Tried Surfing the Web Blindfolded?
Browsing the Web is a highly visual experience. Graphical menus, images, text, video and color schemes set the mood of a Web site and to help us accomplish all sorts of tasks (like paying bills, finding the cheapest plane fare or watching videos). With all there is to see online, it’s a good thing most of us have a decent set of peepers.
But what if you were blind? Have you ever tried surfing the Web with your eyes closed? How about navigating Web sites without a mouse? Sounds crazy, but try it and see what happens. Go to a Web site – say, Wikipedia.org – close your eyes, and find the entry for “screen reader.” How was it? Does “nearly impossible” come anywhere close to describing your experience?
Unfortunately, that’s the reality for nearly 20 percent of the online population. Disabled users may not be able to see, hear, move, use a keyboard or mouse, or process information.
To help them get around online, disabled users rely on adaptive technology. For example, a blind person may use a screen reader, which reads aloud text that is presented on the screen. These technologies and other alternatives are helpful, but they’re only as good as the sites they read. Poorly designed Web sites – sites that don’t separate the content, structure and presentation aspects of the pages – make it nearly impossible for assistive technologies to digest the content and regurgitate the message as the authors intended, much less in a way that makes any sense.
Federal Requirements for Web Accessibility
So, how can disabled users enjoy the Web like the sighted majority? Simple: by using sites designed for accessibility. The same federally mandated principles that require television subtitles and wheelchair accessible buildings have been applied to the Web in what’s called Accessibility Standards.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) “requires covered entities to furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and services where necessary to ensure effective communication with individuals with disabilities.” Online, this translates into the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) and Section 508.
In April 1997 the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) launched the Web Accessibility Initiative and published guidelines that define how to make Web content more accessible to people with disabilities. In 2008, the W3C published an updated version of its accessibility guidelines, called the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0.
In 1998, The U.S. Government endorsed the WCAG by requiring that all federal Web sites and sites that are under a federal contract must comply with the guidelines. Section 508 was enacted to eliminate barriers in information technology, to make available new opportunities for people with disabilities, and to encourage development of technologies that will help achieve these goals. The law applies to all Federal agencies that develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology.
Softwyre’s Commitment to ADA Compliance
As a socially responsible Web development company, Softwyre often uses design and programming techniques that make our Web sites accessible to all users, not just those without disabilities. By observing and understanding the guidelines for accessible Web design, we produce sites that are visually attractive, serve their marketing and business purposes, and are accessible to all. To see for yourself, check out the ADA compliant Web site we designed for the University of Central Arkansas.
In the next months we will discuss the guidelines that Web firms should employ to create accessible Web sites, and we will explore the surprising business advantages behind creating Web sites that are available to all users, regardless of whether the government requires it.
Content for this article comes from:
http://www.section508.gov/
http://www.w3c.org/
http://www.ada.gov/
