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Web accessibility refers to the practice of making Website s usable by people of all abilities and Disabilities . When sites are correctly designed, developed and edited, all users can have equal access to information and functionality. For example, when a site is coded with semantically meaningful HTML , with textual equivalents provided for images and with links named meaningfully, this helps blind users using text-to-speech software and/or text-to-Braille hardware. When text and images are large and/or enlargable, it is easier for users with poor sight to read and understand the content. When links are underlined (or otherwise differentiated) as well as coloured, this ensures that Colour Blind users will be able to notice them. When clickable links and areas are large, this helps users who cannot control a Mouse with precision. When pages are coded so that users can navigate by means of the Keyboard alone, or a single Switch Access device alone, this helps users who cannot use a mouse or even a standard keyboard. When videos are Closed Caption ed or a Sign Language version is available, deaf and hard of hearing users can understand video. When flashing effects are avoided or made optional, users prone to Seizure s caused by these effects are not put at risk. And when content is written in plain language and illustrated with instructional diagrams and animations, users with Dyslexia and Learning Difficulties are better able to understand the content. When sites are correctly built and maintained, all of these users can be accommodated while not impacting on the usability of the site for non-disabled users. The needs that Web accessibility aims to address include:
ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGIES USED FOR WEB BROWSING Disabled users use Assistive Technologies such as the following to enable and assist web browsing:
GUIDELINES ON ACCESSIBLE WEB DESIGN Web Content Accessibility Guidelines See Also: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines In 1999 the Web Accessibility Initiative , a project by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), published the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines WCAG 1.0 . In recent years, these have been widely accepted as the definitive guidelines on how to create accessible websites. Since 2003, the WAI has been working on the second edition of these guidelines, the WCAG 2.0 , which aim to be up to date and more technology neutral. This is currently at the Working Draft stage. Criticism of WAI guidelines In articles such as WCAC 2.0: The new W3C guidelines evaluated , To Hell with WCAG 2.0 and Testability Costs Too Much , the WAI has been criticised for allowing WCAG 1.0 to get increasingly out of step with today's technologies and techniques for creating and consuming web content, for the slow pace of development of WCAG 2.0, for making the new guidelines difficult to navigate and understand, and other argued failings. In one attempt to provide guidelines that are designed to be up to date, easier to understand, and more relevant and practical to typical web development projects, Joe Clark's WCAG Samurai project has published an unofficial set of errata to WCAG 1.0. Other guidelines Philippines As part of the Web Accessibility Initiatives In The Philippines , the government through the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons (NCWDP) board approved the recommendation of forming an adhoc or core group of webmasters that will help in the implementation of the Biwako Millennium Framework set by the UNESCAP . The Philippines was also the place where the Interregional Seminar and Regional Demonstration Workshop on Accessible Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) to Persons with Disabilities was held where eleven countries from Asia - Pacific were represented. The Manila Accessible Information And Communications Technologies Design Recommendations was drafted and adopted in 2003. United Kingdom In the UK, the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) in collaboration with BSI have published Pas 78 which outlines good practice in commissioning accessible websites. LEGALLY REQUIRED WEB ACCESSIBILITY A growing number of countries around the world have introduced legislation which either directly addresses the need for websites and other forms of communication to be accessible to people with disabilities, or which addresses the more general requirement for people with disabilities not to be discriminated against. Australia In 2000, an Australian blind man won a court case against the Sydney Organising Committee Of The Olympic Games (SOCOG) . This was the first successful case under Disability Discrimination Act 1992 because SOCOG had failed to make their official website, Sydney Olympic Games , adequately accessible to blind users. The Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) also published World Wide Web Access: Disability Discrimination Act Advisory Notes . All Governments in Australia also have policies and guidelines that require accessible public websites; Vision Australia maintain a complete list of Australian web accessibility policies. http://www.visionaustralia.org.au/info.aspx?page=639 Ireland In Ireland , the Disability Act 2005 was supplemented with the National Disability Authority's Code of Practice on Accessible Public Services in July 2006. It is a practical guide to help all Government Departments and nearly 500 public bodies to comply with their obligations under the Disability Act 2005. United Kingdom In the to accompany the Act does refer explicitly to websites as one of the "services to the public" which should be considered covered by the Act. United States In the U.S. , the Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires that Federal agencies and their contractors give disabled employees and members of the public access to information (including web sites) that is comparable to the access available to others; the Americans With Disabilities Act Of 1990 prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability; and Section 225 of the Telecommunications Act Of 1996 requires suppliers to make telecommunications products and services accessible unless not requiring significant difficulty or expense. It is complicated, and dependent on case law, exactly how the latter two apply to Web site accessibility. On September 7, 2006, Judge Marilyn Hall Patel ruled in '' National Federation Of The Blind V. Target Corporation '' that a retailer with a physical storefront may be sued if its website is inaccessible to the blind. However, Judge Patel did not rule On The Merits of the plaintiff's case, which will be adjudicated at a later date. WEBSITE ACCESSIBILITY AUDITS A growing number of organisations, companies and consultants offer ''website accessibility audits''. These audits, a type of System Testing , identify accessibility problems that exist within a website, and provide advice and guidance on the steps that need to be taken to correct these problems. A range of methods are used to audit websites for accessibility:
Each of these methods has its strengths and weaknesses:
Ideally, a combination of methods should be used to assess the accessibility of a website. SEE ALSO
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