Designing Accessibility into the Web: 15 Summary Slides

Slide 1: Mike Paciello, A Brief Biography

• Assistive Technology Consultant since 1984
• DEC's VIIS Program Manager
• Creator of VIOLD CD-ROM
• Co-Founder ICADD
• Chair EIA/ADD
• Guest Editor W3C Disabilities Page

Slide 2: Who are you?

• WebMasters?
• System Managers/Anaylsts?
• Engineers?
• Designers (Usability/Graphic)

Slide 3: Terminology

• Accessible, Adaptive, Assistive
• Screen Readers, Voice Synthesizers
• Disability, Functional Limitation, Mobility Impaired, Physically Challenged
• Blind, Dyslexic, Low Vision, Print Impaired, Visually Impaired
• Deaf, Hard-of-hearing

Slide 4: The Workshop Goal

Goal: Teach you how to design a web site that it is inheritantly accessible to all people with disabilities via the server, the client applications, and the content.

How? By:

• Identifying current Web accessibility issues and concerns
• Showing/Demonstrating some of the upcoming technology
• Provide you with a basic set of "web accessibility" design guidelines

Slide 5: Accessibility Issues and Concerns

1. Content
2. Client
3. Server
4. JAVA (naturally...)

Slide 6: Content Issues

• Current state is "Okay"
• Document Formats:
  • PDF (portable document format)
    1. Content authored in PDF is not accessible without the use of "helper apps" for Acrobat browser (Acrobat Access).
    2. Serious problems with all major Web graphic packages.
  • ASCII - too "vanilla", particularly for braille translation software
  • HTML
    1. Does not include good formatting tags for several document elements including tables, forms, some graphic elements (ISMAPS), and multimedia
    2. There is no code for Descriptive Video or Closed Captioning
    3. HTML authoring packages have various accessibility shortfalls
• There are no standard guidelines for creating "accessible HTML" or "accessible PDF"

Slide 7: Client (Browser) Issues

1. Clients vary in usability/accessibility

   LYNX is a good line mode browser IF you are using the Unix or VMS version of Lynx, but it doesn't provide all the functionality (features, updated HTML support) of current GUI browsers.

2. Graphical browsers are problematic by virtue of their GUI environment. (Netscape, Spry Mosaic, Quarterdeck Mosaic, Spyglass Mosaic, etc..etc...)

   THE issue is NOT that they aren't accessible via screen readers, but rather they are missing some of the required code to allow screen reader apps to smoothly navigate, render, and translate the incoming data stream.

3. Browsers do not include accessibility preference protocols (flexible user profiles, "cookies") to determine and/or set the user requirements .

   Example: I'm low-vision and deaf. Turn on screen magnification, captioning, and visual cues for all auditory messages

Slide 8: Server Issues

Servers work on different models, push-pull. None are "intelligent" enough to identify user needs without additional help.

There are no implied "user profile" mechanisms that allow a server to understand that a user wants to view data a specific way (this is a mix between server/browser issue)

Slide 9: JAVA

• Issues are still being researched. Concerns around:
  • Hooks for screen readers (for the blind)
  • Operating system compatibility
  • Interaction with menus, toolbars, dialog boxes, etc...
  • Adding keyboard equivalents
• NCSA, Trace collaborating with National Science Foundation (NSF) and Sun Microsystems.

Slide 10: New Technology

• Adobe working on enhancements to Acrobat to render PDF files that can be read via screen readers
• Compusult working on low-cost, modular, and extensible browser called WebTALK (positioned at rural and EDU market)
• SoftQuad involved in a collaborative work between the University of Toronto and Softquad to implement accessibility into Panorama browser (SGML, HTML, and HyTime)
• Emacspeak via W3 (Bill Perry) browser
• WGBH/NCAM Descriptive Video web page

Slide 11: Designing Accessible Web Pages

Resource Links:

Design of HTML Pages to Increase Their Accessibiliity to Users With Disabilities

A set of guidelines produced and published by Trace Research Center to promote the use of accessible HTML on the world wide web.

The ACT Centre

The ACT Centre's web site for Accessibile Web Page Design. An excellent resource that includes solid guidelines and examples of implementing accessible HTML.

Slide 12: 15 Hints for Designing Accessible Web Pages

1. Image maps have alternate text and separate text link for text only-browsers
2. Provide text alternative to FORMs and an email address to send completed form
3. Tables (bitmaps): provide text alternative and complete description of data and it's context
4. Tables (textual): Provide complete description of data and context
5. Be careful with browser-specific tags. Some line mode browsers cannot properly process.
6. Use unique numbering references for numbered lists (particularly embedded lists)
7. Navigational links in graphical format should contain alternate text
8. Provide alternative, linear text description of text that is in columns (for the blind who use screen readers)
9. If HomePage is all one image, provide alternative version
10. If using special background (wallpaper effect) that is graphical AND contains meaningful information, provide alternative output or description
11. Provide ability to view page in alternate fonts
12. Do not use blinking text
13. Use caution with "bullet" lists. If bullets are meaningful, use alternative way for indicating the visual data
14. Audio clips should contain text alternative or scripts
15. Video clips without sound should provide text scripts for deaf. Audio for blind.

Slide 13: Other Accessibility Considerations

• Browsers should contain "preference pages"
• User selectable fonts (types/sizes) and colors
• Web Applets should conform to standard Windows User Interface conventions
• Provide keyboard access/mappings

Slide 14: WebSites of Interest (Disability Resources)

WebABLE!

Trace Research

WGBH National Center for Accessible Media

GSA/Center for Information Technology

National Library Service for the Blind WebSites of Interest: Resources

University of Toronto

Adaptive Computer Technology Centre

Slide 15: WebSites of Interest (Projects)

pwWebSpeak

pwWebSpeak is a speaking Web browser designed specifically to interact directly with the information on the Web pages and to translate the information content into speech. The user may navigate through the structure of document based on its contents, paragraphs and sentences, rather than having to deal with scrolling and interpreting a structured screen display. pwWebSpeak was designed and built with the visually disabled user in mind.

Panorama

The goal of this project is to develop and begin commercialization of a software browsing tool for networked environments including the Internet and the World Wide Web. Unlike presently available World Wide Web browsers, this browser will be accessible to people with disabilities who require alternative computer access systems. The browser will also exploit previous SoftQuad development by incorporating full SGML viewing capabilities. SGML is recognized as a mark-up standard in the academic, aerospace, automotive, computer, semi-conductor and publishing fields. The product will be released on three platforms namely: Macintosh, Microsoft Windows and UNIX. Thus the browser will be accessible to a wider range of users and will give access to a greater number of diverse information sources.

Designing an Accessible World

Trace Research Center's "Designing An Accessible World" is dedicated (in part) to cooperative efforts linked toward building a more accessible Web.

"ListenUp!" Speech Recognition Plug-In for Netscape

Development version of a PlainTalk Speech Recognition Plug-In for Netscape 2.0. This will only run on PowerMacs.

EMACSPEAK

Emacspeak is the first full-fledged speech output system that will allow someone who cannot see to work directly on a UNIX system. The final production release of Emacspeak made by me while at Digital is Emacspeak-3.75. (Until now, the only option available to visually impaired users has been to use a talking PC as a terminal.) Emacspeak is built on top of Emacs. Once you start Emacs with emacspeak loaded, you get spoken feedback for everything you do.