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Re: Using Tables

for

From: Ryan E. Benson
Date: Feb 10, 2012 8:57PM

> 4. Summary is NOT for presenting the purpose or content of the table.
> It's for describing its structure, when necessary (see #1).
What makes you say that Jared? The spec (html 4) says the exact opposite
"summary = text [CS]
This attribute provides a summary of the table's purpose and structure
for user agents rendering to non-visual media such as speech and
Braille." - http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/struct/tables.html#adef-summary

--
Ryan E. Benson



On Fri, Feb 10, 2012 at 7:25 PM, Jared Smith < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
> On Fri, Feb 10, 2012 at 12:23 PM, Ted wrote:
>> Definitely need a summary for complex tables.
>
> I disagree. A few reasons why I think summary is almost universally a bad idea:
>
> 1. If the table is so complex that its structure needs to be explained
> to the user, it's too complex. Period.
>
> 2. Summary is screen-reader only and is forced upon the screen reader
> user each time the table is encountered. With proper table markup, the
> user should be able to quickly navigate the table to determine its
> content and structure, in the same way that sighted users must scan a
> table to determine its content and structure.
>
> 3. Summary is currently not part of HTML5.
>
> 4. Summary is NOT for presenting the purpose or content of the table.
> It's for describing its structure, when necessary (see #1). Probably
> 90% of summary attributes on the web get this wrong. If it's important
> that the purpose or content of the table be presented, this should be
> done in a way that is accessible to everyone (e.g., <caption>, etc.).
>
> It's a rarity to find a summary attribute that does much good. They
> are almost always a waste of time or an excuse for presenting an
> overly complex table. Or both.
>
> And no, I don't have strong feeling on the subject. :-)
>
> Jared
>