MOSS (SharePoint 2007) and 508 Compliance, Accessibility Standards
I will write more about this later, but I am putting it up now as much (or more) as a reference for myself as a post that may help folks. MOSS 2007 is an improvement to SPS 2003 in regard to Compliance, and this is a very handy chart for those of you concerned with being compliant.
Support Open Source! Or at least, please support Compliance…
Specifics on 508 Compliance can be found at the Section 508 Website
Specifics on W3C Compliance can be found at the W3C Website
It is interesting or at least noteworthy that the W3C standards and not the same as 508 Standards. The W3C standards are more rigorous, so the argument goes that if you follow their guidelines and CYA in regard to what they have put forth, you will be okay with 508. I will look into this further.
The following chart was lifted from: www.chandima.net with regrettable impunity:
| SPS2003 | MOSS2007 | Notes | ||
| 1.1 | Does each graphic have text to display as an alternative to the graphic? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 1.2 | Is the alternate text for each image relevant to the context in which the image is viewed? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 1.3 | Are graphics that are used only for decorative purposes commented with ALT=”"? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 1.4 | Is the alternate text for each image no more than 60 characters long? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 1.5 | Are all comments that are linked to clickable areas of a MAP image relevant? | N/A | N/A | |
| 1.6 | Is the alternate content for each text image at least the equivalent of the text appearing in the image? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 1.7 | Do all images that require a detailed description provide comment text? | Yes, with customisation | Yes, with customisation | |
| 1.8 | If a detailed description is provided for an image, is the content relevant? | Yes, with customisation | Yes, with customisation | |
| 1.9 | Does the text used in the ALT attribute for each image provide the function of the link? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 2.1 | Does each frame have a NAME attribute? | N/A | N/A | Iframes not used for core solution |
| 2.2 | Are the names assigned to frames relevant? | N/A | N/A | |
| 2.3 | Is there a NOFRAME tag? | N/A | N/A | |
| 2.4 | Is the content of the NOFRAME tag relevant? | N/A | N/A | |
| 2.5 | Does each frame have a TITLE attribute? | N/A | N/A | |
| 2.6 | Is the content of the TITLE attribute relevant? | N/A | N/A | |
| 2.7 | Does each page have a maximum of three frames? | N/A | N/A | |
| 2.8 | When frames are used, is scrolling automatic? | N/A | N/A | |
| 3.1 | Is information provided by color still readable when colors are disabled? | Yes | Yes | |
| 3.2 | Is there enough contrast between colors to be distinguishable by users who have impaired color vision? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 4.1 | Can the information that is conveyed by multimedia be provided another way? | Yes | Yes | |
| 4.2 | Is the Multimedia content synchronized with the alternate support? | Yes, 3rd Party tool needed | Yes, 3rd Party Tool needed | |
| 5.1 | Is the SUMMARY attribute present and relevant? | No | Yes | |
| 5.2 | In a data table, does the CAPTION tag provide the title of the table? | Yes, with exceptions | Yes | |
| 5.3 | In data tables, are the column headers appropriate? | Yes, with exceptions | Yes | |
| 5.4 | In a data table, does a HEADERS attribute link to each of the data cells in the table? | Yes, with exceptions | Yes | |
| 5.5 | Is the content in formatted tables in correct sequence? | No | Yes | |
| 6.1 | Are Link titles no more than 80 characters long? | Yes | Yes | |
| 6.2 | Are links explicit enough? | Yes | Yes | |
| 6.3 | Is the TITLE attribute used, if required, and is it no more than 80 characters long? | Yes | Yes | |
| 6.4 | Does the TITLE attribute provide more information about the link than the link title itself? | Yes | Yes | |
| 6.5 | Do all identical link titles lead to the same target? | Yes | Yes | |
| 7.1 | If a script requires alternate text to make it accessible, is the information provided by the alternate text equivalent to the information provided by the script? | No | Yes | More Accessible Mode option |
| 7.2 | Can actions be performed even if the peripheral for which they were designed is disabled? | No | Yes | More Accessible Mode option |
| 8.1 | Is the DOCTYPE tag present at the beginning of the page source code? | No, not by default | No, not by default | |
| 8.2 | Is the LANG attribute present at the beginning of the page source code to clearly identify the language used? | No, not by default | No, not by default | |
| 8.3 | Is there a TITLE tag in the page header? | Yes | Yes | |
| 8.4 | Is the content of the TITLE tag explicit? | Yes | Yes | |
| 8.5 | Is the content of the TITLE tag different from one page to the next? | Yes | Yes | |
| 8.6 | Are language changes on a page indicated? | No | N/A | multi-language support now part of MOSS 2007 |
| 9.1 | Is information structured consistently for the general context of the site? | Yes | Yes | |
| 9.2 | Is the Web page presented in a consistent fashion? | No | Yes | |
| 10.1 | Is page content separated from content introduction? | Yes | Yes | |
| 10.2 | If style sheets are disabled, is the information still accessible? | Yes | Yes | |
| 10.3 | If style sheets are disabled, is the order in which information appears the same as initially defined? | Yes | Yes | Improved |
| 11.1 | Are the LABEL tag and its corresponding attributes (ID, FOR) present? | No, not by default | No, not by default | |
| 11.2 | In a form, is the SUBMIT button relevant? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | |
| 11.3 | Is the data entry control in online forms accessible? | Yes | Yes | |
| 12.1 | Is the main navigation menu on the Web site located in the same place on all pages? | Yes, with customisation | Yes | Improved with MAM |
| 12.2 | If keyboard shortcuts are defined for the site, are they active on the page? | Yes | Yes | |
| 13.1 | Can the user control screen refresh? | Yes | Yes | |
| 13.2 | If the user is automatically redirected, is it without using a script? | N/A | N/A | |
| 13.3 | Is a Web site visitor alerted when new windows appear? | No | Yes | |
| 13.4 | Is there an alternative to scripts for opening new windows? | No | Yes | More Accessible Mode option |
| 13.5 | Is additional information available to describe files that can be downloaded from the Web site? | Yes | Yes | |
| 13.6 | Does the specific presentation or layout of information interfere with the ability to access its content? | Yes | Yes | More Accessible Mode option |
Josh Milane
MIT Technical, Boston