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"Data Table" Definition

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From: David Ashleydale
Date: Apr 9, 2013 5:53PM

Hi,

I'm going back and forth with some people about what is and is not
appropriate to put into a data table and I was wondering if there's a good
working definition of a "data table" out there.

A particular example I've been looking at is a 2 x 2 table with column
headers and no row headers. The first column header says, "WCAG" and the
second column header says, "ADA". The one data cell under WCAG has a
definition of what it stands for and a sentence or two about how it's used.
The one data cell under ADA also has a definition of what it stands for and
a sentence or two about how it's used.

Even though each of the data cells can be said to relate to its header, I
don't think this is a proper use of a data table. This information could
just as easily have been presented using a heading followed by
a paragraph of text. But my contention is that the author chose to use a
table for design just to make it line up in boxes. That could be achieved
using divs with borders -- I just don't think our data table component
should be used for that.

I was just wondering if any of you have seen a working definition of "data
table" that I could point people to when they are having a difficult time
deciding whether the information they have would appropriately fit into a
data table format.

I realize that this isn't a "showstopper" type of issue and that even
non-tabular information put into a table is not going to stop anyone from
being able to get to the information, but having a definition of "data
table" would keep the even worse examples from happening.

Thanks!
David Ashleydale