I use tables, they work fine, so what's wrong with them?
- What difference does it make how tables are treated?
- I check them in a browser or two already so why does this affect me?
Outcome
- To be able to diferentiate a data table from a layout table.
- To understand the reasons why they deserve separate treatment.
Who does this affect?
- Users with vision impairments using screen reading or braille technologies.
WAI guidelines:
- 5.1 For data tables, identify row and column headers.
For example, in HTML, use TD to identify data cells and TH to identify headers. [NGfL requirement]
- 5.2 For data tables that have two or more logical levels of row or column headers, use markup to associate data cells and header cells.
For example, in HTML, use THEAD, TFOOT, and TBODY to group rows, COL and COLGROUP to group columns, and the "axis", "scope", and "headers" attributes, to describe more complex relationships among data. [NGfL requirement]