Re: Purpose of Controls SC

> There were objections to using it at all

I'm not sure what the objections were to the COGA semanatics, but for me 
concerns stemmed from its status as a slumbering editor's draft. I 
repeatedly heard we should continue with Personalization on 2.1 because 
the COGA semantics were going to be there in time to give us a framework. 
My concerns have increased, not decreased.

> In which case we go back to saying “Which came first, the chicken or the 
egg?”.

I wasn't involved in the working group back in the days when 4.1.2 Name, 
Role, Value was drafted, but looking at the publication history, the first 
public working draft of ARIA 1.0 came out before the first last call for 
WCAG 2.0. By the time WCAG 2.0 reached CR, ARIA was mature enough that 
multiple browsers supported parts of it. Additionally, 4.1.2 could rely on 
the existence of a well-defined specification for HTML which already 
supported the SC for standard controls.
That's why 4.1.2 can contain the note it has: "Note: This success 
criterion is primarily for Web authors who develop or script their own 
user interface components. For example, standard HTML controls already 
meet this success criterion when used according to specification."

What do we have that's equivalent support right now for Purpose of 
Controls? John trotted out the use of the title attribute. Several of us 
have mentioned the HTML5 input types. Those are pretty slim pickings in 
comparison.

So to me, there really is no chicken and egg discussion. The specification 
comes first. It needs to be developed enough to have some level of 
legitimacy and there needs to be evidence of its adoption before we should 
require its use.

> Do you object to the principle (which has been discussed a lot on the 
list), of including a core set of terms that can be used to identify some 
controls for personalisation/explanation?

Is there precedence for such a large core set of terms in WCAG? Has there 
been any SC that has attempted such a thing on this scale? I know we try 
to find a balance between pushing for progression and cementing existing 
practice. But don't we seem pretty far ahead of the curve in this 
situation? 2.1 is scheduled for CR be end of year. I don't believe the 
COGA semantics will even be a first public draft by then. That raises a 
lot of flags for me. I would much prefer that effort go into a 
well-thought-out and vetted first public draft of COGA semantics. 

I suspect part of the sizable push back to a CFC for this item stems from 
a sense we're being pushed to adopt something that is not mature enough 
for level AA.

Michael Gower
IBM Accessibility
Research

1803 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC  V8T 5C3
gowerm@ca.ibm.com
voice: (250) 220-1146 * cel: (250) 661-0098 *  fax: (250) 220-8034



From:   Alastair Campbell <acampbell@nomensa.com>
To:     Michael Gower <michael.gower@ca.ibm.com>
Cc:     WCAG <w3c-wai-gl@w3.org>, Andrew Kirkpatrick <akirkpat@adobe.com>
Date:   2017-08-14 02:03 AM
Subject:        Re: Purpose of Controls SC



Michael Gower wrote:
 
> There have been assurances now for 8 months that the ARIA COGA Semantics 
to Enable Personalization proposal would be mature enough to fulfill that 
role in time for WCAG 2.1. 
 
There were objections to using it at all, that is *why* we proposed to 
move a core set of terms into WCAG, to get over the chicken/egg effect.
 
> The specification remains an influx working draft, and so we are faced 
with a hastily constructed substitute in this SC. The attributes listed in 
the SC draft not only deviate from the list in the draft spec, but 
actually increase the number -- it isn't even a subset.
 
It was added to following the feedback about aligning with the HTML5 
attributes, but no-one is saying it cannot be whittled down.
 
 
> The inference that its 140 some-odd attributes are going to be perfected 
through the public comments process is troubling. 
 
That’s up to 75 tokens/descriptions, which have been put in quickly, and I 
agree they need work.
 
 
> I believe such effort should be handled by the ARIA WG that first 
published this draft semantics document.

In which case we go back to saying “Which came first, the chicken or the 
egg?”.
 
Do you object to the principle (which has been discussed a lot on the 
list), of including a core set of terms that can be used to identify some 
controls for personalisation/explanation?
 
If so, then we’ll have to put off this SC until a later version. If not, 
then I don’t think it’s harmful to use the time after August to refine the 
terms.
 
Cheers,
 
-Alastair