[guidelines] _________________________________________________________________ W3C List of Checkpoints for User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 This version: http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/WAI-USERAGENT-19991004/checkpoint-list (plain text, postscript, pdf) This document is an appendix to: http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/WAI-USERAGENT-19991004 Latest version of User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0: http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/WAI-USERAGENT Editors: Jon Gunderson, University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign Ian Jacobs, W3C Copyright © 1999 W3C® (MIT, INRIA, Keio), All Rights Reserved. W3C liability, trademark, document use and software licensing rules apply. _________________________________________________________________ Abstract This document is an appendix to the W3C "User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0". It provides a list of all checkpoints from the User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0, organized by concept, as a checklist for user agent developers. Please refer to the Guidelines document for introductory information, information about related documents, a glossary of terms, and more. This list may be used to review a tool or set of tools for accessibility. For each checkpoint, indicate whether the checkpoint has been satisfied, has not been satisfied, or is not applicable. A tabular version of the list of checkpoints is also available (e.g., for printing). Status of this document This section describes the status of this document at the time of its publication. Other documents may supersede this document. The latest status of this document series is maintained at the W3C. This document is an appendix to a Working Draft. It is a draft document and may be updated, replaced or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is inappropriate to use W3C Working Drafts as reference material or to cite them as other than "work in progress". This is work in progress and does not imply endorsement by, or the consensus of, either W3C or Members of the WAI User Agent (UA) Working Group. Please send comments about this document to the public mailing list: w3c-wai-ua@w3.org. This document has been produced as part of the Web Accessibility Initiative. The goal of the WAI User Agent Guidelines Working Group is discussed in the Working Group charter. A list of current W3C Recommendations and other technical documents can be found at http://www.w3.org/TR. _________________________________________________________________ Priorities Each checkpoint in this document is assigned a priority that indicates its importance for users. [Priority 1] This checkpoint must be implemented by user agents as a native feature or through compatibility with assistive technology, otherwise one or more groups of users with disabilities will find it impossible to access information. Satisfying this checkpoint is a basic requirement for some individuals to be able to use the Web. [Priority 2] This checkpoint should be implemented by user agents as a native feature or through compatibility with assistive technology, otherwise one or more groups of users will find it difficult to access information. Satisfying this checkpoint will remove significant barriers to accessing Web documents. [Priority 3] This checkpoint may be implemented by user agents as a native feature or through compatibility with assistive technology, to make it easier for one or more groups of users to access information. Satisfying this checkpoint will improve access to the Web for some individuals. Priority 1 checkpoints In General (Priority 1) * 3.1 Ensure that the user has access to document content, including alternative representations of content. * 3.2 For dependent user agents only. Ensure that the user has access to the content of an element selected by the user. * 3.3 Render content according to natural language identification. For unsupported natural languages, notify the user of language changes when configured to do so. * 4.5 Allow the user to turn on and off rendering of continuous equivalent tracks (e.g., closed captions, auditory descriptions, video of sign language, etc.) * 12.1 Provide a version of the product documentation that conforms to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. * 12.2 Ensure that all user agent functionalities that promote accessibility are documented. User Interface (Priority 1) * 4.6 Allow the user to turn on and off animated or blinking text. * 4.7 Allow the user to turn on and off animations and blinking images. * 4.9 Allow the user to turn on and off support for user style sheets. * 4.10 Allow the user to turn on and off support for author style sheets. * 4.11 Allow the user to turn on and off support for spawned windows. * 5.1 Allow the user to control font family. * 5.2 Allow the user to control the size of text. * 5.3 Allow the user to control foreground color. * 5.4 Allow the user to control background color. * 5.5 Allow the user to control selection highlighting (e.g., foreground and background color). * 5.6 Allow the user to control focus highlighting (e.g., foreground and background color). * 5.14 Allow the user to control synthesized speech playback rate. * 5.15 Allow the user to control synthesized speech volume. * 8.1 Allow the user to navigate viewports (including frames). * 8.2 For user agents that offer a browsing history mechanism, when the user returns to a previous view, restore the point of regard in the viewport. * 9.1 Provide a mechanism for highlighting and identifying (through a standard interface where available) the current viewport, selection, and focus. Keyboard Support (Priority 1) * 2.1 By default and without additional customization, ensure that all functionalities offered by the user agent may be operated through the standard keyboard API supported by the operating system. * 2.2 Provide documentation on default keyboard commands and include with user agent documentation and/or user help system. * 2.3 Provide information to the user about the current keyboard configuration. Device Independence (Priority 1) * 1.1 Ensure that all functionalities offered through the user interface may be operated through standard input device APIs supported by the operating system. * 1.2 Ensure that the user can interact with all active elements of a document in a device independent manner. * 1.3 Ensure that the user can install the user agent software in a device independent manner. * 1.4 Ensure that the user can configure the user agent in a device independent manner. * 1.5 Ensure that the user can access user agent documentation in a device independent manner. * 1.6 Ensure that all messages to the user (e.g., warnings, errors, etc.) are available through standard output device APIs supported by the operating system. For Tables (Priority 1) * 8.3 For dependent user agents only. Allow the user to navigate just among table cells of a table (notably left and right within a row and up and down within a column). * 9.9 For dependent user agents only. Provide access to header information for a selected table cell. For Images, Animations, and Image Maps (Priority 1) * 4.1 Allow the user to turn on and off rendering of images. * 4.2 Allow the user to turn on and off rendering of background images. For Synchronized Multimedia (Priority 1) * 3.4 Provide time-independent access to time-dependent active elements or allow the user to control the timing of changes. * 3.7 Allow the user to specify that continuous equivalent tracks (e.g., closed captions, auditory descriptions, video of sign language, etc.) be rendered at the same time as audio and video tracks. * 3.8 If a technology allows for more than one continuous equivalent tracks (e.g., closed captions, auditory descriptions, video of sign language, etc.), allow the user to choose from among the tracks. * 3.9 If a technology allows for more than one audio track, allow the user to choose from among tracks. * 4.3 Allow the user to turn on and off rendering of video. * 4.4 Allow the user to turn on and off rendering of sound. * 5.8 Allow the user to control video frame rates. * 5.9 Allow the user to control the position of audio closed captions. * 5.11 Allow the user to control audio playback rate. For Events, Applets, and Scripts (Priority 1) * 4.8 Allow the user to turn on and off support for scripts and applets. * 10.1 Provide information about document and viewport changes (to users and through programming interfaces). For Standards and Conventions (Priority 1) * 6.1 Use and provide accessible interfaces to other technologies. * 6.2 Provide programmatic read and write access to user agent functionalities and user interface controls (including selection and focus) by using operating system and development language accessibility resources and conventions. * 6.3 Notify dependent user agents of changes to the document and user interface controls (including selection and focus) by using operating system and development language accessibility resources and conventions. * 6.4 Comply with W3C Document Object Model specifications and export interfaces defined by those specifications. * 7.1 Implement the accessibility features defined for supported specifications. Priority 2 checkpoints In General (Priority 2) * 3.5 When no alternative text representation has been specified, indicate what type of object is present. * 8.4 Allow the user to navigate just among all active elements in the document. * 8.5 Allow the user to search for rendered text content, including alternative text content. * 8.6 Allow the user to navigate the document structure. * 9.4 Describe a selected element's context within a document (e.g., numerical or relative position). * 12.3 Describe product features known to promote accessibility in a section of the product documentation. User Interface (Priority 2) * 5.16 Allow the user to control synthesized speech pitch, gender and other articulation characteristics. * 9.3 For dependent user agents only. Allow the user to view a document outline constructed from its structural elements (e.g., from header and list elements). * 10.2 Ensure that when the selection or focus changes, it is in the viewport after the change. * 11.1 Allow the user to configure the user agent in named profiles that may be shared (by other users or software). Keyboard Support (Priority 2) * 2.4 Allow the user to configure the keystrokes used to activate user agent functionalities. Users should be able to configure single key activation of functionalities. * 2.5 Allow the user to turn on and off author-specified keyboard configurations. * 2.6 Use platform conventions to indicate which keys activate which user agent functionalities. * 2.7 Avoid default keyboard configurations that interfere with system conventions. For Links (Priority 2) * 9.5 For a selected link, indicate whether following the link will involve a fee. * 9.6 For a selected link, provide information to help the user decide whether to follow the link. For Frames (Priority 2) * 4.12 Allow the user to choose between a frameset or its alternative supplied by the author. * 5.17 When new windows or user interface components are spawned, allow the user to control window size and position. * 9.2 For dependent user agents only. Provide the user with information about the number of viewports. For Forms (Priority 2) * 9.11 Provide information about form structure and navigation (e.g., groups of controls, control labels, navigation order, and keyboard configuration). * 10.6 Prompt the user to confirm any form submission triggered indirectly, that is by any means other than the user activating an explicit form submit control. For Images, Animations, and Image Maps (Priority 2) * 5.7 Allow the user to control animation rate. For Synchronized Multimedia (Priority 2) * 5.10 Allow the user to start, stop, pause, and rewind video. * 5.12 When the user agent renders audio natively, allow the user to control the audio volume. * 5.13 Allow the user to start, stop, pause, and rewind audio. For Standards and Conventions (Priority 2) * 6.5 Provide programmatic exchange of information in a timely manner. * 6.6 Follow operating system conventions and accessibility settings. In particular, follow conventions for user interface design, default keyboard configuration, product installation, and documentation. * 7.2 Support appropriate W3C Recommendations. Priority 3 checkpoints In General (Priority 3) * 3.6 When alternative text has been specified explicitly as empty (i.e., an empty string), render nothing. * 8.7 Allow the user to configure structured navigation. * 9.8 Provide a mechanism for highlighting and identifying (through a standard interface where available) active elements of a document. * 10.4 When loading a resource (e.g., document, video clip, audio clip, etc.) indicate what portion of the resource has loaded and whether loading has stalled. * 10.5 Indicate the relative position of the viewport in a resource (e.g., the percentage of the document that has been viewed, the percentage of an audio clip that has been played, etc.). User Interface (Priority 3) * 4.13 Allow the user to turn on and off author-specified page forwards that occur after a time delay and without user intervention. * 4.14 Allow the user to turn on and off automatic page refresh. * 9.12 Maintain consistent user agent behavior and default configurations between software releases. Consistency is less important than accessibility and adoption of system conventions. * 11.2 Allow the user to configure the graphical arrangement of user interface controls. Keyboard Support (Priority 3) * 2.8 Provide a default keyboard configuration for frequently performed operations. For Links (Priority 3) * 9.7 Allow the user to configure what information about links to present. For Tables (Priority 3) * 9.10 For dependent user agents only. Indicate the row and column dimensions of a selected table. For Events, Applets, and Scripts (Priority 3) * 10.3 Allow the user to selectively turn on and off notification of common types of document and viewport changes. _________________________________________________________________ [guidelines]