Re: Last call AU: simultaneous presentations

Len,

The working group has now discussed several times the question of
simultaneous presentations (views). Although we have consistently resolved
that they are not a requirement (for the reasoning please consult the issues
list http://www.w3.org/WAI/AU/issues and associated archives), there are many
references to the benefits they can bring (when used appropriately) in the
techniques document.

cheers

Charles

On Sun, 3 Oct 1999, Leonard R. Kasday wrote:

  <fontfamily><param>Times New Roman</param><bigger>"O wad some Power the
  giftie gie us 
  
    To see oursels as ithers see us! "
  
        Robert Burns, "To A Louse/On Seeing One on a Lady's Bonnet at
  Church" 
  
  
  For me, the most useful tool for making an accessible web page would be a
  presentation that showed the "normal" page and the accessible
  alternatives at the same time, with a way to edit the accessible content
  on the same display.  For example, 
  
  
  - showing editible ALT text next to each image
  
  - for LONGDESC, displaying the pointed-to content in an editable form
  
  - for image maps, showing the ALT for each AREA, again in editable form
  
  - for videos, seeing the captions, while being able to freeze and edit
  them
  
  - for applets or objects, seeing an editable alternative simultaneosly in
  another window
  
  - for frames, seeing an editable no frames version simultaneously in
  another window
  
  
  
  And, more ambitiously,
  
  
  - For a whole page, seeing, or better yet, hearing the text version as it
  might sound on a screenreader.  E.g., something like lynx, or the text
  display you get with pwWebSpeak.  Also, there should be a way to see
  which point in one presentation corresponds to a point in another.  For
  example, when you highlight content in one presentation, it gets
  highlighted in the other.
  
  
  - for portions of a page labeled by a CLASS, the name of that class: plus
  a way to change
  
    that class name consistently thoughout all pages.  (This assumes that
  in the future the CLASS name will be accessible text, so it must be
  something mnemonic and descriptive (cf.
  http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/w3c-wai-er-ig/1999Sep/0054.html and
  other email in that thread). 
  
  
  This is useful because:
  
  
  - It better suits at least some people's thought processes to design the
  "normal" version first and add the accessible content later.   This way
  you can devote full attention to the alternative content.
  
  
  - In fact, in some commercial settings, different people compose images
  and text, and it would be the best for the people most skilled in text to
  supply the alternative content.
  
  
  - It's a quick way for the author  check of what was done.
  
  
  
  
  This is somewhat implied by 3.1, to prompt the user for accessibility
  information. However, "prompt" implies a box that pops up when inserting
  the image or other content, which is different than what I'm suggesting
  here. It's also suggested by checkpoints in Guideline 4, to provide
  methods for checking and correcting accessible content.  However, this
  section starts off by talking about "alerts" and "highlighting problems"
  which implies the sorts of problems that can be spotted automatically. 
  The presentation I'm suggesting address problems that wouldn't generate
  automatic alerts, since they depend on human judgment (e.g. checking that
  ALT the alternative content is meaningful and helpful).  Also Appendix
  section 3.5 on "ALT text for the IMG element" offers a version of the
  document with ALT text instead of the image, but not alongside the image. 
  
  
  So I'd suggest adding the editable presentations suggested above as an
  additional checkpoint under guideline 4.  I'd personally give them
  priority 2.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  </bigger></fontfamily>
  
  -------
  
  Leonard R. Kasday, Ph.D.
  
  Institute on Disabilities/UAP, and
  
  Department of Electrical Engineering
  
  Temple University
  
  
  Ritter Hall Annex, Room 423, Philadelphia, PA 19122
  
  kasday@acm.org        
  
  (215) 204-2247 (voice)
  
  (800) 750-7428 (TTY)
  

--Charles McCathieNevile            mailto:charles@w3.org
phone: +1 617 258 0992   http://www.w3.org/People/Charles
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative    http://www.w3.org/WAI
MIT/LCS  -  545 Technology sq., Cambridge MA, 02139,  USA

Received on Wednesday, 27 October 1999 03:04:58 UTC