I just recently re-subscribed to this list to get some feedback to several
questions that have arisen on another list. If this thread has also
appeared on this list, then I apologize for the redundancy.
The question of how JFW deals with HTML is a good one. I have heard that
JFW often fails to properly read alt text tags. Some people claim that JFW
requires the alt attribute to appear at the end of the image tag. If the
alt text appears anywhere else, then JFW doesn't catch it. Is this really
true? How can the Henter Joyce crew have so badly blundered?
Can anyone explain how JFW deals with HTML? Is JFW actually reading and
rendering the HTML directly, or is there some cooperation between JFW and
IE 4? If JFW is doing its own rendering of the HTML, then the
responsibility for ensuring that JFW can properly read it falls upon the
software engineers at Henter Joyce. Are they aware of the problem with alt
attributes? This is pretty significant, I should think, as the chances of
the alt attributes falling within the image tag in the proper location is
pretty slim, especially if the HTML author is doing some fancy things. If
it is not Henter Joyce's responsibility, but a problem with HTML itself,
then somebody should write that in to the Web Accessibility Initiative at
W3C!
Also, I have heard the JFW users are having trouble with frames. I thought
frames were okay. It was my understanding, in fact, that the WAI
encourages the use of frames for containing (for example) navigation bars
that separate content from navigation. Authors are much safer using a
frame for their navigation buttons than they would be using, say, tables to
force layout (as HTML authors have been doing for a long time now). What
are some of the problems people are having with frames? What are these
"fundamental problems" I have been hearing about?
Finally, does anyone know when JFW is going to start reading tables
properly, taking advantage of the new <th> tag? While we're on the
subject, when is JFW going to learn how to read layers in proper sequence,
and how should HTML authors structure their layers so JFW can read them?
JFW is far behind what the WAI is encouraging HTML authors to do in order
to design accessible web pages. So, until JFW catches up, people will
continue to design inaccessible web pages with all the best intentions!
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Darren J. Luvaas
Academic Technology Specialist
Stanford University
(650) 725-4673
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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Visit the jfw ml web page: http://yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au/~nallan/jfw
