ATAG Checkpoint 3.1

Prompt the author to provide equivalent alternative information (e.g. captions, auditory descriptions, and collated text transcripts for video). [Relative Priority]

Categories of Equivalent Alternative Information

• Short Descriptive Text
• Short Functional Text
• Longer Descriptive Text
• Transcripts
• Auditory Descriptions
• Redundant Text Links
• Metadata
• Alternate Page

GENERAL NOTES:

Basic Prompting refers to those methods that passively inform the author and allow the author to enter text.

Advanced prompting refers to those methods that utilize automation in the process of informing, guiding and correcting the author.

Reference:

• WCAG 3.1 (Convey information with markup rather than images)
• WCAG 2.1 (Ensure information is not conveyed solely by color)

SHORT DESCRIPTIVE TEXT:

Relevant to:

• HTML (ex. alt for img, alt for area, caption for table, etc.)
• SVG (ex. title for g group)
• SMIL (ex. alt for image)

Reference:

• WCAG 1.1 (text equivalents) [Priority 1]

Prompting:

Basic:

• The tool may prompt the author to enter a short (10 word or less) description whenever an element that requires one is added or edited.
• Emphasize that the description alone should provide reader with sufficient information to make sense of the image.
• Provide a link to several high quality described objects in the help (ATAG Checkpoint 6.1).

  Example #1: TBA

  Example #2: TBA

Advanced:

• The object name is not necessarily a good indication of its content and so should not be used as a default text in the prompting field (ATAG Checkpoint 3.4).
• However, if the tool stores previous descriptive text-object associations (including developer authored text for clip art) these can be placed as default in the prompt field (ATAG Checpoint 3.5).
• In cases where the function of an object is known with certainty (ex. navigation bar), the short descriptive text can copied without requiring author intervaention.

Sample Implementations:

Current (Amaya)

When Amaya adds an image, the ALT text attribute is clearly visible.

Fictional (based on A-Prompt):

In the fictional case, an alt-text registry could suggest text that had previously been authored for that image.  The image itself is displayed to make the definition writing process more efficient.

SHORT FUNCTIONAL TEXT:

Reference:

• WCAG 1.1 (text equivalents) [Priority 1]

Relevant to:

• HTML (ex. alt for img serving as a button, alt for button, etc.)

Prompting:

• The tool may prompt the author to enter a short (10 word or less) description that emphasizes its FUNCTION (rather than the appearance) whenever an element that requires one is added or edited.
• Emphasize that the functional description alone should provide reader with sufficient information about the destination
• Provide a link to a number of well described linked-objects in the help (ATAG Checkpoint 6.1). [our example here]
• The link destination path is not necessarily a good indication of its content and so should not be used as a default text in the prompting field (ATAG Checkpoint 3.4). If the tool stores previous functional text-object associations these can be placed as default in the prompt field

Basic:

Advancd:

Sample Implementation:

Fictional (Based on A-Prompt)

Here, the old alt-text is not suggested because the tool has detected that the image is linked and therefore is a functional rather than aesthetic element.

LONGER DESCRIPTIVE TEXT:

Reference:

• WCAG 1.1 (text equivalents) [Priority 1]

Relevant to:

• HTML (ex. longdesc for img, longdesc for frame, etc.)
• SVG (ex. desc for g group)
• SMIL (ex. longdesc for image)

Prompting:

Sample Implementation:

Current (Amaya)

Amaya allows the author to enter a longdesc file name.

Fictional (Based on A-Prompt)

A fictional implementation could save multiple descriptions for the same file (different languages, etc.) and offer them back in the same was as alt-text was above.   Once again the image is displayed to facilitate accurate description writing.

TRANSCRIPTS:

Reference:

• WCAG 1.1 (text equivalents) [Priority 1]

Relevant to:

• HTML (ex. Text transcript for audio object, Collated text transcript for video)
• SMIL (ex. textstream for video)

Prompting:

Sample Implementation:

Current (Amaya)

Future (Aprompt)

AUDITORY DESCRIPTIONS:

Reference:

• WCAG 1.3 (auditory descriptions)
• WCAG 1.4 (synchronization)

Relevant to:

• HTML (ex. )

Prompting:

Sample Implementation:

Current (Amaya)

Future (Aprompt)

REDUNDANT TEXT LINKS

Reference:

• WCAG 1.2 (redundant text links for server side image maps) [Priority 1]
• WCAG 1.5 (redundant text links for client-side image maps) [Priority 3]

Relevant to:

• HTML (AREA element)

Prompting:

Sample Implementation:

Current (Amaya)

Future (Aprompt)

METADATA

Reference:

• WCAG 13.2 (metadata)

Relevant to:

• HTML, PNG, JPEG, GIF, and SVG

Prompting:

Sample Implementation:

Current (Amaya)

Future (Aprompt)

ALTERNATE PAGE

Reference:

• WCAG 6.2, 6.3 (equivalents for scripts, applets, etc.)
• WCAG 6.5 (dynamic content)
• WCAG 11.4 (alternate pages)

Relevant to:

• HTML

Prompting:

Sample Implementation:

Current (Amaya)

Future (Aprompt)