Accessibility Definitions
-
Accessibility refers to web page
information/content being obtainable and functional by any
person regardless of his or her physical or mental
condition. Examples of disability types include:
-
Visual
- Blind (unable to see visual information)
- Color-Blind (unable to reliably distinguish
colors)
- Limited Vision (can see but not well; may need
large fonts or magnifiers)
-
Hearing
- Deaf (or hard of hearing; cannot hear sounds
reliably)
-
Mobility
- - Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSI)
- - Arthritis
- - Stroke
- - ALS (Arterial Lateral Sclerosis; Lou
Gehrig’s Disease)
- - Spinal Cord Injuries
- - Loss of limbs or digits
- Low Dexterity (unable to use a pointing device
like a mouse and instead must use keyboard or
switch)
-
Cognitive/etc.
- Low Comprehension (having problems understanding
content, textual or otherwise)
- Low Reading (having problems reading text)
- Epilepsy (may be subject to epileptic
episodes)
- Accessibility is responsible and equitable web design. It
is about providing alternative access to information for
those who would otherwise lose their opportunity to use the
web. In contrast inaccessible means unobtainable,
nonfunctional.
Inaccessibility = Barriers to Information
Inaccessible technology interferes with some individual's
ability to obtain and use information quickly and easily.
Accessible Web design means that as many as possible can
participate, regardless of age, disability, or limitations of
available technology. IT should increase the availability of
resources to person with disabilities - barrier-free designs
opens doors to this greater audience
- Creates a digital divide that locks out people from
participating on the Web on the basis of disability
- Limits persons with disabilities ability to work in an
e-environment
- Limits people you can get your message to – good
business to be more inclusive
- It’s the law
From Others
- "What does
Web accessibility mean? To me, it means that anyone using
any kind of Web browsing technology must be able to visit any
site and get a full and complete understanding of the
information contained there, as well as have the full and
complete ability to interact with the site." - Chuck
Letourneau
- Accessible - "Information, regardless of form, structure
or presentation, that can be accessed by any person,
regardless of ability." - Michael G. Paciello
- Lincoln D. Stein coined the phrase"visually chauvinistic"
to refer to inaccessible sites in his article “Speak
to Your Browser .
- "
Accessibility is measure of how easy it is to access,
read, and understand the content of a web site." -
anybrowser.org "
- "Basically, technology is accessible if it can be used as
effectively by people with disabilities as by those without.
" - Jim
Thacher
- The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by
everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect." -
Tim Berners-Lee, W3C Director and inventor of the World Wide
Web
Usability and Accessibility
-
Usability and accessibility are often confused. Some
believe that a usable site is accessible and vice versa.
The two are not exclusive, but it’s important to
understand the difference.
- Usability means that a Web site is intuitive and easy
to use.
- Accessibility means a Web site is as barrier-free as
possible.
- Accessibility and usability are closely related, as they
both improve satisfaction, effectiveness, and efficiency of
the generic user population. But while accessibility is aimed
at making the website open to a much wider user population,
usability is aimed at making the target population of the
website happier, more efficient, more effective.
Staggering Stats
If users with disabilities cannot access a Web site, so
what?
- Harris Poll survey found that Americans with disabilities
spend twice as much time on the Internet as those without
disabilities
-
World Health Organization, 2000, reports the number of
persons with disabilities:
- - 500 million worldwide, 7-10% of population
- - 54 million in US, 20% of the population
- Number continues to grow as population ages and people
are living longer – this number is hard to accurately
predict
- Temporary disabilities are not included in the
statistics
Other benefits of accessible design
Search engines are effectively blind and this is how most
users find information. Besides the disabled, several
populations may not use a graphical browser or may turn
graphics off. 30% of all Web users do not load images for
various reasons including of lack of bandwidth, or because they
don’t believe they are worth the time.
This may be due to hardware limitations such as:
- Older computers or browser versions
- Slow modem connection
- High per-minute charges for Internet connection
- Connection via a mainframe (“dumb”)
terminal
- Wireless Web connection (e.g., cell phone or PDA)
By creating accessible Web sites, you are reaching these
groups as well, extending the range of communication.
Section 508 and Accessibility
- Section 508 itself does not define what
“accessible” means.
- Section 508 provides a baseline for as high an inclusion
of persons with disabilities as possible
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