W3C logo Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) logo

Planning Highlights on WAI Home Page and other announcements - 2010

Page Contents

Note: This Web page is an internal working draft and should not be referenced or quoted under any circumstances.

Archive Draft Blurbs

Through April 2008 were moved to planning-to-2008, to cut down on page & file size.

May 2008 - November 2009 were moved to planning-to-2009, to cut down on page & file size.

NOTE: This information is an unapproved draft and should not be referenced or quoted under any circumstances.

Ordered with oldest at the top, most recent at the bottom:

role-LC

messaging:

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Role Attribute Last Call Working Draft

The Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) has published a Last Call Working Draft of Role Attribute, an XML attribute that allows the author to add semantic information to documents. Role Attribute supports WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification for making dynamic, interactive web content accessible to people with disabilities. Comments are welcome through 25 February 2011. Read about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

 

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

not doing

Role Attribute Last Call Working Draft

Now ready for your review: Last Call Working Draft of Role Attribute, an XML attribute that allows the author to add semantic information to documents. [slh:see W3C blurb edit] It supports the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification for making dynamic, interactive Web content accessible to people with disabilities. See:

Please send any comments on this Last Call Working Draft by 25 February 2011.  (2010-01-13)

 

WAI IG email:

not doing

...

The role attribute allows authors to annotate markup languages with machine-extractable semantic information about the purpose of an element

...

 

training2010Sept

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Developing Web Accessibility Presentations and Training - Updated Draft

The Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) today published an updated draft of Developing Web Accessibility Presentations and Training, as part of the WAI-AGE Project. This resource provides materials for speakers and trainers to help their participants understand more about web accessibility. WAI would like to know how this resource works for you and how we can improve it. Learn more about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

New and Improved: Developing Web Accessibility Presentations and Training

WAI today published a significantly revised update of Developing Web Accessibility Presentations and Training, as part of the WAI-AGE Project. This resource provides materials for speakers and trainers to help their participants understand more about web accessibility. WAI would like to know how this draft resource works for you and how we can improve it. Please send comments by 21 October 2010. (2010-09-22)

notes:

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: Developing Web Accessibility Presentations and Training

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The W3C WAI invites you to comment on a significantly revised update of Developing Web Accessibility Presentations and Training at
http://www.w3.org/WAI/training/

This resource provides materials for speakers and trainers to help their participants understand more about web accessibility. The materials provide a range of information from introductory slides for audiences new to accessibility, to updated statistics and demos for experienced trainers.

WAI encourages you to use this draft resource, and let us know how it works for you and how we can improve it. Please send comments to the publicly-archived e-mail list:
wai-eo-editors@w3.org
by *22 October 2010*

This resource was developed by the Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) as part of the WAI-AGE Project. WAI-AGE is a European Commission IST Specific Support Action, with the goal of increasing accessibility of the Web for older people as well as for people with disabilities. WAI-AGE is introduced at:
http://www.w3.org/WAI/older-users/#waiage

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry, EOWG Chair

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

Developing Web Accessibility Presentations and Training is updated. How can we improve it? See http://bit.ly/train1009 #accessibility #a11y

(139 characters)

notes & brainstorms: (140 characters max)

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

UAAG2010Dec

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0 Working Draft Updated

The User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group has published an updated Working Draft of the User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0 and Implementing UAAG 2.0. UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. Read the invitation to review the UAAG 2.0 Working Draft and about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

 

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

For Review: UAAG 2.0 Updated Working Draft

WAI invites your review of updated Working Drafts of User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0 and Implementing UAAG 2.0 published today. UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies.See:

Please send comments by @@ February 2011. (2010-12-02)

notes:

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: UAAG 2.0 Working Draft Updated

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The WAI invites you to comment on updated Working Draft of User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) published today at:
http://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/

Changes in the updated UAAG 2.0 Working Draft include:
- Reorganized the principles and their associated guidelines and success criteria to more closely align with WCAG 2.0.

- Refined success criteria for keyboard behavior to align with proposals presented to the HTML5 Working Group on access command.
- Addition of a “Summary” section for each guideline to improve comprehension and readability.

The UAAG Working Group is looking for feedback on these changes along with the specific questions that are listed in the Status section at:
http://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/#status

WAI encourages people with disabilities and developers of browsers, assistive technologies, plug-ins, extensions, and accessibility APIs (application programming interfaces) to provide feedback on this draft, and to consider more active participation in developing UAAG 2.0. Please send comments to the publicly-archived list:
public-uaag2-comments@w3.org
*by @@ February 2011*

Background:
UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. UAAG is part of a series of accessibility standards developed by WAI, including Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG). UAAG 2.0 is currently informative only. For more information on UAAG and WAI standards, see:
- UAAG Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/uaag.php
- WAI Guidelines and Techniques http://www.w3.org/WAI/guid-tech.html
- User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group (UAWG) http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Henry
For Jim Allan and Kelly Ford, UAAG Co-Chairs
and Jeanne Spellman, W3C Staff Contact

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

...

(@@)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

ARIA-CR

messaging:

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

W3C Invites Implementations of WAI-ARIA for Accessible Rich Internet Applications

The Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) invites implementations of the Candidate Recommendation WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification for making dynamic, interactive Web content accessible to people with disabilities. WAI-ARIA and supporting documents are described in the WAI-ARIA Overview. Read the WAI-ARIA CR e-mail announcement and the WAI-ARIA CR blog post for more information, and about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

 

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

WAI-ARIA On the Move: Implementation Testing Underway

We are excited to announce that Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA) 1.0 was published as a W3C Candidate Recommendation on 18 January 2011. The Candidate Recommendation stage means that there is broad consensus on the technical content, and we are gathering WAI-ARIA implementations. Please see additional information in:

If you are interested in sharing implementation experience, please let us know before 25 February 2011.    (2011-01-18)

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

WAI-ARIA 1.0 Candidate Recommendation in Implementation and Testing

W3C WAI is excited to announce the publication of WAI-ARIA 1.0 as a W3C Candidate Recommendation on 18 January. WAI-ARIA is the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification for making dynamic, interactive Web content accessible to people with disabilities, at:
http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria/

Candidate Recommendation (CR) is a major step in the W3C standards development process; it signals that there is broad consensus in the Working Group and among public reviewers on the technical content of WAI-ARIA 1.0. The W3C Process stages are described in:
How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process
http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/w3c-process

The primary purpose of this CR stage is implement and test WAI-ARIA. If you are interested in helping or have additional comments, please contact us via the instructions at:
http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/comments/instructions
before *@@ February 2011*

*Please read information on comment resolutions, implementations, and more in the following blog post*:
XYZ
http://www.w3.org/QA/2010/12/@@.html

Background:

WAI-ARIA is a technical specification that defines a way to make Web content and Web applications more accessible to people with disabilities. It especially helps with dynamic content and advanced user interface controls developed with Ajax (also known as AJAX), HTML, JavaScript, and related technologies. For an introduction to the WAI-ARIA suite, please see:
* WAI-ARIA Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/aria
* WAI-ARIA FAQ http://www.w3.org/WAI/aria/faq

WAI-ARIA works with existing web content technologies, such as HTML, and provides a way to apply the requirements of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 for rich web applications. Accessibility standards developed by the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) are listed in WAI Guidelines and Techniques at: http://www.w3.org/WAI/guid-tech.html

(Note: The WAI-ARIA link in this message goes to the latest version. The "dated" version is:
http://www.w3.org/TR/2010/@@
The difference between these links are explained in Referencing and Linking to WAI Guidelines and Technical Documents at http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/linking.html )

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Henry, WAI Outreach
Janina Sajka. PFWG Chair
Michael Cooper, PFWG W3C Staff Contact
Judy Brewer, WAI Director

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

...

(@@)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

Today the Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) published WAI-ARIA 1.0 as a Candidate Recommendation. This is a major milestone in development of this technology, indicating that it is considered feature complete after years of development and multiple public consultations. See How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process for more information on public reviews and the Candidate Recommendation process. For an introduction to WAI-ARIA, see the WAI-ARIA Overview.

The PFWG has received approximately 350 comments on WAI-ARIA and its supporting documents since the first Last Call Working Draft of 24 February 2009. These have led to important enhancements to the documents. While the PFWG was not able to accommodate all commenters' suggestions, it did its best to address these within the constraints of  WAI-ARIA's design goals and input from many diverse perspectives. The Issue Disposition Report for the publications since the first Last Call show that more than 95% of responses to comments were accepted (or not rejected) by the commenters.

Not every feature that people wished to see is included. To meet accessibility needs on modern Web sites, there is urgent need to deploy a stable, interoperable version of WAI-ARIA 1.0. The features of WAI-ARIA 1.0 represent a good baseline. Various enhancements have been proposed for future versions of WAI-ARIA, including many that were suggested as public comments on WAI-ARIA 1.0 drafts. Because future versions don't require the ground-up engineering of the first version, the expectation is that such features can be incorporated in faster time scales.

WAI-ARIA is intended to be used in multiple content languages, and aspects of its design reflect this. HTML is one of the most important use cases and the PFWG is working closely with the HTML Working Group to provide full integration in a manner consistent with the HTML 5 design. WAI-ARIA is also structured to work with various XML languages and its design reflects this as well. Implementations in such languages are not as mature as HTML-based implementations, but the group expects to see such implementations within the lifetime of WAI-ARIA 1.0.

As WAI-ARIA enters the Candidate Recommendation phase, the focus shifts from specification development to implementation testing. WAI-ARIA is already widely implemented, as prototyping implementations in real tools was an important part of proving efficacy of the features under consideration. Now the PFWG will focus on testing the interoperability and completeness of implementations. The formal goal is to demonstrate implementability of the specification by identifying two or more interoperable implementations of each feature. Another goal, though not a formal requirement for Candidate Recommendations, is to determine how complete implementations are and therefore how useful WAI-ARIA is in practice. If you are interested in helping or have additional comments, please contact us before 25 February 2011. We welcome your help with implementations during Candidate Recommendation!

Involving Users

involving users email thread

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Involve Users in Your Web Projects for Better, Easier Accessibility

2009-12-09: The WAI Education and Outreach Working Group today published Involving Users in Web Projects for Better, Easier Accessibility that provides guidance for project managers, designers, and developers of:

Learn more about this and the related document Involving Users in Evaluating Web Accessibility in the Involving Users announcement e-mail and the blog post Discover new ways of thinking about accessibility; and learn more about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

Want Better, Easier Accessibility? Involve Users in Your Web Projects

The new document Involving Users in Web Projects for Better, Easier Accessibility provides guidance for project managers, designers, and developers of:

  • websites and web applications
  • browsers, media players, and assistive technologies
  • authoring tools such as content management systems (CMS), blog software, and WYSIWYG editors
  • standards and policies on accessibility
  • web technologies and technical specifications

Learn more about this and the related document Involving Users in Evaluating Web Accessibility in the Involving Users announcement e-mail and the blog post Discover new ways of thinking about accessibility. Watch for other documents from the WAI-AGE Project coming soon... (2009-12-09)

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

Involve Users in Your Web Projectsfor Better, Easier Accessibility

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

Want to better understand accessibility issues and implement more effective accessibility solutions?
The W3C WAI Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) today published documents to help:
* Involving Users in Web Projects for Better, Easier Accessibility
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/users/involving
* Involving Users in Evaluating Web Accessibility
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/eval/users

The documents provide guidance on including real users, covering:
* How involving users early helps
* Getting a range of users
* Working with users
* Analyzing accessibility issues
* Drawing conclusions and reporting
* Note for usability professionals
* Combine user involvement with standards

We encourage project managers, designers, and developers of the following to read these documents:
* websites and web applications
* browsers, media players, and assistive technologies
* authoring tools such as content management systems (CMS), blog software, and WYSIWYG editors
* standards and policies on accessibility
* web technologies and technical specifications

See also the blog post:
* Discover new ways of thinking about accessibility
   http://www.w3.org/QA/2009/12/discover_new_ways_of_thinking.html

These documents were developed and updated by Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) <http://www.w3.org/WAI/EO/> as part of the WAI-AGE Project. WAI-AGE is a European Commission IST Specific Support Action, with the goal of increasing accessibility of the Web for older people as well as for people with disabilities. See: http://www.w3.org/WAI/WAI-AGE/

Please let us know if you have any questions or suggestions.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry, EOWG Chair

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

Want to better understand accessibility issues and implement more effective accessibility solutions? see http://bit.ly/involve_users
(132)

project manager tip: http://bit.ly/involve_users developing websites, browsers, AT, tools, standards, technologies, technical specifications
(140)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

Discover new ways of thinking about accessibility

As an employee of the W3C Web standards organization, you might think that I would say the most important thing to start with when addressing web accessibility is standards. I don't. I say the first step is learning how people with disabilities use the web. You might be surprised to learn that is the W3C's advice. We've now got it more clearly in writing, in the new document published today by the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI):Involving Users in Web Projects for Better, Easier Accessibility
and the updated related document Involving Users in Evaluating Web Accessibility.

We're excited about these and other documents on the perspectives of users — specifically users with disabilities and older users — coming soon as part of WAI-AGE Project funded by the European Commission. People with disabilities have long known that direct experiences are a key input to the standardization process and to successful implementation of standards. Understanding the experiences of older users is becoming an important issue for many projects. These documents help project managers, developers, and designers better include users' experiences throughout their work.

When designers and developers see people with disabilities use products like theirs, most are highly motivated by a new understanding of accessibility. Rather than seeing accessibility as only a checklist item, the real-life experience shows the human side of accessibility. Designers and developers understand the opportunity for their work to impact lives.

It also broadens your perspective in a way that can lead you to discover new ways of thinking about your product that will make it work better for more people in more situations.

The Involving Users docs start with several ways that involving people with disabilities from the beginning of a project helps you better understand accessibility issues and implement more effective accessibility solutions. The docs provide pointers on:

While the evaluation document is mostly for those developing websites, web applications, browsers, assistive technologies (AT), and authoring tools; the main Involving Users document also addresses those developing standards and policies for accessibility, and those developing any web technologies or technical specifications.

We hope that the Involving Users documents help you realize the benefits of involving people with disabilities in your web projects. Please share your experiences, and your suggestions for the documents: the WAI Interest Group (WAI IG) hosts a public discussion e-mail list; comments on specific documents are collected through the publicly-archived wai-eo-editors@w3.org list; and we'll watch for comments to this blog post. Thanks! ~Shawn

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

Business Case Resources & Case Studies

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

WAI Gathering Additional Resources Supporting Web Accessibility Business Case

2009-12-14: The WAI Education and Outreach Working Group today published a first collection of statistics, case studies, and articles that support the business case for web accessibility, in Resources for Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case for Your Organization. To learn about sharing your resources, see Share Resources Supporting the Web Accessibility Business Case blog post. Read about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

title brainstorms:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

Resources Supporting Web Accessibility Business Case - Share Yours

Resources for Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case for Your Organization provides a first collection of statistics, case studies, and articles that support the business case for web accessibility. We are looking for additional case studies and resources; see Share Resources Supporting the Web Accessibility Business Case blog post. (2009-12-14)

notes:

WAI IG email:

Share Resources Supporting Web Accessibility Business Case

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The W3C WAI today published a collection of statistics, case studies, and articles supporting the business case for web accessibility in:
   Resources for Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case for Your Organization
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/bcase/resources.html

We are seeking more strong resources and cases studies. *Would your organization be willing to share your case study to support the business case for web accessibility*? If you have made accessibility improvements to your website in the last three years, we may be able to help you gather data and develop a case study.

To share business case resources, please e-mail the publicly archived list:
   w3.org-wai-editors@w3.org
Or: team-accessibility-business-case@w3.org (This second mailing list is not publicly archived; however, there are some non-W3C-staff Working Group members subscribed to the list.)

See also
   Share Resources Supporting the Web Accessibility Business Case blog post
   http://www.w3.org/QA/2009/12/share_resources_supporting_the.html

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for sharing your case study.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry, Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) Chair

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

statistics, case studies, articles supporting the business case for web accessibility now available at http://bit.ly/bizcase5 share yours!

(138)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

Share Resources Supporting the Web Accessibility Business Case

W3C WAI today published a collection of statistics, case studies, and articles supporting the business case for web accessibility in Resources for Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case for Your Organization. Thanks much to Liam McGee and Sunil Patel of Communis for pulling together this first batch of resources.

We would like to add relevant, strong resources to this page. We are particularly looking for case studies where there were few changes to the site beyond accessibility improvements. If you have made accessibility improvements to your website in the last three years, we may be able to help you gather data and develop a case study. Would your organization be willing to share your case study to support the business case for web accessibility?

To share business case resources, please e-mail the publicly archived list: w3.org-wai-editors@w3.org, or team-accessibility-business-case@w3.org (This second mailing list is not publicly archived; however, there are some non-W3C-staff Working Group members subscribed to the list.)

I've been asked: "Why are you even talking about the business case? Access to the Web is a basic human right, as stated in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It's the right thing to do for equal access. And it's required by law in many places."
My reply: Understanding the business case can help organizations put a higher priority on accessibility. While ideally organizations would make their websites accessible just because it's the right thing to do; in reality, many organizations need a business case justification for spending resources on accessibility. Our goal is for the Web to be accessible to people with disabilities, and we are happy to promote the business benefits of accessibility to help meet that goal and make the Web accessible.

We hope you find the business case resources helpful, and we encourage you to share your resources via the links above. Thanks! ~Shawn

drafts & notes:

WAI-ARIA 2009 Dec

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA), Authoring Practices, and Implementation Guide Working Drafts published

2009-12-15: The Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) published an updated Working Draft of WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification for making dynamic, interactive Web content accessible to people with disabilities. PFWG also published Working Drafts of the WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide that provides guidance on how browsers and other user agents should expose WAI-ARIA features to platform accessibility APIs, and WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices that describes how Web content developers can develop accessible rich Web applications using WAI-ARIA. These and other WAI-ARIA documents are described in the WAI-ARIA Overview. Read the WAI-ARIA review announcement for details, and about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

For Review: WAI-ARIA Updated Working Drafts

WAI has published updated Working Drafts of WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification, and two companion documents: WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide and WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices. Get more information on using WAI-ARIA to make dynamic, interactive web content accessible to people with disabilities from:

Please send comments by 2 February 2009. (2009-12-15)

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: WAI-ARIA Updated Working Drafts

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) invites you to review the following updated Working Drafts published 15 December 2009:
* Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA) 1.0
   http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria
* WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide
   http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation
* WAI-ARIA Best Practices
   http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-practices

WAI-ARIA defines a way to make Web content and Web applications more accessible to people with disabilities. It especially helps with dynamic content and advanced user interface controls developed with Ajax (also known as AJAX), HTML, JavaScript, and related technologies.

The WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide provides guidance on how browsers and other user agents should expose WAI-ARIA features to platform accessibility APIs.

WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices describes how Web content developers can develop accessible rich internet applications using WAI-ARIA.

For an introduction to WAI-ARIA and links to related documents, please see:
* WAI-ARIA Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/aria
* WAI-ARIA FAQ http://www.w3.org/WAI/aria/faq

Note about Working Draft Status:
WAI-ARIA was published as a Last Call Working Draft on 24 February 2009. Due to substantial changes in response to comments on that draft, PFWG decided to return to Working Draft stage to collect feedback on these changes. The PFWG expects to publish another Last Call Working Draft in the first quarter of 2010. The development stages are described in:
* How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/w3c-process

WAI encourages you to review the updated WAI-ARIA documents and submit comments on any issues that you think could present a barrier to future adoption and implementation of WAI-ARIA. Please send comments per the instructions at:
    http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/comments/instructions
    *by 2 February 2010*

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.
Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Henry and Judy Brewer, W3C WAI
On behalf of:
Janina Sajka, Chair of PFWG
Michael Cooper, W3C WAI Staff Contact for PFWG

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

#wai-aria Accessible Rich Internet Applications updated Working Drafts published http://bit.ly/aria2009dec we welcome comments by 2 Feb 2010

(140)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

responding2009june

comments in early email thread
See also: [urgent] blog(s), articles, other for Contact Organizations about Inaccessible Websites

messages to get across:

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

New WAI Resource: Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites

The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) today published Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites as part of the WAI-AGE Project. This new WAI resource guides you through telling organizations about accessibility barriers on their website. WAI would like to know how this resource works for you and how we can improve it. See the blog post: Take a few minutes to encourage web accessibility. Your voice counts. Learn about Accessibility and visit the WAI home page.

notes:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

Speak up! Tell organizations if their website is inaccessible

Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites guides you through telling organizations about accessibility barriers on their website. We would like to know how this new WAI resource works for you and how we can improve it. See the blog post: Take a few minutes to encourage web accessibility. Your voice counts. Please send comments by 3 February 2010. (2010-01-06)

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

Contact Organizations about Inaccessible Websites

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

W3C WAI invites feedback on a new resource published today:
   Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/users/inaccessible

This new document provides guidance on identifying key contacts, describing the problem, and following up as needed. It includes tips and sample e-mails.

WAI encourages you to use this draft document, and let us know how it works for you and how we can improve it. Please send initial comments to the publicly-archived e-mail list:
   wai-eo-editors@w3.org
   by 3 February 2010

You can also share your experiences and ideas as comments on the blog post:
   *Take a few minutes to encourage web accessibility. Your voice counts.*
   http://www.w3.org/QA/@@

This document was developed by Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) as part of the WAI-AGE Project. WAI-AGE is a European Commission IST Specific Support Action, with the goal of increasing accessibility of the Web for older people as well as for people with disabilities. See: http://www.w3.org/WAI/WAI-AGE/

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Henry, EOWG Chair
On behalf of the document editors: Andrew Arch, Shawn Lawton Henry, Shadi Abou-Zahra

title brainstorms:

brainstorms:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

Speak up! Tell organizations if their website is not accessible. For tips and samples see http://bit.ly/inaccessible1 #a11y #accessibility
(139)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

Take a few minutes to encourage web accessibility. You can make a difference.

What do you do when you come across an inaccessible website?
(I admit that I often yell at the computer.)
What about after that initial outburst of frustration?
(I sometimes send an e-mail encouraging them to fix it. )

WAI encourages you to tell organizations how important it is that their websites are accessible. Especially when you come across accessibility barriers, tell the organization about it!

To help make this easier and hopefully more effective, WAI just published:
Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites. It walks through steps, provides lots of tips, and includes sample e-mails.

Just yelling at your computer isn't going to get the accessibility barriers fixed. Just complaining on a blog or other place where the organization won't see it isn't likely to help.

Instead, consider what approach will get the results you want. An encouraging e-mail is often a good first step. Sometimes organizations are not even aware of accessibility issues, and don't know how web accessibility is vital for equal rights, required by law in some cases, and has strong business benefits. See Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites for more.

WAI would like to hear your ideas for this document and your experiences dealing with inaccessible websites. The WAI Interest Group (WAI IG) hosts a public discussion e-mail list; comments on specific documents are collected through the publicly-archived wai-eo-editors@w3.org list; and we'll watch for comments to this blog post.
(Please send comments by 3 February 2010 for consideration in the next version.)

Thanks! ~Shawn

Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites is edited by Andrew Arch, Shawn Lawton Henry, and Shadi Abou-Zahra; developed by the WAI Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) as part of the WAI-AGE Project.

question:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

UAAG-Mar2010

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0: Updated Working Draft

2010-03-11: The User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group has published an updated Working Draft of the User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0. UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. This draft adds requirements in seven new areas, including support for speech input, video playback controls, and a new section on conformance. It introduces a new supporting document, Implementing UAAG 2.0, as a First Public Working Draft. Read the invitation to review UAAG 2.0 and about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

For Review: UAAG 2.0 Updated Working Draft and First Public Working Draft

WAI has published an updated updated Working Draft of the User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0. UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. This draft adds requirements in seven new areas, including support for speech input, video playback controls, and a new section on conformance. It introduces a new supporting document, Implementing UAAG 2.0 as a First Public Working Draft. WAI encourages you to review UAAG 2.0 and submit comments.

See:

Please send comments by 16 April 2010. (2010-03-11)

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: UAAG 2.0 Working Draft updated

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The W3C WAI User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group Working Group (UAWG) invites you to comment on an updated Working Draft and a First Published Working Draft published 11 March 2010:
User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0
http://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/
Implementing UAAG 2.0
http://www.w3.org/TR/Implementing-UAAG20/

Changes in the updated UAAG 2.0 Working Draft include:
* new success criteria for video and audio playback rate controls
* new success criteria to support speech input users
* new success criteria for managing reset of preference settings
* revised success criteria on flash & red flash thresholds
* revised success criteria for searching rendered content
* tests for defining a user agent

The new Implementing UAAG 2.0 document provides additional information about the guidelines and success criteria, including the intent, examples, and resources,

The Working Group is looking for feedback on these changes along with the specific questions that are listed in the Status section at:

http://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/#status

WAI encourages people with disabilities and developers of browsers, assistive technologies, plug-ins, extensions, and accessibility APIs (application programming interfaces) to provide feedback on this draft, and to consider more active participation in developing UAAG 2.0. Please send comments to the publicly archived list:

public-uaag2-comments@w3.org

by 16 April 2010

UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. UAAG is part of a series of accessibility guidelines/standards developed by WAI, including Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG). UAAG 2.0 is currently informative only. More information about UAAG:

UAAG Overview - http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/uaag.php
WAI Guidelines and Techniques - http://www.w3.org/WAI/guid-tech.html
User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group (UAWG) - http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry
For Jim Allan and Kelly Ford, UAAG Co-Chairs and Jeanne Spellman, W3C Staff Contact

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

Updated browser accessibility guidelines! See UAAG 2.0 and new Implementing UAAG 2.0 documents. Your comments are needed!

(@@)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

contact2010April

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Updated Resources Encourage Developers and Users Working Together for Better Accessibility

2010-04-22: The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) has updated the following resources as part of the WAI-AGE Project:

More about these resources is in the blog posts Discover new ways of thinking about accessibility and Take a few minutes to encourage web accessibility. Your voice counts. Learn about Accessibility and visit the WAI home page.

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

Working Together for Better Accessibility

To help and encourage developers and users working together, WAI has updated the following documents:

See Updated Resources Encourage Working Together for Better Accessibility e-mail for more information. (2010-04-22)

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

Updated Resources Encourage Working Together for Better Accessibility

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

To help and encourage developers and users to work together to make the web more accessible, WAI has updated the following resources:

*Contacting Organizations about Inaccessible Websites* (primarily for users) - provides guidance on encouraging organizations to make their websites accessible, particularly when you find accessibility barriers on a website.
http://www.w3.org/WAI/users/inaccessible

Additional perspectives are in the blog post:
- Take a few minutes to encourage web accessibility. Your voice counts.
http://www.w3.org/QA/2010/01/encourage_accessibility_make_a_difference

*Involving Users in Web Projects for Better Easier Accessibility* (primarily for project managers, designers, developers, editors, and the like) - describes how to better understand accessibility issues and implement more effective accessibility solutions by getting people with disabilities involved from the beginning of projects. Applies to:
- websites and web applications
- browsers, media players, and assistive technologies
- authoring tools such as content management systems (CMS), blog software, and WYSIWYG editors
- standards and policies on accessibility
- web technologies and technical specifications
http://www.w3.org/WAI/users/involving

*Involving Users in Evaluating Web Accessibility* (for those evaluating accessibility) provides the basics for anyone wanting to ensure that their websites, applications, and tools work well for people with disabilities.
http://www.w3.org/WAI/eval/users

The Involving Users documents are introduced in the blog post:
- Discover new ways of thinking about accessibility
http://www.w3.org/QA/2009/12/discover_new_ways_of_thinking.html

These documents were developed and updated by Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) as part of the WAI-AGE Project. WAI-AGE is a European Commission IST Specific Support Action, with the goal of increasing accessibility of the Web for older people as well as for people with disabilities. See: http://www.w3.org/WAI/WAI-AGE/

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry, EOWG Chair

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

http://bit.ly/togeder resources encourage developers & users working together for better web accessibility #disability #ally #accessibility

(139)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

Accessible Presentations-April 2010

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

New resource: How to Make Your Presentations Accessible to All

The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) today published How to Make Presentations Accessible to All, a page of the training resource suite being updated as part of the WAI-AGE Project. This new WAI resource helps you make presentations, talks, meetings, and training accessible to all of your potential audience, including people with disabilities and others. It covers planning, preparing slides, providing accessible material, considerations during your session, and more. WAI would like to know how this resource works for you and how we can improve it. See the blog post: Make Your Presentations Accessible to All. Learn about Accessibility and visit the WAI home page.

notes:

title brainstorms:

 

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

Reach your audience: Make your presentations accessible to all

How to Make Presentations Accessible to All helps you make presentations, talks, meetings, and training accessible to all of your potential audience, including people with disabilities and others. WAI would like to know how this resource works for you and how we can improve it. See the blog post: Make Your Presentations Accessible to All. Please send comments by 19 July 2010. (2010-06-15)

notes:

title brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

Make Your Presentations Accessible to All

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

W3C WAI invites feedback on a new resource published today:
     How to Make Presentations Accessible to All
     http://www.w3.org/WAI/training/accessible

This new resource helps you make presentations, talks, meetings, and training accessible to all of your potential audience, including people with disabilities and others. It covers planning, preparing slides, providing accessible material, considerations during your session, and more. It also mentions some of the many benefits of inclusive presentations.

WAI encourages you to use this draft resource, and let us know how it works for you and how we can improve it. For example, we are considering making the information under the headings expandable and collapsible. Please send comments to the publicly-archived e-mail list:
     wai-eo-editors@w3.org
     by 19 July 2010

You can also share your ideas as comments on the blog post:
*Make Your Presentations Accessible to All*
http://www.w3.org/QA/2010/04/@@

This resource was developed by Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) as part of the training resource suite being updated as part of the WAI-AGE Project. WAI-AGE is a European Commission IST Specific Support Action, with the goal of increasing accessibility of the Web for older people as well as for people with disabilities. See: http://www.w3.org/WAI/WAI-AGE/

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Henry, EOWG Chair

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

Make your presentations, talks, meetings, & training accessible to all of your audience. See http://bit.ly/accesspres #accessibility #a11y
(138)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

Make Your Presentations Accessible to All

Do you remember a time when people around you broke out in laughter, but you didn't hear the joke?
You could be doing a similar thing to your audience — leaving some people out. For example, if you say "you can read it on the slide", you're probably excluding people who can't see the slide.

How to Make Presentations Accessible to All is a new WAI resource that helps you make presentations, talks, meetings, and training accessible to all of your potential audience, including people with disabilities and others. It covers planning, preparing slides, providing accessible material, considerations during your session, and more. It also mentions some of the many benefits of inclusive presentations.

WAI would like to know how this resource works for you and how we can improve it. For example, we are considering making the information under the headings expandable and collapsible. You can comment on this blog post or send e-mail to wai-eo-editors@w3.org (Please share your comments by 19 July 2010 for consideration in the next version.)

Thanks! ~Shawn

How to Make Presentations Accessible to All was developed by Education and Outreach Working Group (EOWG) as part of the training resource suite update with the WAI-AGE Project.

notes:

title brainstorms:

UAAG-June2010

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0 Updated

The User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group has published an updated Working Draft of the User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0. UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. This draft includes updates to focus behavior and indication, form submission, and relative font sizes. The Working Group requests comments now in preparation for Last Call. The Working Group also published a Working Draft of the Implementing UAAG 2.0 supporting Note. Read the invitation to review the UAAG 2.0 Working Draft and about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

For Review: UAAG 2.0 and Implementing UAAG 2.0 Working Drafts

WAI has published updated Working Drafts of User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0 and the Implementing UAAG 2.0 supporting Note. UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. WAI encourages you to review UAAG 2.0 and submit comments now, as the Working Group is preparing for Last Call. See:

Please send comments by 29 July 2010. (2010-06-17)

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: UAAG 2.0 and Implementing UAAG 2.0 Working Drafts

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The W3C WAI User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) Working Group invites you to comment on updated UAAG documents published 17 June 2010:
- User Agent Accessibility Guidelines (UAAG) 2.0 - updated Working Draft
   http://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/
- Implementing UAAG 2.0 - updated Working Draft
   http://www.w3.org/TR/Implementing-UAAG20/

Changes in the updated UAAG 2.0 Working Draft include:
- revised success criteria and glossary on focus indication and behavior,
- redefining keyboard shortcuts for form submission and cancellation,
- revised success criteria for relative font size distinctions when fonts are rescaled to allow users to control whether font size distinctions are maintained.

The Working Group is looking for feedback on these changes along with the specific questions that are listed in the Status section at:
   http://www.w3.org/TR/UAAG20/#status

The updated Implementing UAAG 2.0 document provides additional information about the guidelines and success criteria, including intent, examples, and resources.

WAI encourages people with disabilities and developers of browsers, assistive technologies, plug-ins, extensions, and accessibility APIs (application programming interfaces) to provide feedback on this draft, and to consider more active participation in developing UAAG 2.0. Please send comments to the publicly-archived list:
   public-uaag2-comments@w3.org
   by 29 July 2010

*Note that the Working Group is preparing for Last Call and would like comments on this Working Draft by July 2010.* Information about Last Call and the development stages are described in:
* How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/w3c-process

Background:
UAAG defines how browsers, media players, and other "user agents" should support accessibility for people with disabilities and work with assistive technologies. UAAG is part of a series of accessibility standards developed by WAI, including Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG). UAAG 2.0 is currently informative only. For more information on UAAG and WAI standards, see:
* UAAG Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/uaag.php
* WAI Guidelines and Techniques http://www.w3.org/WAI/guid-tech.html
* User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group (UAWG) http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry
For Jim Allan and Kelly Ford, UAAG Co-Chairs
and Jeanne Spellman, W3C Staff Contact

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

Please comment on updated UAAG 2.0 Working Drafts by 29 July as we're preparing for Last Call! See http://bit.ly/uaag2010june browser #a11y

(@@)

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

WCAG 2010 REPLACED

Open issues:

Overall messaging notes:

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Updated Techniques for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Working Group today published updated [Working Draft] Notes that accompany WCAG 2.0: Techniques for WCAG 2.0 and Understanding WCAG 2.0. The techniques are also updated in the How to Meet WCAG 2.0 quick reference. To learn more about the updates, see [wai ig email &/OR blog post]. Read about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

WCAG 2.0 Techniques Updated

WAI has published updated [Working Draft] Notes that accompany the WCAG 2.0 technical specification: Techniques for WCAG 2.0 and Understanding WCAG 2.0. The techniques are also updated in the How to Meet WCAG 2.0 quick reference. To learn more about the updates, see [wai ig email &/OR blog post]. Please submit comments by @@4 August 2010.    (2010-@@-@@)

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

WCAG 2.0 Supporting Techniques Updated
[@@ Call for Review of Working Drafts ???]

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The W3C WAI today published updated supporting documents for the WCAG 2.0 technical specification. *WCAG 2.0 itself is a stable document that is not updated*. The supporting documents are updated periodically to reflect current practices and technologies.

The following are updated [to Working Draft] Notes:
- Techniques for WCAG 2.0
   http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG20-TECHS/
- Understanding WCAG 2.0
   http://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/

The techniques are also updated in the
   *How to Meet WCAG 2.0 quick reference* at
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/quickref/

*Updates*: The updates include Flash techniques, and clarifications based on input from the public and translators. The changes are highlighted in a diff-marked version at @@

Please send any comments on these Working Drafts by *@@4 August 2010*. Comments and contributions for additional WCAG 2.0 techniques can be sent via web form or e-mail, per:
- Instructions for Commenting on WCAG 2.0 Documents http://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/comments/

If you are interested in actively contributing to the development of additional WCAG 2.0 techniques and support material through the WCAG Working Group, please see:
- Participating in WAI http://www.w3.org/WAI/participation and contact Michael Cooper

For an introduction to the WCAG documents, see:
- WCAG Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/wcag.php

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry
For Gregg Vanderheiden and Loretta Guarino Reid, WCAG Co-Chairs
and Michael Cooper, W3C Staff Contact

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

...

(@@)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

[@@ co-write guest blog???]

WCAG 2010-07July

Overall messaging notes:

[previous draft announcements from Tue 29 June moved below]

Old title brainstorms:

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

For Review: Updated Techniques for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Working Group today announces a Call for Review of draft updates to Notes that accompany WCAG 2.0: Techniques for WCAG 2.0 (Editors' Draft) and Understanding WCAG 2.0 (Editors' Draft). Comments are welcome through 9 August 2010. (This is not an update to WCAG 2.0, which is a stable document.) To learn more about the updates, see the Call for Review: WCAG 2.0 Techniques Draft Updates e-mail. Read about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

 

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

For Review: Updated WCAG 2.0 Techniques

WAI announces a Call for Review of draft updates to supporting documents for WCAG 2.0: Techniques for WCAG 2.0 (Editors' Draft) and Understanding WCAG 2.0 (Editors' Draft). (This is not an update to WCAG 2.0, which is a stable document.) To learn more about the updates, see [wai ig email] e-mail. Please submit comments by 9 August 2010.    (2010-07-08)

notes:

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: Updated WCAG 2.0 Techniques

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The W3C WAI announces a Call for Review of updates to two supporting documents for Web Content Accessibility Guideline (WCAG) 2.0. *This is not an update to WCAG 2.0, which is a stable document*.

The supporting documents (W3C Notes) are updated periodically to reflect current practices and technologies. *The existing Techniques and Understanding documents remain in place as W3C Notes* while the separate draft updates are under review and the WCAG Working Group addresses comments.

The following draft updates (Editors' Drafts) are available for review:
- Techniques for WCAG 2.0 Editors' Draft
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/2010/WD-WCAG20-TECHS-20100708/
- Understanding WCAG 2.0 Editors' Draft
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/2010/WD-UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20-20100708/

*What is updated*: Draft updates include addition of Flash techniques, and clarifications based on input from the public and translators. The changes are highlighted in diff-marked versions at:
- http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/2010/WD-WCAG20-TECHS-20100708/complete-diff.html
- http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/2010/WD-UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20-20100708/complete-diff.html

Please send any comments on these Editors' Drafts by *9 August 2010*. Comments and contributions for additional WCAG 2.0 techniques can be sent via web form or e-mail, per:
- Instructions for Commenting on WCAG 2.0 Documents http://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/comments/

If you are interested in actively contributing to the development of additional WCAG 2.0 techniques and support material through the WCAG Working Group, please see:
- Participating in WAI http://www.w3.org/WAI/participation and contact Michael Cooper

For an introduction to the WCAG documents, see:
- WCAG Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/wcag.php

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Lawton Henry
For Gregg Vanderheiden and Loretta Guarino Reid, WCAG Co-Chairs
and Michael Cooper, W3C Staff Contact

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

WCAG 2.0 Techniques draft updates for your review, by 9 August. See details in email: http://bit.ly/wcag201007 Thanks! #a11y #accessibility

(139)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

ATAG-LC-July2010

messaging notes:

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0 Last Call Working Draft

The Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines Working Group has published a Last Call Working Draft of Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0. ATAG defines how authoring tools should help developers produce accessible web content that conforms to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. The ATAG documents also describe how to make authoring tools accessible so that people with disabilities can use them. Comments are welcome through 2 September 2010. Read the invitation to review the ATAG 2.0 Last Call Working Draft and about the Web Accessibility Initiative.

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

Calling All Authoring Tool Developers: ATAG 2 for You

If you develop web authoring tools (content management systems, HTML editors, websites that let users add content, and more), now is the time to take a good look at the ATAG 2.0 Working Draft. It's in Last Call Working Draft stage, and we need you to use it in developing your tools and let us know how it works for you. People with disabilities and accessibility specialists are also encouraged to review it now. See:

Please send any comments on this Last Call Working Draft by 2 September 2010. Thanks!    (2010-07-@@)

notes:

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: ATAG *Last Call* Working Draft

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

The W3C WAI invites you to review and start using the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0 Last Call Working Draft published @@ July 2010 at:
      http://www.w3.org/TR/ATAG20/

If you develop web authoring tools (content management systems, HTML editors, blogs, wikis, and other websites that let users add content, etc[1]), now is the time to take a good look at ATAG 2.0. We need you to use this Last Call Working Draft in developing your tools and let us know how it works for you. In the coming months, we'll be asking for tools that meet ATAG 2.0. Will your tool be an example?

People with disabilities and accessibility specialists are also encouraged to review the document now to ensure that it addresses accessibility needs.

What is Last Call?: Last Call Working Draft and the other development stages are described in:
   How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process
   http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/w3c-process

Recent updates: For a list of changes since the last draft, see the Status section: http://www.w3.org/TR/ATAG20/#status

Comments: Please submit comments on any issues that you think could present a barrier to future adoption and implementation of ATAG 2.0 to the publicly-archived list:
   public-atag2-comments@w3.org
   by *2 September 2010*

Background: ATAG defines how authoring tools should help Web developers produce Web content that is accessible and conforms to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. It also defines how to make authoring tools accessible so that people with disabilities can use the tools. ATAG is introduced in the ATAG Overview at:
    http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/atag.php
ATAG is part of a series of accessibility guidelines/standards developed by WAI, which are listed in WAI Guidelines and Techniques at:
    http://www.w3.org/WAI/guid-tech.html
ATAG is developed by the Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines Working Group (AUWG),
    http://www.w3.org/WAI/AU/

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

[1] Examples of authoring tools: http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/atag.php#for

Regards,
~Shawn Henry
For: Jutta Treviranus, Chair of AUWG
Jeanne Spellman, W3C Staff Contact for AUWG

notes:

ARIA2010Aug

[ draft updated WAI-ARIA Overview and WAI-ARIA FAQ ]

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Last Call: Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA) Working Draft

16 September 2010

The Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) has published a Last Call Working Draft of WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification for making dynamic, interactive Web content accessible to people with disabilities. PFWG also published updated Working Drafts of the WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide that provides guidance on how browsers and other user agents should expose WAI-ARIA features to platform accessibility APIs; WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices that describes how Web content developers can develop accessible rich Web applications using WAI-ARIA; and WAI-ARIA Primer that provides a technical introduction.

These WAI-ARIA documents are introduced in the WAI-ARIA Overview. Comments are welcome through 29 October 2010. Read the WAI-ARIA review announcement for details, and about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Role Attribute Draft Published

16 September 2010

The Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) has published a Working Draft of Role Attribute 1.0: An attribute to support the role classification of elements. Role Attribute allows authors to annotate markup languages with machine-extractable semantic information about the purpose of an element.

Comments are welcome through 29 October 2010. Read about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

 

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

WAI-ARIA Revised and Ready for Last Call Working Draft Review

Now ready for your review: Last Call Working Draft of WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification for making dynamic, interactive Web content accessible to people with disabilities. Working Drafts of 4 other documents in the WAI-ARIA suite are also updated. See:

Please send comments by 29 October 2010.    (2010-09-16)

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

Call for Review: WAI-ARIA, the Accessible Rich Internet Applications technical specification

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

W3C WAI invites you to review the Accessible Rich Internet Applications *WAI-ARIA Last Call Working Draft* published 5 August 2010 at:
     http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria/

WAI-ARIA is a technical specification that defines a way to make Web content and Web applications more accessible to people with disabilities. It especially helps with dynamic content and advanced user interface controls developed with Ajax (also known as AJAX), HTML, JavaScript, and related technologies.

The Protocols and Formats Working Group (PFWG) also published updated Working Drafts of the following documents in the WAI-ARIA suite:
* WAI-ARIA Primer (Working Draft of W3C Note) - introduces developers to the accessibility problems that WAI-ARIA is intended to solve, the fundamental concepts, and the technical approach of WAI-ARIA http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-primer
* WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices (Working Draft of W3C Note) - describes how Web content developers can develop accessible rich Web applications using WAI-ARIA http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/aria-practices
* WAI-ARIA User Agent Implementation Guide (Working Draft of W3C standard "Recommendation") - provides guidance on how browsers and other user agents should expose WAI-ARIA features to platform accessibility APIs http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-implementation
* Role Attribute (Working Draft of W3C standard "Recommendation") - technical specification that allows authors to annotate markup languages with machine-extractable semantic information about the purpose of an element http://www.w3.org/TR/role-attribute

About Last Call:
This second WAI-ARIA Last Call Working Draft is provided for public review of the document now that it has all resolutions from previous comments incorporated. The PFWG hopes that it has resolved all substantive issues with this draft, and looks forward to progressing to the next stages in completing WAI-ARIA. The next stages are described in:
*   How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process
     http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/w3c-process

Recent updates:
For a list of changes since the last drafts, see the Status section of each document.

Comments:
Please submit comments on any issues that you think could present a barrier to future adoption and implementation of WAI-ARIA. Please send comments per the instructions at:
     http://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/comments/instructions
     by *29 October 2010*

For an introduction to the WAI-ARIA suite, please see:
* WAI-ARIA Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/aria
* WAI-ARIA FAQ http://www.w3.org/WAI/aria/faq

WAI-ARIA works with existing web content technologies, such as HTML, and provides a way to apply the requirements of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 for rich web applications. Accessibility standards developed by the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) are listed in WAI Guidelines and Techniques at: http://www.w3.org/WAI/guid-tech.html

Please let us know if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your comments.

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

Regards,
~Shawn Henry, WAI Outreach
Janina Sajka. PFWG Chair
Michael Cooper, PFWG W3C Staff Contact
Judy Brewer, WAI Director

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

For Review: WAI-ARIA for dynamic interactive Web. see Last Call Working Draft email: http://bit.ly/wai-aria201009 #a11y #accessibility #aria

(above draft is exactly 140 characters)

notes & brainstorms:

W3C Q&A blog post:

not doing

WCAGOct2010

W3C Home Page (and Newsletters):

Updated Techniques for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0

14 October 2010

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Working Group today published updates of two Notes that accompany WCAG 2.0: Techniques for WCAG 2.0 and Understanding WCAG 2.0. (This is not an update to WCAG 2.0, which is a stable document.) To learn more about these updates and about contributing to future updates, see the New and Improved WCAG 2.0 Techniques blog post. Read about the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).

notes:

 

WAI Highlight for home page & RSS feed:

More WCAG 2.0 Techniques

WAI continues to develop techniques for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 and expand guidance on understanding and implementing WCAG 2.0. To learn about today's publications and about contributing on-going work on WCAG techniques, see the New and Improved WCAG 2.0 Techniques blog post.    (2010-Oct-14)

notes:

title brainstorms:

body brainstorms:

WAI IG email:

Updated WCAG 2.0 Techniques Published - You Can Help with More

Dear WAI Interest Group Participants,

W3C WAI today published updates to two supporting documents for Web Content Accessibility Guideline (WCAG) 2.0:
- Techniques for WCAG 2.0 http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG20-TECHS/
- Understanding WCAG 2.0 http://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/

These supporting documents (called W3C Notes) are updated periodically to reflect current practices and technologies. This is not an update to WCAG 2.0, which is a stable document.

*Please read more information on the content of the updates and request for additional techniques in*:
- New and Improved WCAG 2.0 Techniques blog post
http://www.w3.org/QA/2010/10/headline_here_@@.html

Updating and expanding these WCAG supporting documents in on-going work, and we welcome your contributions.
To submit ideas for new techniques, please use the:
- Techniques for WCAG 2.0 submission form
http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/WCAG20/TECHS-SUBMIT/
To comment on existing WCAG 2.0 supporting documents, please use the web form or e-mail, per:
- Instructions for Commenting on WCAG 2.0 Documents http://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/comments/
To actively contributing to the development of additional WCAG 2.0 techniques and support material through the WCAG Working Group, please see:
- Participation in the WCAG Working Group
participate in the WCAG Working Group

For an introduction to the WCAG documents, see:
- WCAG Overview http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/wcag.php

Feel free to circulate this message to other lists; please avoid cross-postings where possible.

(Note: The first links above go to the latest version of the documents. The "dated" versions are:
- http://www.w3.org/TR/2010/NOTE-WCAG20-TECHS-20101014/
- http://www.w3.org/TR/2010/NOTE-UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20-20101014/
The difference between these links are explained in Referencing and Linking to WAI Guidelines and Technical Documents at http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/linking.html)

Regards,
~Shawn Henry, WAI Outreach
Gregg Vanderheiden and Loretta Guarino Reid, WCAG Co-Chairs
Michael Cooper, W3C Staff Contact

notes:

Tweet (MAXIMUM 140 characters)

...

(@@)

notes & brainstorms:

BLOG:

Draft 3 - W3C Q&A blog post:

New and Improved WCAG 2.0 Techniques

Today W3C WAI published updated Techniques for WCAG 2.0 and Understanding WCAG 2.0, following a public review and comment period. The WCAG Working Group is developing more techniques and would like your help.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 is a W3C standard that is designed to be stable and relevant even as technology changes. One of the benefits of WCAG 2.0 over WCAG 1.0 and other accessibility standards is that 2.0 applies to more advanced technologies, including current, future, and non-W3C technologies. WCAG 2.0 is broadly applicable and technology independent.

Detailed guidance, including technology-specific guidance, on meeting WCAG 2.0 is provided in the following supporting documents:

These supporting documents are designed to be expanded and updated periodically to cover current practices and technologies. The first publication of these supporting documents covered the sufficient techniques and other basics, although they did not document all known techniques (some were marked as "future link") nor cover all technologies. Today's publication demonstrates WAI's commitment to update the WCAG 2.0 supporting documents.

The updated documents include more coverage of non-W3C technologies, which will help developers who are using those technologies make their work more accessible and meet WCAG 2.0. However, publication of techniques for a specific technology does not imply that the technology can be used in all cases to create accessible content that meets WCAG 2.0. (For example, the Flash Techniques for WCAG 2.0 say: "Flash accessibility support for assistive technology relies on use in Windows operating systems, using Internet Explorer 6 or later (with Flash Player 6 or later) or Mozilla Firefox 3 or later (with Flash Player 9 or later).") Developers need to be aware of the limitations of specific technologies and ensure that they create content in a way that is accessible to all their potential users.

We look forward to providing more techniques for meeting WCAG 2.0. Can you help?

And finally, a big thanks to the WCAG Working Group and all who have contributed to providing updated techniques for and understanding of WCAG 2.0.

Draft 2 - W3C Q&A blog post:

WCAG 2.0 Techniques for Non-W3C Technologies

Today W3C WAI published updated Techniques for WCAG 2.0 and Understanding WCAG 2.0 that now include more guidance for non-W3C technologies. Some people are concerned that including techniques for a specific technology implies that websites and applications developed with that technology are fully accessible and can meet WCAG 2.0. This post attempts to clarify the issue.

Background: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 is a W3C standard. One of the benefits of WCAG 2.0 over WCAG 1.0 and other accessibility standards is that 2.0 applies to more advanced technologies, including current, future, non-W3C technologies. Along with WCAG 2.0 are supporting documents Techniques for WCAG 2.0 and Understanding WCAG 2.0. [The first publication of these supporting documents covered the sufficient techniques and other basics, but left some things uncovered (including techniques marked as "future link"), largely because a lack of time and resources to develop more. The WCAG Working Group continues to develop these supporting documents and welcome contributions (see last paragraph of this post).]/me prefers first option, but here is another: [Whereas WCAG 2.0 itself is a stable document; the supporting documents (Techniques and Understanding) are intended to be expanded and updated periodically to reflect current practices and cover developing technologies.]

We include techniques for specific technologies in WCAG 2.0 supporting documents in order to help developers who are using those technologies make their work more accessible and meet WCAG 2.0.

Publication of techniques for a specific technology does not imply that the technology can be used in all cases to create accessible content that meets WCAG 2.0. Developers can create inaccessible content with any technology (including HTML). Some technologies are not accessibility-supported in certain situations, for example, they depend on people using specific operating systems, browsers, or assistive technologies. Thus, developers need to be aware of the limitations of specific technologies and ensure that they create content in a way that is accessible to all their potential users.

We look forward to the development of more techniques for W3C and non-W3C technologies. Please send your comments and contributions for additional WCAG 2.0 techniques via web form or e-mail, per the Instructions for Commenting on WCAG 2.0 Documents. If you are interested in actively contributing to the development of additional WCAG 2.0 techniques and support material through the WCAG Working Group, please see Participating in WAI and contact Michael Cooper.

As always, feel free to contact us with your comments and questions. To get a message to all WAI staff, use the e-mail address wai@w3.org. (If you don't get a reply, it might have gotten caught in spam filters; try contacting one of the WAI staff directly.)

DRAFT 1 -- W3C Q&A blog post:

WCAG 2.0 Techniques for Specific Situations
***BELOW IS A FIRST ROUGH PASS ONLY!***

The W3C's work on documenting how to meet some of our accessibility standards with non-W3C technologies took some by surprise. The announcement in July of draft Flash Techniques for WCAG 2.0 brought comments of pigs flying, freezing over, and multiple Thursdays. Jokes aside: There was legitimate concern over the disconnect that many Flash websites and applications are not accessible and that including Flash techniques for WCAG implies that Flash apps can be accessible. This posts attempts to clarify the issue.

Background: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 is a W3C standard. One of the benefits of WCAG 2.0 over WCAG 1.0 and other accessibility standards is that 2.0 applies to more advanced technologies, including current, future, non-W3C technologies. Along with WCAG 2.0 are supporting documents Techniques for WCAG 2.0 and Understanding WCAG 2.0. The first publication of these supporting documents covered the basics, but left some things uncovered, simply because a lack of time and resources to develop more. Since then Adobe has supported development of techniques for meeting specific WCAG 2.0 success criteria with Flash. The Flash Techniques for WCAG 2.0 have been reviewed by the WCAG Working Group and announced for public review and comment.

Publication of techniques for a specific technology does not imply that the technology can be used in all cases to create accessible content that meets WCAG 2.0. In fact the Flash Techniques clearly spells out its limitations, including:

Flash accessibility support for assistive technology relies on use in Windows operating systems, using Internet Explorer 6 or later (with Flash Player 6 or later) or Mozilla Firefox 3 or later (with Flash Player 9 or later).

There may be limited situations in which Flash can be used in accessibility-supported ways, such as in an Intranet environment where all the users' browsers and assistive technologies are know to support the Flash techniques used. Currently there are other situations where Flash is not accessibility-supported, such as when users have operating systems other than Windows, browsers other than IE or Firefox, or are using older browsers or assistive technologies.

The purpose of including Flash techniques in WCAG 2.0 supporting documents is to help developers who are using Flash make their work more accessible. As long as we all understand the limitations, it's a good thing.

We look forward to the development of more techniques for W3C and non-W3C technologies. Please send your comments and contributions for additional WCAG 2.0 techniques via web form or e-mail, per the Instructions for Commenting on WCAG 2.0 Documents. If you are interested in actively contributing to the development of additional WCAG 2.0 techniques and support material through the WCAG Working Group, please see Participating in WAI and contact Michael Cooper.

notes:

body brainstorms: