Clarifications to labels or instructions SC

understanding/20/labels-or-instructions.html

@@ -22,27 +22,55 @@ <h2>In brief</h2>
       <h2>Intent of Labels or Instructions</h2>
 
       <p>The intent of this success criterion is to have content authors present instructions
-         or labels that identify the controls in a form so that users know what input data
-         is expected. In the case of radio buttons, checkboxes, comboboxes, or similar controls
-         that provide users with options, each option must have an appropriate label so that
-         users know what they are actually selecting. 
-         Instructions or labels may also specify data formats for data entry fields, especially
-         if they are out of the customary formats or if there are specific rules for correct
-         input. Content authors may also choose to make such instructions available to users
-         only when the individual control has focus especially when instructions are long and
-         verbose.
+         or labels to identify the purpose of fields and controls that expect user input, so that  
+         users will know what sort of values to enter, or adjust. Commonly, labels or instructions 
+         will be necessary to help users understand how to fill out the input fields of a form. 
+      </p>
+      <p>
+         Despite their moniker, form fields and controls are not limited to use within a form. They
+         are often used in web pages to allow a user to create or manipulate content. Labels, 
+         instructions, or both will commonly be needed for these controls to help ensure users
+         understand their purpose and the expected values they will need to enter or adjust to
+         use the controls efficiently while mitigating errors.
+      </p>
+      <p>
+         In the case of radio buttons, checkboxes, comboboxes, or similar controls that provide
+         users with choices, each choice will need a label so that users know what they are actually
+         selecting. In some cases, these labels may be enough to indicate the purpose of the parent 
+         control (such as a select-only combobox), or grouping of controls (like groupings of radios
+         or checkboxes), and thus further visible labels may not be necessary. However, in cases
+         where the labels for the choices would be ambiguous without an overarching label or instructions 
+         for a control or group of controls, then authors would need to provide one or both for users.
+      </p>
+
+      <p>
+         Beyond identifying the purpose of a field or control, instructions or labels may specify the 
+         necessary format(s) for data entry, especially when if they are out of the customary formats 
+         or if there are specific rules for correct input. Content authors may also choose to make such 
+         instructions available to users only when the individual control has focus, or may provide a 
+         mechanism to dynamically render or navigate a user to the instructions, especially for when 
+         instructions are long and verbose.
       </p>
 
       <p>The intent of this success criterion is not to clutter the page with unnecessary information
          but to provide important cues and instructions that will benefit people with disabilities.
-         Too much information or instruction can be just as harmful as too little.
-         The goal is to make certain that enough information is provided for the user to accomplish
-         the task without undue confusion or navigation.
+         Too much information or instruction can be just as harmful as too little. Rather, the goal is to 
+         ensure enough information is provided for the user to accomplish the task without undue confusion 
+         or navigation.
+      </p>
+
+      <p>When form fields or controls would necessitate labels, instructions or both, they will need to be 
+         persistently available to users. In many cases, the best way to do this is to make them visually
+         persistent as part of the UI. However, there can be times where labels or instructions would be 
+         better suited to the interface if they were made available on demand or only as necessary. For instance,
+         within the context of a toolbar, a select-only combobox's label may only be available on hover or focus
+         of the control. Or, a form field with verbose instructions may provide those instructions by using a 
+         button to invoke them as necessary.
       </p>
 
       <p>Note that the majority of form control labels are text-based. 
-         Using images as labels meets the requirements of the criterion, but care should be taken to ensure that the images are widely understood 
-         by the intended target audience. Authors may consider providing additional hints,
+         Using images as labels meets the requirements of the criterion, but care should be taken to ensure that the 
+         images are widely understood by the intended target audience. Authors may consider providing additional hints,
          such as text-based tooltips or supplementary text, to support clarity when using image-based labels.</p>
 
       <p>This success criterion does not require that labels or instructions be correctly marked up, 
@@ -54,14 +82,16 @@ <h2>Intent of Labels or Instructions</h2>
       <p>Further, this success criterion does not take into consideration whether or not alternative methods of
          providing an accessible name or description for form controls and inputs has been used — that aspect is
          covered separately by <a href="name-role-value">4.1.2 Name, Role, Value</a>. It is possible
-         for controls and inputs to have an appropriate accessible name or description (e.g. using <code>aria-label="..."</code>)
-         and therefore pass Success Criterion 4.1.2, but to still fail this success criterion (if the labels or instructions
-         aren't presented to all users, not just those using assistive technologies).
+         for controls and inputs to have an appropriate accessible name or description (e.g., using <code>aria-label="..."</code>)
+         and therefore pass Success Criterion 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value, but to still fail this success criterion 
+         (if the labels or instructions ren't presented to all users, not just those using assistive technologies).
+         Additionally, it can be possible to pass this success criterion by providing a visible label, but fail Success Criterion
+         2.5.3 Label in Name, if the perceivable visible text label is not included in the accessible name of the control.
       </p>
       <p>This success criterion does not apply to links or other controls (such as an expand/collapse widget, or similar
          interactive components) that are not associated with data entry.
       </p>
-      <p>While this success criterion requires that controls and inputs have labels or instructions, whether or
+      <p>While this success criterion requires that form fields and controls labels or instructions, whether or
          not labels (if used) are accurate, sufficiently clear, or descriptive is covered separately by
          <a href="headings-and-labels">2.4.6 Headings and Labels</a>.
       </p>
@@ -86,7 +116,11 @@ <h2>Benefits of Labels or Instructions</h2>
             fields) can prevent users from making incomplete or incorrect form submissions, which prevents
             users from having to navigate once more through a page/form in order to fix submission errors.
          </li>
-
+
+         <li>Providing labels can help users identify the expected name of a control, so that it may be accessed 
+            more efficiently by voice commands.
+         </li>
+
       </ul>
 
    </section>
@@ -120,6 +154,15 @@ <h2>Examples of Labels or Instructions</h2>
             having a single label "Name" (which would appear to leave the second text field unlabelled),
             each field is given an explicit label — "Given Name" and "Family Name".
          </li>
+
+         <li>
+            A rich text editor presents two select-only comboboxes to allow a user to choose the font family and
+            font size of the text they are editing. Each option of the comboboxes are accurately labeled. The 
+            comboboxes are given accessible names ("font family" and "font size", respectively). 
+            The context of being part of the rich text editor's toolbar, as well as the clear labels of each option provide the
+            necessary information for a user to determine their purpose, without the need for persistent visible labels
+            for the individual comboboxes.
+         </li>
 
          <li>A U.S. phone number separates the area code, exchange, and number into three fields.
             Parentheses surround the area code field, and a dash separates the exchange and number