Re: proposed rewrite of abstract for section A (p.s.)

I am tempted to say we should ping-pong the abstract with the EO
team.  Get them to rewrite it, then we fix it, etc.  I fear it
needs fresh eyes applied to it to maximize plain English
readability.

Al

to follow up on what Wendy A Chisholm said:

> just made a couple of formatting points (asterisks on list items) to make
> sure the content is understandable <grin>
> --the editors
> 
> A. Transform Gracefully
> Make sure pages transform gracefully across users, technologies, and
> situations
> 
> 
> To "transform gracefully" means that a page remains usable despite user,
> technological, or situational constraints. User constraints require that the
> information is presented so that they are able to perceive or interact with it
> due to a physical or sensory limitaiton on their part. However, this
> limitation might be caused by a situation. The user who is blind has the
> same limitations
> as someone whose eyes are busy while they drive a car. Technological
> constraints are defined by the device a person is using to access a
> document. A small screen on a PDA creates a similar usability contraint to
> a person with
> low-vision who has magnified their screen such that they are looking at the
> information as if through a very small screen. 
> 
> Since HTML, XML, and other W3C technologies are designed with the flexibility
> to create documents that may be formatted in various ways on a variety of
> platforms, by virtue they support accessible design. Non-accessible pages
> are a result of giving up this flexibility. Creating pages that transform
> gracefully
> is not more costly, but requires a different design approach that also makes
> pages compatible with emerging mobile technologies. The following section A
> guidelines address the issue of creating pages that transform gracefully. They
> all stem from the following general guideline:
> 
> Always separate the content on your site (what you say), and the way you
> choose to structure that content (how you organize it), from the way the
> content and
> structure are presented (how you want people to "see" it or perceive it). (If
> the content is sensory specific, such as audio or video, make it available
> in a form that allows presentation in other senses.)
> 
> Documents that transform gracefully are: 
> 
> * Able to be perceived entirely visually and entirely through auditory means.
> This does not mean creating an entire auditory version of your site. Screen
> readers
> will be able to speak all information on a page as long as it is available in
> text. 
> 
> * Operable on various types of hardware including devices without mice, with
> small, low resolution, or black and white screens, with only voice or text
> output, without screens, etc. Due to the inherent flexibility of the design of
> W3C technologies your pages will be cross platform if you follow the basic
> principles outlined in this document. 
> 
> 
> Guidelines A.1 - A.12 address these issues. 
>

Received on Monday, 26 October 1998 00:34:41 UTC