W3C

The CSS Working Group has published CSS Color Module Level 3 as a W3C Edited Recommendation. CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) is a language for describing the rendering of HTML and XML documents on screen, on paper, in speech, etc. It uses color-related properties and values to color the text, backgrounds, borders, and other parts of elements in a document. This specification describes color values and properties for foreground color and group opacity. These include properties and values from CSS level 2 and new values. This specification incorporates errata raised against the previous W3C Recommendation for CSS Color 3. This specification is fully implemented in all modern browsers.

The Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) Working Group invites implementations of Accessible Name and Description Computation 1.1 Candidate Recommendation. This document describes how user agents determine the names and descriptions of accessible objects from web content languages. This information is in turn exposed through accessibility APIs so that assistive technologies can identify these objects and present their names or descriptions to users. Documenting the algorithm through which names and descriptions are to be determined promotes interoperable exposure of these properties among different accessibility APIs and helps to ensure that this information appears in a manner consistent with author intent.

This document updates and will eventually supersede the accessible name and description guidance in the WAI-ARIA 1.0 User Agent Implementation Guide W3C Recommendation. It is part of the WAI-ARIA suite described in the WAI-ARIA Overview.

The EXI Working Group has published Canonical EXI as a W3C Recommendation. The EXI 1.0 format specifies the syntax of a class of resources called EXI streams. It is possible for EXI streams that are equivalent for the purposes of many applications to differ in physical representation. The Canonical EXI Recommendation specifies a method to get a canonical form, to be used with digital signatures. Even restricted and very limited devices should be able to create or check a canonical EXI stream. This applies to devices that may be able to speak only a given language (according to an XML Schema) or support only a subset of all EXI features.

The Browser Testing and Tools Working Group has published WebDriver as a W3C Recommendation. WebDriver is a powerful technology for enabling automated cross-browser testing of Web applications and more. The WebDriver specification defines a set of interfaces and a wire protocol that are platform-neutral and language-neutral and that allow out-of-process programs to remotely control a browser in a way that emulates the actions of a real person using the browser. More information is available in the blog post: WebDriver Motors on to W3C Recommendation.

W3C published today the final report of the W3C Workshop on Data Privacy Controls and Vocabularies, which was held on 17-18 April 2018, in Vienna (Austria).

The workshop examined the opportunities for privacy vocabularies to be used in conjunction with Linked Data in order to open the path for a new generation of privacy enhancing technologies. Those technologies focus on controlling a compliant data handling. They help with the challenges for privacy and security on the Web of Data and the Web of Things.

The workshop gave a strong message of support for W3C to initiate work on Privacy Vocabularies and Taxonomies and to look further into the idea of guiding data handling with Linked Data annotations. As this is partly still exploratory, the people present encouraged the creation of a Community Group. Since then, the W3C Data Privacy Vocabularies and Controls CG (DPVCG) has been launched. Please, join if you are interested in the topic.

The W3C Advisory Committee has filled five open seats on the W3C Advisory Board. Beginning 1 July 2018, the nine Advisory Board participants are Michael Champion (Microsoft), Jay (Junichi) Kishigami (NTT), Charles McCathie Nevile (Yandex), Florian Rivoal (W3C Invited Expert), Natasha Rooney (GSMA), Tzviya Siegman (Wiley), David Singer (Apple), Léonie Watson (The Paciello Group), and Judy Zhu (Alibaba). Many thanks to Tantek Çelik (Mozilla) and Chris Wilson (Google), whose terms end this month. Read more about the Advisory Board.

Created in March 1998, the Advisory Board provides ongoing guidance to the W3C Team on issues of strategy, management, legal matters, process, and conflict resolution. The Advisory Board also serves the W3C Members by tracking issues raised between Advisory Committee meetings, soliciting Member comments on such issues, and proposing actions to resolve these issues. The Advisory Board manages the evolution of the Process Document. The Advisory Board hears appeals of Member Submission requests that are rejected for reasons unrelated to Web architecture. For several years, the AB has conducted its work in a public wiki.

The elected Members of the Advisory Board participate as individual contributors and not representatives of their organizations. Advisory Board participants use their best judgment to find the best solutions for the Web, not just for any particular network, technology, vendor, or user.