1. Web Accessibility What is it? Why is it important? Sharon Trerise Coordinator of Accessible IT Northeast ADA & IT Center Employment and Disability Institute www.edi.cornell.edu

2. Who defines web accessibility? World Wide Web Consortium –Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 1 (current) & version 2 (draft) –14 Guidelines: Priority Levels 1, 2 & 3 (Priority 1: must do, Priority 2: should do, Priority 3: may do to improve accessibility) Federal Government –Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act - § 1194.22 Web-based intranet and internet information and applications –16 Standards

3. Who defines web accessibility? New York State –New York State's Official Policy/Standards "Accessibility of State Agency Web-based Intranet and Internet Information and Applications" NYS Statewide Technology Policy P04-002 http://www.oft.state.ny.us/policy/p04-002/index.htm http://www.oft.state.ny.us/policy/p04-002/index.htm NYS Mandatory Technology Standard S04-001 http://www.oft.state.ny.us/policy/s04-001/index.htm http://www.oft.state.ny.us/policy/s04-001/index.htm

4. Who defines web accessibility? Your university system Your individual college Your department

5. What does an accessible web design mean to a person with a disability? People who are blind or visually impaired People who are color blind People who are deaf or hearing impaired People with mobility impairments People with cognitive impairments

6. People who are blind Do not use a mouse May use a screen reader to listen to the content May use a refreshable Braille display All content must be accessible from the keyboard only Images, photos and graphics are unusable Colors are unusable Navigation may be difficult / confusing

7. Blindness: Simulation Using JAWS screen reader –Accessible web pageAccessible web page –Inaccessible web pageInaccessible web page

8. WCAG 1.1: Text Equivalents (Priority 1) Provide a text equivalent for every non-text element (e.g. via “alt”, “longdesc” or in element content). Images Graphical representations of text Image map regions Animations Applets & programmatic objects Frames Scripts Images used as bullets Spacers Graphical buttons Sounds Audio files Audio tracks of video

9. WCAG 2.1: Use of Color (Priority 1) Ensure that all information conveyed with color is also available without color, for example from context or markup WCAG 8.1: Scripts & applets (Priority 1) Make programmatic elements such as scripts and applets directly accessible or compatible with assistive technologies

10. WCAG 3.5: Document Structure (Priority 2) Use header elements to convey document structure and use them according to specification

11. People with Low Vision May use screen magnification software Images, photos and graphics may become unusable when enlarged Navigation may be difficult / confusing

12. Low Vision: Common causes Cataracts Glaucoma

13. Low Vision: Common causes Macular Degeneration Retinopathy

14. Low Vision: Simulation

15. Magnification –Accessible exampleAccessible example –Less accessible exampleLess accessible example IE v. 6.0 –Enlarge fontsEnlarge fonts

16. WCAG 2.2: Color contrast (Priority 2 & 3) Ensure that foreground & background color combinations provide sufficient contrast when viewed by someone having color deficits or when viewed on a black & white screen WCAG 3.4: Relative sizing (Priority 2) Use relative rather than absolute units in markup language attribute values and style sheet property values

17. Color Blindness Approximately 8-10% of the male population and about 0.5% of the female population experience some form of color deficiency Cell phone, PDA and text browser users may not display color Reds & greens are often indistinguishable Other colors may be indistinguishable

18. Color Blindness: Simulation Map of Hurricane Isabel (with color)

19. Color Blindness: Simulation Map of Hurricane Isabel (with red/green colorblindness) Simulated using Vischek (http://www.vischeck.com/vischeck/vischeckURL.php )http://www.vischeck.com/vischeck/vischeckURL.php

21. The flights listed below in RED have been cancelled. The flights in GREEN are departing on time. Delta 1342 United 320 American Airlines 787 Southwest 2390 The flights listed below that have been cancelled are indicated in RED and by an asterisk. The flights in GREEN are departing on time. Delta 1342* United 320 American Airlines 787 Southwest 2390* WCAG 2.1: Use of Color (Priority 1) Ensure that all information conveyed with color is also available without color, for example from context or markup

22. People with mobility impairments May use only the keyboard for navigation May tire quickly May not have fine motor control All content must be accessible from the keyboard Lengthy navigation may cause fatigue Small or moving links are difficult to select

23. Mobility Impairments: Assistive Technology Head wand Adaptive Keyboard Mouth stick

24. Mobility Impairment: Simulation Provide a way to skip over lengthy lists of navigation Inaccessible example Accessible example Ensure the page can be navigated using the keyboard only Inaccessible example

25. WCAG 6.3: Scripts & Applets (Priority 1) Ensure that pages are usable when scripts, applets and other programmatic objects are turned off or not supported. –If this is not possible, provide equivalent information on an alternative accessible page. WCAG 6.4: Device Independence (Priority 2) For scripts and applets, ensure that event handlers are input device-independent.

26. WCAG 7.3: Moving Content (Priority 2) Until user agents allow users to freeze moving content, avoid movement in pages. Section 508, Standard (o): Skip navigation A method shall be provided that permits users to skip repetitive navigation links.

27. People who are deaf or hearing impaired Audio is unusable Video clips that include audio are unusable Audio clips are unusable

28. WCAG 1.4: (Priority 1) For any time-based multimedia presentation (e.g. movie or animation), synchronize equivalent alternatives (e.g. captions or auditory descriptions of the visual track) with the presentation Many people benefit –Students in library w/o headset –People with learning disabilities –People for whom English is not their primary language –People in a noisy environment –Everyone (content is presented in >1 medium)

29. People with cognitive impairments Users may have difficulty focusing on or comprehending lengthy sections of text Complex layouts or inconsistent navigational schemes may be confusing May need content in >1 form Animated images may be distracting Complex layouts may lead to confusion Text-only content may be limiting

30. Cognitive Impairments: Example Complex layouts: –www.msnbc.comwww.msnbc.com –www.cnn.comwww.cnn.com

31. WCAG 14.1: Language (Priority 1) Use the clearest and simplest language appropriate for a site’s content. WCAG 7.2: Use of Blinking (Priority 2) Until user agents allow users to control blinking, avoid causing content to blink

32. WCAG 12.3: Large block of text (Priority 2) Divide large blocks of information into more manageable groups where natural and appropriate

33. Why make your web pages accessible? Who does your audience consist of? –Students (current and prospective) –Faculty –Staff –Alumni –Parents –Community –World EVERYONE

34. Disability as a Function of Age Source: U.S. Census Bureau Report on Americans with Disabilities: 1994-95, P70- 61 (August 1997) Based on Survey of Income and Program Participation, Oct. 1994-Jan. 1995

35. Why make web pages accessible? Continuing Education and Our Aging Population –In 2010, the majority of the US population will be 45 years and older Brian Basset, Cartoonist and creator of syndicated cartoon Adam@Home http://www.microsoft.com/enable/aging/default.aspx

36. Benefits and Costs of Implementation Benefits of accessible web design –Social –Technical –Financial –Legal & policy Costs –Primarily up-front –Ways to reduce costs

37. Social Benefits of accessible design People with disabilities can actively participate (equal opportunity) Improved access for other populations: –Older people –Speakers of other languages –People with low bandwidth connections (rural connection, internet congestion, connection technology, financial) –People using older technology

38. Technical Benefits of accessible design Reduces site development & maintenance time Reduces server load Enables content to be delivered accurately on different configurations Better prepared for future web technologies Meet recognized international standards (W3C WAI)

39. Financial Benefits of accessible design Increased number of users and use –Rank higher in search engines –Usable in more situations (noisy environment) –Increased usability (effective and efficient) Payback from positive social image for organization Decreased risk of legal action Decreased cost for alternative formatted materials

40. Legal & policy benefits What broader accessibility policies apply? Considerations for future policy requirements –More cost effective to build in accessibility now than retrofit later

41. Cost considerations Initial investments –Acquiring knowledge –Establishing processes –Increased development & testing time

42. Cost Considerations Personnel-related –Training & skills development –Hiring expertise (testers, consultants) –Incorporate accessibility into protocols & procedures –Evaluating accessibility of existing site

43. Cost Considerations Potential Initial Capital Costs –Purchasing evaluation tools –Purchasing Assistive Technology for testing –Upgrading technology & tools that support accessibility

44. Cost Considerations On-going Costs –Some additional development time Ex. Captioning video –Additional testing time Testing prototypes with Assistive Technology Reviewing for conformance with standards Quality assurance testing (alt text)

45. Ways to Decrease Costs Incorporate accessibility from the beginning –Easier –Less expensive –More effective Share accessibility resources across organization –Make investments in necessary technology at the organizational level rather than for each individual project

46. Benefits vs Costs Benefits Costs

47. College Web Accessibility Policies California Community College system –Section 508 standards Southwest Missouri State University –SMSU Web PolicySMSU Web Policy –SMSU Web Access Action PlanSMSU Web Access Action Plan Ohio State University –Web Accessibility Policy and Minimum Web Accessibility StandardsWeb Accessibility Policy and Minimum Web Accessibility Standards –OSU Web Accessibility CenterOSU Web Accessibility Center

48. Web Accessibility: Designing for Everyone People using different web browsers People using different screen resolutions People using phone web services People using handheld display units People using car computing systems People using screen readers People who are deaf or hard of hearing People who can’t use a mouse People who are color blind People with differences in attention/perception

49. Resources AccessIT (National Center on Accessible Information Technology in Education) –www.washington.edu/accessitwww.washington.edu/accessit ITTATC (Information Technology Technical Assistance and Training Center) –www.ittatc.orgwww.ittatc.org WebAIM (Web Accessibility in Mind) –www.webaim.orgwww.webaim.org