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Thread: Re: webaim-forum-d Digest V2003 #44
Number of posts in this thread: 2 (In chronological order)
From: Leah Cornwell
Date: Tue, Feb 25 2003 2:55PM
Subject: Re: webaim-forum-d Digest V2003 #44
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<P>I think that in creating your form you need to be even more simplistic. In the interest of accessibility <A href="http://64.4.20.250/cgi-bin/linkrd?_lang=EN&;amp;lah=271c4a182e3a031342e4132915498006&lat=1046208897&hm___action=http%3a%2f%2fwww%2ema%2edoe%2egov%2fenergy%2fweb%2ehtml" target=_blank><FONT color=#000099>http://www.ma.doe.gov/energy/web.html<;/FONT></A> this web page is going to have a hard time being accessible. First of all it is created in nested tables which is a problem from the start. If you take the tables out and mark up the table with the prompt for the input to the left of the text box, and then put the answers next to it it would turn out to be much more accessible. Screen readers have trouble reading things that are above the input boxes. Tables containing forms are not going to linearize well. I think you might want to start over with a more simplistic page...you don't have to sacrifice design for accessibility. I think keeping!
in mind simplicity is a good idea for forms, and they don't have to look bad when choosing to do that. Just some thoughts... <A href="http://www.jimthatcher.com/webcourse8.htm">http://www.jimthatcher.com/webcourse8.htm<;/A> I am sure you might have looked here already, but it couldn't hurt to check it out if you haven't. </P>
<P>Good Luck! </P>
<P>~Leah<BR></P></DIV>
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<DIV></DIV>>Subject: webaim-forum-d Digest V2003 #44
<DIV></DIV>>Date: Tue, 25 Feb 2003 14:15:06 -0700
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From: Jim Thatcher
Date: Tue, Feb 25 2003 3:52PM
Subject: On forms again RE: webaim-forum-d Digest V2003 #44
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Thanks for the plug, Leah, but I'm sorry to say that I don't agree that
http://www.ma.doe.gov/web.html has the problems you describe. I wish that
the individual form controls had label elements around each prompt thus
programmatically connecting the prompt with the control, but the positions
of the prompts in this case work; the prompts are spoken with each control
with HPR, JAWS and Window-Eyes. I believe that is good enough. As far as the
tables go - the page reads (linearizes) just fine.
One might argue that if the text separating groups of controls was also
spoken then that would improve accessibility. True, but it is not
unreasonable to expect that if, when hearing "capacity" and "organization",
one moves back a couple of lines to hear the text in front of these fields:
"Affiliation: If writing on behalf of an organization, union, association,
group, or country, please include its full name and your relationship
(e.g., position, member, citizen)?" So I don't think that text has to be
automatically spoken in forms mode.
Jim
508 Web Accessibility Tutorial http://jimthatcher.com/webcourse1.htm.
"Constructing Accessible Web Sites:" http://jimthatcher.com/news.htm