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Re: Table SUMMARY Tag

for

From: Joshue O Connor
Date: Mar 4, 2011 2:33AM

On 03/03/2011 20:02, adam solomon wrote:
> The fact is that extra descriptive information about a table which can really
> help out an AT user, will never be allowed in by a web designer on the basis
> that it is superfluous, and that it does not fit in to their wonderful
> design.

Yes, and with good reason actually.

> So, in effect, we are only hurting the AT user.

Well the @summary is currently conforming but obsolete in HTML 5 but
yes, it is pity to send the wrong signal that there is something wrong
(which is implied by the attributes current status) with using it. The
reality is that support for it in newer user agents is likely to be
disappear (as Gez pointed out a while back), useful or not. [1] [2]

On a positive note, AT like screen readers will adapt to the new spec
and the hope is we will have a progressive forward motion, in terms of a
user experience.

Cheers

Josh

[1] http://www.w3.org/TR/html5/tabular-data.html#attr-table-summary
[2] http://juicystudio.com/article/purpose-of-the-summary-attribute.php

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