Re: Advice on AA conformation

Karl Groves wrote:
> 
> What you’re asking is really more of a legal question than an 
> accessibility one, but I’d like to answer anyway, based on my experience 

I agree.  It is a question for the legislators or lawyers. They have
chosen the rules which businesses have to comply with, even if the rules
were written by someone else.

> Practices.   For each provision of each industry standard you want to 
> comply with, you should go through and detail the exact conformance 
> criteria necessary for meeting that individual provision.    For each 

Whilst this is probably good advice for avoiding being prosecuted or
sued.  However, it is bad for accessibility as it often encourages an
attitude of minimal compliance; it stops one from using the best
techniques for the specific audience of the web site; and it prevents
the creativity which may eventually lead to a better best current practice.

> Best Practice in your list, you should provide detailed test 
> instructions defining exactly how it is determined whether you have or 

Given that most businesses don't value accessibility, it probably
improves accessibility if WAI can provide one set of rules that is so
objectively testable that legislators can use it to frame laws for which
it is possible to objectively prove compliance, and for which there is
little difference between minimal compliance and objectively provable
compliance.  However, in my view, that should be the A level, not AA or
AAA.  AA and AAA should require a reasonable person test and much more
stress on objectives than on exact methods.

-- 
David Woolley
Emails are not formal business letters, whatever businesses may want.
RFC1855 says there should be an address here, but, in a world of spam,
that is no longer good advice, as archive address hiding may not work.

Received on Saturday, 7 November 2009 11:11:45 UTC