The page I am working on has a javascript function executed to print parts of the page. For some reason, printing in Safari, causes the window to somehow update. I say somehow, because it does not really refresh as in reload the page, but rather it starts the "rendering" of the page from start, i.e. scroll to top, flash animations start from 0, and so forth. The effect is reproduced by this fiddle: http://jsfiddle.net/fYmnB/ Clicking the print button and finishing or cancelling a print in Safari causes the screen to "go white" for a sec, which in my real website manifests itself as something "like" a reload. While running print button with, let's say, Firefox, just opens and closes the print dialogue without affecting the fiddle page in any way. Is there something with my way of calling the browsers print method that causes this, or how can it be explained - and preferably, avoided? P.S.: On my real site the same occurs with Chrome. In the ex
The Short Version:
ReplyDeleteThe Role Attribute may give future browsers a way to work intelligently with certain XML elements in a device-independent way. For example, an unordered list that is marked with the role attribute of "navigation" can be interpreted intelligently on browsers in both desktop and handheld environments, allowing it to be displayed clearly in both environments.
The Long Version:
The XHTML Role Attribute defined in this specification allows the author to annotate XML Languages with machine-extractable semantic information about the purpose of an element. Use cases include accessibility, device adaptation, server-side processing, and complex data description.
The attribute describes the role(s) the current element plays in the context of the document. This can be used, for example, by applications and assistive technologies to determine the purpose of an element. This could allow a user to make informed decisions on which actions may be taken on an element and activate the selected action in a device independent way. It could also be used as a mechanism for annotating portions of a document in a domain specific way (e.g., a legal term taxonomy).
Example:
<ul role="navigation sitemap">
<li href="downloads">Downloads</li>
<li href="docs">Documentation</li>
<li href="news">News</li>
</ul>
Given that the XHTML2 Working Group will cease to exist at the end of this year, there's no chance of this specification ever reaching release status in anything resembling its current form. http://www.w3.org/News/2009#entry-6601
The document you refer to is part of the work of the now discontinued XHTML 2 working group. It is effectively obsolete.
ReplyDeleteHTML5/XHTML5 also has a "role" attribute. Its definition is similar but somewhat more limited - its purpose is to indicate Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) roles, so that assistive technology such as screen readers can better inform users about the purpose of UI components (widgets), and also help them navigate the web page more easily.
The list of valid roles for ARIA is available at http://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria/#roles