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Re: Javascript - Compliance Issue

for

From: Christophe Strobbe
Date: Nov 3, 2010 9:00AM

Hi,

A few additions (with "CS: ").

At 15:24 28/10/2010, Jared Smith wrote:
>On Thu, Oct 28, 2010 at 7:51 AM, Steve Green
>< <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
> > Our interpretation of WCAG 2.0 is that a website is compliant even if it
> > does not work without JavaScript.
>
>This is correct. WCAG 2.0 allows you to require JavaScript so long as
>the content and functionality generated with JavaScript also is
>conformant with the guidelines.

CS: And if you content no longer conforms when JavaScript is turned
off or not supported, JavaScript must be included in the "list of Web
content technologies relied upon". (I.e. you rely on JavaScript for
WCAG conformance.)


>It is not clear, however, what WCAG 2.0 would require if the user
>comes to the site without JavaScript.

CS: If the site does not conform without JavaScript but JavaScript is
listed as "relied upon" in the conformance claim, one needs to
evaluate the site with JavaScript turned on to determine whether the
site conforms. However, if there is no conformance claim, you don't
know if the site was intended to conform without JavaScript.


>In such instances, we always
>recommend that the site be built to fail gracefully. At a minimum, a
>message that indicates that they need JavaScript should be presented.

CS: That would help users with browsers that don't support
JavaScript. What about users with browsers that support JavaScript?
Most users probably don't know what JavaScript is, let alone how to
turn it off. So how about providing an option that gives access to a
less interactive interface? (See Jeremy Keith's techniques in
"Bulletproof Ajax" p. 100 & p. 147.) This alternative interface would
be the one for browsers without JavaScript.

Best regards,

Christophe Strobbe


>While WCAG 2.0 does not clarify this, a site would be very difficult
>if it presented a broken or partially functional interface to those
>with JavaScript disabled (e.g., maybe a form is presented and can be
>completed, but it will not submit without JavaScript). The point,
>however, is that this would be equally inaccessible to everyone with
>JavaScript disabled, regardless of whether they have a disability. As
>such, it's not really an accessibility issue or a compliance issue,
>but more of a general usability issue.
>
>Jared Smith
>WebAIM.org

--
Christophe Strobbe
K.U.Leuven - Dept. of Electrical Engineering - SCD
Research Group on Document Architectures
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Twitter: @RabelaisA11y
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