Re: Draft text for summary attribute definition

2009/3/1 Robert J Burns <rob@robburns.com>:
> I'm fine with using role='presentation' for layout tables. I think that
> addresses the use case I described adequately. The only concern I have with
> that is that AT already supports null summary in that situation with less
> existing support for role='presentation'.

AT already supports not providing a summary attribute at all for
layout tables, which is why not providing a summary attribute at all
for layout tables is allowed in WCAG 2.0, even though layout tables
are strongly discouraged.

As layout tables are explicitly prohibited in HTML5, it doesn't make
sense for the prose of an attribute intended to aid accessibility to
describe how to create layout tables, when the attribute does not need
to be used to create a layout table.

> Since this has become an occasional practice for authors, HTML should
> address it to at least say "authors must not use summary='' as an indication
> of layout tables but instead must use role='presentation'".

> The other problem that you're still not addressing is the issue of captions
> directed at non-visual users. Perhaps this doesn't need to be addressed in
> the 'summary' attribute prose at all. Instead we can provide such advice in
> the 'caption' element prose. However, this has been a point of confusion and
> ambiguity for authors and so I think we should address it head on. This
> could be something along the lines of saying authors must not use the
> 'summary' attribute for captions directed at non-visual users but should
> instead see the 'caption' element criteria for authoring captions
> specifically for non-visual users.

I'm okay with that advice.


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Received on Sunday, 1 March 2009 10:16:44 UTC