Accessibility styles are used to ensure publications can be read by individuals with disabilities that impair access to the content of unstyled documents. ScML and the WFDW can build content (including ePub3, NIMAS, HTML, and proprietary formats) that meets current accessibility standards and works with assistive technologies, incorporating the augmentative information needed to achieve equality in content access.
Accessibility Styles
The following styles exist in Scribe Markup Language (ScML) to meet accessibility standards and apply to text that may render as italic and bold but convey specific meanings.
| Styles | |
|---|---|
| em | emphasis |
| tnw | title, name, or work |
| i | change of voice |
| strong | imperative statements |
| fterm | foreign or technical terms |
| cite | citations |
| taxspecies | species names |
Note: Additional styles in ScML may render as italic, bold, small-caps, underline, or other text treatments. Examples include dispk for dialogue speaker, gt for glossary term, lang for foreign languages, and hemb for embedded heads. The complete list of ScML styles is found here.
For more information on ePub3 accessibility standards, see http://kb.daisy.org/publishing/.
Examples
em
Use the emphasis (em) style to convey vocally stressed text.
This is <em>very important</em> to do.
tnw
Use the (tnw) style to indicate a title, name, or work that is not a citation.
Many consider <tnw>Hamlet</tnw> to be Shakespeare's greatest work.
i
Use the (i) style to indicate a change in voice, such as a thought or dream sequence.
Thought
When Scribe proposed using accessibility styles, I thought, <i>What a great idea!</i>
Dream Sequence
That night, I fell into a dream.
<i>I was flying like a bird . . .</i>
strong
Use the (strong) style to indicate imperative statements, such as warnings or alerts.
<strong>Warning:</strong> Proceed with caution.
fterm
Use the (fterm) style to indicate a foreign or technical term.
He accepted the decision to use accessibility styles as a <fterm>fait accompli.</fterm>
cite
Use the (cite) style to indicate a citation.
“How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable / Seem to me all the uses of this world” (<cite>Hamlet</cite>, 1.2.134-5).
taxspecies
Use the (taxspecies) style to indicate a species as part of a taxonomy. The complete list of taxonomy styles can be found here.
The Amur Tiger (<taxspecies>Panthera tigris altaica</taxspecies>) is endangered.