Device-indepence in DOM3 and ARIA2 (Was: browser detection of touch browsing)

On Mar 31, 2010, at 12:52 PM, David Poehlman wrote:

> it might be worth running by apple.

There is a joint DOM 3.0 and ARIA 2.0 issue [1] to address device-independence. The email thread subject is "Deprecation of DOMAttrModified" and it was posted to the following lists in the beginning of February 2010: w3c-wai-pf, www-dom, public-hypertext-cg. Please add to the discussion as you see fit. 

Device-independence for ARIA widgets relies on the AT to be able to convey user intent through the UA rather than direct user action. For example, if VoiceOver is running on the iPhone and the user lands on an ARIA treeitem which allows both a default action (activation or selection) and a secondary action (such as expansion or collapse), the user can trigger the default action with a standard activation event (DOMActivate is being deprecated but a standard 'click' event encompasses the default action). The only currently standardized option for device-independent access to the secondary action relies on DOM mutation events, which are problematic for many reasons and are being deprecated. There are several mutation replacement proposals being discussed in the DOM3 WG, and we have made them aware of the accessibility implications that will be required for true device-independence. The larger issue is that, even once we get this DOM mutation replacement in browsers, web developers will still be required to make a shift in direction towards a more locale-, platform-, and device-independent style of coding.

The above explanation is my understanding of what we need for device-independence, but I'm not sure exactly what Jim requested in his email. Jim, you may have intended something different by, "the browser should communicate or translate the [events] so the functionality of the site is not impaired." If so, please elaborate.

Thanks,
James Craig

1. http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/Group/track/issues/352 (probably a member-only link)




> On Mar 31, 2010, at 2:48 PM, Jim Allan wrote:
> 
> This is an interesting article. Speaks to device independence. Perhaps we
> need something in GL 4. Alistair talks about a JavaScript to do the
> sniffing. Though it seems the browser should communicate or translate the
> user keypress/movement/etc javascript or server so the functionality of the
> site is not impaired.
> 
> http://alastairc.ac/2010/03/detecting-touch-based-browsing/
> 
> Thoughts?
> 
> Jim Allan, Accessibility Coordinator & Webmaster
> Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
> 1100 W. 45th St., Austin, Texas 78756
> voice 512.206.9315    fax: 512.206.9264  http://www.tsbvi.edu/
> "We shape our tools and thereafter our tools shape us." McLuhan, 1964
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Jonnie Appleseed
> with his
> Hands-On Technolog(eye)s
> reducing technology's disabilities
> one byte at a time
> 
>

Received on Wednesday, 31 March 2010 22:29:49 UTC