Agile Sharepoint development by 21apps and Andrew Woodward MVP » Accessibility

Office and Browser support in SharePoint

Andrew Woodward — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 08:55:00 +0000

I often get asked by clients to provide details of what is, and more importantly what isn’t, supported in their environment. This normally focuses on the versions of Office installed, the browsers used and sometimes what happens if we block ActiveX controls. This overview is quickly followed by a ‘Can we have a document on this’ request to which I generally send the following

Microsoft SharePoint Products and Technologies Document: Microsoft Office Programs and SharePoint Products and Technologies Integration – Fair, Good, Better, Best

This white paper describes how different versions of Office programs work together with the 2003 and 2007 versions of SharePoint technologies. Although an overview of the integration features of Microsoft Office 2000 versus Microsoft Office XP with Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 is provided, the paper’s focus is on the integration features of the Office 2003 Editions versions the 2007 Office Suites with the 2007 SharePoint Products and Technologies.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=E0D05A69-F67B-4D37-961E-2DB3C4065CB9&displaylang=en

Plan browser support (Office SharePoint Server)

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 supports several Web browsers that are commonly used. However, there are certain browsers that might cause some Office SharePoint Server 2007 functionality to be downgraded, limited, or available only through alternative steps. This article provides a detailed breakdown on what is supported in which browser and on what platform.

http://technet2.microsoft.com/Office/en-us/library/ff6c5b8c-59bd-4079-8f0b-de4f8b4e0a861033.mspx?mfr=true

I have not found any published information on 64bit browser support.

ActiveX controls and components used in Office SharePoint Server 2007

This article provides details about the ActiveX controls and components that are used in rendering features and content in these browsers. This information is useful for troubleshooting issues and for supporting end users in accomplishing tasks that they need to perform by using Office SharePoint Server 2007.

http://technet2.microsoft.com/Office/en-us/library/4fba0222-8b7a-4ae1-af64-e8050263784e1033.mspx?mfr=true

It is worth noting that this post is looking at SharePoint as a collaboration tool and helping to answer some common business questions. It is not going to answer questions about accessibility, you need to read the update to my SharePoint Accessibility – Is MOSS 2007 accessible? ; and if you are looking at using SharePoint as publishing site it has been shown that SharePoint can be designed to meet your requirements although there is still conjecture over the misuse of the terms ‘accessible’ and ‘compatible’.

Dialog with Microsoft on Accessibility

Andrew Woodward — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 18:14:00 +0000

Microsoft have recognised that we all need to answer questions on Accessibility; and it has never been easy to get answers to questions – or even know where to post them.

Lawrence has posted an article to introduce the new SharePoint – Accessibility online forum and also noted that they have not posted anything more than the Improvements in Accessibility link from last year, something that I have taken further in my posting SharePoint Accessibility – is MOSS Accessible.

He also mentioned some new tools that are available that may make things easier.

With HiSoftware’s announcement last week of AccRepair for SharePoint Designer and in conjunction with AccMonitor, many customers will be able to design and
implement accessibility compliant SharePoint based websites without costly
consulting services or development resources.

Start posting your questions in the hope that Microsoft, the ISVs and the community can start solving the problems.

MOSS Accessibility by TheKid

Andrew Woodward — Sun, 06 May 2007 07:55:00 +0000

A great article has been posted by The Kid on how he creates accessible Publishing Websites in MOSS.

The first thing I would say about accessibility in MOSS is that it will be extremely difficult (if not impossible) to make a site accessible (to AA or AAA) if you are using the webpart framework. This means that WebParts are out…even the extremely useful ContentByQuery webpart. Publishing controls and standard ASP.Net controls are your friends and should be used in place of webparts.
The problem with webparts is the WebPartZone, which generates a table to host the webparts, and the webparts themselves which generally create a TABLE in which to live. These TABLEs can be difficult to remove and I am yet to see a solution which doesn’t involve some slightly ‘hacked’ code.

What we are seeing is the emergence of two types of web sites, the ones that claim accessibility to AA or above which are Publishing Sites that used to be created in Content Management server and the Collaboration (more traditional SharePoint) sites that rely on the features like Web Parts and the rich User Experience that can achieve a level of compliance as documented in my review of the Microsoft published statement on accessibility – SharePoint accessibility – is MOSS accessible?

What about the mobile view?
MOSS 2007 provides us with the /m feature which can render a lot of the interactivity with the site in very simple, mobile phone compatible html format. Could this provide us with the AA or AAA accessibility we are seeking for the collaborative part of MOSS?

Browser Compatibility in SharePoint

Andrew Woodward — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 07:22:00 +0000

My post SharePoint Accessibility – Is MOSS accessible? refers to Level 1 and Level 2 browsers and the support provided.

Microsoft have now published a TechNet article on this subject.

Level 1 Browsers
IE 6.x (32bit) IE 7.x (32bit) – Where is the 64bit support?

Level 2 Browsers
FireFox 1.5, Mozzila 1.7, Netscape Navigator 7.2 and 8.1, Safari 2.0

SharePoint Accessibility – Is MOSS 2007 accessible?

Andrew Woodward — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 22:01:00 +0000

UPDATE: 4th August 2007
Accessibility in MOSS may get that much easier with the announcement that HiSoft have been selected to develop an Accessibility Kit for MOSS.

…The kit will provide templates, master pages, controls and Web parts along with technical documentation to advance MOSS accessibility for people with disabilities. All of the source code will be provided via the Microsoft Permissive License and will be available on CodePlex (www.codeplex.com) later this year for customers and other Microsoft partners to download, reuse and extend…

When trying to get a Microsoft SharePoint solution implemented in any Public Sector organisation one of the key stumbling blocks is if the lack of (or unknown ) conformance to any accessibility standards.

Microsoft were indicating, nothing officially, that MOSS 2007 would be accessible although to what level was open to debate and conjecture. One of the difficulties encountered is how to test solutions, this includes any web parts you develop or theme or style changes. I do not intend to cover the options here or the available tools and processes, instead I direct you to JimThatcher.com who is a published author in this field.

What I will cover is the published accessibility in MOSS 2007, its comparison to SharePoint Portal Server 2003 and some links to content that supports this and provides guidance on areas that can be improved. Microsoft have reviewed the products against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0. Some may ask why have they used a guideline published in 1999 and not the WCAG 2.0 specification which started publication in April 2006? Apologies for not answering the question here but I suggest you read To Hell with WCAG 2, by Joe Clark, where he explains in detail why the standard was not worth the wait. You can of course read the WCAG 2.0 guidelines @ 72pages, Understanding WCAG 2.0 @ 165 pages or the Techniques for WCAG 2.0 @ 221 pages. In all over 150,000 words! if you really want to.

At this point you either decided to skip the WCAG 2.0 standards or Microsoft have probably released MOSS 14 so the rest of the article is out of date

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0

These guidelines explain how to make Web content accessible to people with disabilities. The guidelines are intended for all Web content developers (page authors and site designers) and for developers of authoring tools. The primary goal of these guidelines is to promote accessibility. However, following them will also make Web content more available to all users, whatever user agent they are using (e.g., desktop browser, voice browser, mobile phone, automobile-based personal computer, etc.) or constraints they may be operating under (e.g., noisy surroundings, under- or over-illuminated rooms, in a hands-free environment, etc.). Following these guidelines will also help people find information on the Web more quickly. These guidelines do not discourage content developers from using images, video, etc., but rather explain how to make multimedia content more accessible to a wide audience.

Checklist of Checkpoints for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0

How SharePoint Portal Server 2003 and Microsoft Office Server 2007 meet the guidelines.

		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

Note I have downgraded some of the Yes, with customisations to No as they proposed that you should use FrontPage or SharePoint designer.

More Accessible Mode in MOSS 2007

On an MOSS 2007 technologies-based site, most user interface (UI) elements, such as links, form controls, and buttons, are designed to use Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA). MSAA enables people with disabilities to interact with content by using assistive technologies such as screen readers, which are devices that provide a synthesized speech or Braille description of what a blind or low-vision user is unable to see on a computer screen or Web site. Proper MSAA names are given on all editable controls, links, and buttons.

Because some custom UI elements do not use MSAA properties, the More Accessible mode enable to render custom controls as an equivalent standard HTML controls so that they will be better recognized by AT devices. “More accessible mode” is exposed via the Document Object Model (DOM) so that third parties can create solutions catered to screen reader users.

More Accessible Mode does not enable alternate versions of every UI element. For example, if a custom control has been added to a MOSS 2007 technologies-based site, enabling More Accessible Mode does not automatically create an alternate version of that control.

More Accessible Mode enables the following items to be rendered in a way that optimizes them to work better with AT devices such as screen readers:

Menus – Instead of displaying a drop-down menu of options for files in a document library, a new browser window is opened that contains all of the menu items as hyperlinks. This format is easier for AT devices to interpret. At the same time, the user is informed that a new window will open if he clicks on the menu link; the TITLE attribute contains the Open menu terminology.
Optimized fields – Some fields are difficult for accessibility tools to interpret. When More Accessible Mode is enabled, these fields are replaced with fields that are optimized for accessibility tools. For example, some WSS 3.0 and MOSS 2007 lists support enhanced text fields that enable users to add formatted text, images, tables, and hyperlinks. Because of the way these fields are rendered in a browser, some accessibility tools cannot read them. When More Accessible Mode is enabled, such fields are replaced with standard plain text fields that are compliant with accessibility tools.

Windows Speech Recognition is a speech based assistive technology that is available in Windows Vista. Windows Speech Recognition enables users to perform actions by speaking (in English) instead of using a keyboard or mouse.

In addition to enhanced text fields, several other types of fields are replaced with alternate fields in More Accessible Mode:

Field in standard mode	Alternate field in More Accessible Mode
Enhanced text field	Multiple line text field
Graphical summary charts (for surveys)	Table with table headers (see point 5.3 in section 5.1.6 Tables)
Gantt chart (in a project list)	Table with table headers (see point 5.3 in section 5.1.6 Tables). A table with table headers also appears below a Gantt chart in standard mode.
Contact selector	Text field

Finally, screen reader friendly Instant Messaging presence status and menu interaction on presence enabled people fields. ALT text that describes the presence status on people fields have been added on the WSS 3.0 and MOSS 2007 sites, and made ENTER the action of opening the menu for these to simplify the keyboard only experience.

Additional Information

Visit the Microsoft Accessibility site. (Updated 4 Oct 2007)

Please forgive me for posting an article on Accessibility from Word! But its a good test for Microsoft commitment to accessibility