WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

E-mail List Archives

Re: Links that open new windows and/or go off site

for

From: Steve Green
Date: Mar 21, 2022 9:55PM


Opening new windows was not an omission. It's covered by WCAG SC 3.2.5 (Change on Request), which is level AAA.

Steve


From: WebAIM-Forum < <EMAIL REMOVED> > On Behalf Of Kevin Prince
Sent: 21 March 2022 23:05
To: WebAIM Discussion List < <EMAIL REMOVED> >
Subject: Re: [WebAIM] Links that open new windows and/or go off site

Thanks Glen and Steve, that makes compliance sense given what is written in the letter of 3.2.2 and I agree that, if I stay in the same window but go to another website it's expected (and well signalled in all sorts of ways.) The new website case was always clear in my mind

Having revisited 3.2.2 the advice we're seeing here that opening a link in a new window meets the letter of the checkpoint is correct. I shall be changing my advice in future to best practice and wondering why that use case is not considered worthy - hopefully it will return in 3.0.

All good and thanks again to all for the fascinating and thought-provoking posts

Kev
Kevin Prince
Product Accessibility & Usability Consultant

Foster Moore
A Teranet Company

E <EMAIL REMOVED> <mailto: <EMAIL REMOVED> >
Christchurch
fostermoore.com<http://www.fostermoore.com/>;

-----Original Message-----
From: WebAIM-Forum < <EMAIL REMOVED> <mailto: <EMAIL REMOVED> >> On Behalf Of glen walker
Sent: Tuesday, 22 March 2022 11:57 am
To: WebAIM Discussion List < <EMAIL REMOVED> <mailto: <EMAIL REMOVED> >>
Subject: Re: [WebAIM] Links that open new windows and/or go off site

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization.


When you click on a link, you expect for your context to change. That's what a link is for so 3.2.2 doesn't fail.

The question might be whether the link opens in the same page or opens a new tab/window. Is the former not a change of context but the latter is?

Personally, I don't fail it. I might point out that it's a nice UX to notify the user.

On Mon, Mar 21, 2022 at 4:51 PM Kevin Prince < <EMAIL REMOVED> <mailto: <EMAIL REMOVED> >>
wrote:

> That's really dancing on the head of a pin. The effect is that there's
> a high likelihood of disorientation by opening a new window
> unexpectedly - magnification users, cognitively challenged users,
> screenreaders too won't get the clues that it has happened.
>
>
>