There are over 20 million blind adults in the United States, approximately 10% of whom use screen readers to access the internet. Likewise, roughly 8% of men and 0.5% of women have some form of color blindness. Many government contracts are beginning to require websites to be accessible and many companies who are not legally required to build accessible websites are starting to do it regardless. What goes into making a website accessible? How can you determine whether or not your website is? This presentation will discuss both tools and techniques that can help you build accessible websites.

1. B U I L D I N G A C C E S S I B L E W E B S I T E S I N
W O R D P R E S S
B E S T P R A C T I C E S
@nancythanki @misfitideas

3. “The power of the Web is in its universality.
Access by everyone regardless of disability is
an essential aspect.”
– T I M B E R N E R S - L E E
W 3 C D I R E C T O R A N D I N V E N T O R O F T H E W O R L D W I D E
W E B

4. • 20 million blind adults in the US
• 10% use screen readers
• 8% of men and 0.5% of women are color blind
F A C T S

5. U N C O N V E N T I O N O F T H E R I G H T S O F P E R S O N S W I T H
D I S A B I L I T I E S
Article 21: Freedom of expression and opinion, and access to information
States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that persons with disabilities can exercise the right to
freedom of expression and opinion, including the freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas on an
equal basis with others and through all forms of communication of their choice, as defined in article 2 of the present
Convention, including by:
(a)Providing information intended for the general public to persons with disabilities in accessible formats and
technologies appropriate to different kinds of disabilities in a timely manner and without additional cost;
(b)Accepting and facilitating the use of sign languages, Braille, augmentative and alternative
communication, and all other accessible means, modes and formats of communication of their choice by
persons with disabilities in official interactions;
(c) Urging private entities that provide services to the general public, including through the Internet, to
provide information and services in accessible and usable formats for persons with disabilities;
(d)Encouraging the mass media, including providers of information through the Internet, to make their
services accessible to persons with disabilities;
(e)Recognizing and promoting the use of sign languages.
aka the UN recognizes Web accessibility as a basic human right
it is essential that the Web be accessible in order to provide
equal access and equal opportunity to people with disabilities

6. W H Y ?
• potential clients: government contracts, user aware companies
• people are able to use & contribute to the Web more effectively
• equal access and equal opportunity to an unprecendted access to
information and opportunity

7. W H A T ?
• what makes a website accessible?
• how can you know if yours is
accessible?

8. H O W ?
• type of content
• size and complexity
• development tools
• environment

9. T Y P E S O F
D I S A B I L I T I E S
• auditory
• cognitive / neurological
• physical
• visual

10. A S S I S T I V E T E C H N O L O G I E S
V S
A D O P T I V E S T R A T E G I E S

11. W E B U S E
T O O L S
• braille display
• screen reader
• text-to-speech
• voice browser
• voice recognition
• keyboard navigation

12. S C R E E N
R E A D E R S
• nvaccess’ NVDA reader
• Chrome Vox
• Mozilla’s Fangs Screen
Reader Emulator
• Apple’s VoiceOver

13. A D O P T I V E S T R A T E G I E S
• content formats: auditory, tactile, visual
• presentation: distinguishing visual content and
providing ways to understand audio content
• user interaction: typing, writing, and clicking
• design solutions: navigating and finding content

14. E V A L U A T I O N
T O O L S * * *
• Color Oracle
• WAVE-Web Accessibility
Virtual Evaluator
• Web Accessibility Checker
• AChecker
• Accessibility Valet
***no tool has been deemed able to replace common sense; please
keep that in mind

15. IMPLEMENTATIO
N

16. IMPLEMENTATIO
N

17. W H Y C A R E ?

18. W E B A C C E S S I B I L I T Y I S A S O C I A L
I S S U E

19. digital divide issues
mobile access
older users’ needs
O T H E R B A R R I E R S T O U S E

20. • older people
• low literacy/fluency
• low bandwidth
connections/older
technology
• new/infrequent
users
• mobile phone users
B E N E F I T S
F O R
O T H E R S

21. • older people
• low literacy/fluency
• low bandwidth
connections/older
technology
• new/infrequent users
• mobile phone users
B E N E F I T S
F O R
O T H E R S

22. R E S O U R C E S T O C O N S I D E R
• WebAIM: web accessibility in mind: http://webaim.org/intro/
• Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI): http://www.w3.org/WAI/
• WAI Resources: http://www.w3.org/WAI/Resources/
• Quicktips: http://www.w3.org/WAI/quicktips/
• Implementation Plan for Web Accessibility: http://www.w3.org/WAI/impl/Overview
• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines: http://www.w3.org/WAI/intro/wcag.php
• Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools: Overview: http://www.w3.org/WAI/ER/tools/
• Accessibility Evaluation Resources: http://www.w3.org/WAI/eval/Overview.html
• Easy Checks - A First Review of Web Accessibility: http://www.w3.org/WAI/eval/preliminary
• Complete list of web accessibility evaluation tools: http://www.w3.org/WAI/ER/tools/complete