W3C

The Accessible Platform Architectures Working Group has published a First Public Working Draft of Natural Language Interface Accessibility User Requirements. This document outlines various accessibility-related user needs, requirements and scenarios for natural language interfaces. These user needs should influence accessibility requirements in various related specifications, as well as the design of applications that include natural language interfaces including speech and voice input. The document discusses where work is needed in behind the scenes services, to support accessibility and user needs and associated requirements are then described.

Comments are welcome through 12th November 2021.

The CSS Working Group has published the CSS Multi-column Layout Module Level 1 as a W3C Candidate Recommendation Snapshot. This specification describes multi-column layouts in CSS, a style sheet language for the web. Using functionality described in the specification, content can be flowed into multiple columns with a gap and a rule between them.

The Working Group welcomes comments via the GitHub repository issues by 12 December 2021.

The Media Working Group has published a First Public Working Draft of Media Source Extensions. This specification extends HTMLMediaElement [HTML] to allow JavaScript to generate media streams for playback. Allowing JavaScript to generate streams facilitates a variety of use cases like adaptive streaming and time shifting live streams.

The Web Payments Working Group has just published Proposed Recommendations of Payment Request API and Payment Method Identifiers.

Payment Request standardizes an API to allow merchants (i.e., web sites selling physical or digital goods) to utilize one or more payment methods with minimal integration. Browsers facilitate the payment flow between merchant and user. Payment Method Identifiers defines payment method identifiers and how they are validated, and, where applicable, minted and formally registered with the W3C.

Comments are welcome through 28 October 2021.

The Web Applications Working Group has just published a Proposed Recommendation of ARIA in HTML. This specification defines the authoring rules (author conformance requirements) for the use of Accessible Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA) 1.1 and Digital Publishing WAI-ARIA Module 1.0 attributes on [HTML] elements. This specification’s primary objective is to define requirements for use with conformance checking tools used by authors (i.e., web developers). These requirements will aid authors in their development of web content, including custom interfaces/widgets, that makes use of ARIA to complement or extend the features of the host language [HTML].

Comments are welcome through 28 October 2021.

As part of working with the WHATWG together on HTML and DOM, W3C selected today to endorse the DOM Review Draft — Published 15 June 2020 as a W3C Recommendation. DOM defines a platform-neutral model for events, aborting activities, and node trees. For more information, see the blog post WHATWG Review Drafts of HTML and DOM endorsed as W3C Recommendations.

The Accessible Platform Architectures Working Group has published a First Public Working Draft of Synchronization Accessibility User Requirements. This document outlines accessibility-related user needs and associated requirements for the synchronization of multimedia. The successful synchronization of multimedia content, especially audio and video, is essential to accessible web-based communication and cooperation. Understandable media is therefore media synchronized to very specific limits, according to multiple research studies. By clarifying the parameters of adequate synchronization, we can influence the development of future technologies, specifications, and accessibility guidelines. Comments are welcome through 5th November 2021.