WAVE Changelog

Version 3.0 -> 3.1 Changes

API Specification Changes

Below are changes to the WAVE API Specification for v3.1 (released September 22, 2020).

• The WAVE API provides item text contrast data.
  • When reporttype is set to 3 or 4, the WAVE API now returns a contrastdata item which includes the WCAG contrast ratio, foreground hex color, background hex color, and true/false indicator if the evaluated text is "large" text (per the WCAG definition) for each instance of Low Contrast Text.
• The following are new WAVE items (with categories):
  • Figure
    • figure (Feature) - Indicates the presence of <figure>.
  • Generic region
    • region (Structural element) - Indicates the presence of any role="region" that is properly labeled with aria-label or aria-labelledby. Generic regions are identified in the "Structure" tab in the WAVE visual interface.
  • YouTube video
    • youtube_video (Alert) - An embedded or linked YouTube video is present.
  • Possible list
    • list_possible (Alert) - Indicates when text is used to generated a visual list that lacks proper list semantics.
  • Select missing label
    • select_missing_label (Alert) - Indicates when a <select> element is present but does not have an associated label. In this case, the default select option will define the accessible name for the select label. Overrides label_missing.
  • Image with title
    • image_title (Alert) - An image does not have an alt value but does have a title attribute value. Overrides alt_missing and alt_link_missing.

Functionality Changes

• New accessibility tests as described above.
• Low contrast text is now detected on most HTML input types and <select> elements.
• The visual interface provides more clear identification of WAVE items that are associated to page elements that are visually hidden. Users are prompted to disable Styles or view the Code panel to analyze these hidden items.
• The "Language missing or invalid" (lang) test has been extended to identify valid lang attribute values for the document and page elements. The visual interface presents the lang attribute value.
• Empty links and empty buttons are not identified if a non-empty title attribute value is present. Title is now broadly supported as defining the link/button accessible name.
• Missing alternative text is not identified for images that have a non-empty title attribute value. These will instead present the "Image with title" alert indicating that alt is typically optimal.
• Numerous other bug fixes, testing refinements, and performance optimizations have been made.

Version 2.1 -> 3.0 Changes

Below are changes to the WAVE API Specification for v3.0 (released October 30, 2019).

API Specification Changes

• The html5 category of WAVE items (which previously included HTML5 and ARIA items) has been removed and a new aria category replaces it. The new aria category includes existing ARIA items, plus new ones as documented below.
• The following WAVE items have been renamed and moved from the defunct html5 category to the structure category:
  • html5_header -> header
  • html5_nav -> nav
  • html5_main -> main
  • html5_aside -> aside
  • html5_footer -> footer
  • aria_search -> search
• The following WAVE items have moved to new output categories:
  • table_layout - from structure to alert. This better encourages the disuse of layout tables.
  • longdesc - from feature to alert. Due to poor support.
• The following are new WAVE items (with categories):
  • aria_menu_broken (error) - Indicates an ARIA menu lacking required menuitem children.
  • region_missing (alert) - Indicates the lack of regions/landmarks in the page.
  • aria_describedby (aria) - Indicates the presence of aria-describedby attribute. The existing aria_label item will identify elements with aria_label and aria_labelledby.
  • aria_button (aria) - Indicates the presence of role="button".
  • aria_live_region (aria) - Indicates the presence of role="alert", role="alertdialog", or aria-live attributes.
  • aria_menu (aria) - Indicates the presence of role="menu" attribute.
  • aria_hidden (aria) - Indicates the presence of aria-hidden="true" attribute.
  • aria_expanded (aria) - Indicates the presence of aria-expanded attribute.
  • aria_haspopup (aria) - Indicates the presence of aria-haspopup attribute.
• The server_image_map error item has been removed. These are generally non-existent on the web.

Functionality Changes

• Chrome rendering engine
  The API will feature a Chrome rendering engine for back-end analysis. This supports faster and more accurate accessibility evaluation.
• User agent string customization
  You can pass a &useragent= parameter to override the default up-to-date Chrome on Mac user agent string. This, along with setting viewport sizes, can allow better analysis of mobile web content.
• New evaluation rules as documented above
• CSS selector outputs
  Get details/counts for WAVE items, plus CSS selector values for each item with &reporttype=4. CSS selectors can be used to associate WAVE items/errors with specific page elements.
• Numerous bug and performance fixes
  The API is now faster, more accurate, and has fewer false positives than ever before. The contrast checking logic has been entirely rewritten to avoid the majority of false positives.

Feedback

If you have feedback or recommendations on the WAVE API Specification, please contact us.