Why Standards Harmonization is Essential to Web Accessibility
Linearized Table of Fragmentation Drivers and Reasons for Harmonization
Note: This document is a draft
[see
change log in progress] and should not be
referenced or quoted under any circumstances. This document is under
development by the Education and Outreach Working
Group (EOWG).
Fragmentation Driver
A restriction on what type of standards governments can adopt, and the
belief that W3C is not an official standards body
Reason for Harmonization
W3C is the leading standards body for the Web industry, and many
governments have already adopted HTML or XML, which are W3C
standards.
Fragmentation Driver
A requirement that only standards officially available in local language(s) can be adopted
Reason for Harmonization
W3C's allows the development of authorized translations in local
languages, through its Policy for Authorized W3C
Translations.
Fragmentation Driver
A belief that only local guidelines can meet the needs of the local disability community
Reason for Harmonization
Disability needs with regard to Web accessibility do not vary significantly from country to country.
Fragmentation Driver
A belief that the needs of people with disabilities outside a country are different or not relevant.
Reason for Harmonization
Since the Web is worldwide, people with disabilities from any country
may need access to the Web-based resources of a particular country, through the same kinds of accessibility provisions.
Fragmentation Driver
The myth that W3C/WAI guidelines were developed by a single country
Reason for Harmonization
W3C/WAI guidelines were developed with broad international input and reflect needs from around the world.
Fragmentation Driver
The belief that development of local guidelines is the best area in
which to invest local funding for Web accessibility
Reason for Harmonization
Development of local guidelines takes scarce resources away from areas
where local capacity is crucial -- such as education, awarenesss,
training and technical assistance on Web
accessibility.
Fragmentation Driver
The belief that it is more practical in the long term to have locally developed guidelines
Reason for Harmonization
Because Web technologies are constantly evolving, ongoing development
and maintenance of local guidelines and techniques into the future may
be prohibitively resource-intensive.
Fragmentation Driver
The belief that locally developed guidelines will be easier to implement by Web developers
Reason for Harmonization
A unified market around a consistent international set of Web
accessibility standards will drive the increased availability of
improved authoring tools, evaluation tools, browsers, media players,
and training and technical resources. Together these will have far more
impact on the ease of implementation of Web accessibility than would
the development of any local standard.
Last updated 10 March 2006 by Judy Brewer.
Editor: Judy Brewer. Contributors: Participants
of EOWG.
Copyright
© 1994-2006 W3C (MIT, ERCIM,
Keio ), All Rights Reserved. W3C liability,
trademark,
document use and
software licensing rules
apply. Your interactions with this site are in accordance with our public and Member privacy statements.