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Accessibility 101: Cutting through the FUD

a presentation by

Patrick Douglas Crispen

NetSquirrel.com

Our Goals• Define accessibility• Review some

accessibility laws and guidelines

• Demonstrate how you can make your content more accessible

• Review some accessibility tools and resources

• DO ALL OF THIS IN ENGLISH!

WHAT IS ACCESSIBILITY?Part One

FUD?

• Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt

• FUD is generally an attempt to influence public perception by disseminating negative (and vague) information.

©2001 Warner Bros., Inc.All Rights Reserved.

What is “Accessibility?”

• Accessibility is removing barriers for your students—and the public at large—to perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with the content you create.– Usually, this content (web pages,

multimedia, etc.) is placed on the World Wide Web.

• Your goal is to maximize the number of people who can use your content and minimize the number who cannot.

BUT …

• Keep in mind that your content will NEVER be 100% accessible to everyone … and it doesn’t have to be.

• Accessibility isn’t a switch.

©2002 The New Yorker Collection from cartoonbank.com. All Rights Reserved.

Barriers?

• Visual– Blind– Low vision– Color blind– Language

processing

• Auditory

• Motor/Physical– Spinal cord injury– Parkinson’s – Multiple Sclerosis

• Speech• Cognitive/Learning

disabilities

Déjà vu?

• Okay, so these barriers don’t exactly match Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences … but they’re kind of close.

• And we’ve been using that framework for years.

Accessibility is just a different way of doing the stuff we’re kind of sort of doing in our

classrooms already.

Clearing up Some Common Misconceptions

• Accessibility is not just for people who are blind.

• Text-only versions of your content are not an acceptable solution.

• Accessibility does not make your content dull and boring.

• Making your content accessible isn’t all that hard or expensive.

From Web Accessibility: Web Standards and Regulatory Compliance (2006) pg. 32-42

Accessibility isn’t about accommodating disabilities.

It’s about removing barriers for everyone.

The Benefits

• Best practices • Increases your

audience• Transparent• Often easier to

update and modify

• Streamlines your pages so they load faster

• Better browser compatibility

• Higher keyword density = better Google rankings

Why Is Accessibility Important?

• Up to 15% of the public has some form of disability.

• The population is aging.

• Google rewards accessibility.

• (It’s the law.)

HOW DO PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES ACCESS YOUR CONTENT?

Part Two

Tools and Techniques

Assistive Technologies (AT)

– Blind: screen readers; Braille machines; magnifiers

– Deaf: closed captioning

– Physical: Voice recognition, switches and pointing sticks, touch screens

Same technologies but configured differently

– Keyboard navigation– Browser or system

font size– Browser window size – Color settings– Style sheets

A Short Demonstration

• Fresno State University’s “Know Your Users” video

• http://tinyurl.com/2hhy9b

• Requires RealPlayer

Classroom Activity: Fresno Video

• Don’t show the video, recreate it.• Ask community leaders for the names of

people who are blind, have limited visual acuity [macular degeneration, colorblindness, etc.], are deaf, or have limited motor skills and use assistive technologies.

• Invite those people to your classroom.• Record the session.• Caption the video and post it on You Tube

or Google Video

Another Demonstrationhttp://www.w3.org/WAI/EO/2005/Demo/before/

• The W3C’s Web Accessibility Initiative group created before and after demonstration that shows the barriers imposed by an inaccessible web page.

• Search for W3C WAI Before and After

• Notice how the fixes in the “after” are transparent?

REMEMBER: Accessibility isn’t about accommodating disabilities. It’s about removing barriers for

everyone.

THE LAW AND THE STANDARDS

Part Three

IANAL

The Legal Landscape

Section 504

Schools, colleges, and universities are “prohibited from discrimination

on the basis of disability in public and private programs and activities.”

Section 504• Sec. 504.(a) No otherwise qualified individual with a

disability in the United States … shall, solely by reason of her or his disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance …

• (b) For the purposes of this section, the term "program or activity" means all of the operations of …

• (2)(A) a college, university, or other postsecondary institution, or a public system of higher education; or

• (B) a local educational agency (as defined in section 14101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965), system of vocational education, or other school system;

Section 508

16 Rules for Web Accessibility

Section 508

• Section 508 is an amendment to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and is NOT part of the ADA.

• Section 508 prohibits federal agencies from buying, developing, maintaining, or using electronic and information technology that is inaccessible to people with disabilities.

508 and You

• Section 508 applies to federal agencies, not schools and not you and me.

• Public compliance with Section 508 is completely voluntary. You not required to comply with section 508 unless your state, district, or school requires you to comply.

• Comply anyhow.

IANAL

Accessibility and the Classroom

• If the audience is your students and you know that none of your students have a disability, you can most likely post your inaccessible content to the web without fear of reprisals.

• Make your content accessible anyhow.• If your audience is the world or any

group of people you don’t know, make your content accessible.

IANAL

Section 508 Checklist

• webaim.org/standards/508/checklist

• Let’s hold off on that because I want to compare Section 508 to the WCAG standards.

WCAG

The W3C’s international accessibility standard

WCAG

• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines is an international standard developed by the World Wide Web Consortium.

• WCAG has 13 guidelines (and 60 success criteria) that are technology neutral

COMPARING WCAG 2.0 TO SECTION 508

WCAG 2.0 Principles

1. Perceivable - Information and user interface components must be perceivable by users

2. Operable - User interface components must be operable by users

3. Understandable - Information and operation of user interface must be understandable by users

4. Robust - Content must be robust enough that it can be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies

Principle 1: Perceivable

Information and user interface components must be perceivable by users

Text EquivalentsWCAG 2.0 Guideline 1.1

Provide text alternatives for any non-text content so that it can be changed into other forms people need such as large print, braille, speech, symbols or simpler language

Section 508 § 1194.22 (a)

A text equivalent for every non-text element shall be provided (e.g., via "alt", "longdesc", or in element content)

Synchronized Multimedia

WCAG 2.0 Guideline 1.2

Provide synchronized alternatives for multimedia

Section 508 § 1194.22 (b)

Equivalent alternatives for any multimedia presentation shall be synchronized with the presentation.

Style Sheets


Create content that can be presented in different ways (for example spoken aloud, simpler layout, etc.) without losing information or structure

Section 508 § 1194.22 (d, g, h)• (d) Documents shall be

organized so they are readable without requiring an associated style sheet.

• (g) Row and column headers shall be identified for data tables.

• (h) Markup shall be used to associate data cells and header cells for data tables that have two or more logical levels of row or column headers.

Color


Make it easier for people with disabilities to see and hear content including separating foreground from background

Section 508 § 1194.22 (c)

Web pages shall be designed so that all information conveyed with color is also available without color, for example from context or markup.

Principle 2: Operable

User interface components must be operable by users

Keyboard Functionality


Make all functionality available from a keyboard

Section 508

N/A

Timed Responses


Provide users with disabilities enough time to read and use content

Section 508 § 1194.22 (p)

When a timed response is required, the user shall be alerted and given sufficient time to indicate more time is required.

Flicker


Do not create content that is known to cause seizures

Section 508 § 1194.22 (j)

Pages shall be designed to avoid causing the screen to flicker with a frequency greater than 2 Hz and lower than 55 Hz.

Navigation


Provide ways to help users with disabilities navigate, find content and determine where they are

Section 508 § 1194.22 (e, f, i, o)(e) Redundant text links shall be

provided for each active region of a server-side image map.

(f) Client-side image maps shall be provided instead of server-side image maps except where the regions cannot be defined with an available geometric shape.

(i) Frames shall be titled with text that facilitates frame identification and navigation.

(o) A method shall be provided that permits users to skip repetitive navigation links.

Principle 3: Understandable

Information and operation of user interface must be

understandable by users

Understandability


Make text content readable and understandable

Section 508

N/A?

Operability


Make Web pages appear and operate in predictable ways

Section 508

N/A?

Error Correction


Help users avoid and correct mistakes

Section 508

N/A?

Principle 4: Robust

Content must be robust enough that it can be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies

Compatibility


Maximize compatibility with current and future user agents, including assistive technologies

Section 508

N/A?

Missing 508 stuff

k) A text-only page, with equivalent information or functionality, shall be provided to make a web site comply with the provisions of this part, when compliance cannot be accomplished in any other way. The content of the text-only page shall be updated whenever the primary page changes.

l) When pages utilize scripting languages to display content, or to create interface elements, the information provided by the script shall be identified with functional text that can be read by assistive technology.

Missing 508 stuff

m) When a web page requires that an applet, plug-in or other application be present on the client system to interpret page content, the page must provide a link to a plug-in or applet that complies with §1194.21(a) through (l).

n) When electronic forms are designed to be completed on-line, the form shall allow people using assistive technology to access the information, field elements, and functionality required for completion and submission of the form, including all directions and cues.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR CONTENT ACCESSIBLE

Part Four

How to Make Accessible Web Sites

1. Images & animations: Use the alt attribute to describe the function of each visual.

2. Image maps. Use the client-side map and text for hotspots.

3. Multimedia. Provide captioning and transcripts of audio, and descriptions of video.

Source: http://www.w3.org/WAI/quicktips/


4. Hypertext links. Use text that makes sense when read out of context. For example, avoid "click here."

5. Page organization. Use headings, lists, and consistent structure. Use CSS for layout and style where possible.

6. Graphs & charts. Summarize or use the longdesc attribute.



7. Scripts, applets, & plug-ins. Provide alternative content in case active features are inaccessible or unsupported.

8. Frames. Use the noframes element and meaningful titles.

9. Tables. Make line-by-line reading sensible. Summarize.

10.Check your work. Validate. Use tools, checklist, and guidelines at http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG


How to Make Accessible Word Documents

• Create structured documents [using Word styles]

• Provide alternate text for images– Right-click > Format

Picture …

– Click the Web tab

– Enter your text

• Save as filtered HTML

Source: http://www.webaim.org/techniques/word/

Or …

• Download and install the Illinois Accessible Web Publishing Wizard for Microsoft Office.

• This works with Office 2003 or earlier but not Office 2007 (yet).

How to Make Accessible PowerPoint Presentations

• You can’t.

• Post the original .ppt or .pptx file

• Convert the file to HTML and post that as well.– The Illinois Accessible Web Publishing

Wizard for Microsoft Office converts PPTs to HTML.

– Or, you can create a new HTML version of your presentation from scratch.

Source: http://www.webaim.org/techniques/powerpoint/

ACCESSIBILITY TOOLS AND RESOURCES

Part Five

The Accessibility Bible

Web Accessibility: Web Standards and Regulatory Compliance (2006)

Jim Thatcher et al.

ISBN: 1-59059-638-2

$49.99

The Standards

• Section 508http://www.section508.gov/

• WCAG 1http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/

• WCAG 2http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG20/

Supporting Organizations

• W3C Web Accessibility Initiativehttp://www.w3.org/WAI/

• WebAIMhttp://www.webaim.org/

• National Center for Accessible Media [at WGBH Boston]http://ncam.wgbh.org/

Accessibility Consulting and Training

• Jim Thatcherhttp://www.jimthatcher.com/

• Knowbilityhttp://www.knowbility.org/

• Web Accessibility Principles by Zoe GillenwaterISBN: 1-5961-395-XOnline training movies at Lynda.com$49.95 for CD / accessible online with a Lynda.com accountFull disclosure: I am a Lynda.com author

Our Goals• Define accessibility• Review some

accessibility laws and guidelines

• Demonstrate how you can make your content more accessible

• Review some accessibility tools and resources

• DO ALL OF THIS IN ENGLISH!

Accessibility 101: Cutting through the FUD

a presentation by

Patrick Douglas Crispen

NetSquirrel.com

This work is licensed by Patrick Crispen to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 license

doumi94

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