Comments on WD-WAI-PAGEAUTH-19980908

Sorry I'm late, Just got back at midnight from two exhausting days giving
full-day workshops on draft of new DAISY-NISO XML application for digital 
talking books V3.0 that I'm responsible for designing. I haven't had time 
to go through the Techniques yet, Maybe this afternoon.

Metalanguage for these comments
Generally reference content with section/clause and context.
P2 for Paragraph 2, 
I3 for list item 3, etc.
SN for sentence N in Block,  S-N counts from end of that block
starting at 1
_..._ insert ...
X...X delete ...
[HB: commentary/suggestion without specific text change recommendation.]
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Abstract:
P1 S1 
This document is a list of guidelines that page authors 
[HB: What are "page authors?"  We presume much.]


P1 S2 
Tools that generate documents in HTML (authoring tools, file conversion
packages, or other products) should produce documents that _make it easy
for authors to_ follow these guidelines. 

[HB: Do you include HTML 2.0, HTML 3.2, HTML 4.0? Do you intend these to
apply for text delivery documents produced in XML applications?]

A. Make sure pages transform gracefully across users, techniques, and
situations

A.1. Provide alternative text for all images, _scripting objects_
XappletsX, and image maps. [Priority 1]

[HB: Strict HTML 4.0 eliminates applet, by generalizing to objects that
provide scripting. The Applet element type remains in transitional HTML 4.0.]

Technique:
I6.
6.Replace ASCII art with an image and alt-text. [Priority 1 or 2 depending
on the importance of the
       information (e.g., an important chart)] Note. If the description of
(important) ASCII art is long, provide a
       description in addition to alt-text (see A.2). 
[HB: consider adding at the end:_Today, smart browsers recognize some ASCII
art and give a text phrase explaining them, but not all do._]

A.2.
Techniques: 
LI1, bulleted LI2  

[HB: ... what are "(or invisible d-links)"? Those without
the "d"? or one pixel color same as text ones positioned over text, or
colored same as background placed where background is? Page authors
have many choices. Or is your intent that we shouldn't suggest to page
authors ways to hack?


A.4.
P1 S1: If the visual presentation is associated with an auditory
presentation (e.g., for a movie), synchronize the audio
version of the descriptions with the existing auditory presentation and
collate the text version of the
descriptions with the text transcript (captions) of the primary audio
track. _Synchronization depends on references to unique ID values on
elements (at least for SMIL 1.0) so provide them on all significant elements._

P1 I believe you should supply a reference on the color-blindness. 
The following by Greg Lowney "But can they read it?" is buried in a 
frame but is a good start.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/developer/news/devnews/julaug98/access7.htm

A.8 
P1 S1: Brailled   instead of brailled.  If you agree, check throughout.

A.11.
P1 S1: Someone who is using the page without sight, with voice input, or
with a keyboard (or input device other than a
mouse _or other pointing device_) will have a difficult time navigating a
page if operation requires a pointing device.
[aside: I use a touch pad or accupoint button.]

A.12. _LI6_
_6. Enable audible icons (earcons) from a user profile to denote 
significant items of information or events._

B.1.
LI2 Singular "longdesc" but plural "d-links or invisible d-links"
Suggest the latter be "d-link or invisible d-link." 

[HB: Here again the "invisible d-link" appears. Tabbing to an invisible 
d-link would seem to leave any user, not just low-vision or blind user, 
clueless about the link.]

B.3. Ensure that tables (not used for layout) have necessary markup to be
properly
  restructured or presented by accessible browsers and other user agents.
[Priority 1]

[HB: (not used for layout) above suggests that tables used for layout
needn't use markup (attributes) to be properly restructured or presented.
The words in A.6. permit layout tables. Nothing is said about using
or describing parent table structure as metadata about a table nested
in another one.]

P2 These guidelines benefit users that are accessing the table through
auditory means or viewing only a portion of
the page at a time (e.g., users with blindness or low vision, users with an
auto-pc or using devices with small
displays, etc.). 

[HB: What is an auto-pc? one in a car? one that is just an audio connection?
an automatic-pc? Do you mean a device that uses text to speech?]

C.1.
LI3: [HB: Applet is a deprecated element type.]

C.3.
LI2: 2. Create a bundled version of all pages that _comprise_ XcomposeX the
document. [Priority 3] 

C.4. 1.Use an automated accessibility, browser and HTML validation tool,
such as Bobby_, available at http://www.cast.org/bobby/_. [Priority 3] 

Appendix A
DT:Backwards compatible 
DD:       Something that has been designed to work_, possibly less
desirably,_ with earlier versions of a language, program, etc. 
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Regards/Harvey

Received on Wednesday, 16 September 1998 10:51:04 UTC