Updated W3C Recommendation: CSS Containment Module Level 1

 The CSS Working Group has published CSS Containment Module Level 1 as an updated W3C Recommendation, incorporating the changes since the 2022 Recommendation. This CSS module describes the contain property, which indicates that the element’s subtree is independent of the rest of the page. This enables heavy optimizations by user agents when used well.

Data Catalog Vocabulary (DCAT) - Version 3 is a W3C Proposed Recommendation

 Today the Dataset Exchange Working Group published Data Catalog Vocabulary (DCAT) - Version 3 as a W3C Proposed Recommendation. DCAT is an RDF vocabulary designed to facilitate interoperability between data catalogs published on the Web. This document defines the schema and provides examples for its use. 

DCAT enables a publisher to describe datasets and data services in a catalog using a standard model and vocabulary that facilitates the consumption and aggregation of metadata from multiple catalogs. This can increase the discoverability of datasets and data services. It also makes it possible to have a decentralized approach to publishing data catalogs and makes federated search for datasets across catalogs in multiple sites possible using the same query mechanism and structure. Aggregated DCAT metadata can serve as a manifest file as part of the digital preservation process.

Group Note: Verifiable Credentials Overview

 The Verifiable Credentials Working Group has just published a Working Group Note of Verifiable Credentials Overview.

Credentials are a part of our daily lives; driver's licenses are used to assert that we are capable of operating a motor vehicle, university degrees can be used to assert our level of education, and government-issued passports enable us to travel between countries. The family of W3C Recommendations for Verifiable Credentials, described in this overview document, provides a mechanism to express these sorts of credentials on the Web in a way that is cryptographically secure, privacy respecting, and machine-verifiable.

Authorized Translation of WCAG 2.2 in Dutch

 The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) published the Authorized Dutch Translation of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2, Richtlijnen voor Toegankelijkheid van Webcontent (WCAG) 2.2. The Lead Translation Organization for this Authorized Translation was the Accessibility Foundation

Translations in other languages are listed in WCAG 2 Translations. W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) particularly encourages the development of Authorized Translations of WCAG 2.2 and other technical specifications to facilitate their adoption and implementation internationally. Read about the Policy for W3C Authorized Translations.

W3C Advisory Committee Elects Advisory Board

 The W3C Advisory Committee has elected the following people to fill five seats on the W3C Advisory Board (AB) starting 1 July 2024: Wei Ding, Max Gendler, Tatsuya Igarashi, Elena Lape and Florian Rivoal. They join continuing participants, Tantek Çelik, Elika J Etemad, Wendy Reid, Avneesh Singh, Chris Wilson and Song XU.

Many thanks to the 6 candidates, and thanks for contributions to the AB to the departing participants, Qing An and Tzviya Siegman, whose terms end at the end of June 2024.

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 manages the evolution of the Process Document. 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. Read more about the Advisory Board and its work.

W3C Invites Implementations of Propagation format for distributed context: Baggage

 The Distributed Tracing Working Group invites implementations of the Candidate Recommendation Snapshot of Propagation format for distributed context: Baggage. This specification defines a standard for representing and propagating a set of application-defined properties associated with a distributed request or workflow execution.

This is independent of the Trace Context specification. Baggage can be used regardless of whether Distributed Tracing is used. This specification standardizes representation and propagation of application-defined properties. In contrast, Trace Context specification standardizes representation and propagation of the metadata needed to enable Distributed Tracing scenarios.

The current version of the Baggage specification is targeted for implementations by applications and services, including web applications running within a browser. Web Browsers or User Agents are not currently in scope as a target implementation.

Group Note: EPUB Fixed Layout Accessibility

 The Publishing Maintenance Working Group has just published the Working Group Note EPUB Fixed Layout Accessibility. This document outlines the goals for EPUB accessible fixed layout ebooks while acknowledging the challenges unique to the EPUB Fixed Layout format.

EPUB Fixed Layout (FXL) publications, or publications where the print layout is preserved in the digital edition, have been around since before EPUB 3.0.1. These publications span a number of genres and types, from comic books, cook books, children's books, and more.

The main motivation behind creating fixed layout publications is the need to preserve the print layout of the book, either because of it's importance to the text (i.e., complex diagrams) or it's artistic purpose (i.e., illustrated text). However, these publications are often partially or completely inaccessible to people with print disabilities.

An accessible fixed layout EPUB file is one that meets the accessibility requirements of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2 level AA and EPUB Accessibility 1.1, including color contrast, reading order, font layout, structural navigation, metadata, and text alternatives.

This note serves to help EPUB creators, publishers, and reading systems address some of the common accessibility issues found in fixed layout content including navigation, reading order, and text alternatives. This document is a companion to EPUB Accessibility 1.1, specifically for fixed layout publications.