- From: Michael Cooper <michaelc@watchfire.com>
- Date: Fri, 13 Jun 2003 12:27:02 -0400
- To: "WAI GL (E-mail)" <w3c-wai-gl@w3.org>
PRESENT Ben Caldwell Mcappelli Wendy Chisholm Michael Cooper Roberto Ellero Al Gilman Roberto Scano Chris Ridpath DISCUSSION We discussed the table proposals [1]. The XHTML Working Group has indicated that tables absolutely should not be used for layout. We accepted this for future technology (e.g., XHTML 2.0) but need to address common practice with current technology (primarily HTML 4.0), so we spent time discussing the difference between data and layout tables. We did not all agree that there is a clean distinction between these kinds of tables, and it was proposed that some markup classically associated with data tables could be useful in the interpretation of some kinds of layout tables. However, we weren't sure what the technology support would be for some of these usages, and need to perform some tests before making decisions about this. We may also find it useful to consider "basic" and "advanced" techniques - at the basic level we might say there is a clean distinction between data and layout tables and put out rules for the features of each (easy conformance), while at the advanced level we might acknowledge that there is a continuum and provide guidance for the use of certain markup techniques in certain situations. We also discussed the use of "class" and "summary" keywords to distinguish types of tables and saw some value to proposing techniques involving those. Full IRC discussion log at [2]. ACTION ITEMS * Ben: experiment with tables with different structure in Assistive Technologies * Wendy: collect examples of layout tables and experiment with benefits of using the markup to annotate structure. Forward to list for interpretation of the semantics buried in them that could need markup. [1] http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/w3c-wai-gl/2003AprJun/0290.html [2] http://www.w3.org/2003/06/11-wai-wcag-irc.html Michael Cooper Accessibility Project Manager Watchfire 1 Hines Rd Kanata, ON K2K 3C7 Canada +1 613 599 3888 x4019 http://bobby.watchfire.com/
Received on Friday, 13 June 2003 12:27:13 UTC