Sections of a resource

Xhtml Role Attribute Module

A module to support role classification of elements

The role attribute takes as its value one or more white-space separated QNames. The attribute describes the role(s) the current element plays in the context of the document. It is used by applications and assistive technologies to determine the purpose of UI widgets. In the case of a web page it may be declarative as a function of particular elements or it may be an attribute which is configurable by the page author. Additionally, role information may be used to define each action which may be performed on an element. This allows a user to make informed decisions on which actions may be taken on an element and activate the selected action in a device independent way.

main

This defines the main content of a document.

secondary

This is any unique section of the document. In the case of a portal, this may include but not be limited to: show times; current weather; or stocks to watch.

navigation

This is the navigation bar on a web document. This is typically a list of links to other pages on the site or other areas of the same document.

banner

A banner is usually defined as the advertisement at the top of a web page. The banner content typically contains the site or company logo and other key advertisements for the site.

contentinfo

This is information about the content on the page. For example, footnotes, copyrights, links to privacy statements, etc. would belong here.

note

The content is parenthetic or ancillary to the main content of the resource.

seealso

Indicates that the element contains content that is related to the main content of the page.

search

This is the search section of a web document. This is typically a form used to submit search requests about the site or a more general Internet wide search service.

Defining Abstract Modules

LinkTypes

Authors may use the following recognized link types, listed here with their conventional interpretations. A LinkTypes value refers to a space-separated list of link types. White space characters are not permitted within link types.

These link types are case-insensitive, i.e., “Alternate” has the same meaning as “alternate”.

User agents, search engines, etc. may interpret these link types in a variety of ways. For example, user agents may provide access to linked documents through a navigation bar.

Alternate

Designates substitute versions for the document in which the link occurs. When used together with the hreflang attribute, it implies a translated version of the document. When used together with the media attribute, it implies a version designed for a different medium (or media).

Stylesheet

Refers to an external style sheet. See the Style Module for details. This is used together with the link type “Alternate” for user-selectable alternate style sheets.

Start

Refers to the first document in a collection of documents. This link type tells search engines which document is considered by the author to be the starting point of the collection.

Next

Refers to the next document in a linear sequence of documents. User agents may choose to pre-load the “next” document, to reduce the perceived load time.

Prev

Refers to the previous document in an ordered series of documents. Some user agents also support the synonym “Previous”.

Contents

Refers to a document serving as a table of contents. Some user agents also support the synonym ToC (from “Table of Contents”).

Index

Refers to a document providing an index for the current document.

Glossary

Refers to a document providing a glossary of terms that pertain to the current document.

Copyright

Refers to a copyright statement for the current document.

Chapter

Refers to a document serving as a chapter in a collection of documents.

Section

Refers to a document serving as a section in a collection of documents.

Subsection

Refers to a document serving as a subsection in a collection of documents.

Appendix

Refers to a document serving as an appendix in a collection of documents.

Help

Refers to a document offering help (more information, links to other sources information, etc.)

Bookmark

Refers to a bookmark. A bookmark is a link to a key entry point within an extended document. The title attribute may be used, for example, to label the bookmark. Note that several bookmarks may be defined in each document.