@media, WCAG2.0

A quick run-through of some of the new features in the Accessibility Guidelines v2.0.

References: juicystudio.com and accessifiey.com

Why change the existing regs? They are nearly 9 years old and should be:

• Technology agnostic, using general terminology
• Perceivable (ie catering for sensory deficiencies)
• Operable
• Understandable
• Robust

New features inlcude terminologies such as web unit; more conformance. There are also several supporting documents, besides the actual standard, namely:

• Understanding WCAG2.0
  For each guideline, it explains the intent, why the need to address a problem; how to meet the success criteria; benefits of meeting criteria; advisory techniques and examples.
• Techniques for WCAG2.0
  This is a big, unwealdy document! Starts with listing the common failures (not very positive). Covers client-side scripting techniques, CSS, general techniques, HTML et.
• About Baselines for WCAG
  What are they? Annotated examples.
  Who sets the baseline; how can developers choose their baseline
• Application Notes
  To follow

New features - baselines are better (?)
Scoping:- conformance claims are not mandatory but you can say certain parts of a site aren't specifically in scope.
Does it hinder design? - you have to think of philosophy vs practicality.

Reference: Go to http://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG20/quickref/ and select your baseline technologies. It will then generate a reasonable checklist of what you need to cover for HTML/CSS/JavaScript etc.