W3C

User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0

W3C Working Draft 3 October 2002

This version:
http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/WD-UAAG10-20021003/
Latest version:
http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/UAAG10/
Previous version:
http://www.w3.org/WAI/UA/WD-UAAG10-20020809/
Editors:
Ian Jacobs, W3C
Jon Gunderson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Eric Hansen, Educational Testing Service
Authors and Contributors:
See acknowledgements.

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Abstract

This document provides guidelines for designing user agents that lower barriers to Web accessibility for people with disabilities (visual, hearing, physical, cognitive, and neurological). User agents include HTML browsers and other types of software that retrieve and render Web content. A user agent that conforms to these guidelines will promote accessibility through its own user interface and through other internal facilities, including its ability to communicate with other technologies (especially assistive technologies). Furthermore, all users, not just users with disabilities, are expected to find conforming user agents to be more usable.

In addition to helping developers of HTML browsers and media players, this document will also benefit developers of assistive technologies because it explains what types of information and control an assistive technology may expect from a conforming user agent. Technologies not addressed directly by this document (e.g., technologies for braille rendering) will be essential to ensuring Web access for some users with disabilities.

Status of this document

This section describes the status of this document at the time of its publication. Other documents may supersede this document. The latest status of this document series is maintained at the W3C.

This is the 3 October 2002 Working Draft of "User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0". This document incorporates comments from the fourth last call review of UAAG 1.0. This document does not differ substantially from the last call draft, but incorporates clarifications based on reviewer comments. The User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group (UAWG) expects to request that a document similar to this one be advanced to Proposed Recommendation status. The complete list of changes is available on the Web.

As a result of the UAAG 1.0 Candidate Recommendation period, the UAWG has published an implementation report of the last call draft and a draft test suite.

The latest information regarding patent disclosures related to this document is available on the Web. As of this publication, there are no disclosures.

Publication as a Working Draft does not imply endorsement by the W3C Membership. This is a draft document and may be updated, replaced or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is inappropriate to cite this document as other than "work in progress."

Please send comments about this document to the public mailing list [email protected]; public archives are available.

This document is part of a series of accessibility documents published by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). WAI Accessibility Guidelines are produced as part of the WAI Technical Activity. The goals of the User Agent Accessibility Guidelines Working Group are described in the charter.

A list of current W3C Recommendations and other technical documents can be found at the W3C Web site.

Table of contents

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