[guidelines] _________________________________________________________________ W3C List of Checkpoints for User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 This version: http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/WD-UAAG10-20000707/uaag10-chklist (plain text, PostScript, PDF) This document is an appendix to: http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/WD-UAAG10-20000707 Latest version of User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0: http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/UAAG10 Editors: Jon Gunderson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Ian Jacobs, W3C Copyright ©1999 - 2000 W3C® (MIT, INRIA, Keio), All Rights Reserved. W3C liability, trademark, document use and software licensing rules apply. _________________________________________________________________ Abstract This document is an appendix to "User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0" [UAAG10]. 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, W3C Members. 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. WAI Accessibility Guidelines are produced as part of the WAI Technical Activity. 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 with disabilities. [Priority 1] This checkpoint must be satisfied by user agents, otherwise one or more groups of users with disabilities will find it impossible to access the Web. Satisfying this checkpoint is a basic requirement for enabling some people to access the Web. [Priority 2] This checkpoint should be satisfied by user agents, otherwise one or more groups of users with disabilities will find it difficult to access the Web. Satisfying this checkpoint will remove significant barriers to Web access for some people. [Priority 3] This checkpoint may be satisfied by user agents to make it easier for one or more groups of users with disabilities to access information. Satisfying this checkpoint will improve access to the Web for some people. Priority 1 checkpoints In General (Priority 1) * Checkpoint 2.1 Make all content available through the user interface. (Techniques for 2.1) * Checkpoint 2.3 If content available in a viewport has equivalent alternatives, provide easy access in context to the alternatives. (Techniques for 2.3) * Checkpoint 6.1 Implement the accessibility features of all supported specifications (markup languages, style sheet languages, metadata languages, graphics formats, etc.). (Techniques for 6.1) * Checkpoint 7.3 Allow the user to navigate all active elements. If the author has not specified a navigation order, allow at least forward sequential navigation of elements, in document order. (Techniques for 7.3) * Checkpoint 8.1 Make available to the user the author-specified purpose of each table and the relationships among the table cells and headers. (Techniques for 8.1) * Checkpoint 11.1 Provide a version of the product documentation that conforms to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 [WCAG10]. (Techniques for 11.1) * Checkpoint 11.2 Document all user agent features that promote accessibility. (Techniques for 11.2) * Checkpoint 11.3 Document the default input configuration (e.g., default keyboard bindings). (Techniques for 11.3) Control of style (Priority 1) * Checkpoint 2.2 For a presentation that requires user input within a specified time interval, allow the user to configure the user agent to pause the presentation automatically and await user input before proceeding. (Techniques for 2.2) * Checkpoint 2.4 Allow the user to specify that text transcripts, collated text transcripts, captions, and auditory descriptions be rendered at the same time as the associated auditory and visual tracks. Respect author-specified synchronization cues during rendering. (Techniques for 2.4) * Checkpoint 3.1 Allow the user to configure the user agent to not render background images. (Techniques for 3.1) * Checkpoint 3.2 Allow the user to configure the user agent to not render video. (Techniques for 3.2) * Checkpoint 3.3 Allow the user to configure the user agent to render animated or blinking text as motionless text. (Techniques for 3.3) * Checkpoint 3.4 Allow the user to configure the user agent to render animations or blinking images as motionless images. (Techniques for 3.4) * Checkpoint 3.5 Allow the user to configure the user agent to not execute scripts and applets. (Techniques for 3.5) * Checkpoint 4.1 Allow the user to configure and control the size of text. If this is done by allowing the user to configure font size, make available the range of system font sizes. (Techniques for 4.1) * Checkpoint 4.2 Allow the user to configure font family. Allowing the user to select from among the range of system font families. (Techniques for 4.2) * Checkpoint 4.3 Allow the user to configure foreground color. Make available the range of system colors. (Techniques for 4.3) * Checkpoint 4.4 Allow the user to configure background color. Make available the range of system colors. (Techniques for 4.4) * Checkpoint 4.5 Allow the user to slow the presentation rate of audio, video, and animations. For a visual track, provide at least one setting between 40% and 60% of the original speed. For a pre-recorded auditory track including stand-alone audio presentations, provide at least one setting between 75% - 80% of the original speed. For a synchronized multimedia presentation where the visual track may be slowed from 100% to to 80% of its original speed, synchronize the visual and auditory tracks. Below 80%, the user agent is not required to render the auditory track. (Techniques for 4.5) * Checkpoint 4.6 Allow the user to start, stop, pause, resume, advance, and rewind audio, video, and animations. (Techniques for 4.6) * Checkpoint 4.7 Allow the user to position text transcripts, collated text transcripts, and captions on graphical displays. The range of available positions must be the same range available to the author according to specification. (Techniques for 4.7) * Checkpoint 4.8 Allow the user to configure and control the global audio volume. The user must be able to choose zero volume (i.e., silent). (Techniques for 4.8) * Checkpoint 4.9 Allow the user to control independently the volumes of audio sources recognized as distinct. (Techniques for 4.9) * Checkpoint 4.10 Allow the user to configure and control synthesized speech playback rate according to the full range offered by the speech synthesizer. The lower bound for this range must be at most 120 words per minute. The upper bound for this range must be at least 400 words per minute. The user must be able to increate or decrease the playback rate in increments of 10 (or fewer) words per minute. (Techniques for 4.10) * Checkpoint 4.12 Allow the user to select from available author and user style sheets or to ignore them. (Techniques for 4.12) User Interface (Priority 1) * Checkpoint 4.13 Allow the user to configure how the selection is highlighted (e.g., foreground and background color). (Techniques for 4.13) * Checkpoint 4.14 Allow the user to configure how the content focus is highlighted (e.g., foreground and background color). (Techniques for 4.14) * Checkpoint 7.1 Allow the user to navigate among all viewports (including frames). (Techniques for 7.1) * Checkpoint 7.2 For user agents that offer a browsing history mechanism, when the user returns to a previous viewport, restore the point of regard in the viewport. (Techniques for 7.2) * Checkpoint 8.8 Implement selection, content focus, and user interface focus mechanisms. Implement them according to system conventions per checkpoint 5.8. (Techniques for 8.8) * Checkpoint 8.9 Provide a mechanism for highlighting and identifying (through a standard interface where available) the current viewport, selection, and content focus. (Techniques for 8.9) For Keyboard and other Input Devices (Priority 1) * Checkpoint 1.3 Implement the standard keyboard API of the operating system and ensure that every functionality available through the user interface is available through this API. This checkpoint always applies on systems with a standard keyboard API. (Techniques for 1.3) * Checkpoint 10.2 Avoid default input configurations that interfere with operating system accessibility conventions. (Techniques for 10.2) For Communication (Priority 1) * Checkpoint 1.1 Ensure that every functionality available through the user interface is also available through every input API implemented by the user agent. This checkpoint does not require developers to reimplement the input methods associated with the keyboard, pointing device, voice, and other input APIs. The device-independence required by this checkpoint applies to the functionalities described by the other checkpoints in this document (e.g., installation, documentation, user agent user interface configuration, etc.). (Techniques for 1.1) * Checkpoint 1.2 Use the standard input and output device APIs of the operating system. Do not bypass the standard output APIs when rendering information. (Techniques for 1.2) * Checkpoint 1.4 Ensure that the user can interact with all active elements in a device-independent manner. (Techniques for 1.4) * Checkpoint 1.5 Ensure every non-text message (e.g., prompt, alert, notification, etc.) that is part of the user agent's user interface also has a text equivalent in the user interface. This text equivalent must be available to assistive technologies through an API. (Techniques for 1.5) * Checkpoint 5.1 Provide programmatic read access to HTML and XML content by conforming to the W3C Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 Core and HTML modules and exporting the interfaces they define. (Techniques for 5.1) * Checkpoint 5.2 If the user can modify HTML and XML content through the user interface, provide the same functionality programmatically by conforming to the W3C Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 Core and HTML modules and exporting the interfaces they define. (Techniques for 5.2) * Checkpoint 5.3 For markup languages other than HTML and XML, provide programmatic access to content using standard APIs (e.g., platform-independent APIs and standard APIs for the operating system). (Techniques for 5.3) * Checkpoint 5.4 Provide programmatic read and write access to user agent user interface controls using standard APIs (e.g., platform-independent APIs such as the W3C DOM, standard APIs for the operating system, and conventions for programming languages, plug-ins, virtual machine environments, etc.) (Techniques for 5.4) * Checkpoint 5.5 Using standard APIs, provide programmatic notification of changes to content and user interface controls (including selection, content focus, and user interface focus). (Techniques for 5.5) * Checkpoint 10.1 Provide information to the user about current user preferences for input configurations (e.g., keyboard or voice bindings). (Techniques for 10.1) Priority 2 checkpoints In General (Priority 2) * Checkpoint 2.5 For non-text content that has no recognized text equivalent, generate a text equivalent from other author-supplied content. If the non-text content is included by URI reference, base the text equivalent on the URI reference and the content type of the resource. (Techniques for 2.5) * Checkpoint 5.8 Follow operating system conventions that benefit accessibility. In particular, follow conventions for user interface design, keyboard configuration, product installation, and documentation. (Techniques for 5.8) * Checkpoint 6.2 Use and conform to W3C Recommendations when they are available and appropriate for a task. (Techniques for 6.2) * Checkpoint 7.4 Allow the user to choose to navigate only active elements. If the author has not specified a navigation order, allow at least forward and reverse sequential navigation of active elements, in document order. (Techniques for 7.4) * Checkpoint 7.5 Allow the user to search for rendered text content, including rendered text equivalents. Allow forward and reverse searches with a case-insensitivity option. (Techniques for 7.5) * Checkpoint 7.6 Allow the user to navigate efficiently to and among important structural elements identified by the author. For markup languages with known semantics, allow forward sequential navigation to important structural elements. For other markup languages, allow at least forward sequential navigation of the document object, in document order. (Techniques for 7.6) * Checkpoint 8.2 Indicate to the user, by at least one technique other than distinguishing colors, whether a link has been visited. (Techniques for 8.2) * Checkpoint 8.3 Indicate to the user, by at least one technique other than distinguishing colors, whether a link has been marked up to indicate that following it will involve a fee. (Techniques for 8.3) * Checkpoint 8.4 Make available to the user an "outline" view of content, composed of text labels for important structural elements (e.g., heading text, table titles, form titles, etc.). The set of important structural elements is the same required by checkpoint 7.6. (Techniques for 8.4) * Checkpoint 8.10 Provide a mechanism for highlighting and identifying active elements. (Techniques for 8.10) * Checkpoint 10.7 For the configuration requirements of this document, allow the user to save user preferences in at least one user profile. Allow users to select from among available profiles or no profile (i.e., the user agent default settings). (Techniques for 10.7) * Checkpoint 11.4 In a dedicated section of the documentation, describe all features of the user agent that promote accessibility. (Techniques for 11.4) * Checkpoint 11.5 In each software release, document all changes that affect accessibility. (Techniques for 11.5) Control of style (Priority 2) * Checkpoint 3.6 Allow configuration so that author-specified "client-side redirects" (i.e., those initiated by the user agent, not the server) do not change content automatically. Allow the user to access the new content manually (e.g., by following a link). (Techniques for 3.6) * Checkpoint 3.7 Allow configuration so that author-specified content refreshes do not change content automatically. Allow the user to access the new content manually (e.g., by activating a button or following a link). Advise the user to refresh content according to the same schedule as the automatic refresh, and indicate when the user has not yet refreshed content. (Techniques for 3.7) * Checkpoint 3.8 Allow the user to configure the user agent to not render images. (Techniques for 3.8) * Checkpoint 4.11 Allow the user to configure synthesized voice gender, pitch, pitch range, stress, and richness according to the full range of values offered by the speech synthesizer. (Techniques for 4.11) User Interface (Priority 2) * Checkpoint 4.15 Allow the user to configure whether the current focus moves automatically to a viewport that opens without an explicit request from the user. (Techniques for 4.15) * Checkpoint 4.16 Allow the user to configure the user agent so that after one viewport is open, no other viewports open except as the result of explicit user request. (Techniques for 4.16) * Checkpoint 9.1 Ensure that when the selection or content focus changes, it is in a viewport after the change. (Techniques for 9.1) * Checkpoint 9.2 Allow configuration so the user is prompted to confirm any form submission not caused by explicit activation of a form submit control. (Techniques for 9.2) For Keyboard and other Input Devices (Priority 2) * Checkpoint 10.4 Allow the user to change the input configuration. (Techniques for 10.4) * Checkpoint 10.5 Allow the user to configure the user agent so that the user's preferred one-step operations may be activated with a single input command (e.g., key stroke, voice command, etc.). (Techniques for 10.5) * Checkpoint 10.6 Follow operating system conventions to indicate the input configuration. (Techniques for 10.6) For Communication (Priority 2) * Checkpoint 5.6 Ensure that programmatic exchanges proceed in a timely manner. (Techniques for 5.6) * Checkpoint 10.3 Provide information to the user about current author-specified input configurations (e.g., keyboard bindings specified in HTML documents with the "accesskey" attribute). (Techniques for 10.3) Priority 3 checkpoints In General (Priority 3) * Checkpoint 2.6 When the author has specified an empty text equivalent for non-text content, do not generate one. (Techniques for 2.6) * Checkpoint 2.7 For author-identified but unsupported natural languages, allow the user to configure the user agent to identify those language changes in content. (Techniques for 2.7) * Checkpoint 7.7 Allow the user to configure and control the set of elements navigable according to checkpoint 7.6 by allowing inclusion and exclusion of element types in the navigation sequence. (Techniques for 7.7) * Checkpoint 8.5 Allow the user to configure and control the outline view of checkpoint 8.4 to include and exclude element types. (Techniques for 8.5) * Checkpoint 8.6 To help the user decide whether to follow a link, make available to the user the following information: link content, link title, whether the link is internal, whether the link has been followed, whether following it may involve a fee, and information about the type, size, and natural language of the linked resource. (Techniques for 8.6) * Checkpoint 9.4 When transferring content (e.g., a document, image, audio, video, etc.) indicate what percentage of the content has been transferred and whether the transfer has stalled. (Techniques for 9.4) * Checkpoint 9.5 Indicate as a percentage the relative position of the viewport in rendered content (e.g., the percentage of an audio or video clip that has been played, the percentage of a Web page that has been viewed, etc.). (Techniques for 9.5) User Interface (Priority 3) * Checkpoint 8.7 Allow the user to configure and control which link information required by checkpoint 8.6 to present. (Techniques for 8.7) * Checkpoint 9.3 Allow the user to configure notification preferences for common types of content and viewport changes. (Techniques for 9.3) * Checkpoint 10.9 For graphical user interfaces, allow the user to configure the position of controls on tool bars of the user agent user interface, to select or remove controls for the user interface from a predefined set, and to restore the default user interface. (Techniques for 10.9) For Keyboard and other Input Devices (Priority 3) * Checkpoint 10.8 Ensure that the default input configuration allows easy activation of frequently used functionalities. (Techniques for 10.8) For Communication (Priority 3) * Checkpoint 5.7 Provide programmatic access to Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) by conforming to the W3C Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 CSS module and exporting the interfaces it defines. (Techniques for 5.7) References For the latest version of any W3C specification please consult the list of W3C Technical Reports at http://www.w3.org/TR. [UAAG10] "User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0," J. Gunderson, I. Jacobs, eds. The latest draft of the guidelines is available at http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/UAAG10/. [WCAG10] "Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0", W. Chisholm, G. Vanderheiden, and I. Jacobs, eds., 5 May 1999. This WCAG 1.0 Recommendation is http://www.w3.org/TR/1999/WAI-WEBCONTENT-19990505. _________________________________________________________________ [guidelines]