Web Accessibility: Will WCAG 2.0 Better Meet Today’s Challenges?

Accessibility and Usability

Jenny Craven, Research Associate, CERLIMWith acknowledgements to David Sloan, DMAG and Neil Witts, TechDis for their input

Contents• Introduction• Accessibility / Usability conflicts• Design issues• User issues• What makes a Web site accessible and

usable?• Conclusions: thinking about accessibility and

usability

Quotes about Web usability:

“you sighted people just go click click click and there’s the answer – while I’m still looking for the first …. link!”

“It tells me that there is a text-only version, I tend to steer clear of them because they are often not as up to date as the graphical version”

“I could tell it was a link, but I wasn’t sure where I was going”

“I often just click on text because I think it will be a link”

Accessibility/usability conflicts

Design Issues:• Inappropriate or unhelpful alternative text for

graphics, images etc – is ‘photo’ enough? Is a literal description of every image always helpful?

• Inappropriate or unhelpful text for hypertext links – to ‘click here’ or not to ‘click here’

• Language – accessibility and understanding: are they really the same thing?

• Interactive elements e.g. e-learning packages, quizzes – people behave in different ways.

To ‘Click here’ or not to ‘Click here’

E-Learning Concerns

I could use a real world alternative which provides an equivalent learning experience. This seems acceptable under UK SENDA legislation – but is it OK for the Web site to be inaccessible (to 3 rd parties) but to have an accessible course? If not, should I password protect the Web site (so it's equally inaccessible to everyone!)?

I could use a real world alternative which provides an equivalent learning experience. This seems acceptable under UK SENDA legislation – but is it OK for the Web site to be inaccessible (to 3 rd parties) but to have an accessible course? If not, should I password protect the Web site (so it's equally inaccessible to everyone!)?

Visualisation"I use a Flash animation of the HIV virus in my course. I've been told that it must be usable in a speaking / text browser. I've also been told that I must use open W3C technologies. What should I do?"

Quizzes"I have online quizzes in which users must describe features in common in two photos. I've been told I must provide meaningful information in ALT tags. But this would give the answer away! What should I do?"

E-Learning Concerns

How do we make this interactive exercise interactive?

Can we design a single system which is accessible and as usable as this one?

Won't it be difficult and expensive to do this?

Accessibility / usability conflicts

User Issues:• Parallel design Vs Linear navigation…

200 links on one page. Does not follow a logical order

• Intelligibility of information in audio, e.g…. ‘eResources’ – ‘error sources’, ‘British Journal’ – ‘British Hournal’

• Different levels of user expertise.• Different assistive technologies.• Is it possible to design a web interface that suits

the needs of everybody?

So, what makes a Web site ‘accessible’ and ‘usable’?• Meeting basic accessibility requirements, e.g.

ALT Text? Appropriate language for links?• Offer Text-Only sites e.g. Tesco Access?• Bobby (or similar) approved?• Meeting legal requirements? e.g. DDA,

SENDA, 508?• WAI compliance?

Text-Only issues

• Automatically generated Text-Only sites are only as accessible as the original.

• The same applies to hand coded Text-Only sites, but also have to be updated alongside the original – worries that they may not be kept up-to-date.

• Text-Only may conflict with the ethos of universal design.

Accessibility checker issues

• Automated Web accessibility checkers such as Bobby DO NOT guarantee accessibility.

• Belief that because an automated checker says it’s ok, then it’s accessible.

• Accessibility does not equal usability.

Logo issues

Logo issues

• Automated testing does not provide a comprehensive solution to accessibility.

• Changes to the website and/or to person responsible for the site my impact on accessibility – but the logo may remain.

• How do logos relate to legal issues? Is it safe to assume a site is DDA/SENDA (or equivalent) compliant because it displays a logo?

Legal Issues

• Who takes responsibility for implementing Web accessibility?

• From a legal perspective, how does WCAG 1.0 fit in with WCAG 2.0?

• If Governments adopt WCAG will they have to adjust their policies to fit in with changes?

• Will the legal systems of different countries come into conflict with WCAG?

e.g. privacy laws differ, what about disability and web accessibility?

WAI issues• WAI compliance does not guarantee accessibility for

an individual.• WAI are ‘guidelines’ and therefore may be open to

interpretation.• Focussing on guidelines and checklists alone is not

enough.• If Plug-Ins etc need installing, will this conflict with

WAI guidelines?• Attempting to comply with AAA WAI

recommendations may be too ambitious.• How do the WAI guidelines help people understand

further about accessibility and usabililty? i.e how and why

Thinking about Accessibility and Usability

• A Web site can comply with open standards.• A Web site can pass all the automated accessibility

checks.• A Web site can appear to be accessible BUT• An accessible Web site is not necessarily usable.• The best way to test for usability is by involving the

users themselves.• Accessibility and usability is an evolving process, not a

static one.• This should be reflected in policies.So, how will WCAG meet today’s challenges?

Unresolved Issues (1)

Issues for general discussion: • Policy issues – ‘My institution’s accessibility policy does

not comply fully with the WAI guidelines’, ‘WCAG reflect more of a U.S. culture, which is not appropriate for my organisation’.

• User issues – ‘I know it is possible to change the browser settings, but I don’t know how to’, ‘my screen reader is an old version – but I can’t afford to upgrade’

• Awareness issues – not just how, but also why.• Implementation issues - who is responsible for

implementing the WAI guidelines?• From a legal perspective, how does WCAG 1.0 fit in with

WCAG 2.0?• How will cultural and legal differences be resolved?• Political issues – uncertainty, changing alliances etc.

Unresolved Issues (2)

Issues for general discussion:• Cost of implementing Web accessibility• Tackling "low-hanging fruit" versus

everything• Accessibility of proprietary formats• Too theoretical?• Legal implications• Usability issues• Value of logos• …