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Frequently Asked Questions
This page has been updated to reflect issues that may come up when using InFocus version 4.2.2 (the current release). Most of it also applies to InFocus 4.1.2. However, most content that applied only to versions prior to 4.1.2 has been purged from this FAQ page. If you have an old version, and would like to inquire about upgrading, please contact SSB BART Group Support.
Search for a topic alphabetically or by using the "Find" function in the "Edit" menu of your browser.
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How do I contact SSB BART Group technical support?
For technical support, submit a case using the online case submission form or send email to support@ssbbartgroup.com at any time, or call (415) 624-2702 from 8am to 6pm Pacific Time, Monday through Friday.
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Are SSB BART Group's tools platform independent?
Yes. SSB BART Group's tools are written in Java, so they can be run on any platform for which a Java Virtual Machine exists, including Windows 95/98, Windows 2000, Windows NT, Solaris, and Linux.
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What is SSB BART Group's refund policy?
SSB BART Group has a 30-day money back policy.
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Can SSB BART Group's tools be used in conjunction with other Web development tools?
Yes. They can be used with programs such as Adobe® GoLive® as well as FrontPage and DreamWeaver.
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How will SSB BART Group's products integrate into my development process?
SSB BART Group's tools are designed for various stages in your development process, including design, development, the testing/QA process, as well as ongoing compliance monitoring. InFocus™ is useful at the development level because it detects and instructs developers on accessibility violations, and offers automated solutions or details on how to fix violations themselves. InFocus™ can then be incorporated into your QA process to determine violations in outgoing pages and ensure that development is done in an accessible manner. InFocus™ can be used to perform automated compliance monitoring.
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Can SSB BART Group's tools retrofit dynamically generated sites?
Yes. Any html markup embedded within a page (i.e. within a JSP, ASP, PHP, etc. page) can be parsed and diagnosed by InFocus™. By generating reports, developers will learn from common violations occurring within pages, and pick-up methodologies for making their web applications/websites 508 compliant.
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Can SSB BART Group's tools make Flash accessible?
Yes. Flash should be inserted into a web page using OBJECT elements. This will allow SSB BART Group tools to detect and add a text equivalent for the Flash presentation. Authors should note that this will insert the Flash file in the page in an accessible manner, but not make the file itself accessible.
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Will SSB BART Group make my site compliant with Section 508?
Proper use of the SSB BART Group tools can make your site compliant with Section 508. SSB BART Group software solutions enable you to become compliant with the Section 508 guidelines by diagnosing violations of the guidelines and proposing fixes to those violations. SSB BART Group services will help you to properly use SSB BART Group's tools to achieve complete compliance with Section 508.
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Is there any effect on security or e-commerce?
No. The changes that are made affect the internal syntax and structure of the site and will not have any effect on your security or e-commerce privacy.
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How will making my site accessible affect people who use conventional Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape Browsers?
Making your web site accessible has no negative effect on the user experience for people using Microsoft or Netscape browsing software. Indeed, there can be a number of benefits. The same techniques used to offer client side content negotiation for a Braille reader can be adapted for delivery of foreign language or other client side needs. Generally, the changes to a web site are invisible to most users, consisting of changes in coding that do not have an impact on the user interface.
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What are the system requirements for InFocus?
- Windows
- Intel Pentium III processor or equivalent, 450+ MHz
- Microsoft Windows 95, 98, ME, NT (4.0x), 2000, XP
- 256 MB installed RAM, 128 MB of available RAM
- 45 MB of available hard disk
- Monitor capable of 800 x 600 resolution
- Mouse or compatible pointing device
- Full functionality requires Internet access
- Macintosh (applies to current users of InFocus 4.0.x)
- Power Macintosh
- Mac OS X, 9.x, 8.x
- 128 MB of available RAM
- 15 MB of available hard disk
- Color monitor capable of 800 x 600 resolution
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What are the differences between InSight LE™ and the full versions of SSB BART Group products?
InSight LE™ is a tool offered only to Adobe® GoLive® users. It will diagnose single pages of HTML for compliance with Section 508 guidelines. Like all SSB BART Group products, InSight LE™ contains just-in-time learning functionality that teaches the user about Section 508, what certain violations mean, and how fixing the violation will help users with disabilities. InSight LE™ does not contain the web crawling, reporting functionality, or configuration capabilities contained in InFocus™. InSight LE™ also does not contain the automatic fixing capabilities of InFocus™. Adobe® GoLive® users who upgrade to full versions of InFocus™ receive significant discounts.
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How can I use InSight LE™ with Adobe® GoLive® to make my web pages Section 508 compliant?
First, consult the tutorial on the Adobe® and SSB BART Group web sites. You may also want to look at the help documentation that comes embedded in the tools. Mac OS X users will have to open their browsers and type in the URL that comes up when choosing the "Help" button in the tool. In general, open Adobe® GoLive® as you normally would and open a web page. When the page is completed, open InSight LE™ to see if there are any violations. InSight LE™ will show you what in your code needs to be changed and specifically where the violation is. Use the Adobe® GoLive® editor to make those changes. The full version of SSB BART Group InFocus™ will also work with Adobe® GoLive® to ensure Section 508 compliance.
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InSight LE™ won't install on my machine? How can I get it to work?
InSight LE™ will not install unless you have Adobe® GoLive® installed on your machine. You can buy Adobe® GoLive® in Adobe's online store. The full versions of SSB BART Group InFocus™ will work with a variety of authoring tools.
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How can I launch InFocus™ through GoLive®?
Open up GoLive®. Then go to 'Edit,' 'Preferences'. Inside 'Preferences' click onto the 'Browsers' icon in the left hand pane of the window. In the lower left hand side of the window, click onto the 'Add' button. Then search for InFocus.exe (by default it is, C:/Program Files/InFocus/InFocus.exe). Then while you are working in GoLive®, open the file you want to make 508 compliant, and select 'Special,' 'Show in Browser' and select InFocus.exe. InFocus will then be launched and access the open page.
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How can I launch InFocus™ as an external editor through FrontPage®?
Open up FrontPage®. Then go to 'Tools,' 'Options,' 'Configure Editor' and add an editor, by selecting InFocus.exe as the editing program, and setting the default extension to 'foo.' Then when a page is opened, you can right click on the page and have the option to edit it with InFocus™.
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Are SSB BART Group software tools accessible?
Yes. SSB BART Group produces software tools that are accessible to people with disabilities and surpass the requirements for software applications laid out by Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. Accessibility represents a very important company-wide policy to which we are completely committed. Our software is based on the Java 2 platform, and is written entirely using Swing, the Sun JFC classes. These classes all implement the Java Accessibility API, making the objects accessible to assistive technologies. InFocus™ Server features a robust server-side architecture, and uses standard browsers as clients.
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Are there other issues related to the accessibility of SSB BART Group software tools?
Yes. There are two points of confusion regarding the accessibility of our tools. The first is the fact that only a limited set of assistive technologies currently support Java. In fact, Jaws 3.7 is the only mass-market screen reader that supports the Java Accessibility API. Furthermore, getting Jaws to effectively work is a multi-step process. There are several reasons for this. Specifically:
- The currently shipping Java Virtual Machines (JVMs) do not include the native code accessibility bridge
- The current JDK does not ship with the accessibility utilities
- The accessibility API is only supported as of the Java 1.2.2 release
The current standard version of Java (the JVM) does not work out-of-the-box with assistive technologies. Sun has, however, demonstrated a strong commitment to accessibility, by creating the Java Accessibility Bridge, so it is likely that future releases will address this issue. All of SSB BART Group's tools ship with a copy of both the Java Virtual Machine and the Java Accessibility Bridge. SSB BART Group does all of the configuring when you install our application, the only thing that the user should have to do is install JAWS at http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_downloads/index.asp. The second point of confusion relates to the fact that our tools will fundamentally be of more limited use to non-visual users. The process of retrofitting a web site to make it accessible to users with disabilities involves certain steps that cannot be implemented by people with certain impairments. As an example, consider adding alt attributes to images that lack them. In order to provide a meaningful textual replacement for the image, the ability to see the image is essential. This creates a Catch-22 situation where a blind user would require a textual description to enter the missing textual description. Therefore, the tool's very purpose limits its full accessibility.
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What happens if a site uses cookies to identify a session?
New releases of InFocus offer cookie support. If you are using an older version and have not upgraded, you can work around this by saving the web pages to your hard drive and running a "local directory" report on this "mirror" site. You can do this with a spider that supports cookies or by saving pages from Internet Explorer. You may also be able to turn off the cookies and run the tools.
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How do I get my application to work on Unix/Linux?
Your system administrator must create a script that executes the programs from the base install directory. The script will look something like this:
- #/bin/bash
- cd <INSTALL>
- ./executable
All users should use this script to execute the program. After that, the system administrator will need to execute the following set of commands:
- cd <install dir>
- touch filechos.dat
- chmod 666 filechos.dat
- touch history.dat
- touch size.xml
- touch checkerdata.xml
- chmod 666 history.dat
- chmod 666 proxy.xml
- chmod 666 fixerdata.xml
- chmod 666 fontdata.xml
- chmod 666 size.xml
- chmod 666 checkerdata.xml
That should set up the file permissions appropriately. It will also allow you to have directory selection persist.
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Can the products assess server-side coding, such as ASP and Cold Fusion?
Any large website is likely to incorporate many pages that utilize scripting. Examples of such technologies are PHP pages, Microsoft Active Server Pages (ASPs) and Cold Fusion's publishing platform. These pages contain a mixture of proprietary language and HTML. To retrofit a dynamic page, SSB BART Group utilizes InFocus™ to diagnose the HTML output of the page. Using this output and SSB BART Group development processes, accessibility issues can be quickly gauged, and a checklist for retrofitting the dynamic page can be developed. In this way, current dynamic pages on a site can be brought into compliance with accessibility standards.
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Why won't my Cold Fusion pages be diagnosed when I'm spidering?
In versions of InFocus™ prior to 4.2.2, the Cold Fusion file extensions 'cfm' and 'cfml' were not in the default list of extensions included in the spider configuration. To add the Cold Fusion file extension to the spider configuration of earlier versions of InFocus, open up the 'Web Spider Configuration' dialog by selecting the Spider button. Then select the 'Advanced' tab. In the 'Add new filetype' field, type in 'cfm' (without the apostrophes) and then select the 'Add' button. (This would need to be done for each new spider you create, but subsequent runs of that spider would retain the added filetype.)
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What are the issues with Applets and accessibility?
Java applets are, on the whole, difficult to make accessible. The primary problem is that the Java Virtual Machine used to render applets is specific to the browser. Internet Explorer uses the proprietary Microsoft JVM; Netscape uses the Netscape JVM. Theoretically these could be configured to use a particular JRE. Even if you fully implement the Java accessibility API, having it be accessible is something that must be addressed on the client side.
In the case of installable software, it is much easier to control the JRE, because you can install your own with the application. When we distribute InFocus™, we bundle a particular version of Java, customized for accessibility. With applets, you have to use the runtime environment of the browser. If you are interested in producing applets that are accessible, you can offer a downloadable version of the applet, with a JVM configured for accessibility. Another option is looking into a way to customize Microsoft and Netscape's JVMs into accessible versions.
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How do I edit InFocus' configuration files?
All versions of InFocus since v. 3.0 provide an interface for easily editing the configuration of various settings. There are dialogs for specifying which accessibility tests to perform, for setting preferences and tolerances for the checkers, for using a proxy server, etc.
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Why does the need for the OPTGROUP tag show up as a violation?
OPTGROUP is a forward-looking feature in the HTML specification. It allows developers to divide drop-down lists into parts with appropriate descriptions. A list of significant length (like cities in the United States) would be unusable by someone with assistive technology. Currently there is limited implementation in assistive technologies for this tag.
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Why do I get "no default option in opt group"?
You cannot choose a default when the items in your drop down menu are dynamically created--using java script to determine what items are going to be in your drop down menu.
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How do I diagnose a framed page?
When diagnosing framed pages, one must realize that a framed page actually represents more than one URL. In this explanation, we will use the example of a page with two frames: one for a navigation bar on the left side of the page and a second for the main content panel. For this page, there are three unique URLs, each of which will have to be diagnosed and fixed separately. (In newer versions of InFocus, diagnosing the Frameset URL will prompt you for permission to also diagnose the frame pages; when spidering, this will happen automatically.) The frame URL will contain the HTML that creates the frame structure. This is the URL you would enter into a browser to access the page. The URLs that correspond to the navigation bar and content page can be found within the HTML of this page.
- Base URL - www.yourcompany.com
- Frameset URL - www.yourcompany.com/index.htm
- Navbar - www.yourcompany.com/navbar.htm
- Content - www.yourcompany.com/content.htm
You can access the HTML of the main URL through InFocus™. When you enter the URL into the page, the HTML will appear in the Main Window. In the code, you will see lines of code that look similar to this:
- <FRAME name="Frame_1" src="navbar.htm" title="left
navigation bar">
- <FRAME name="Frame_2" src="content.htm" title="Main
content page">
The source of each FRAME tag indicates a separate page that you will need to diagnose and fix. The full URL is the base URL followed by "/" and the "src" attributed indicated.
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How does the Link Group fixer work?
The Link Group Fixer inserts a single-pixel clear image anchor into the page before and after the group of links that the user wants to be able to bypass. The user is prompted to add a title to the group of links so that users of assistive technologies will know whether or not they wish to skip the group of links. The image that is inserted is defined by the configuration file. Under the Images tab, there is a line that identifies the default blank image. It is set by default to an image from the SSB BART Group web site. Change this to one supported by your web server so that all your content will come from the same location.
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What is Link Group fixer's impact on the visual layout of a page?
Link Group Fixer checks for groups of links in a page, and then examines the first and last links in the group. If the first link in the group targets the last link, the group is not flagged as a violation. In all other instances it is flagged as a violation. To fix this problem, the Link Group Fixer inserts a single pixel image into the web page before and after the link group. This basically-invisible image enables the user of assistive technology to skip past the link group. The insertion of the single pixel image rarely has an impact on the visual layout of the page. In the case of table usage, particularly tables with exact pixel sizing, there is no room for movement in the page. In this instance even a 1x1 image can impact the layout of the page. If this is the case, simply move the image and enclosing link outside of the table. The link can be moved anywhere reasonably close to the end or beginning of the link group. The one constraint is that the image should not be separated from the first or last link in the group by any significant amount of text. Given this constraint, the Link Group Fixer will accept the modified fix as valid.
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Why doesn't Link Group fixer diagnose a set of links?
There are two primary reasons the link group fixer might not diagnose a set of links. Users can easily address both issues: In InFocus 4.2.x, select Test Settings from the Configuration menu, then select the Link Groups tab; in InFocus 4.1.x, select Configuration from the Configuration menu, then select the HTML Text tab.
The first issue is the number of links within the group. By default, InFocus™ will ignore any set of links that has less than 5 links. If you want to diagnose smaller sets, you can enter a different value for the number of links that should be considered part of a link group.
The second issue is the amount of text between links that will be ignored. When diagnosing sets of links, InFocus™ will consider a link group "broken" when there is a certain amount of text between the links. The default setting is 20 characters. If you wish to raise the number of characters permitted between each link, go to configuration editor and adjust the values located under the HTML text tab.
For further information, please consult the InFocus online help (press F1 or select the Help button in when the configuration dialog is open).
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Does InFocus™ check for meaningless alt attributes?
InFocus™ not only checks for missing alt attributes, it also checks for "meaningless" or "vague" alt attributes. The tool has a database of alt attributes that are flagged as "vague" and include common descriptions such as "image", "picture", "click here" and "go". The end user can easily configure this file to incorporate common alt attributes specific to their organization. In InFocus™, the user should select Edit -Configuration from the menu bar. Under the Images tab, the user should scroll to the section labeled MEANINGLESS_ALTS. This window will display the names currently set to trigger this check and includes a place to enter new values. Users should enter the new values and select "Apply" to save them for the current session, or "Save" to set them as new defaults.
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Why will InFocus' NoScript Fixer occasionally get stuck in a loop?
This generally means that the alternative script text entered was not long enough. If you would like to change the minimum allowable length for a NOSCRIPT element you will need to edit the configuration file by using selecting "Edit-Configuration". If this fails to solve your problem the easiest solution will be to "Ignore" the violation and fix the issue by hand.
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When I select Grayscale preview, why does the page appear in full color?
This could occur for a few reasons:
- Javascript elements will render in color.
- Netscape cannot interpret the grayscale script used by InFocus.
- Version 6.x of Microsoft Internet Explorer does not support grayscale rendering in the same way that it did in previous versions.
SSB BART Group is investigating alternatives for grayscale rendering in future patches.
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Why is accessing the software slow when I am on a PC using Telnet?
The speed of the programs on the underlying UNIX system is related to the processing power of the computer, the amount of memory and the load-sharing. You can check with your system administrator to see what the load looks like. If the system is running at 99% during the entire time you are using InFocus™, the performance speed is probably due to the hardware constraints. More likely, though, the problem is with your X-Server speed and transmission rates between you and the server. Java often does not run very quickly over some X-Servers for windows. You can improve this in several ways.
- Upping the speed of the network. If you can improve the speed with which you receive data from the server you should see an increase in the application speed.
- Try using different Windows XServers to feel out which is the fastest.
- Turning off the secondary windows (like the violation pane) while you are fixing.
- Working on a native UNIX (Linux) machine running XFree86 versus a Windows XServer
- Working on the root (native) terminal of the machine
- Running the application at low usage times on the machine
All of these should help speed up the interaction with the program. The predominant factor is the speed with which your windows XServer communicates with the server.
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When I try to save a file, it won't let me, even if the file is under my permission. I think it is trying to save to the bin directory we have the code in so when I close it, the tool asks if I want to save, and I have to go through the directory structure again to finally get to the path I want. Is there any way around this?
Have your system administrator do the following:
- cd <InFocus directory>
- touch filechos.dat
- chmod 666 filechos.dat
- touch history.dat
- chmod 666 history.dat
- chmod 666 proxy.xml
- chmod 666 fixerdata.xml
- chmod 666 fontdata.xml
That should setup the file permissions appropriately. This will then allow you to have directory selection persist and the drop down store data appropriately.
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How can I get the spider to run most effectively?
SSB BART Group's spider can generally diagnose about one page per second. The main constraint for the spider is the number of pages you are scanning and have already scanned. Depending on your hardware platform, spiders of more than 1000 pages require significant memory and may begin to behave erratically. For best results, keep the number of pages in your history to a minimum, increasing the size of your Java Heap, and going to the 'Advanced' tab inside the 'Web Spider Configuration' pop-up window, and moving the pointer all the way towards 'Faster and more Memory Intensive'.
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How can I improve the performance and stability of the application?
You can improve the performance of the application by increasing the maximum Java heap size from 50 megs to 100 megs (or higher). This will permit higher memory usage for spidering and other operations. Regardless of the version of InFocus you have, the procedure is the same: use a text editor to change a value in the file named 'InFocus.lax', which can be found in the directory where InFocus is installed.
There will be a line in the InFocus.lax file that looks like this, and represents about 50 Mb of memory:
*************
# LAX.NL.JAVA.OPTION.JAVA.HEAP.SIZE.MAX
# -------------------------------------
lax.nl.java.option.java.heap.size.max=50331648
*************
Change the first two digits in that value ('50') to '75', '100', or other desired value (in Mb), so that after editing, it looks like:
*************
# LAX.NL.JAVA.OPTION.JAVA.HEAP.SIZE.MAX
# -------------------------------------
lax.nl.java.option.java.heap.size.max=75331648
*************
The example above would increase the available memory from the default value of 50 Mb to a new value of 75 Mb, which will increase the stability of the application. The actual value you choose will depend on how much memory your computer has, how many applications you keep open at the same time, etc.
NOTE: Earlier versions of InFocus had a lower default value for heap size, usually 32000000, but the process is the same.
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How do I clear pages out of my History folder?
The History folder stores web pages that InFocus™ has diagnosed, including web sites or directories that have been spidered. These pages will remain loaded in the program until they are removed.
To remove a single page, select that page and either:
(a) right-click with your mouse and select "Delete Page" or
(b) go to the Edit menu and select the "Delete Page" option
To clear all pages within your History folder, either:
(a) right-click in the History folder and select the "Clear History" option or
(b) go to the Edit menu and select the "Clear History" option or
(c) go to the File menu and select the "Quit" option Note: Removing pages that you are no longer working on will allow your application to run at maximal efficiency.
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The software sometimes hangs or crashes. Why?
SSB BART Group's tools are Java applications, and like most Java applications their performance is somewhat sensitive to available memory. For best results, keep the number of concurrent open applications to a minimum and follow SSB BART Group's recommended minimum hardware requirements. If the application continues to hang up, than go into the SSB BART Group InFocus™ folder and delete the .om directory.
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Why do I get "No HTML Document at [URL]" or "Host Not Found [Host Name]" every time I try to diagnose a page with InFocus?
This would indicate that your organization uses a Proxy Server to connect to websites outside its firewall, but InFocus has not yet been configured to use it. Please see the FAQ topic below about Proxy Server configuration.
However, if the URL you entered is actually on an internal web server, not outside the firewall, there is a possibility that the software is having problems resolving the domain name of the host. If possible, replace the hostname portion of the URL with the corresponding IP address, as the URL you ask InFocus to test. For example, instead of 'http://devtest123/products', use 'http://192.101.0.57/products'. (Use the ping command to identify the IP address.) Depending on the results, this may be either a workaround or a useful fact to help SSB BART Group Support troubleshoot the problem when you contact us.
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How can I get the software to work with my firewall / proxy server?
If you are behind a firewall, you need to use a proxy server to access web pages hosted outside of the firewall. A proxy server acts as an intermediary between your computer and the Internet to get around a firewall. Before InFocus can access and diagnose external web pages, you need to configure it to use your proxy server, just as the browser(s) on your computer are probably already configured to do.
To verify your Proxy server settings (assumes Windows 2000):
- From the Start Menu, select Settings, then Control Panel.
- Open the control panel "Internet Options".
- Click on the "Connections" tab, then click the "LAN settings" button.
- If "Use a Proxy Server" is checked, copy the name and port of the Proxy server. You should then cancel out of these control panel dialogs--do not make changes here.
To configure InFocus to use your Proxy Server:
- From InFocus' Configuration menu, select "HTTP Proxy Configuration"
- Check the "Use Proxy Server" checkbox, and enter your proxy server address and port into the proper fields
NOTE: do not enter 'http://' at the beginning of the proxy server address.
- Select OK to save and close the dialog
InFocus should now be able to access external websites & pages.
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Which items included within the accessibility guidelines are required?
All violations found by the programs need to be corrected to ensure that a page complies with Section 508 accessibility requirements.
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What is meant by "government-facing" websites?
"Government-facing" web sections include those that are accessible by Federal Government employees on a regular basis.
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Are any accessibility requirements not able to be tested by assistive technologies?
Yes. Some of the Section 508 guidelines are not supported in any assistive technologies. Thus, some checks and fixes preformed by InFocus™ will not be supported by assistive technologies. This is due to the fact that the Section 508 guidelines are forward looking and driven by partially adopted standards. In the future, assistive technologies will support all the Section 508 requirements. In the meantime, certain fixes applied by InFocus™ will be correct relative to the Section 508 guidelines but may not render properly in current versions of assistive technologies. SSB BART Group is working with the Access Board and assistive technology vendors to eliminate this problem.
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What is InFocus™?
InFocus™ is a tool developed by SSB BART Group to assist in migrating web pages to compliance with the new accessibility standards. InFocus™ will help you automatically create a modified version of any HTML page you open with it.
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Where can I get access to JAWS?
There is currently a test version of Jaws available for free download. It will function for 40 minutes every time you reboot your computer. To download a demo of Jaws, go to http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_downloads/index.asp and follow the links to Jaws. Otherwise, please contact your business representative in order to obtain a copy of the tool.
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When I use Jaws to test my pages, it often reads part of a URL in an attempt to read the arrows on my links, even though I have made all the ALT tags on the arrows null. (ALT="") Is this a problem with Jaws, or with my code?
In its default configuration, Jaws will attempt to read everything in the page, regardless of whether the ALT tag is null. This is not consistent with W3C standards. To configure Jaws to read pages in conformance with W3C standards, press INS-V while running Jaws. It brings up an on-the-fly configuration dialog. If you select "graphical links" from the list, and press the execute button, you can step through the options until it says "labeled graphics only", then close the dialog. After that, linked images with null ALT tags will be skipped over, as intended.
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I installed Jaws, but it won't read portions of SSB BART Group InFocus™?
InFocus™ is written using Java's Swing classes. Those classes indirectly interface with Java's Accessibility Bridge so that Jaws can render the application. There have been some reported problems with Jaws rendering portions of our GUI on platforms such as Windows 2000/ME. Unfortunately, we are dependant on SUN for consistent functionality between platforms(OS).
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Could you recommend a popular text based browser?
Edit Plus - http://www.editplus.com
Lynx - http://lynx.browser.org
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Should the alt tags for content arrows be removed? Intuitively, it seems that if one cannot see, the redundancy would make for a bigger target, which would be beneficial.
Yes, all alt tags should be removed from link arrows.
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A text equivalent for every non-text element shall be provided e.g., via " Alternative Text Attribute (ALT), Long Description Tag (Londesc)", or in the element content. Does it need to be detailed or can it be generic references?
The alternative text needs to be detailed and effectively describe the function of the element on the page. For example an image that is a link to SSB BART Group's Homepage could simply be title "SSB BART Group Home". Whereas an image that shows a family working at a computer but has no link would say "A family of four working on their home computer". The key here is that the image / element text should effectively serve as an alternative to the function on the page, not just appearance.
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When web pages utilize scripting languages to display content, or to create interface elements, the information provided by the script shall be identified with functional text that can be read by assistive technology. It is unclear how assistive technology would handle alert boxes and pop-up windows; at a minimum the "on select" functions like our product navigation would need a "Go" button; we use JavaScript extensively on the site so this may be significant
The rule from section 508 is that JavaScript content needs to be readable by assistive technology. This means that testing will be necessary in the event that JavaScript is used to put content on the page. With respect to pop-ups and dialogs these are accessible because they use standard MFC components. The trouble comes if one builds custom pop-up components. The second JavaScript flashpoint comes when using A or SPAN elements with custom event handlers or JavaScript targeted links. In this case liberal us of the title attribute is recommended to describe the functionality of the element. For more information, consult the dynamic HTML accessibility API's, available from Microsoft and Netscape.
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Electronic forms shall allow people using assistive technology to access all functionality required for the completion and submissions of forms, including all directions and cues.
It is unclear what adaptations assistive technology would require for forms; we use forms in numerous places on the site so this could be significant. Currently the SSB BART Group tools implement the form requirements for access to electronic forms. Specific areas to focus on are: usage of explicitly associated label elements, proper division of large forms (FIELDSET and LEGEND), and proper titling of form relevant JavaScript elements (e.g. <A href="javascript:postForm()" title="This will post the data to the server">Submit</A>) that take the place of standard form elements (e.g. Submit).
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A method shall be provided that permits users to skip repetitive navigation links. How do the new templates address this?
The navbar referenced would be considered repetitive navigation links and should have a means (inner-document links) for skipping past it. For example, one way to insert a set of inner-document links the first link will be a 1x1 pixel blank image. The text of this link (the "alt" attribute of the image) will be the name of the group of links. This insertion will allow users of assistive technologies to skip past the groups of links. The link before the first link will look like:
- <A href="#Top nav bar"> <IMG src="shim.gif" alt="Skip Top nav bar link group" border="0"> </A>
- First Link ... Last Link
- <A name="Top nav bar"> <IMG src="shim.gif" alt="End of Top nav bar link group" border="0"> </A>
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It appears that "TBODY" is in IE 3.x, but it is not included in Netscape until version 6. I would like to support 3.x of both. Is this ok?
If a browser does not support "TBODY", it will be ignored. Thus, this is fine. A lot of these techniques are forward-looking.
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It does not always make sense to have a pre-selected item within every drop-down list. Is this an absolute requirement?
At the least, include an item that says, "select one" and make it the default. Section 508 does require a default selection on every drop-down; this is definitely an absolute requirement.
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Will tabindex be required?
No, tabindex is not required for Section 508.
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How are we supposed to deal with event handlers in JavaScript (e.g. onmouseover and onmouseout)?
For the elements that have the event handlers associated with them, will be flagged as violations. To fix these violations, a title describing the functionality must be included.
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What browsers should I use to test accessibility, and where can I get them?
We recommend the use of IBM Home Page Reader (IBM: http://www-3.ibm.com/able/), Jaws (Freedom Scientific: http://www.hj.com/), or Window-Eyes(GW Micro: http://www.gwmicro.com/demo/) for accessibility testing. All three are available in demo form and it doesn't hurt to familiarize yourself with all three for the sake of familiarity with accessibility environments. It is also very desirable to install a copy of the Lynx browser (http://lynx.isc.org/release/) to test out a visual text-only environment with your pages. This is helpful to diagnose table linearization and also to test link-group skipping.
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Is there a grayscale browser that I can use to test my pages?
The InFocus™ accessibility diagnosis tool provides a preview mode that creates a grayscale version of any page. We are not aware of any grayscale browsers at this time, other than those provided on wireless PDAs. If you do not have a copy of InFocus™, you can create your own grayscale version of any page by inserting the following code right below the <BODY> tag in the document, and viewing the page in Internet Explorer 4.x or 5.x:
<SCRIPT>
//
http://msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/author/filter/reference/
filters/gray.asp document.body.style.filter="Gray";
</SCRIPT>
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The grayscale preview feature does not seem to be working properly, what's wrong?
Grayscale is a feature of Internet Explorer 4.x and 5.x. It is not supported by other browsers including IE 6. We have included a "Grayscale Preview" as a convenience feature to our customers, but this will only work if you are using Internet Explorer, version 4.x or 5.x.
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How do we handle PDF Files for Section 508 Compliance?
a. Adobe® PDF files created by Adobe® Acrobat® 4.X or earlier version, should be converted to an Adobe® Acrobat® 5.0 version that has some accessibility features with the new Acrobat 5.0 Make Accessible Plug-in http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/88de.htm.
b. All information should be published in an Alternative accessible HTML format. You can provide a PDF file in addition to the accessible HTML version for printability. NOTE: For PDF files created with Adobe® Acrobat® 5.0, older version of Acrobat Readers® will not be able to read the content if:
- Adobe® PDF is secured with the new 128-bit encryption; users WILL require Adobe® Acrobat Reader® 5.0 to open the files.
- PDF files are created by Adobe® Illustrator® 9.0 or Photoshop 6.0 software and contain transparency; users WILL require Adobe® Acrobat Reader® 5.0 to view and print correctly.
So make sure that if your intended audience is using Acrobat Reader® ver.4.X, they will not be able to View or Print the information properly, unless they download Adobe® Acrobat Reader® 5.0 Limitations/Known Issues
- Font Encoding: The MakeAccessible Plug-In maps fonts used in the document to a Unicode value. In some cases, a font encoding used within a PDF document does not contain enough information for the MakeAccessible Plug-In to map to a Unicode equivalent.
- Table Recognition: The MakeAccessible Plug-In supports simple table recognition. A simple table would be a table that includes a single line rule around each cell of the table. Tables that do not include complete rules may not be recognized as table content.
- Complex Graphic Recognition: Documents that contain complex graphics (especially vector based graphics) could take a long time to process.
- Complex Regions: Documents such as magazines, marketing collateral, and newspapers contain complex layout. In some instances, the MakeAccessible Plug-In will not be able to ascertain the appropriate logical read order of a complex layout.
- Layer Order: Layers of objects within a complex PDF may be rearranged in a different stacking order, resulting in a tagged Adobe® PDF that does not look identical to the original PDF.
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Converting PDF files to word.doc could cause problems if the end user has an older version of Word. Would HTML be a better solution?
Yes. HTML is the lowest common denominator for compliant content. Be sure, however, that the HTML markup is compliant with the regulations outlined herein. To do this, simply use the SSB BART Group tools.
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How do we make Flash and Shockwave files Section 508 Compliant?
Macromedia has a complete set of techniques that can be deployed to meet accessibility for Flash.
http://www.macromedia.com/software/flash/productinfo/
accessibility/flash_techniques
And for Shockwave visit the following link:
http://www.macromedia.com/macromedia/accessibility/features/
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Do we need to add <NOSCRIPT> tags for all instances of JavaScript in our code, regardless of its function? Can you please further explain this topic?
When in doubt, add a <NOSCRIPT> tag to every <SCRIPT> tag. However, if you are concerned about the way the pages look with scripts disabled you can use your judgment and only provide them where it makes sense, as we have done in the templates. We have one or two <SCRIPT> tags in the <HEAD> part of our documents that contain the globally-used JavaScript functions like image rollover, browser sniffing and style sheet selection. There should be a <NOSCRIPT> tag at the beginning of the document that links to the global page where these functions will be described. If you use a dropdown navigation menu on the page, you should add a comment that indicates this. Add <NOSCRIPT> tags anywhere else in the document that you are using JavaScript to create content on the page, or where you have a <SCRIPT> tag that does something not already described by another <NOSCRIPT> tag. If you are implementing common login using JavaScript, for example, you need to fill in the <NOSCRIPT> tag where the common login area appears. The idea is to try to make it clear what is going on in the page to someone who encounters the scripting in an environment that doesn't support it. You can also use table summaries or title attributes in various tags to identify the areas where scripted actions occur. We use this technique to point out the area where dropdown navigation menus are located.
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Where can I find a complete list of Keyboard Shortcuts?
A complete list of keyboard shortcuts can be found under the 'Help' menu inside InFocus™ (Ctrl+K).
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How can I activate functionality if the keyboard shortcuts are not working?
If a keyboard shortcut you are using does not activate the desired functionality within InFocus™, you can still activate the feature by selecting the option from the appropriate drop-down menu. For example, if pressing F6 will not open your Linearized preview, then go to the Reporting menu bar, and select the "Linearized" option.
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Why can't I 'Open' or 'Save As' into other network drives?
The drive must be either mapped or mounted locally. You map a drive in Windows by going into Windows Explorer and do either a 'right click' on the drive you want to map, or using the 'tools' drop down menu.
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Why do I get plug-in violations when there is a link to the needed plug-in already on the page?
One possibility is that the URL for your plug-in link is not in the list of plug-in URLs that InFocus' checker looks for and that its fixer offers to insert. If you know that your URL is valid, you can ignore that violation.
For older versions of InFocus, you can eliminate these reported violations by adding a link to your plug-in at the first occurrence of the violation, and then adding that fix to your 'Autofix'.
NOTE: While every page with such violations must have the plug-in links, there need be only one such link for the whole page for that plug-in, regardless of how many there are on that page.
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Why don't some of my pages have any violations under them after I expand them?
If you expand a page that doesn't have any violations under it, it may well indicate that the page is 508 compliant; if so, congratulations!
However, it may indicate other conditions. For instance, the specific accessibility tests that you have 'active' may not be found on that page. Confirm that the list of active tests (checkers) is as complete and deep as they should be for your organization's accessibility goals. Another possibility is that the targeted page was not actually reached or tested by InFocus, such as if it requires an authenticated login to access. In that case, the web server may have given InFocus a very simple page, for 'enter login' or 'access denied', whose simplicity does not result in any accessibility violations reported against it.
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I have the 'View All Highlights' feature turned on, but not all of my violations are highlighted.
'View All Highlights' will only highlight one 'type' of violation in a page, not all of the violations in a page.
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I only have "User" level permissions on my computer. When I try to launch InFocus, it simply fails to appear, no error message appears.
As with any application, InFocus should have been installed by a user that has Administrator-level permissions on the computer. However, if you, the end-user, only have User-level permissions, InFocus may not be able to create its own data files. Ask an Administrator to ensure that you have write-permission to these two directories: the InFocus program directory (where it is installed), and your user-temp directory (where InFocus creates temporary report files). Once you have these permissions, InFocus should launch successfully.
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When I invoke the application it freezes up one me and I get an error window--I get a JavaOutOfMemoryError.
Open up Windows Explorer and go into the InFocus directory (i.e. C:\Program Files\InFocus\). Delete the .om folder in the InFocus folder. The .om folder contains the history of the application, and is dynamically created when the application is invoked. Once the .om folder is deleted, re-invoke the application. It should prompt you for your serial number and product key. If you did not retain this information, please email support@ssbbartgroup.com.
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Sometimes I get a 'Runtime Error' or a 'javaw.exe' when I try to invoke the application, or while I am running the application.
Open up Windows Explorer and go into the InFocus directory (i.e. C:\Program Files\InFocus\). Delete the .om folder in the InFocus folder. The .om folder contains the history of the application, and is dynamically created when the application is invoked. Once the .om folder is deleted, re-invoke the application. It should prompt you for your serial number and product key. If you did not retain this information, please email support@ssbbartgroup.com. If the problem persists, re-install the application by downloading the latest version at <a href="http://www.ssbbartgroup.com/release">
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I entered the Serial Number and Product Key more than once. Now InFocus will not launch at all. How can I fix this?
The dialog that appears the first time you launch InFocus is small, and may not come to the front of your other windows. It is possible to have thought that InFocus did not launch, and launch it again, and end up entering the license information twice. If this happens, the program will be confused by these duplicate licenses, and will fail to launch. To solve this problem, go into the directory where InFocus is installed, and open the sub-directory named ".om". Look for a directory named "props_license", and delete it. Then re-launch InFocus, enter your license information once to fix it.
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When I try to access a page using SSL, I get an error message that says, "User Not Authenticated".
Java does all of our SSL handshaking. During this process, the root certificate from the server you are trying to request information from is matched to a list of root certificates supplied to us by Java. These certificates are all of the root certificates Java considers to be from trusted sources. If the certificate that the server is trying to send you is not matched in this list, it will not be considered a trusted source and the SSL handshake will not complete. Therefore, the peer cannot be authenticated. This problem is cleared in InFocus™ 4.1
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How can I spider past a Javascript login page?
InFocus does not support spidering pages that require many forms of authenticated login. InFocus version 4.2.2 does support authentication of the HTTP Basic or Digest type, but no version of InFocus supports login via a web form or most other forms of login. To diagnose such pages, use your browser to login and access the page, save the page source to a local file, then diagnose the local file from InFocus.
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When I try and diagnose my page, I get the following error message, "Unable to Construct Page".
Select 'HTML Correction Preferences' from the Configuration menu. Check off 'Fix Invalid HTML' and then re-diagnose the page.
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Are OnChange events accessible?
OnChange events are not very accessible. When a person using assistive technology tabs onto the drop down menu, they are taken to the first item in the drop down menu list. This is cumbersome for assistive technology users and better practices would be to either place a submit button for the drop-down menu/OnBlur event.
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Does InFocus Support Row Groups?
InFocus currently does not support TBODY, THEAD or TFOOT elements or the rowgroup or colgroup values for the scope attribute. Future versions of InFocus will support these tags. In current versions of InFocus table cells associated with table headers with the scope attribute of rowgroup or colgroup may result in improper diagnosis. This will generally be a false positive, or a table cell that is diagnosed as a violation when in fact it is not.
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Can I launch InFocus using a right-click?
An instance of InFocus may be launched by right-clicking onto a file and selecting the "Verify Section 508 Compliance" option. This option is automatically added when you install InFocus on the Windows Operating System.
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Why does InFocus claim that irrelevant HTML elements or attributes are in violation?
This is a misperception that appears in two cases. First, in the "Violating Elements" section of "page detail" reports, and second, as highlighted text in the HTML source pane of the InFocus program window. When InFocus' accessibility checkers find a potential violation, it tries to indicate the 'parent' HTML element (and the line number of the page source) that seems to be at fault. For instance, if a data table has incomplete header markup, the <TABLE> element would be 'blamed'. For some accessibility tests, particularly manual "Manual Checks," the violation in question (actual or potential) is general in nature, relating to the page as a whole. In such cases, InFocus would report, or highlight, the <HTML> element--because it has to flag something. Therefore, for a general-nature Manual Check such as "Content must be readable without color", the HTML tag would be reported, even though it has nothing directly to do with color settings. As for attributes, InFocus generally reports or highlights the entire opening tag's contents, not just the element name itself. Therefore, InFocus might report/highlight <HTML lang="en">, when the language attribute has nothing to do with the violation. This was a design decision to offer as much information about that instance of the element, so as to help you recognize it and distinguish it from other instances of that element in the page source.
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Why are some violations listed as "MANUAL"? Are they all really violations? What triggers them? Can I safely turn them off?
The vast majority of the accessibility tests that InFocus can perform can be automatically and reliably identified as being accessibility violations. For example, a form input that lacks an explicit label (or a title attribute), or an image that lacks an alt attribute, are very clearly accessibility problems that must be addressed. However, many of the Section 508 and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines checkpoints are largely, if not totally, generic in nature. That is, they cannot be programmatically and readily identified as definitely being violations (nor could InFocus offer a fixer for it). Therefore, we call these "manual checks", a term that is shorted to just "[MANUAL]" in reports and the History tree of the program. Another legitimate way to refer to or think about the manual checks is that they are "potential violations". For example, there are accessibility checkpoints that state that pages should still be readable without color, that they should be readable if stylesheets are not supported, and that layout tables must make sense when 'linearized.' These are very subjective in nature, and InFocus cannot realistically make that determination on its own, though it does offer several convenient "preview" modes to help the user decide if each manual/potential violation is really a violation. While these manual checks should not be dismissed without considering the issues they raise, it is understandable that many users prefer to turn off some or all of the manual checks for most of their InFocus tests, then turn them back on and consider the potential violations in a single pass, using InFocus' preview modes to help.
The Online Help for InFocus 4.2.2 includes a help topic called "Manual Checks Criteria." It lists every one of the manual checks, which accessibility guideline and checkpoint it relates to, and what HTML elements or conditions trigger it. The triggering criteria are deliberately broad (and arguably over-inclusive), but they were designed in consultation with accessibility experts and the Worldwide Web Consortium's "Accessibility Evaluation and Repair Tools" recommendations. To view this help file, from InFocus, press F1 or select Browse Documentation from the Help menu, then select the topic "Manual Checks Criteria" from the References section.
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Why does InFocus give an "Unable to parse page" error for certain pages?
The short answer is that there is something about the source of the page or file that you have asked InFocus to test that has fatally confused the parser used by InFocus. If the parser cannot make reliable sense of the page source, InFocus' accessibility checkers won't even get the chance to test the page. The easiest example to explain is if you ask InFocus to diagnose a file (not a URL) that is actually the raw, unrendered, uninterpreted source code (asp, php, jsp, cfm...). In that case, the dynamic content code has not yet been replaced by the HTML markup that the user would see in their browser. The source file is likely to still have proprietary tags, dynamic content delimiters, and so on that the parser cannot understand.
Other than that, and more generally, the HTML parser used by InFocus may be tripping on an instance of "mal-formed" HTML in the page, or on some other aspect of the HTML source is confusing it to such a degree that it cannot understand the page. This FAQ topic will first explain the issue in general, and then list some HTML source problems that SSB BART Group has seen in some customers' pages that we have seen trigger this problem. Please also refer to the InFocus online help topic called "HTML Correction: the Forgiving and RTidy Parsers".
A parser is a program that analyzes a web file, and breaks it into small components, such as HTML elements, attributes, displayed text, undisplayed code comments, and so on, based on the HTML standards it was designed to use. The parsed, interpreted file can then be analyzed by InFocus' accessibility checkers. However, because web browsers such as Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) and (to a lesser extent) Netscape Navigator will often correctly display HTML pages whose markup source violates some of the Worldwide Web Consortium's official HTML coding standards, much of the HTML on the web today is not correct. Missing ending tags (where they are required), the presence of ending tags where they are forbidden, unclosed quotes, invalid code commenting, combining elements "out of order," and incorrect "nesting" of elements (such as TABLE and FORM), not to mention heavy usage of deprecated (obsolete) elements and attributes, are among the many types of errors appear in many of the most widely viewed pages on the internet. HTML that may be considered "bad" or "mal-formed" can confuse browsers, assistive technologies, parsers, and InFocus' accessibility checkers. For InFocus, the symptoms could range from cosmetic display errors in Preview modes, to tables or forms not being diagnosed at all (without warning), to the outright failure to parse the page.
Symptoms and causes seen in real-world web pages include:
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InFocus seems to get 'stuck' on, or to run out of memory, when diagnosing certain pages. What might the cause be?
The third-party parser used by InFocus is known to have a limitation on the size or layout complexity of the page. The parser has to interpret, and construct a model, of every page, which then gets handed off to InFocus' accessibility checkers. SSB BART Group has seen real-world pages that are either extremely large, such as 750 Kb of page source, or that contain several dozen layout tables. Such pages may cause the parser to run out of available memory, with the likeliest symptom being that InFocus seems to get 'stuck' during the parsing step of the overall page testing process. That is, it may not display an error, yet it may not finish either. This is the reason why InFocus' spider wizard has a field that sets an upper limit on the size of pages it should attempt to diagnose; the default is 500 Kb. Special care may be needed to diagnose pages that are larger than the maximum setting. (While the only accessibility test that layout tables must pass is that they make sense when "linearized", this problem would prevent InFocus from diagnosing the page for all other active accessibility tests.
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Why does InFocus 4.2.2 flag SCRIPT elements that appear in the HEAD block? Shouldn't it only care about SCRIPT tags in the BODY block?
This is an open bug in InFocus 4.2.2. You can ignore NOSCRIPT violations that it reports against SCRIPT elements that are within the HEAD block.
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I've been asked to install and use a customized "test set" file (*.txml) that would tell InFocus 4.2.2 to only test for the specific accessibility tests that our organization has standardized upon. How do I install it?
- Before proceeding, be sure you have InFocus Desktop version 4.2.2 installed and launched. Launching InFocus ensures that the data directory where the file must reside has been created.
- You will use the download URL provided by your organization's accessibility project coordinator to save (or move) the "test set" file to a specific directory. Right-click on the test set download link, and select the "Save (Target/Link) As..." command. In the File Save dialog that appears, open the following directory: C:\Program Files\SSB BART Group\InFocus 4.2\.om then select the Save button to download the file there.(That is the default installation directory of InFocus 4.2.2 for Windows. If your copy of InFocus 4.2.2 is installed elsewhere, open the .om directory there.)
- From InFocus, select Testing Control from the Configuration menu.
- Select the "Load Test Set" button (bottom right corner). The Open File dialog should automatically open to the .om directory.
- In the "Load Test Set" dialog, select the test set file you saved here, then select the Open button.
- Confirm the use of this test set file by selecting OK to close the Testing Control dialog.
- As long as you continue to use this test set file, InFocus will perform only your organizations selected accessibility tests. You may view the active tests by expanding the Testing Control tree view. However, if you make (and OK) any changes to the accessibility test checkboxes, or if you use (and OK) the "Manual Checks" or "Default Settings" buttons in the Testing Control dialog, you will no longer be testing according to your organization's standards, and you should re-load the test set.
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I've been asked to install and use a customized checker configuration file (configuration.xml) that would tell InFocus 4.2.2 to use some non-default settings for the checkers that our organization has standardized upon. How do I install it?
- Before downloading the checker configuration file, you must first exit InFocus, to ensure the file is installed and loaded properly.
- You will use the download URL provided by your organization's accessibility project coordinator to save (or move) the checker configuration file "configuration.xml" to a specific directory. Right-click on the configuration file download link, and select the "Save (Target/Link) As..." command. In the File Save dialog that appears, open the directory: C:\Program Files\SSB BART Group\InFocus 4.2\.om then select the Save button to download the file there. (That is the default installation directory of InFocus 4.2.2 for Windows. If your copy of InFocus 4.2.2 is installed elsewhere, open the .om directory there.)
- Launch InFocus: it will use the customized checker configuration file instead of the defaults.
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"False negatives": I suspect that there are violations on my page that InFocus did not report. Why might this be??
Other than the unexpected pleasure of the page legitimately passing some tests you suspected it would fail, there are some rational explanations as well as some error conditions that might lead to false positives.
- First, be sure that the accessibility tests that InFocus is currently set to use include those you want to test for (from the Configuration menu, select Testing Control).
- If the page has a data table that you thought might have accessibility violations, yet none were reported, one possibility is that InFocus incorrectly thought it was a layout table. InFocus has to first judge each table as to whether it is for layout or data before running the relevant tests on each type. We have seen many examples where the default codes and behavior of different HTML authoring tools, page templates, or even individual developers' authoring preferences can run counter to the default settings used by InFocus' data-versus-layout table code. You may want to review the fields and modify the values in the 'Tables' tab of the Test Settings dialog (in the Configuration menu). Select the Help button in that dialog, where the definition and use of every checker setting field is explained.
- A more subtle problem that can occur is if the page source is considered by the parser used by InFocus to have "mal-formed" HTML. (This issue is more fully explained in the separate FAQ topic on Parser errors.) Basically, if the HTML parser finds what it considers to be HTML errors, but they are not so blatant that it gives up and returns an "unable to parse page" error, it may pass a model of your page that is out of sync with the intentions of the developer. For instance, the parser looks for the presence (or absence) of closing tags, properly (or improperly) nested elements, the closing delimiters for attribute and comments, and so on. SSB BART Group's support department has seen some customers' web pages where the parser purged, without warning, one of the pairs of FOMR or TABLE tags due to what it considered improper element nesting that didn't make sense to it. As a result, the parsed page that was then handed off to InFocus' accessibility checkers did not test the form or table because it was not in the page source presented by the parser. The improper nesting was verified by the use of separate HTML validation utilities, and may have been done to create an extremely tight visual display in the browser. But the parser, as well as InFocus' checkers, expect HTML source that is not too far out of adherence to the rules of HTML. Therefore, when in doubt, or better yet, as a general practice, run your page through an HTML validator utility.
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"False positives": InFocus reports violations that I disagree with. How do I know if it is right?
While the perceived over-abundance of "Manual" violations in reports is the most common example, there are other potential explanations.
- The so-called "manual checks" (those marked with the text "[MANUAL]") are not nearly as easy to understand as InFocus' "automated" tests. Some are very generic, although others are almost as specific as most automated checks, but it's just that InFocus cannot tell with absolute certainty if they are violations, and definitely cannot offer to fix them programmatically. For a fuller discussion, including when it's OK to turn them off, please refer to the separate FAQ topic on Manual checks/violations.
- A somewhat common specific scenario is where InFocus is flagging violations related to data tables for what you know are layout tables. It may be that InFocus incorrectly thought it was a data table, because of specific elements and characteristics it has in its markup. InFocus has to first judge each table as to whether it is for layout or data before running the relevant tests on each type. If it mis-judges a layout table as a data table, it will, not surprisingly, not find header markup or other data table requirements. InFocus' table checker features an extensive set of configuration options to make this determination. The default settings work in most cases, but it is quite possible that you may need to tweak them. We have seen many examples where the default codes and behavior of different HTML authoring tools, page templates, or even individual developers' authoring preferences can run counter to the default settings used by InFocus' data-versus-layout table code. For instance, there are several table-related elements whose presence in a table will immediately make it conclude this is a data table. If any of the elements in that list are regularly in your layout tables, the table checker configurations should be modified accordingly. You may want to review the fields and modify the values in the 'Tables' tab of the Test Settings dialog (in the Configuration menu). Select the Help button in that dialog, where the definition and use of every checker setting field is explained.
- The requirement and specific methods for form inputs to have explicit labels is another case that seems to cause a lot of confusion. Beyond the fact that fully-sighted users rarely experience the problem of recognizing which field label goes with which form input, the specific accessibility requirements seem to often be imperfectly implemented. For instance, each visible form input (textboxes, select lists, checkboxes, radio buttons, etc.) needs to have its displayed field label in the form of a LABEL element, with a 'for' attribute that uniquely ties it to a specific input field. But the INPUT element itself must have an 'id' attribute whose value exactly matches the LABEL's 'for' attribute value. Otherwise, the assistive technology will not know what that LABEL is 'for'. Some authors give the LABEL's 'for' attribute the same value as the INPUT's 'name' attribute, but forget that the 'id' attribute is what counts here. One less-known alternative to such LABEL elements to give the INPUT a 'title' attribute indicating its purpose. That may be done in cases where a separate, visible field label is not desired. InFocus' form checker accepts that alternative implementation as acceptable, because we know that assistive technologies can accommodate it.
- There are a couple of open bugs in InFocus' checkers that can also result in "false positives" that can be ignored. First, that same explicit label checker may flag INPUT fields of type=button as needing an explicit LABEL, but violations reported against buttons can be ignored, as they have their own button test serves as the label. Second, InFocus script checker may flag SCRIPT elements that happen to be in the HEAD block as needing NOSCRIPTs. That is a bug, as the NOSCRIPT requirement only applies to SCRIPTs that are in the BODY, specifically those that actually render content, as opposed to those that perform merely cosmetic, meaningless functions, do data validity checking, etc.
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