Is your website Accessible?
Many aspects of accessibility cannot be checked by an automated computer programme or web service (the clarity of your writing or the logical flow of information for example). However there are many aspects that can be checked (such as the use of alternative tags for your images).
By using an accessibility checker you can instantly check for errors and potential errors on your website, and then get them fixed.
Although this does not prove your site is accessible, a site that fails is definitely NOT accessible. So check your site now, fix any problems and make sure every visitor to your website can enjoy the experience.
Check this page.
Check our accessibility report here
We have made every possible effort to ensure this website is as accessible to the widest possible audience.
Be warned.
Making your website accessible can prove to be very difficult. You may end up having to redesign your entire web site as well as rewriting all of your content. Even then, accessibility accross all browsers and screen readers still can not be guaranteed. Even if you compromise away from strict compliance, you can be sure that your website will be vastly improved by the effort.
Internet Explorer 6, 7 and 8...
Webiste Accessibility is made more difficult by Microsoft insisting on a seperate set of standards for Internet Explorer. IE6 was filled with bugs, mostly corrected in IE7, but sometimes these bugs meant that a non standards compliant solution was required to work around them. IE8 promises compliance, but most in the industry are not holding their breath!
Using the Wave 4.0 Accessibility checker.
Really, it could not be easier. Simply type your domain name into the search box and click the button to generate your accessibility report. For instance, to generate a report for this website I would type in independentwebadvice.co.uk (although adding www. or http://www. will not make any difference. The extra bits are simply ignored).
Understanding the WAVE 4.0 results page
The results page is split into two sections. The top section (or header) contains all the WAVE options such as navigation etc. The rest of the page is a replication of the examined page, with Icons added wherever a message is being given about an accessibility issue. These messages can be a warning, an alert or an accessibility coding error in your website.
The icons all link to a description of the meaning with plenty of explanatory notes. Most of the icons are merely markers indicating the structure of the webpage. Markers in red indicate serious accesibility errors in your web page. Blue icons are accessibility warnings and yellow icons are accessibility alerts.
Try the WAVE 4.0 tabs too.
The results page shown above is the Errors, Features and Alerts page. If you select the Structure/Order view you can see your webpage and the sections it is constructed in. Even for a novice, this page is very informative about the structure of your website.
The Text-only view shows you how your website would appear without images or layout. Your site should read well on this page. If not you probably have issues with your website structure. Use the Outline View to make sure your text flows with your heading labels. This view should read like a table of contents for the web page being tested.
Find out more
about accessibility issues
- You can start by reading Wikipedia on Accessibility.
- For more technical information you can read WAI Web Accessibility Initiative, from the World Wide Web Consortium.
- Finally, you can simply do your own google research. Here is a link to a Google search for Web Accessibility Articles.
More from Webaim.org.
Introduction to Web Accessibility
We have directed this link to the list of some key principles of accessible design.
WebAIM Site Redesign - a case study in accessible design
We have pointed this article link to the section on Design Decisions.
Writing Clearly and Simply
"The task of writing clearly and simply has never been either clear or simple".
Considering the User Perspective: A Summary of Design Issues
