Comments on Guidelines 1-3 on WCAG 2.0 Draft

I've read Guidelines 1-3 and 
Conformance.  I'll separate my 
conformance comments to another email. 
 Here are my observations.

1 is clean and clear.


2.4.4 Link Purpose (Context) and 2.4.8 
Link Purpose (Text) are confusing as 
distantly separate items.  Correction: 
There should be one point or at least 
they should be consecutive.  The link 
text point refers solely to link text. 
The context point indicates that it 
refers to text and context. 
 Correction: "The link context 
including the link text whenever the 
link test is part of the context..."

3.1.5 Reading Level- The "WCAG 2.0 
Draft" fails this criterion, as would 
any exposition of higher mathematics, 
advanced philosophy, biology or any 
graduate or baccalaureate level 
material.  Faculty who were forced to 
adhere to this guideline for 
instructional web pages could 
rightfully claim abridgement of 
academic freedom.  I warn of this 
difficulty based on my experience 
enforcing accessibility policy at for 
a university system. This will incite 
revolution.  Correction:  Make 
exceptions as in the case of timing. 
 Make sure that one exception is 
protection of freedom of expression.

Think about it.  Would the Gettysburg 
Address be more effective in plain 
language?  Could we rewrite "Portrait 
of an Artist" or "Origin of the 
Family, Private Property and the 
State" in plain language?  This is 
analogous to removing timing 
restrictions from exercises where time 
dependence is part of the test (2.2.1 
Timing... Essential Exemption).

3.3 Carefully reread this guideline. 
 This appears to be general user 
interface practice that influences 
users with disabilities 
disproportionately.  I think the 
guideline should point this out. 
 Something like, "The following 
guidelines point out good UI practice 
that are especially helpful to users 
with disabilities.  In fact, their 
absence often renders content 
unintelligible to users with 
disabilities."



Wayne Dick PhD
Chair Computer Engineering and 
Computer Science, CSU, Long Beach
Coordinator of Academic Technology 
Accessibility, CSU System

Received on Tuesday, 5 June 2007 19:20:55 UTC