VPAT Information for WA (The LISTSERV 17.5 Web Interface)

• Chapter 3: Functional Performance Criteria
• Chapter 5: Software
• Chapter 6: Support Documentation and Services

Chapter 3: Functional Performance Criteria (FPC)

Chapter 4: Hardware

LISTSERV is software only, therefore the Hardware section has been removed as it does not apply.

Chapter 5: Software

Chapter 6: Support Documentation and Services

Remarks and Explanations

For most of the supported accessibility criteria, the "Remarks and Explanations" are as follows.

This assessment applies to the version of WA and the web templates in the file default.wwwtpl supplied in the kit for LISTSERV 17.5 and later.

The functions of LISTSERV are invoked with a command line interface accessible by sending plain text email commands to special email addresses on the LISTSERV server. The Web Interface to LISTSERV (also known as "WA") provides an alternative method of interacting with LISTSERV to perform some (though not all) of its functions.

The Web Interface is available for use with LISTSERV on all operating systems. The Web Interface is not required for using LISTSERV, and site maintainers may choose not to install it even on the platforms where it is supported.

Use of the Web Interface is not required for using LISTSERV, and users with special requirements have the option of interacting with LISTSERV through an email-based command interface instead of using WA. The choice of interface being used for communication is solely at the discretion of the user. It is assumed that a person requiring assistive technology will be using an appropriate platform or client that supports it.

L-Soft has gone to a lot of effort to make the WA templates as accessible as possible "out-of-the-box". However, each site maintainer has the option of customizing all the templates used by WA, and each list owner has the option to customize all the list-related templates for each list. L-Soft can make no representations about the accessibility of customized templates; the site maintainers and list owners are responsible for any changes they introduce.

In general, HTML elements of each template and web page conform to the following:

• All images have "alt" tags. If desired, all text used can be changed or translated by the site maintainers or list owners using Edit Mode or by editing the TEXT templates in the Web Template Editor. Images are used as icons or buttons only. No complex images requiring a "long description" are used. Image maps are not used.
• Colors are used for aesthetics only, not to convey information. In addition, site maintainers and list owners can edit the global stylesheet that controls all colors, font sizes and the appearance of the Web Interface.
• The stylesheet is used for aesthetics only. If desired, site maintainers and list owners can freely edit or even disable the use of the global stylesheet.
• No traditional frames are used. The message viewer for the list archives uses an iframe to display HTML parts. Users can also view the HTML parts in a separate window by following a link and can disable the use of the iframe altogether by making the text part the default view in Preferences.
• No blinking or movement is used. Pages refresh only at user request.
• The Web Interface uses scripts to display pop-up help windows and to power the pull-down navigation bar. The functionality of all scripts can be modified by customizing the templates used by WA.
• No applets or plug-ins are used directly by the Web Interface. Email messages that have been sent to LISTSERV lists and archived may occasionally have attachments. These attachments may require a third-party application to view while using the Web Interface to browse list archives. L-Soft is not responsible for the accessibility and format of email messages sent through LISTSERV by its users.
• All forms use the preferred <LABEL> tags to explicitly match labels to form fields. In a few advanced functions, for programmatic reasons, the "alt" method of labeling the form fields was used. For example, the fields in the advanced filter function of the Changelog reporting pages use the "alt" attribute for labeling. Although this method of labeling is considered to meet accessibility guidelines, some assistive technologies may not be able to make use of the "alt" attribute. Advanced users who need access to all functions should avail themselves of assistive technology that can use the "alt" attribute for form field labeling. The majority of users will never need to use the affected forms.
• The Web Interface includes a <a href="#skipnavigation"> link on every page, which bypasses the links in the main navigation bar.
• No timed responses are required when entering data or responses.

The pages of the Web Interface are generated dynamically depending on changing conditions (address accessing, status of address accessing, list settings, function being accessed, external factors of the server on which it is running, etc.). It is impossible for L-Soft to test every page under every possible condition. We believe that we have provided sufficient coverage in our accessibility testing.

If, despite our efforts, any page is found to be inaccessible, subscribers should refer to their list owners, and list owners should refer to the site maintainers. Site maintainers who find that an accessibility issue lies within the L-Soft supplied "out-of-the-box" templates rather than in their customizations are encouraged both to immediately fix the problem for their site (by customizing their site templates) and to report the problem to L-Soft support so that development can make the appropriate fixes for all future versions of WA.

There are several types of LISTSERV users, and interaction with WA is dependent on the type of the user.

Subscribers

List subscribers are people who have requested and have been granted permission to subscribe to a particular mailing list so that they may receive the email messages sent through the list.

List subscribers may perform the following tasks using WA:

• For lists where archives are available, read archived email messages. L-Soft can make no statement about the accessibility of the archived messages. WA displays the email messages that were sent to the list, and accessibility of these email messages is in the hands of the users who post the messages to LISTSERV.
• Depending on the list setup, subscribers may also post messages to be distributed to other subscribers.
• Subscribe to a list, sign off from a list, or query or change their subscription options of a list that they are subscribed to.

All of the above tasks can alternatively be accomplished by sending email messages to the LISTSERV command address or to the list address (for posting).

List Moderators

List moderators review messages posted to "moderated" mailing lists to determine whether the content of the message is consistent with the goal of the list and approve the messages to be distributed to the list's subscribers.

List moderators may perform the following tasks using WA:

• Review email messages that were posted by subscribers of a moderated list. L-Soft can make no statement about the accessibility of the messages themselves.
• Approve messages to be posted.
• Reject messages.

All of the above tasks can alternatively be accomplished by sending email messages to the LISTSERV command address.

List Owners

List owners are the administrators of a list. They determine list policy and behavior, and may add, delete and modify subscriptions to the list.

List owners may perform the following tasks using WA:

• Change the behavior of the list by editing the plain-text configuration (the "list header") or by using the "Wizards", which provide forms with pull-down menus, checkboxes, or text entry fields for each of the list configuration keywords.
• Add, remove or change options for subscribers.
• Modify plain text templates to customize certain messages sent to subscribers relative to the list.
• List owners may also need to perform the same tasks as subscribers or list moderators, above.

All of the above tasks can alternatively be accomplished by sending email messages to the LISTSERV command address.

LISTSERV Site Maintainer

LISTSERV site maintainers are responsible for keeping the LISTSERV service running. They are also responsible for creating new lists.

LISTSERV site maintainers may perform the following tasks using WA:

• Create new lists.
• Make site configuration changes.
• Optionally, customize sitewide mail and web templates. In the case of web templates, this requires a good knowledge of HTML coding.
• Site maintainers may also need to perform the same tasks as subscribers, list moderators and list owners, above.

All of the above tasks can alternatively be accomplished by sending email messages to the LISTSERV command address.

Documentation

Documentation for LISTSERV is available from the L-Soft web site at http://www.lsoft.com/resources/manuals.asp. It is provided primarily in the following formats:

• HTML for simple navigation and online reading using any accessible web browser of the user's choice.
• PDF for downloading and reading offline using any accessible PDF reader software, or producing hardcopy using any suitable replication device (e.g. a laser printer, Braille embosser, or similar).
• Plain-text; some documents can be retrieved through email commands and delivered to the user's email client.

These formats are widely compatible with assistive technologies used by people with impaired ability to access a computer system.

About These Assessments

This page was adapted from the Product Accessibility Template® Version 2.0, dated October 2017.

The purpose of the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template is to assist federal contracting officials in making preliminary assessments regarding the availability of commercial electronic and information technology products and services with features that support accessibility.

The first column contains the lettered paragraphs of the subsections of the Section 508 standards. The second column describes the level of support for the provisions in that paragraph (ITIC's suggested language is used). The third column contains any additional remarks and explanations regarding specific features of the product that provide the support.

All assessments on this page are for the latest version of the Web Interface. If you are running an earlier version, you should upgrade for maximum accessibility.

The Web Interface pages are dynamically created, and their exact content depends not only on specific customizations made by the site administrator or list owner, but even on the data entered by each individual user, their status (as a non-subscriber, subscriber, list owner or site administrator) and other conditions. As such it is impossible to test every single page that might ever be generated by WA.