Web Accessibility Introduction

What is Web Accessibility

Web accessibility is making the Web usable by everyone, regardless of disability.

Web accessibility focuses on designing so that people with disabilities can use the Web effectively. For example, some people cannot use a mouse. Web accessibility ensures that the Web can be used with only a keyboard and does not require a mouse.

More specifically, the goal of Web accessibility is that people with visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, and neurological disabilities can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with the Web.

How People with Disabilities Use the Web describes how different disabilities affect Web use and includes scenarios of people with disabilities using the Web.

Components of Web Accessibility

Web accessibility efforts often focus on the responsibilities of Web developers; however, Web accessibility is dependent on many factors. Components of Web Accessibility explains the integrated role of Web site developers, Web browsers and media players, assistive technologies, Web authoring tools and evaluation tools, Web technologies, and Web users.

Benefits of Web Accessibility

An accessible Web is flexible to meet different needs, situations, and preferences. Web accessibility can benefit all Web users, including people without disabilities, people with temporary disabilities, and older people. For example, people without disabilities might need to use the Web without a mouse in certain situations.

Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case for Your Organization lists many benefits of Web accessibility. The Technical Factors and Financial Factors pages include benefits to organizations that make their Web site accessible.

Why Web Accessibility is Important

The Web plays an increasingly key role in education, employment, commerce, and government. An accessible Web that allows people with disabilities to actively participate in society is essential for equal opportunities in many areas. Web Accessibility is a Social Issue discusses the opportunity the Web offers of unprecedented access to information and interaction for people with disabilities.

There are millions of people who have disabilities that affect their use of the Web. Currently most Web sites are designed so that many people with disabilities have unnecessary difficulties using them or cannot use them at all. However, if Web developers made Web tools and Web sites accessible, people with disabilities could use the Web effectively, as demonstrated in How People with Disabilities Use the Web.

Web accessibility is required by law in some cases. Policies Relating to Web Accessibility lists information related to Web accessibility governmental laws and policies around the world. Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case for Your Organization: Legal Factors includes guidance on determining which policies apply to a specific Web site.

Making the Web Accessible

The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) developers guidelines which are international standards for Web accessibility. Components of Web Accessibility explains the role of the different WAI guidelines for Web content, browsers, media players, assistive technologies, authoring tools, and accessibility evaluation tools.

The WAI guidelines and support material to help implement the guidelines, such as Quick Tips to Make Accessible Web Sites, are provided free on the WAI Web site. Many other organizations also provide resources to help make the Web accessible.

Making a Specific Site Accessible

The effort required to make a Web site accessible depends on many factors, including the type of content, the size and complexity of the site, and the development tools and environment. Many accessibility features are easily implemented when planned from the beginning of a Web development project.

Most sites today are not accessible primarily because of lack of awareness of accessibility issues when the site was initially developed. Retrofitting existing sites can require significant effort, especially sites that do not meet other Web standards (such as XHTML) and sites with certain types of content such as multimedia.

Implementation Plan for Web Accessibility lists basic steps for making an organization's Web site accessible.

Evaluating Web Accessibility

It is fairly easy to determine if a Web page does or does not meet some of the basic accessibility guidelines by conducting a preliminary review with simple techniques such as interacting without a mouse and changing settings in a common browser. A comprehensive evaluation to determine if a Web site meets all accessibility guidelines is much more complex.

There are automated tools that help with evaluation; however, no tool alone can determine if a site meets accessibility guidelines. Knowledgeable human evaluation is required to determine if a site meets all accessibility guidelines.

Evaluating Web Sites for Accessibility includes a section on preliminary review with techniques to quickly identify some of the accessibility problems on a Web site, and on conformance evaluation with general procedures and tips for evaluating to accessibility guidelines.

Conclusion

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