"The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect."-Tim Berners Lee, W3C Director & Inventor of the WWW
Web Accessibility
Web Accessibility is designing a web page using current W3C standards, as well as designing while keeping in mind the needs of the handicapped, sight impaired, and people in the "digital divide."
Why use web accessibility?
There are a variety of reasons a web site should be designed using accessibility and web standards.
- Site degrades at a much slower pace:
- This means less upkeep and therefore less money will have to be spent to upgrade it.
- Handicap Access:
- If someone with sight impairment-colorblind, blind, or elderly-visits a site designed according to accessibility standards, they will still be able to easily access the content.
- It's the law:
- In some cases-such as a site that receives government funding, or an educational institution-the site has to conform to Section 508 standards under United States law.
- It looks better:
- Generally, a site that conforms to standards renders better than a site that does not. Plus, people recognize the W3C site seal and know that the organization cares about accessibility.
- Cross Browser Compatibility:
- A site using web standards will look the same on all browsers, not just a select few.
- New and Old Technology:
- Some users may not have a mouse and have to navigate simply by using the tab key and access keys on their keyboard. 6% of Internet users do not have Java Script-therefore if a page has navigation or other features designed using Java Script, they will be unusable. Finally, many users access the Internet on Mobile Devices (a cell phone or a PDA), use WebTV, or have a slow Internet connection. Using accessibility will guarantee that these users can still access the web site easily and efficiently.