Category: ICT Guidelines for practice

Previous posts have explained how screen readers work, but not the amazing things that happen to people who use them. With free screen reading software by NV Access, screen readers are now available to all who need them. This software is so successful that it’s been translated into 50 languages. This means people in developing countries can also join in everyday activities, study and get a job. The video is 12 minutes, but worth the watch because you see the value of why all websites, web pages, and document uploads should be suitable for screen readers. It’s not just about doing “good works” – it’s about expanding your employee base and customer base. Besides, our obligations under the UN Convention require it. NV Access is a charity with a great story to tell. 

Anyone interested in optimal colours for web and phone might be interested in a project that came out of a colour matching game app. The game is based on colour perception. Feedback data showed designers how people perceive colour. With the help of academics they began to analyse the data in meaningful ways. Preliminary analysis indicates there is a variation across countries. For example, Norwegians were better at colour matching than Saudi Arabians. Singaporeans struggled to identify greens, and Scandinavians did best with red-purple hues. Research papers are to follow which could lead to more inclusive colour choices. The article concludes, 

“But the fruits of the project live on in open source. A generic version of Jose’s tools to query the Specimen dataset are hosted here on github. My greatest hope is other researchers find and make use of what was gathered, and that other designers and engineers consider leveraging play in unexpected ways”.

The title of the article on FastCompany website is, Our viral app made less than $1,000. We’d still do it again.

Picture courtesy FastCompany.

It’s all very well having web designers familiar with the accessibility requirements in their designs, but what about the people writing material for websites?

In many organisations staff write their own material and send it to the web controller for uploading. But is their writing and format also accessible? It is easy to post a document that was originally meant for another reader, such as a submission to a government body. But perhaps an Easy English version should be considered for the ease of access for all readers?

Web accessibility techniques: a guide

Centre for Excellence in Universal Design in Ireland has a guide for web accessibility techniques. It is split into three parts for: Developers; Designers; and Content providers and editors.  One good tip for inserting links in text is not to use “click here”, “more”, “full information” etc.

They advise that each link should clearly indicate its destination or function out of the context of the text surrounding it. The information focuses on practical advice and direction for anyone involved in web development, design and writing content. Topics covered include developing accessible data tables, using colour wisely, and writing well structured content. Writing material for websites isn’t difficult – it just takes a bit more thought about who the readers are. 

WCAG and W3C might be familiar acronyms, but what do they mean? And what, if anything, you should be doing about it? No matter what your role, everyone needs to have a basic understanding. That’s because we are living in a digital age. The article, WCAG for people who haven’t read them, is a good place to start. 

WCAG – Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1, can a bit daunting at first. That’s because this is an international document and doesn’t translate well in all languages. The guidelines are also very long. Alan Dalton has taken away the legalese and provided a simpler and more user-friendly explanation of these guidelines. He covers text, operating the website, understanding content, ensuring the site works on all devices. 

Web accessibility is becoming increasingly important as we move ever closer to reliance on computers and other internet devices. Web accessibility is not just a matter for people who are blind or have low vision. 

All webpages, blog pages, or uploaded documents or pictures should be accessible. Dalton’s information is good for website managers and others who provide newsfeeds, documents and pictures for their website. Dalton’s article has links to more complex documents such as Understanding WCAG 2.0, and the Techniques for WCAG 2.0  – together they become 1,200 printed pages. The W3C – World Wide Web Consortium, released the next version, WCAG 2.1. in 2018. However, the key information remains current.

There are links to other useful resources, such as Why Bother with Accessibility?

Overview of Web Guidelines 2.1 Update

Alan Dalton provides a non-geek look at the WCAG update in his article, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 – for People Who Haven’t Read the Update. The update has 17 success criteria for web accessibility that were added last year by the working group. 

The new criteria make it easier to produce accessible content for people using mobile devices and touchscreens. People with low vision, and people with cognitive and learning disabilities are also covered. Making sure your website can be used in portrait and landscape orientation, colour contrast, graphics and the value of autocomplete are some of the features discussed.

Live captioning and sign language are also included. There are lots of links to other documents for reference. There is also a book list. This article might be non-geek for Alan Dalton, but even with some techo language you can get the gist of what is being updated even if you are not a web designer or technician. As we advance in the digital age this sort of information will be important for everyone who needs to communicate using digital technologies.  

WCAG 2.2

The final recommendation for WCAG 2.2 will be made available towards the end of 2022. According to speculations, it will most likely be out in December 2022. WCAG 2.2 is not entirely a new recommendation but an updated version of WCAG 2.1.

The W3C website has more technical details on WCAG2.1. You can access more information in the ICT and UD section of this website.