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Best practices showing revisions (strikethroughs, etc.)

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From: Wyant, Jay (MNIT)
Date: Jan 7, 2014 1:51PM

Folks,

Our state's Revisor (department in charge of posting and tracking bills) is committed to accessibility. We are concerned that there doesn't seem to be a standard for showing document revisions in html format. As an example, here's a typical page on the Revisor's Bill site:
https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/text.php?number=HF1862&version=0&session=ls88&session_year=2013&session_number=0

Deletions are identified by the tag <s></s>, additions by the underline tag. (A March 27 note in the WebAIM archives expressed concerns that this tag is deprecated. Another note argued against using the <del> tag.)

Is there any reference source for standards for such revision marks?

As an aside, we explored how a blind user would identify the revisions. Turns out unless we alert the user to change their screen reader's settings to "proofreading mode," the user would not be aware of any changes in the text. Also, we learned that VoiceOver and accessibility tools for mobile devices are not sufficiently granular to detect these changes.

Best,

Jay

JAY WYANT |  CHIEF INFORMATION ACCESSIBILITY OFFICER
MN.IT SERVICES, CENTRAL
651.201.1001 (w) | 612.825.8285 (m) | <EMAIL REMOVED>

Information Technology for Minnesota Government | mn.gov/oet


Learn: http://mn.gov/oet/governance/for-agencies/accessibility/