Name: dk30142 Date: 02/13/2002
In the <TABLE> tags for summary tables, add "summary" attribute,
such as:
<TABLE border="0"
summary="This table lists the direct methods of this class,
with modifiers, return type, name and description.">
Perhaps the word "this" can be replace by the name of the class.
And the word "methods" can be modified to say "public and package-private
methods" according to the options passed in when the docs were generated.
The navigation tables (two tables, nested) would need a different
kind of summary.
Various guidelines follow:
Sun Accessibility Program Office ----------------------------
This is an update to the general table description guidelines the
proposed a while back.
Describing Tables, 508
When Tables may also need a "summary" (similar to a "longdesc")
1. If the table isn't adequately introduced in preceding text and
the "caption" alone doesn't adequately describe the table.
2. If it has a non-standard structure (e.g. tables within tables).
General Guideline for a Table "summary".
1. Provide the information you feel is missing in the table's "caption"
and the text surrounding the table. Be as detailed as desired,
there are no text length limitations associated with the "summary"
attribute.
2. Do not add how many rows and columns the Table has, AT can readily
obtain and present this information from the information currently
generated in the Tables Sun generates.
W3C Guidelines ------------------------------------------
http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10-HTML-TECHS/#table-summary-info
Provide a summary via the "summary" attribute. Summaries are
especially useful for non-visual readers. A summary of the
relationships among cells is especially important for tables with
nested headings, cells that span multiple columns or rows, or other
relationships that may not be obvious from analyzing the structure of
the table but that may be apparent in a visual rendering of the
table. A summary may also describe how the table fits into the context
of the current document. If no caption is provided, it is even more
critical to provide a summary. Two examples:
1."This table charts the number of cups of coffee consumed by
each senator, the type of coffee (decaf or regular), and
whether taken with sugar."
2."Total required by pollution control standards as of
January 1, 1971. Commercial category includes stores, insurance
companies and banks. The table is divided into two columns.
The left-hand column is 'Total investment required in billions
of dollars'. The right--hand column is 'Spending' and is divided
into three sub-columns. The first sub-column is titled
'1970 actual in millions of dollars', the second is '1971
planned in millions of dollars', and the third is 'Percent
change, 1970 versus 1971.' The rows are industries." [NBA, 1996].
508 Guidelines for Sun Computer System Products ---------------
From Pat Gee-Best
<TABLE DIR="LTR" SUMMARY="Table provides a description of the CPU
Configuration information.">
Notice the DIR attribute -- this tells the audio reader the direction
the table should be read, which is left-to-right (LTR).
This is inserted by AltText-Short