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Accessibility notes: Difference between revisions

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<p class="note">These are DRAFT notes on what CSS classes, PHP functions and the so on have been added to Moodle 1.6 onwards to aid accessibility. They can be seen as design patterns, techniques, guidelines, and perhaps best practice(?)
{{obsolete}}


Based on a workshop at [http://moodlemoot.ca Moodlemoot 2007, Canada]
This page has been replaced because the content was no longer applicable to the current version of Moodle.
Lots for me to add/edit! Comments welcome!
[[User:Nick Freear|Nick Freear]] 11:38, 28 August 2007 (CDT)
</p>


Current documentation can be found here:


== Issues remaining ==
[https://docs.moodle.org/dev/Accessibility "Accessibility in Moodle"]
A todo list, for Moodle 2.0?


* QuickForm fixes: review, complete.
The previous version of this document can be seen [https://docs.moodle.org/dev/index.php?title=Accessibility_notes&oldid=49247 in the history]
* Old forms: replace remaining with QuickForms.
* Course formats: replace layout tables, as per 'weekscss' [http://tracker.moodle.org/browse/MDL-9306 MDL-9306].
* Layout tables: remove remaining.
* Text editor: fix remaining issues/ replace.
* ...
* Language packs: fix XHTML, semantics.
* Automated testing?
* Documentation.
 
== Issues fixed ==
Note, some of the headline items here could be added to the release notes.
See also [[Release Notes]] | [[Old releases]] | [[Roadmap]].
 
 
=== Moodle 1.9 Beta ===
Released: 14th August 2007
 
* '''Consolidation'''
* QuickForm fixes: .
* Side block lists, MDL-6548: TODO.
* English language help files: completed MDL-9890.
 
 
=== Moodle 1.8 ===
Released: 31st March 2007
 
Following more expert evaluation, the Open University put together a comprehensive [[Moodle Accessibility Specification|Specification]] listing what needed fixing in parts of core Moodle and modules.
Moodle.com undertook what were judged to be high priority items from this list - see meta-bug [http://tracker.moodle.org/browse/MDL-7396 MDL-7396] (45 sub-tasks, 3 dependencies). Here is a summary...
 
* Forms: QuickForms adopted for many - consistent rendering: labels, fieldset/legend, tableless.
* XHTML Strict drive.
* Text editor keyboard shortcuts.
* Tabs: replaced table with list.
* ...
* Side block lists: blog tags (inline), messages, news items, section links (inline).
* English help files: MDL-9890, Help should be well-formed...
 
 
=== Moodle 1.7 ===
Released: 7th November 2006
 
* '''Consolidation'''
* Breadcrumb and left/right-arrow icons fixed: replaced with 'silent' Unicode arrow characters.
* Side block lists, MDL-6548: admin bookmarks, (mnet hosts), rss client.
 
 
=== Moodle 1.6 ===
Released: 19th June 2006
 
Accessibility proposal from Open University identified problems and some solutions. Note, due to time constraints we did not evaluate or modify modules, the content of most side blocks and so on - most changes were to core.
 
* ALT text: fixed for side-blocks, some themes, and in core.
* Standard theme & other 14 themes: removed layout table(s), &lt;h1> used to markup headings (some to do).
* Breadcrumb trail: marked up as a list, with a heading (hidden by default for visual user), and graphic for breadcrumb separator.
* Side blocks: heading marked up as &lt;h2>, added 'skip block' links (needs review).
* Side blocks: removed nested layout tables, started using list markup (activity modules, admin, course list, participants, main menu, social activities - list render in print_side_block; online users).
* Calendar: fixed data table headers, summary, abbreviations, non-visual indication of 'today', next/previous links.
* Calendar style: improved colour contrast in standard theme for event backgrounds, links, weekend colours.
* Weekscss course format: new format plug-in that does ''not'' use layout tables, based on the 'weeks' course format.
 
 
=== Moodle 1.5 ===
Released: 5th June 2005
 
== Assistive technology ==
 
Technology to enable those with disabilities to use a computer can be categorised in terms of their ''distance'' from the user.
For example:
 
* Physical layer: specialist pointing devices, mice, joy-sticks, keyboards.
* Operating system layer: Mac Voiceover, Windows Narrator ...
* System specialisation layer: technology not part of the OS that tries to work with ''all'' software tools.
** Screen magnification.
** Screen readers: JAWS, Window-Eyes, Thunder/WebbIE (speech or braille).
** Speech recognition: Dragon Naturally Speaking ...
* Software tool layer: audio browsers, plug-ins for Web browsers, word processors.
* Application layer: technology integrated in a web site, eg. Browsealoud, style sheet switching/ high-contrast, font size (bad?); ?
* Document layer: tagged PDFs, well-structured semantic PDFs, Word documents, HTML documents.
 
== What JAWS says ==
 
[[Wikipedia:Screen reader|Screen readers]] are assistive software that verbalise (via synthesised speech, braille display or both) text displayed on a computer screen from the operating system (Windows and so on) or applications (typically word processors, email software, Web browsers).
JAWS (Job Access With Speech) for Windows is a popular screen reader from [http://freedomscientific.com/ Freedom Scientific]; competitors include Window-Eyes from GW Micro and SuperNova/HAL from Dolphin.
 
Screen readers can often be configured/scripted for different levels of verbosity, different applications and so on.
However, most users concentrate on learning the keyboard shortcuts and don't know or don't have the confidence to change the configuration.
Expert evaluation therefore assumes that the default configuration is used.
 
Below are examples of what the JAWS for Windows 7 screen reader verbalises for good and bad markup (HTML).
 
=== Forms ===
 
JAWS and other screen readers have a ''forms mode'' to allow the user to input text in forms in a Web browser.
 
== Accessibility design patterns ==
 
=== Pattern 1: unlist, inline-list ===
 
Cascading style sheet (CSS) classes to remove default list-styles from HTML lists.
Class <code>inline-list</code> also makes a list horizontal (at present only in side blocks).
 
Difficulty: '''easy''' I hope. Please use!<br />
Available: ? Moodle 1.8 December 2006 (MDL-6838, nested lists are safe).<br />
Definition: <code>theme/standard/styles_layout.css</code>
.unlist, .inline-list {
  list-style: none;
  padding: 0;
  margin: 0;
}
.sideblock .content .inline-list li {
  display: inline;
}
 
Use Count: 5+ (12 including deprecated <code>list</code>)<br />
Example: <code>blocks/../block_blog_tags.php</code>
<nowiki><ul class="inline-list">
  <li><a .. class=" s20">Accessibility</a></li>
  <li><a .. class=" s10">Test</a></li>
</ul></nowiki>
 
 
=== Pattern 2: accesshide ===
 
CSS class for text to be 'seen' by screen readers but not visual users.
 
Text classed as <code>accesshide</code> provides context for a non-sighted user, where the context or meaning would only otherwise be clear from formatting ([http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/#gl-color WCAG Guideline 2, don't rely on colour alone]), for example coloured text, or a ''silent'' character (TODO: link). The example below shows how additional text is provided to differentiate ''today'' from the other days in the Moodle calendar - visual differentiation is provided in the ''standard'' theme by a black border, and the <code>accesshide</code> text is duplicated, in this case using Javascript (TODO: modify code! Javascript should use the title attribute.)
 
Please, use cautiously &mdash; most necessary uses have already been identified.
 
* Difficulty: '''tricky''' &mdash; please put the same text in an adjacent/parent <code>title</code> attribute.
* Available: Moodle 1.6 March 2006
* Bugs: 30-May-06, fixed [http://tracker.moodle.org/browse/MDL-5628 MDL-5628] for [[Wikipedia:Internet Explorer|IE 6]] Farsi [[Wikipedia:Right to left|RTL]] language.
* Definition: <code>theme/standard/styles_layout.css</code>
.accesshide {
  position: absolute;
  top: -1000px;
}
 
* Use Count: 29 !<br />
* Example: <code>calendar/lib.php</code>
<nowiki>...
<td class="day">26</td>
<td class="day today">
  <span class="accesshide">Today Friday, 27 April </span>
  <a onmouseover="return overlib(.. 'Today Friday, 27 April')" ..>27</a>
</td>
<td class="weekend day">28</td>
...</nowiki>
 
=== Pattern 3: left, right arrows ===
 
PHP variables holding 'silent' representations of right and left arrows (example ► <code>&amp;#x25BA;</code>), to avoid misuse of characters including "greater than" >, "right angle quote" ». The variables are initialised by the function weblib.php: check_theme_arrows, unless they have first been defined in the theme config.php.
 
* Difficulty: medium. Careful with fonts.<br />
* Available: Moodle 1.7
* Functions in <code>lib/weblib.php</code>
<nowiki>
function check_theme_arrows()
function link_arrow_right($text, $url='', $accesshide=false, $addclass='')
function link_arrow_left($text, $url='', $accesshide=false, $addclass='')
function get_separator()
 
$THEME->rarrow
$THEME->larrow </nowiki>
 
* Associated CSS in <code>theme/standard/styles_fonts.css</code>
.arrow, .arrow_button input {
  font-family: Arial,Helvetica,Courier,'Arial Unicode MS',sans-serif;
}
 
* Use count: ?
* Example PHP: weblib.php function print_navigation - breadcrumb trail.
* Also: Weekscss course format, Moodleforms .
 
 
 
[[Category:Accessibility]]

Latest revision as of 04:53, 24 May 2019

Warning: This page is no longer in use. The information contained on the page should NOT be seen as relevant or reliable.


This page has been replaced because the content was no longer applicable to the current version of Moodle.

Current documentation can be found here:

"Accessibility in Moodle"

The previous version of this document can be seen in the history