Brian Kelly
David Sloan
Lawrie Phipps
ABSTRACT
Since 1999 the W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) have provided a solid basis for implementation of accessible Web design. However it is argued that in the context of evaluation and policymaking, inappropriate reference to the WCAG may lead to serious practical difficulties in implementation and monitoring of an effective accessibility policy. There is a pressing need for a framework that guides appropriate application of the WCAG in a holistic way, taking into account the diversity -- or homogeneity -- of factors such as context of use, audience and audience capability, and access environment. In particular, the current promotion of W3C technologies at the expense of widely used and accessible proprietary technologies may be problematic, as is the apparent reliance of the WCAG on compliant browsing technology.In this paper, a holistic application of the WCAG is proposed by the authors, whereby the context of the Web resource in question and other factors surrounding its use are used to shape an approach to accessible design. Its potential application in a real world environment is discussed.
References
- 1998 Amendment to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act Retrieved March 15 2005 from Section 508.gov web site http://www.section508.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Content &ID=14Google Scholar
- Allerdale Borough Council: Accessibility. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from Allerdale Borough Council Web site: http://www.allerdale.gov.uk/main.asp?page=166Google Scholar
- Coyne, K. and Nielsen, J. Beyond ALT text: making the web easy to use for users with disabilities. Fremont, CA: Nielsen Norman Group 2001.Google Scholar
- Disability Rights Commission. Formal Investigation report: web accessibility. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from DRC Web site: http://www.drc-gb.org/publicationsandreports/report.aspGoogle Scholar
- HTML Writers Guild. HTML Writers Guild Web Accessibility Standards. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from Web site: http://www.hwq.org/opcenter/policy/access.htmGoogle Scholar
- IMS Global Learning Consortium. Guidelines for Developing Accessible Learning Applications, version 1.0. Retrieved March 10 2005 from NCAM Web site http://ncam.wgbh.org/salt/guidelines/Google Scholar
- Isolani. Sitemorse gets nasty, accessibility is the victim. Retrieved March 16 2005 from http://www.isolani.co.uk/blog/access/SiteMorseGetsNastyA ccessibilityIsTheVictimGoogle Scholar
- Kelly, B. Accessibility Survey of UK University Entry Points, June 2004. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from UKOLN Web site: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/workshops/webmaster-2004/talks/phipps-kelly/survey/Google Scholar
- Kelly, B. An Accessibility Analysis Of UK University Entry Points. Ariadne issue 33, Sept 2002. Retrieved March 10, 2005 from http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue33/web-watch/Google Scholar
- Kelly, B. Institutional Web Management Workshop 2003: Accessibility Questionnaire. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from UKOLN Web site: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/workshops/webmaster-2003/accessibility-questionnaire/Google Scholar
- Kelly, B, Dunning, A, Guy, M and Phipps, L. Ideology Or Pragmatism? Open Standards And Cultural Heritage Web Sites. ichim03 Proceedings (CDROM). Retrieved March 10 2005, from: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/qa-focus/documents/papers/ichim03/Google Scholar
- Kelly, B., Phipps, L. and Swift, E. Developing A Holistic Approach For E-Learning Accessibility. Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 2004, Vol. 30, Issue 3. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from: http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/papers/cjtl-2004/Google Scholar
- Koyani, S. J., Bailey, R. W., Nall, J. R., Allison, S., Mulligan, C., Bailey, K. and Tolson, M. Research-based Web design and usability guidelines. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from Usability.gov Web site: http://www.usability.gov/guidelines/guidelines_notice.htmlGoogle Scholar
- National Disability Authority of Ireland. Accessibility Guidelines for Web. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from NDA Web site: http://accessit.nda.ie/technologyindex_1.htmlGoogle Scholar
- Nielsen J. Why you only need to Test with 5 Users. Alertbox March 2000. Retrieved 16 March from http://www.useit.-com/alertbox/20000319.htmlGoogle Scholar
- Parlamento Italiano - Disposizioni per favorire l'accesso dei soggetti disabili agli strumenti informatici. Retrieved March 15 2005 from http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/040041.htm (Unofficial English translation retrieved March 15 from http://www.pubbliaccesso.it/normative/law_20040109_n4.htm)Google Scholar
- Petrie, H., King, N. and Hamilton, F. Accessibility of Museum, Library and Archive Web Sites: the MLA audit. London: Council for Museums, Libraries and Archives. 2005.Google Scholar
- Petrie, H., King, N., Hamilton, F. and Weisen, M. The accessibility of museum websites: results from an English investigation and international comparison. Proceedings of HCI International 2005. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum. In press.Google Scholar
- Regan B. Web Accessibility and Design: A Failure of the Imagination. Conference Proceedings - Designing for the 21st century III, December 7--12 2004, Rio de Janeiro. Retrieved March 15 2005 from http://www.designfor21st.org/proceedings/proceedings/plenary_regan.htmlGoogle Scholar
- Schmetzke, A. Web Accessibility Survey Site, Retrieved March 10, 2005, from University of Wisconsin Web site: http://library.uwsp.edu/aschmetz/Accessible/websurveys.htmGoogle Scholar
- Section 508 Standards. Retrieved March 15 2005 from Section 508.gov Web site: http://www.section508.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Content &ID=12Google Scholar
- Sitemorse. Confusion Reigns Over Website Accessibility Compliance. Retrieved March 16 2005 from http://www.business2www.com/news.html?id=1217547344Google Scholar
- Sloan, M. Web Accessibility and the DDA. In: Paliwala, A. and Moreton, J (eds) The Journal of Information, Law and Technology (JILT) 2001 (2). Retrieved March 10 from http://elj.warwick.ac.uk/jilt/01-2/sloan.htmlGoogle Scholar
- Thatcher, J. Prioritizing Web Accessibility Evaluation Data. Proceedings of CSUN 2004:Google Scholar
- Theofanos M. and Redish J. Guidelines for Accessible and Usable Web Sites: Observing Users Who Work With Screen Readers. Retrieved March 16 2005 from http://redish.net/content/papers/interactions.htmlGoogle Scholar
- W3C. Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines 1.0. February 2000. Retrieved March 10, 2005 from W3C site: http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-AUTOOLS/Google Scholar
- W3C. User Agent Accessibility Guidelines 1.0. December 2002. Retrieved March 10, 2005 from W3C site: http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-USERAGENT/Google Scholar
- W3C. Web Accessibility Initiative Glossary. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from Web site: http://www.w3.org/TR/1999/WAI-WEBCONTENT-19990505/#glossaryGoogle Scholar
- W3C. Web Accessibility Initiative Statement on Web Access Report from UK Disability Rights Commission. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from W3C Web site: http://www.w3.org/2004/04/wai-drc-statement.htmlGoogle Scholar
- W3C. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0. May 1999. Retrieved March 10, 2005 from W3C site: http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/Google Scholar
- W3C. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. November 2004. Retrieved March 10, 2005, from W3C Web site: http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG20/Google Scholar
- Watchfire. Welcome to Bobby Worldwide. Retrieved March 10, 2005 from Watchfire site: http://bobby.watchfire.com/bobby/html/en/Google Scholar
- WebAIM. Americans with Disabilities Act (1990), Retrieved March 15 2005 from http://www.webaim.org/coordination/law/us/ada/Google Scholar
- WebCredible. The DRC Blew it. May 2004, Retrieved March 16 2005 from http://www.webcredible.co.uk/user-friendly-resources/web-accessibility/drc-blew-it.shtmlGoogle Scholar
- Zeldman J. Designing with Web Standards. New Riders, 2003. Google ScholarDigital Library
Index Terms
Forcing standardization or accommodating diversity?: a framework for applying the WCAG in the real world
Comments