Re: How Much Of A Problem Are Tables Used for Design?

Which is why gtting imlementations of the Authoring Tool Accessibility
Guidelines is so important. However, most companies are in business, which
means they respond to purchasers. If tools naturally support good clean
design there is no need for people who do not want to be experts to learn how
to code HTML, let alone how to read XMLDTDs and schemas for each language
they decide might be useful.

Charles McCN

On Thu, 18 Nov 1999, Claude Sweet wrote:

  > David Poehlman wrote:
   
  > One of our biggest problems is the way all those legacy editing and
  > creation tools handle markup and that the people using them in large
  > numbers do not know a lick of html.
  
  This reminds me of DOS users who lost the battle of being the exclusive
  club of computer users because they alone could write programs so their
  computer could perform proprietary tasks.
  
  The advent of the graphical user interface represented by the Windows
  and Macintosh operating systems allowed the use of computers to become
  widely used.
  
  Suggestions that someone MUST be able to write html puts those
  statements in that same classification as the DOS users who wanted to
  prevent anyone except the "purists" from using the technology.
  
  Point, click, and drag graphical html editors will expand the use of the
  technology and seems to be on the brink of being able to provide the
  code necessary to provide full access to all computer users - Intranet
  and Internet users with and without disabilities.
  
  In the near future the individual who designs a personal, non-commercial
  web site will not manipulate the hidden html code any more than the
  individual who writes and uses a word processor knows (or cares) about
  the program code that makes the software work.
  
  The key is the end process - Does it work? How well does it work? How
  much time, energy, and expense is involved in learning to use the
  software to achieve the desired end result?
  
  The KISS principle works well - Kept It Simple Stupid.
  I get the feeling that there is a secret society promoting Accessibility
  and everyone who joins MUST suffer the pain and steep learning process
  in order to qualify for membership all the while someone keeps hollering
  "Its easy to do, if I can learn how to write accessible code - so can
  you!"
  
  Claude Sweet
  Educational Technologist
  

--Charles McCathieNevile            mailto:charles@w3.org
phone: +1 617 258 0992   http://www.w3.org/People/Charles
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative    http://www.w3.org/WAI
MIT/LCS  -  545 Technology sq., Cambridge MA, 02139,  USA

Received on Thursday, 18 November 1999 18:15:00 UTC