Thread Subject: Re: Proposal on authoring tools

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From: Jan Richards
Date: Thu, Jun 07 2007 2:55 PM

Judy Brewer wrote:

> 3. Authoring tools must allow the author to augment
> automatically-generated content with accessibility information.

I wonder if this is sufficient.

In ATAG 2.0 the currently agreed-upon wording is Guideline B.1.3 "Ensure
automatically generated content is accessible".

The problem that this is designed to address is that automatic processes
can pump out LOTS of content and if accessibility is not taken into
account at generation-time (e.g. by doing things right that can be
automated or by asking for human input when necessary) is difficult for
humans to go back later and retrofit that content.

Note that the ATAG 2.0 provision does not apply if the author is
responsible for the automatic process ignoring accessibility. For
example if they:
- ignored warnings/prompts along the way
- set up the tool to work that way
- gave the tool inaccessible source content to convert

So I might propose this re-wording:

"3. Authoring tools must provide a mode in which any content that is
specified exclusively by the authoring tool must be accessible."


Cheers,
Jan

--
Jan Richards, M.Sc.
Interim Staff Contact, AUWG, WAI-W3C

User Interface Design Specialist
Adaptive Technology Resource Centre (ATRC)
Faculty of Information Studies
University of Toronto

Email: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =
Web: http://jan.atrc.utoronto.ca
Phone: 416-946-7060
Fax: 416-971-2896

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