Re: Using HTML form controls and links (Success Criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role, Value))

The short answer is that any of the ARIA techniques satisfy WCAG 2.0, if
ARIA is accessibility supported. I think that's the answer you're
looking for...

The long answer:

The WCAG techniques are not normative at all. Sometimes we only document
one way to satisfy a given success criterion, but always expect that
another way might come along. If the new technique meets the intent of
the success criterion, it is allowed, even if it's not a documented
technique by the WCAG Working Group.

ARIA is not more prominently listed in the WCAG techniques because it is
still an evolving technology and isn't official yet. The WCAG WG expects
that the addition of ARIA techniques will be one of the major pieces of
work for this year.

The catch in what I said above is that the ARIA technique is valid *if
ARIA is accessibility supported*. That isn't something that is easily
answered. Much of the testing work we will do with ARIA this year will
help with that. But if you are testing your content in the browsers your
target audience uses, and you determine that the ARIA techniques work in
those browsers, then you have determined that ARIA is accessibility
supported for your target audience.

Michael

Schnabel, Stefan wrote:
>
> Hi Rich, Michael,
>
>  
>
> is
>
>  
>
> http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/NOTE-WCAG20-TECHS-20081211/H91
>
>  
>
> absolutely NORMATIVE regarding Success Criterion 4.1.2 (Name, Role,
> Value) <http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/REC-WCAG20-20081211/#ensure-compat-rsv>?
>
>  
>
> For instance, do I violate WCAG 2.0 when I decide NOT to use a
> <select> statement for a combo in my application,
>
> and choose instead an input with an associated button and ARIA-Markup?
>
>  
>
> <strong>
>
>  With other words, is applied ARIA an 1:1 alternative to
> http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/NOTE-WCAG20-TECHS-20081211/H91?
>
> </strong>
>
>  
>
> Anything else will lead to BIG discussions. This is a serious question.
>
> I think industry wants questions like these covered and clarified
> because you can easily derive legal implications from this.
>
>  
>
> In case you are NOT the right persons to ask: Who will that be?
>
>  
>
> Also, it would help if in the ARIA spec a respective clarification
> could be added.
>
>  
>
> Best Regards
>
> Stefan
>

-- 

Michael Cooper
Web Accessibility Specialist
World Wide Web Consortium, Web Accessibility Initiative
E-mail cooper@w3.org <mailto:cooper@w3.org>
Information Page <http://www.w3.org/People/cooper/>