W3C

Results of Questionnaire UAWG Survey for 3 March 2011

The results of this questionnaire are available to anybody. In addition, answers are sent to the following email addresses: w3c-archive@w3.org, jeanne@w3.org

This questionnaire was open from 2011-03-01 to 2011-03-11.

8 answers have been received.

Jump to results for question:

  1. ACTION-504 - New 2.9.1 Improve Foreground Legibility
  2. ACTION-503 - 2.9.2 Time-Based Media Load-Only
  3. Action 501 - 2.8.1 Configure Position:
  4. Action 501 - 2.8.2 Restore Default Toolbars

1. ACTION-504 - New 2.9.1 Improve Foreground Legibility

Proposed 2.9.1 Improve Foreground Legibility:

2.9.1 (former 4.9.1) Improve Foreground Legibility: The user can have all background images shown, hidden, or replaced. (Level A)

Intent:

It can be difficult for people with vision problems or distraction problem to read text or identify images when the background is complex or doesn't contrast well with the foreground. Allowing users to disable the display of background images or replace the image with a solid color helps ensure that foreground content remains easy to read. This can also help remove purely decorative distractions, which is important for some users.

Users should have the option to have non-transparent backgrounds of a solid color of their choice drawn behind text, rather than turning off background images. This ensures that foreground text does not disappear when the image is removed and the default background color does not provide sufficient contrast with the foreground text color. As an aid to selecting an appropriate background color, the user agent could programmatically determine the foreground text color and suggest a range of background colors.

Because background images occasionally convey important information, when their display is turned off the user agent should give users access to any alternative content associated with them.

This checkpoint applies to background that are unambiguously defined as being written on the base background, such as the HTML background property. It does not apply to cases where complex computation is required to determine whether or not some content will appear behind or overlap other content, as with the multi-layered renderings(refer, for example, to the z-index property in Cascading Style Sheets, level 2 ([CSS2], section 9.9.1)

Examples:

James has a reading disability where he needs text to be clear from distractions that are not related to the text. He configures his user agent not to load background images and navigates to a web page. James then gets only the text from the web page without any images interfering with what he is reading.

Related Resources:

1. In CSS, background images may be turned on/off with the background and background-image properties ([CSS2], section 14.2.1).

2. The z-index property in Cascading Style Sheets, level 2 ([CSS2], section 9.9.1)

3. Because background images occasionally convey important information, when their display is turned off the user agent should give users access to any alternative content associated with them. (At the time of this writing, HTML does not support alternative content for background images, but this may be supported in other technologies or future versions.)

4. See Success Criteria 1.4.1 "Configure Text" for more information related to background colors.

Summary

ChoiceAll responders
Results
Accept the proposal 6
Recommend changes (see comments field) 2
The proposal needs more discussion (see comments field)
Disagree with the proposal
Neutral - will accept the consensus of the group

Details

Responder ACTION-504 - New 2.9.1 Improve Foreground LegibilityComments 2.9.1 Background Image Toggle
Jeanne F Spellman Accept the proposal
Kimberly Patch Accept the proposal
Simon Harper Accept the proposal
Jim Allan Accept the proposal
Patrick Lauke Accept the proposal
Markku Hakkinen Recommend changes (see comments field) In the intent, suggest replacing " vision problems or distraction problem" with "some visual or attention related impairments"

In the example, suggest change "configures his user agent not to load background images" to "configures his user agent to not load background images"
Greg Lowney Recommend changes (see comments field) I'd have the SC explicitly apply only to "recognized" background images. The fourth paragraph of the intent makes this clear, but it wouldn't hurt to acknowledge it in the SC itself.

Do we have examples of user agents allowing the user to replace the background image on a page? Do you think we can have them by the time we publish?

The second paragraph of Intent states "Users could have the option to have non-transparent backgrounds of a solid color of their choice drawn behind text, rather than turning off background images…." It seems clear from the wording of the SC that this would *not* be sufficient to conform, and therefore is merely a best practice that could be done _in addition to_ conforming to the SC. If so we should make that more explicit. Did you decide not to have this be a separate SC?

The third paragraph of Intent says that "[when background images] display is turned off the user agent should give users access to any alternative content associated with them…" I'm not sure this would be useful without giving the user feedback that a background image has been hidden; without that few users would search through dialog boxes just on the off chance that the page has a background image that has alternative content. As discussed before we do want to address the possibility of technologies allowing alternative content for background images, even though HTML doesn't yet support this, but since there are thus no implementations are we allowed to require it? Or is the compromise to just (and hopefully more clearly) recommend this as an additional best practice that is more clearly states to not be a requirement or addressing the requirement?

The third item under "Related Resources" is not really a reference to another resource, as we usually use it. My personal preference would be to add another heading, a peer to Intent, Examples, and Related Resources, called something like Notes for this purpose. I've included a section like that in some of the drafts I've submitted before but I can't recall how they ended up being handled.
Jan Richards Accept the proposal

2. ACTION-503 - 2.9.2 Time-Based Media Load-Only

Proposed

2.9.2 Time-Based Media Load-Only: The user can override the play on load of time-based media content such that the content is not played until explicit user request. (Level A)

Intent

As an opt-in user setting, autoplay for media is off/paused, until the user activates 'play'. This prevents media from playing without explicit request from the user. This helps users who need to avoid signals that may trigger seizures, as well as users who are easily distracted, or who have difficulty interacting with the controls provided for playing media. The user agent provides a visual and auditory indicator that the video is in paused state and needs user interaction to start.

Examples

1. Stuart, a screen reader user, opens a page with an audio element that starts playing immediately. He cannot hear the screen reader because of the noise from the audio element, and must search through the page to find the 'noisy' element to turn it off (or pause). Once the screen reader is the sole source of audio the he can read the page and determine if the audio is important and choose to play it.

2. Using similar techniques that are used for pop-up blockers, the user agent checks to see if the play() request was from user interaction or a background script. If isn't from direct user interaction, the user agent could ask the user to explicitly allow the media to play, perhaps remembering the choice for the site.

3. Playback of a <video> or <audio> element can only be triggered in response to a user gesture on a touch screen device with no keyboard (like pop-up blockers).

4. The user agent provides a global control that calls "paused for user interaction" for all media when a page loads.

Resources

HTML5 4.8.10.8 Playing the media resource (http://dev.w3.org/html5/spec/Overview.html#playing-the-media-resource)

Summary

ChoiceAll responders
Results
Accept the proposal 5
Recommend changes (see comments field) 3
The proposal needs more discussion (see comments field)
Disagree with the proposal
Neutral - will accept the consensus of the group

Details

Responder ACTION-503 - 2.9.2 Time-Based Media Load-OnlyComments 2.9.2
Jeanne F Spellman Accept the proposal The style of the examples is inconsistent, but this is low priority.
Kimberly Patch Recommend changes (see comments field) Minor editing for clarity:
ORIGINAL:
This helps users who need to avoid signals that may trigger seizures, as well as users who are easily distracted, or who have difficulty interacting with the controls provided for playing media.
SUGGESTED CHANGES:
This helps users who need to avoid signals that may trigger seizures, users who are easily distracted, and users who have difficulty interacting with the controls provided for playing media.
Simon Harper Accept the proposal
Jim Allan Accept the proposal
Patrick Lauke Recommend changes (see comments field) Tiny changes:

"If isn't from direct user interaction" > "If *it* isn't from direct user interaction"

More fundamental change: do we really want "visual and auditory indicator that the video is in paused state"? I'd soften it to visual *or* auditory (though I personally still don't see - no pun intended - how the auditory indicator would work / be advantageous). Additionally, should that sentence talk about "the media element" rather than "the video" (to also include audio)?
Lastly, what about audio that doesn't have a native control in the page, and is only used to be triggered by scripts (e.g. an audio element that is not in the actual document, but rather has simply been created with document.createElement('audio')). Here, the user agent couldn't give a visual indication by default, as it wouldn't be clear where that indication should appear in the page. At that stage, it should be up to the author to provide this indicator?
Markku Hakkinen Recommend changes (see comments field) In example 1, suggest changing "to turn it off (or pause)" to "to pause or turn it off."
In example 4, suggest change below:

"The user agent provides a global control that sets a state equivalent to "paused waiting for user interaction" for all media when a page loads.
Greg Lowney Accept the proposal
Jan Richards Accept the proposal

3. Action 501 - 2.8.1 Configure Position:

2.8.1 (former 4.8.1) Configure Position:

When graphical user agent user interfaces have toolbars, the user can add, remove and configure the position of user agent user interface controls on those toolbars from a pre-defined set of controls. (Level AAA)

Intent of Success Criterion 2.8.1

Users with dexterity impairments or mobility impairments may have problems making the large movements required to select between non-adjacent toolbar controls which they need to use frequently. Enabling these controls to be situated together removes much the the strain, and pain, faced by these users, and increases productivity as task completion times are decreased.

Examples of Success Criterion 2.8.1

As part of her work as a legal secretary, Jane always needs to justify paragraphs, place them in a numbered list, and bold the first word of each list item. Because the online document processor she uses does not allow toolbars to be modified, and groups controls logically together - all paragraph formatting is grouped together, as are list manipulation and character highlighting - Jane experiences increased pain from her repetitive strain injury forcing her to take many more breaks. If the word processor allowed toolbar modification Jane could group 'justify' next to 'numbered list' next to 'bold' creating less requirement for movement and therefore less strain.

Related Resources for Success Criterion 2.8.1:

WAI-ARIA

Summary

ChoiceAll responders
Results
Accept the proposal 5
Recommend changes (see comments field) 1
The proposal needs more discussion (see comments field) 1
Disagree with the proposal
Neutral - will accept the consensus of the group

Details

Responder Action 501 - 2.8.1 Configure Position: Comments 2.8.1
Jeanne F Spellman Accept the proposal
Kimberly Patch The proposal needs more discussion (see comments field) I think we can point out a couple more classes of users to this one: This is also important for low-vision users who want to avoid frequently reorienting to different parts of the screen, and to users whose cognitive issues make it difficult to handle frequent reorienting.

Jane's colleague Mary has no problems with her hands, but because of her vision problems, it takes longer for her to focus on a given part of the screen. Grouping justify, numbered list and bold together allows Jane to avoid excess reorienting and keep up with her colleagues.
Simon Harper Accept the proposal change the first 'the' to 'of' - 'the the strain'
Jim Allan Accept the proposal
Patrick Lauke Recommend changes (see comments field) Tiny change: "removes much the the strain" > "removes much *of* the strain"

Clarification: is the "online" part of "online document processor" on purpose? To me, that would suggest a web application / rich text editor running inside a browser, i.e. WCAG and ATAG territory, rather than UAAG.
Markku Hakkinen Accept the proposal
Greg Lowney
Jan Richards Accept the proposal

4. Action 501 - 2.8.2 Restore Default Toolbars

2.8.2 (former 4.8.2) Restore Default Toolbars:

The user can restore the default toolbar configuration. (Level AAA)

Intent of Success Criterion 2.8.2

Mistakes happen. If a user has modified the toolbar incorrectly it can often be difficult to return to a stable state so that these errors can be corrected. There are additional pressures in this regard for people with learning difficulties who make more use of toolbars than they do of textual menus. Building an easily selectable mechanism to restore these defaults saves user time and reduces stress.

Examples of Success Criterion 2.8.2

Jack, is an 80 year old silver surfer who is intellectually very sharp but experiences tremors in his hands when required to make fine movements with the mouse. To help himself he is setting up the toolbar so that 'spacers' are placed between each component to prevent accidental selection of adjacent buttons. Today his tremors are particularly bad and Jack makes a number of mistakes becoming increasingly frustrated that while trying to correct these errors he begins to make many more. Jack just wants to start over. Luckily the WebApp manufacturer has included an easy mechanism to restore the default toolbar configuration. Jack chooses this option and successfully starts over the next day.

Related Resources for Success Criterion 2.8.1:

WAI-ARIA

Summary

ChoiceAll responders
Results
Accept the proposal 5
Recommend changes (see comments field) 2
The proposal needs more discussion (see comments field)
Disagree with the proposal
Neutral - will accept the consensus of the group

Details

Responder Action 501 - 2.8.2 Restore Default ToolbarsComments 2.8.2
Jeanne F Spellman Accept the proposal
Kimberly Patch Accept the proposal
Simon Harper Accept the proposal
Jim Allan Accept the proposal
Patrick Lauke Recommend changes (see comments field) Again, the mention of WebApp makes me think it's a web-based application running inside the browser, rather than a user agent in its own right. Maybe the example should just suggest that Jack is changing the buttons in his web browser?
Markku Hakkinen Recommend changes (see comments field) The term "silver surfer" might offend some. Sufficient to say that he is 80 year old Web surfer.
Greg Lowney
Jan Richards Accept the proposal

More details on responses

  • Jeanne F Spellman: last responded on 1, March 2011 at 16:32 (UTC)
  • Kimberly Patch: last responded on 2, March 2011 at 14:59 (UTC)
  • Simon Harper: last responded on 3, March 2011 at 10:23 (UTC)
  • Jim Allan: last responded on 3, March 2011 at 17:05 (UTC)
  • Patrick Lauke: last responded on 3, March 2011 at 17:26 (UTC)
  • Markku Hakkinen: last responded on 3, March 2011 at 18:01 (UTC)
  • Greg Lowney: last responded on 3, March 2011 at 18:12 (UTC)
  • Jan Richards: last responded on 3, March 2011 at 18:17 (UTC)

Everybody has responded to this questionnaire.


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