[uf-discuss] "abbr" and accessibility - a work around.

[Andy Mabbett]

I've been working with Great Circle Mapper to add hCard and geo
microformats to their website. This has been done; for example on:

  <http://gc.kls2.com/cgi-bin/gc?PATH=BHX-HKG%0D%0A%0D%0A&RANGE=&PATH-COLOR=red&PATH-UNITS=nm&SPEED-GROUND=&SPEED-UNITS=kts&RANGE-
STYLE=best&RANGE-COLOR=navy&MAP-STYLE=>

  (aka <http://tinyurl.com/yrlj9t>)

and they've come up with this way of working-around recent concerns
about mis-use of "abbr":

  <span class="smaller geo">
    <abbr class="latitude" title="52.453856"></abbr>52^27'14"N
    <abbr class="longitude" title="-1.748028"></abbr>01^44'53"W
  </span>

(degree symbols replaced with ASCII "^")

I admire the lateral thinking, but I wonder if this is any better, from
the PoV of people using assistive technology? If it is, it would seem to
provide a simple work-around to recent concerns.

-- 
Andy Mabbett