Buzz Archives for July 2006
Firefox Security Update
Firefox has issued an update for its browser across all platforms to improve security and stability.
By Molly E. Holzschlag | Filed in Browsers, General
- IE6: the end is (hopefully) near
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Hot on the heels of the IE7 Βeta 3 release, Microsoft has announced plans to roll out the final standalone version of IE7 via its Automatic Update service.
By Aaron Gustafson | Filed in Browsers, Microsoft, Web Standards (general)
- Misplaced Anger: A Rebuttal to Zeldman’s Criticism of the W3C
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There’s been discussion in the community about unrest at the W3C. This isn’t exactly news to most, particularly if you’ve been following the WCAG 2.0 saga. This time, however, the criticism comes from a strong voice, none other than Jeffrey Zeldman.
By Molly E. Holzschlag | Filed in General, W3C/Standards Documentation, Web Standards (general)
- Acid2 and Opera 9 Clarifications: Yes, Opera 9 Passes the Test
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There’s been a bit of confusion over the Acid2 test and Opera 9 results. Ian Hickson has provided WaSP with the following clarifications about the Acid2 test and how things should behave. Hopefully, this insight will serve to clarify why some people are reporting issues in Opera 9 compliance.
By Molly E. Holzschlag | Filed in Acid2, Action, General
- Maintainable JavaScript
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The Web Standards Group (not to be confused with the Web Standards Project) is a grassroots organisation based in Australia dedicated to promoting web standards and accessibility. The organisation's activities have now spread to the other side of the world. The first Web Standards Group event in London was held last ...
By Jeremy Keith | Filed in DOM, DOM Scripting TF, General
- Internet Explorer 7 Readiness Toolkit
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The Internet Explorer 7 Readiness Toolkit provides an easy way for developers and designers to check their sites on IE7. The Toolkit requires a genuine registered copy of Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, and XP. It includes some very helpful materials for developers wishing to see how sites will render in the browser.
By Molly E. Holzschlag | Filed in Microsoft TF
- Acid2 and Opera 9 Problems?
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We’ve received some reports here at WaSP that Opera 9 is not passing Acid2 under certain unique scenarios. We’d like to hear from you in comments if this is the case.
By Molly E. Holzschlag | Filed in Acid2
- Firefox 2 Beta 1: Live Today
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Within minutes of this post being published, Mozilla will be rolling out the Firefox 2 Beta 1 release. This is a developer preview release of Firefox, and includes a number of interface and technology implementations, changes and upgrades.
By Molly E. Holzschlag | Filed in Browsers, General
- Talking about JavaScript in London
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JavaScript was just one of the items on the menu at this year's @media conference in London. The panel on JavaScript libraries featured Simon Willison, Stuart Langridge, Peter-Paul Koch, Dan Webb and the host with the most, Cameron Adams. It was a highly entertaining romp through the pros and cons ...
By Jeremy Keith | Filed in DOM, DOM Scripting TF, General
The Web Standards Project is a grassroots coalition fighting for standards which ensure simple, affordable access to web technologies for all.
Recent Buzz
WCAG 2.0 is a W3C Recommendation
By Matt May | December 11th, 2008
After 9.5 years of work, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 have reached W3C Recommendation status. On behalf of the WaSP Accessibility Task Force, I’d like to welcome WCAG 2 officially into the pantheon of Web standards.
I think this tweet by caledoniaman sums up the level of anticipation:
WCAG 2.0 and a new Guns ‘n’ Roses album in the same year. What’s the world coming to.
Interesting comparison. They’ve each had about as many pre-releases. In any case, I can say, having spent over 8 years with it, that WCAG 2 is not as entertaining as Chinese Democracy. But I do think that it’s better equipped to stand the test of time.
If I had to pick one thing I’m most happy about, I’d say it’s that the HTML- and text-centrism in WCAG 1 is largely gone. In its place is a much more flexible (dare I say robust?) concept of accessibility-supported technology. So when newer technologies can show themselves to be directly accessible, they too can be used in WCAG 2-conformant content.
Over the years, many people have conflated “WCAG-conformant” with “accessible,” and that’s led to people making statements like: “Don’t use JavaScript–it’s inaccessible.” That’s bad for everyone, from users with disabilities who actually can work with JavaScript (which is to say, the vast majority), to Web designers and developers, to policymakers, to those developing new technologies.
With WCAG 2, “Don’t use x” is no longer valid. (Was it ever?) It is now up to you, the developer, to work on the direct accessibility of your content, no matter what technology you choose. I believe we’re about to experience a new wave of accessible design techniques, as a result.
But first, we need to flush “Don’t use x” out of our system. Some are accustomed to saying it about anything they’re not comfortable with. That’s only holding accessible design back. It’s time to learn what’s out there, today, and use it in everyday Web design. It’s time to make everyone’s Web more accessible. Have a look at the WCAG 2.0 Recommendation, and its supporting material. Then, start thinking about what a more accessible Web could be. We still have a lot of work to do.
Filed in Accessibility, Accessibility TF, W3C/Standards Documentation, Web Standards (general) | Comments (8)