RE: Pop-Ups

To add something more to this, I recently wrote a large corporate document for a large investment bank. This organisation used a pop-up for legal and privacy information. To comply with Data Protection Law in the UK this had to be available to every visitor to the site. Without pop-ups this was not possible without interfering with the users' experience of the site.

We used server-side scripting to allow it in this instance, but we also were going to use a <noscript> to offer the information on a HTML page, until the client decided otherwise.

I am not against pop-ups per se, however I find them generally annoying. I think that there has to be compromise in some situations and all camps must be prepared to meet in the middle.

Here this means that pop-ups can be used in certain circumstances, but wherever possible (and especially if they contain important information) there should be an alternative offered. This is a WCAG checkpoint (Priority One) so surely doing that keeps everyone happy?

For those who would like an example of a good use of pop-ups, I would say that if a site contains access key functionality (something that is a good accessibility practice), these  keys can often be difficult to remember. Now, if a pop-up was used to contain that information so that it was always available to users quickly (and keyboard users can do this easily on Mac and PC, changing windows) then that is only a good thing. Pop-ups that add nothing to the site or a user's experience of it, that is what I hate. Maybe I am wrong, this is only my opinion! :-)

I am also interested in Jim Ley's comments on pop-up windows that display in the window that is being viewed rather than creating a new browser window. Can someone please let me know if this is possible (or have I got the wrong end of the stick?) and where I can find a good example of this.

Great discussion by the way.

Kind regards to all
Simon

-----Original Message-----
From:	Peacock, Kimberly [mailto:peacockk@ctcgsc.org]
Sent:	Fri 10/18/2002 4:56 PM
To:	w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
Cc:	
Subject:	RE: Pop-Ups



Thank you Joel, yes that's exactly what I was trying to say.  I'm glad at
least one other person didn't think I was totally crazy for suggesting it,
and got at the general purpose for my message in the first place.  I feel a
little better now, even if everyone else still disagrees.

-Kimberly

-----Original Message-----
From: Joel Ward [mailto:ward_joel@bah.com]
Sent: Friday, October 18, 2002 10:36 AM
To: WAI List
Subject: Re: Pop-Ups



<quote from="Phill">
But, and it's a key concept, Pop-up's can be usable by individuals with
disabilities within certain constraints and configurations.  Same with
JavaScript.
</quote>

I second this idea.  They keyword is constraints.

Sometimes we make applications or web sites for a certain audience and we
can assure that audience will have certain technologies available.  Why
can't we use some of the more powerful features of this medium?  I think we
should work to make those features accessible instead of accepting the
status quo.

I think that is what Kimberly was going at.  (Am I right?)

I also believe that we should use these "powerful" features only when
necessary, and avoid them if we really do not need them.


_____________________________________________________________________
VirusChecked by the Incepta Group plc
_____________________________________________________________________

Received on Friday, 18 October 2002 12:24:26 UTC