Re: charter update with two year cycle

Wayne,

Somehow I missed seeing and responding to this important point. I am sorry
about that.

Is the SC set enough to be helpful and useful to address the disabilities
that were (sort of) left-out in WCAG 2?

Keeping the promises made to specifically address the user needs of these
disabilities - in a meaningful way - matters. We should, must, follow
through.....

Katie Haritos-Shea
703-371-5545

On Oct 6, 2016 10:16 AM, "Wayne Dick" <wayneedick@gmail.com> wrote:

> The threshold effect.
>
> This is why fixed dated cycles are problematic. There are guidelines that
> exist in groups and are useful alone. 1.1.1, 2.1.1 and 2.1.2 are one
> example. If you are non visual you cannot use the keyboard without knowing
> where your focus lands, and you cannot use the keyboard long with traps
> everywhere.
>
> In the case of cognitive and low vision you need entire sets of content
> changes to get real access. It is not a question of all or nothing, it is a
> question of enough to be something. I don't think the LVTF is close enough
> to a quanta that works to say, "Here is a minimal effective set."
>
> Why is this true? Many disabilities are not as on or off as visual vs.
> non-visual (I know there are subtleties to non-visual access). Of a set of
> say 7 accessible content criteria maybe 3 or 4 are needed help most
> individuals, but that 3 or 4 criteria change a with the individual. For
> most individuals in these groups if you give them 2 of 3 needs, you might
> as well give  0 because the  partial set will prevent access to something
> important like reading.
>
> Once we have all disabilities covered, we can discuss periodic release
> goals. Right now we need to get basic access working for cognitive and LV
> and a 2-year plan is no enough.
>
> Wayne
>
>
>
> On Thu, Oct 6, 2016 at 5:34 AM, White, Jason J <jjwhite@ets.org> wrote:
>
>> +1 to David’s comments (quoted below).
>>
>>
>>
>> *From:* David MacDonald [mailto:david100@sympatico.ca]
>> *Sent:* Thursday, October 6, 2016 7:03 AM
>> *To:* GLWAI Guidelines WG org <w3c-wai-gl@w3.org>
>> *Subject:* Re: charter update with two year cycle
>>
>>
>>
>> I think the model of stable technology agnostic Success Criteria which
>> are developed carefully with thorough review over a number of years, and
>> nimble up-to-date techniques that are on a 6 month cycle is reasonable.
>>
>>
>>
>> If I ask people "would you like WCAG to be up to date" everybody of
>> course says "yes". When we explain the gentle balance between stable long
>> term Success Criteria and flexible up to date techniques, I generally find
>> they understand that the model has a good update mechanism.
>>
>>
>>
>> I think its time to be working on more SCs and we are doing so, and we
>> are working under this WCAG 2.0 model.
>>
>>
>>
>> Perhaps Silver will be able to propose another model that will be better,
>> but as it stands, the WCAG 2 model is the best I've seen and its one of the
>> most successful standards ever.
>>
>>
>> Cheers,
>> David MacDonald
>>
>>
>>
>> *Can**Adapt* *Solutions Inc.*
>>
>> Tel:  613.235.4902
>>
>> LinkedIn
>> <http://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmacdonald100>
>>
>> twitter.com/davidmacd
>>
>> GitHub <https://github.com/DavidMacDonald>
>>
>> www.Can-Adapt.com <http://www.can-adapt.com/>
>>
>>
>>
>> *  Adapting the web to all users*
>>
>> *            Including those with disabilities*
>>
>>
>>
>> If you are not the intended recipient, please review our privacy policy
>> <http://www.davidmacd.com/disclaimer.html>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Oct 6, 2016 at 2:46 AM, John Foliot <john.foliot@deque.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> While I hear, respect and
>>
>> ​ traditionally​
>>
>> trust people like Gregg, Lisa, Katie and others, I get the distinct
>> impression that they are all working on an "All or Nothing" sum-total
>> proposition, where
>>
>> ​ they believe​
>>
>> we need to get *all* the new proposed Success Criteria into the next dot
>> release of WCAG for fear of "missing out". Why that is is beyond me, as
>> there is nothing in the proposed Charter that suggests that.
>>
>>
>>
>> ​Yes, developing new Success Criteria is hard work, and yes, if we were
>> to set out to process all of the current ~50 draft proposals coming from
>> the various Task Forces into the next release of WCAG, then by all means it
>> will take longer than 2 years.
>>
>>
>> But we won't be working on all of the new SC simultaneously, and it
>> dumbfounds me that we would want to hold back 4, 8,
>>
>> ​or ​
>>
>> 10 "complete
>>
>> ​d​
>>
>> " SC in a 2 year period until the balance of the SC are
>>
>> ​finalize
>>
>> ​d​
>>
>> . That serves nobody in any effective
>>
>> ​ or productive​
>>
>> way.
>>
>> ​ As a Working Group, we will need to prioritize our work, and not try
>> and eat the elephant in one sitting - that doesn't work when eating
>> elephants, and it won't work if we want to keep Accessibility Guidance up
>> to date and current with emergent and existing technology today.​
>>
>>
>>
>> WCAG 2.0 is woefully out of date today; not that the current SC are
>> 'bad', but rather we have identified clear gaps that need to be closed now
>> - not 5+ years from now. The whole point of "dot
>>
>> ​ (point)​
>>
>> releases" in software and standards development is to release what is
>> ready now, so that it can be taken up and used
>>
>> ​by developers ​
>>
>> now, not some hopeful time
>>
>> ​"​
>>
>> down the road
>>
>> ​"​
>>
>> when we've resolved
>>
>> ​ALL
>>
>> the discussion around
>>
>> ​ALL
>>
>> of the newly proposed SC on the table today
>>
>> .
>>
>> ​ By identifying fixed and specific "ship dates" now and into the future,
>> we can reliably ship what's ready when it's ready, on a date that everyone
>> who cares can count on, and keep working on what is still not ready for the
>> next "ship" date, or the one after that, or the one after that.
>>
>>
>>
>> Allen Hoffman wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>> > when we touch the success criteria we effect many many more associated
>> activities and the knock-on effect can take a significant time to be
>> understood and completed.
>>
>>
>> The whole point of the
>>
>> ​ proposed​
>>
>> dot release plan is to ensure that we maintain a backward compatibility
>> 'manifesto' as part of the go-forward effort. We won't be "changing" any of
>> the Success Criteria for the 2.0 document,
>>
>> ​AND WE NEVER WILL
>>
>> .
>>
>> ​WCAG 2.0 will always remain WCAG 2.0.​
>>
>>
>>
>> We *may* modify the text of
>>
>> ​some ​
>>
>> existing SC to encompass more (eg: color contrast on more than just
>> *text*, but to now include actionable graphics/icons), but *if* an entity
>> adopts
>>
>> ​ and develops to​
>>
>> that change, then they are working towards complying to WCAG 2.1, and
>> *NOT* WCAG 2.0. If you don't need or want to add actionable icons into the
>> class of content that needs to meet a minimum contrast requirement, you
>> won't have to to
>>
>> ​still ​
>>
>> meet compliance to WCAG 2.0 - because of the backward comparability
>> design.
>>
>> ​
>>
>> ​
>>
>> ​
>>
>> We
>>
>> ​also ​
>>
>> have a lon
>>
>> ​g​
>>
>> er-range plan, and that's known today as Project Silver.​
>>
>> ​ On that effort, yes, time and patience of the kind Gregg notes will be
>> required, but while we take the time and patience to get that right, we
>> also have an ongoing need for current guidance and success criteria
>> *TODAY*, which is what the dot extension release schedule seeks to address.​
>>
>>
>>
>> Earlier today, Katie Haritos-Shea wrote:
>>
>> > WCAG 2 is a standard that
>>
>> ​​
>>
>> developers use to improve access for users
>>
>> Correct!
>>
>>
>>
>> It is
>>
>> ​NOT
>>
>> a legal document, civil-rights guidance, or a W3C-based companion to the
>> Section 508 refresh that is currently 16 years in the making.
>>
>> ​ ​
>>
>> ​
>>
>> Yes, we need to be mindful of the needs of the regulators, but they are
>> but one constituent that WCAG serves
>>
>> ​, and not the primary one at that​
>>
>> .
>>
>> There is absolutely nothing in a 2 year dot extension release schedule
>> that would prevent
>>
>> ​governmental
>>
>> entities from pointing to or referencing WCAG 2.0 (circa 2008) today,
>> next month, or in the year 2020, and deliberate and conscious foot-dragging
>> serves none of the developers or users that WCAG is intended to benefit
>>
>> ​, by artificially holding back actionable Success Criteria​ that is
>> ready now, or in 2 years from now, or 4 years from now (etc.)
>>
>> .
>>
>> As the early research of Project Silver has discovered, we already have
>> large web organizations building out their own internal accessibility
>> guidance and policies in the vacuum that is the 8-year-old WCAG 2.0, and
>> waiting another 5
>>
>> ​+​
>>
>> years to add Requirements and Success Criteria to address issues around
>> Web Applications and Mobile/Responsive Design (to name but 2 urgent
>> requirements today) will likely result in an even harder time reconciling
>> the W3C Accessibility Guidance and those internal documents
>>
>> ​springing up
>>
>> in organizations
>>
>> ​ who want to do MORE than just the bare minimum, and who are today
>> adding new internal requirements to their accessibility requirements lists​
>>
>> .
>>
>> ​
>>
>>
>>
>> As an example, at Deque we are already looking at emergent proposed SC
>> from the various task forces, and adding key elements from that work to our
>> internal testing and evaluation methodology; today as "Best Practices", but
>> in anticipation of adoption at the W3C as a formal Success Criteria, or in
>> the case of "Mobile" simply because our clients need and want *something*
>> TODAY, not 5 years from now.
>>
>>
>>
>> I posit that we run the risk of letting WCAG 2.0 become as relevant to
>> daily web developers in the next 2, 4, 6, (etc.) years as the beleaguered
>> Section 508 is today if we don't start matching and reflecting the reality
>> of web development on the ground today, and at the speed that those changes
>> are happening. I fail to see how that would benefit anyone, least of all​ "
>>
>> ​...
>>
>> developers
>>
>> ​(who) ​
>>
>> use
>>
>> ​ (WCAG)​
>>
>> to improve access for users
>>
>> ​".
>>
>>
>>
>> Let's also not forget who the real primary beneficiaries of our efforts
>> should be: users with disabilities.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> JF
>>
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Oct 5, 2016 at 11:35 PM, lisa.seeman <lisa.seeman@zoho.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> I find myself agreeing with Gregg. We need WCAG to be definitive, and the
>> best we can do. However that can include working harder, getting each SC as
>> good as we can. I do not think we should be culling any SC for the sake of
>> speed
>>
>>
>>
>> (Small note  - I do not remember reaching complete consensus on issues to
>> do with cognitive, but that is a side point)
>>
>> All the best
>>
>> Lisa Seeman
>>
>> LinkedIn <http://il.linkedin.com/in/lisaseeman/>, Twitter
>> <https://twitter.com/SeemanLisa>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ---- On Thu, 06 Oct 2016 07:18:37 +0300 *Gregg
>> Vanderheiden<gregg@raisingthefloor.org <gregg@raisingthefloor.org>>*
>> wrote ----
>>
>> I hope that people are listening carefully to the posts of Allen, Katie
>> and others.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> WCAG is not an application note.   It is a landmark standard with
>> extremely wide application and adoption.
>>
>>
>>
>> This was possible because
>>
>>    - it was very carefully done
>>    - the time was taken to carefully work out all of the SC
>>    - techniques and sufficiency was established for each new SC to test
>>    the SC with ourselves as well as with the public to be sure we knew how to
>>    do each one.
>>    - we examined each SC and ensured they were testable.
>>    - we did *multiple* releases of the guidelines for pubic comment and
>>    carefully responded to each comment - and carried on discussions with
>>    commenters to clear them
>>    - we reached complete consensus in the working group for each item
>>    - we took the time to create Understanding WCAG 2.0  - with
>>    description, rationale, examples, sufficient techniques, common failures
>>    where appropriate and resources for each.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> I am rather stunned that I see discussion of releasing a new 2.1 without
>> anything like the care above being taken.   I have looked at the work so
>> far and it is about where we were 5 years before we completed WCAG 2.0.   I
>> am not saying it will take 5 more years before you are ready with any 2.1
>> but you are many years away at the pace things are currently going.  (We
>> had multiple people working 20-40 hours a week every week on WCAG 2.0 for
>> months on end getting it to one stage or another. )   It is VERY hard.
>>
>>
>>
>> Standards like this also need to be stable so that people can create
>> tools and regulations and adoption can occur.   Talking about updating them
>> every x years completely misunderstands the role and constraints of
>> standards like this.    Such a schedule would create chaos - and pretty
>> much ensure that they standards will not be used -and that your goal will
>> be missed.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> There is a famous quote that goes
>>
>>
>>
>> For *Every* Complex *Problem*, *There* Is an Answer That Is Clear,
>> *Simple*, and Wrong. So almost said H.L. Mencken as part of a longer
>> aphorism. The whole quote is, “Explanations exist; they have existed for
>> all time; *there* is always a well-known *solution* to *every* human
>> *problem* — neat, plausible, and wrong.”Dec 7, 2015
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Wanting to have a strong - well thought out - adopted standard that is
>> rapidly updated is a nice thought — but not possible technically,
>> logistically or rationally given the time spans needed for any of the three
>> (development, public review/testing, and adoption).
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> The current timeline for 2.1 is already unrealistic.    One should never
>> set a date for something this complex based on when it would be good to
>> ship.  It should  ship when it is ready — and the focus should be on WORK
>> to get it done sooner.   Not setting a deadline and deciding that you will
>> ship whatever you have at that point.
>>
>>
>>
>> The WCAG 2.0 working group was incredibly frustrated by the time it took
>> to complete WCAG 2.0.   But our response to the time it was taking was to
>> work harder - get out more public reviews so that we could advance it and
>> find the holes — in order to get it done, and recruit and increase the time
>> spent per week getting it done.
>>
>>
>>
>> The current 2.1 is not tested, not reviewed, not implemented, and not
>> done yet there is a lot of talk about ship date.    Until we have it
>> complete and out for review - we aren't even half done.  (Believe me).
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> PLEASE - don’t listen to your angst or clammoring for something new to
>> ship.   Act in haste and repent at leisure.    If we ship something with
>> out review and incomplete - and say that we will ship another soon to
>> finish it of fix it — we are just inviting people to ignore it.  First
>> because it will have flaws that make it easy to criticize,  and second
>> because we have told them not to - because there will be another soon that
>> will be better and fix holes in the last.    The adoption and support curve
>> is 5-8 years.    Why would people/agencies begin it for any version that
>> will be replace by another before its get adoption.     We can say that a
>> 5-8 year adoption curve is too long but that I like saying 9 months is too
>> long for a pregnancy.    We can complain all we like - but that is what it
>> takes.  And there is nothing we can do about it.
>>
>>
>>
>> DO PLEASE ship regular updates to techniques.
>>
>>
>>
>> DON’T change the rules regularly  or prematurely or we undo what we are
>> trying to do.
>>
>>
>>
>> I too am frustrated by how long it takes.  And how hard it is.   But
>> I can’t and won’t change desires for reality — or make the mistake of
>> trying to hatch this before it is done being developed.  You have wisdom
>> and impatience fighting each other.     Be wise.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> *gregg*
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> John Foliot
>>
>> Principal Accessibility Strategist
>>
>> Deque Systems Inc.
>>
>> john.foliot@deque.com
>>
>>
>>
>> Advancing the mission of digital accessibility and inclusion
>>
>>
>>
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Received on Sunday, 9 October 2016 02:59:24 UTC