WAI

      Leading the Web to its full potential...

Good design is accessible design

Executive Summary

• The Web is the future ... for everybody
• Web formats and protocols need some work
• Web content needs a lot of work
     Guidelines, Awareness, Tools.

The Web is global, so we need a global approach.

Web Accessibility Historical Background

• Since 95: Accessility Reference page maintained at W3C
• Lots of guidelines, confused marketplace
• End of 96: Yuri Rubinski Foundation lead to be more active
• Jan 97: U.S. White House involved
• Spring 97: European Commission involved
• Summer 97: W3C Project Start.
• Since then: dozen of meetings worldwide, 8 working groups, 300+ active participants, several documents released.

Technical Background

• Web content is mostly HTML + image/sound/video/program...
• HTML/XML is textual + structure (title, heading, list..)
• Markup can be rendered in many ways:
  • graphical screen (with or without sound)
  • textual screen
  • speech synthetizer
  • braille terminal
  • etc.
• Document presentation is/should be separate from structure (CSS)
• "Richer" parts can be rendered using alternate formats (e.g. descriptive text for image, linearized version of TABLE, etc)

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)

• Interoperability & Evolvability of the Web
• Vendor-neutral setting
• 300+ members, 50+ staff, Tim Berners-Lee Director.
• MIT for Americas, INRIA for Europe/Africa,  Keio University in Japan
• Architecture, User Interface, Technology&Society, WAI

See our home page at http://www.w3.org

Why W3C?

• Growth of web protocols
• Threat of fragmentation
• Need for new features
• Need for neutral party

What does W3C do?

• Provide a neutral forum for meeting
• Provide expert for editing specification
• Achieve consensus
• Working Drafts and Recommendations
• Reference code where appropriate

Technical areas

are currently divided into

• Web Architecture:
     HTTP, XML, URL, SMIL, Jigsaw
• User Interface:
     HTML, CSS, PNG, SVG, DOM, MathML, Amaya
• Technology and Society:
     RDF, PICS, DSIG, ECommerce, P3P
• Web Accessibility Initiative
     Review, Guidelines, Education, Tools

Web Accessibility Initiative, WAI

Promote and achieve Web Accessibility for everyone, including people with disabilities, handheld devices and slow connections

A Partnership Model for Accessibility (multi-stakeholder).

• Funded by government (NSF/DoE, EC/TIDE), Industries and W3C members.
• Coordinates with & supplements existing Web accessibility work
1. Make sure all W3C specs enable accessibility: HTML, CSS, SMIL...
2. Coordinate development of accessibility guidelines for:
   - content development,
   - browsers,
   - authoring tools
3. Coordinate development of Tools for Evaluation and Repair of sites
4. Conduct & coordinate Education and Outreach

WAI PF Work

• HTML4 improvements:
  - Improved structure
  - Style sheets
  - Alternate content
  - Easier navigation and orientation
• CSS2 improvements:
  - Generated text benefits audio
  - Autonumber benefits screen magnifier and Braille users
  - Audio properties
• SMIL improvements:
  - Linking to description
  - Captioning and other synchronized supplements
  - User control of Play Process
• Currently working on
  • XML/XHTML/Schemas: Accessibility Modularization
  • SVG: Scalable Vector Graphics
  • XSL/CSS3: tree transformation, grid layout
  • Xlink/Xpointer: XML Hyperlinking
  • DOM Level 2: event, style, performance, etc.

Web Content Guidelines

• Gregg Vanderheiden, Chuck Letourneau chairs
• Wendy Chisholm, Ian Jacobs editors
• Guidelines/Checkpoints/Techniques
• Three levels of Priority: P1, P2, P3
• Three levels of conformance: A, AA, AAA
• Images & Maps, Applets & Scripts, Audio & Video, Tables, Links, Frames, Forms, etc
• Proposed Recommendation March 99
• Target W3C Standard: Spring 99

User Agent Accessibility Guidelines

• Jon Gunderson (UIUC) chair, editor
• Ian Jacobs editor
• Emphasis on Graphical desktop browsers and I14Y with Dependent Assistive Technologies
• Same Priority, Guidelines, Checkpoints, and Techniques organization
• Looking at:
  - Format Capabilities (e.g. support W3C accessibility features)
  - Presentation Adjustability (e.g. accessible UI, control over style)
  - Orientation Information (e.g. access to document structure)
  - Navigation Commands (keyboard input, link/event)
  - Visibility of Accessibility Information (help, controls)
  - Compatibility with 3rd Party Assistive Technology
• Latest Working Group Draft: 9 Mar 1999.
• Targeted final release: Beginning of summer 99

Authoring Tools Accessibility Guidelines

• Jutta Treviranus (UToronto) chair, editor
• Ian Jacobs, Jan Richards, Charles McCathieNevile editors
• Both: generation of accessible content and accessibility of the environment.
• Same Priority, Guidelines, Checkpoints, and Techniques organization
• Looking at content production:
  - Generate standard markup
  - Support all accessibility features of W3C recommendations
  - Make sure that no accessibility content is missing
  - Integrate accessibility solutions into the overall "look and feel"
  - Never remove existing accessible structure
  - Provide Methods of checking and correcting inaccessible content
  - Promote accessibility in help and documentation
• Latest Working Group Draft: 4 Mar 1999.
• Targeted final release: Summer 99

WAI Evaluation & Repair Tools

• Len Kasday and Daniel Dardailler co-chairs.
• Interest Group and Working Group.
• Collect and analyze input from all people who use or benefit from these tools.
• Conduct experiments and give feedback in the form of functionality specification (what a given tool should do).
• Looking at:
  • Evaluation tools: Bobby, HTML validator, Report form.
  • Repair tools: Tidy, A-Prompt, CSSize, etc.
  • Filter/User tools: Altifier, Table linearizer, Lynxit, Trace PowerToys, etc

  Education & Outreach

  • Judy Brewer (W3C/IPO) chair
  • Focus on Content providers.
    But they use, listen, and are influenced by:
    • authoring tools vendors
    • technical press
    • professional web site designers
    • user feedback
  • Multiple channel strategy
    • presentations/talks in major Web conferences
    • organization of seminars
    • direct contact and lobby with the major authoring tool providers
    • materials like Quicktips card or short Video, etc.

  Resources

  • WAI home page: http://www.w3.org/WAI
  • W3C Specifications and Technical Reports: http://www.w3.org/TR/.