 2012-08-07 10:54 -0500:

>> Henri's scenario does not address the scenario I outlined.
>
> Which scenario is that, exactly?

As Henri mentioned earlier in this thread it is frustrating that after
such a long time people still do not understand the use cases. I
agree.

One use case:

For the past 10 years Thelma has been teaching web design. One of the
first lessons that she gives her students is to validate HTML with the
W3C validator to be sure that it is error-free and that they have
indeed examined each image. It makes a big impression on her students
that text alternatives are mandatory not just for WCAG but for valid
HTML as structurally complete image element enables those who cannot
process images or who have image loading disabled obtain content. It
also helps introduce the concept to accessibility. When accessibility
is an integrated part of authoring good HTML, the outcome is more
perceivable content. Her students fix errors. But they can't if they
are not in formed about them.

Another use case based on one Leif wrote a while back:

Joe, an author is accustomed to take validator silence as a sign that
the page is without errors. He assumes, from XHTML and HTML4
validation, that validation includes a check of every img element of
the page. He is convinced of the usefulness of validation as an
authoring tool, and regularly validates in order to check that his
pages and templates conform to the basic @alt conformance that HTML
validations is known to check. He is unaware that, within HTML5 he
will receive no alt errors.

It has never occurred to him that the validator hides errors from him.
The silence leads Joe to think that his pages get checked for @alt,
whereas the truth they are not. Now he misses errors that he would
have caught and fixed.

Finally - and ultimately - the silently silenced validator leads Joe's
users - especially the AT users - to suffer because they increasingly
get handed Web pages where easy fixable @alt conformance errors
remains unfixed simply because the tool that Joe entrusted the task of
reporting these errors, did - silently - not report them.

Best Regards,
Laura

-- 
Laura L. Carlson

Received on Wednesday, 8 August 2012 11:58:05 UTC