Slides (with Updates) from the November meetup on accessibility for UX.Frkln. High level intro to web accessibility from a NON expert.

1. Accessibility
a Primer
UX.Frkln meetup : Nov 6, 2019
DISCLAIMER:
The creator of this content is NOT a licensed accessibility professional,
merely a UXer with some experience and knowledge of accessibility
and a desire to share and light fires of knowledge and passion.

2. What is Accessibility?
Web accessibility is the inclusive practice of ensuring there are
no barriers that prevent interaction with, or access to, websites
on the World Wide Web by people with physical disabilities,
situational disabilities, and socio-economic restrictions on
bandwidth and speed. (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Web_accessibility )
WCAG overview
https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/
Plethora of knowledge at Web AIM
https://webaim.org/

3. Useful Links
Web Accessibility course on Udacity
https://www.udacity.com/course/web-accessibility--ud891
Accessibility for Teams
https://accessibility.digital.gov
1 hr video on how people with disabilities use the web (virtual
panel)
https://accessibility.deque.com/on-demand-how-persons-with-
disabilities-use-the-web
W3 Tutorials
https://www.w3.org/WAI/tutorials/

4. What Do the Laws Say and Mean?
From http://www.ldonline.org/article/35384/
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in employment, state and local government,
public accommodations, commercial facilities, transportation, and telecommunications.
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act
Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires that all electronic and information technologies developed
and used by any Federal government agency must be accessible to people with disabilities. This includes
websites, video and audio tapes, electronic books, televised programs, and other such media. Individuals
with disabilities may still have to use special hardware and/or software to access the resources. Section
508 does not apply to the private sector or to organizations that receive Federal funds.
Assistive Technology Act of 1998
The Assistive Technology Act, also known as the "Tech Act" provides funds to states to support three types
of programs:
• the establishment of assistive technology (AT) demonstration centers, information centers, equipment
loan facilities, referral services, and other consumer-oriented programs;
• protection and advocacy services to help people with disabilities and their families, as they attempt to
access the services for which they are eligible;
• Federal/state programs to provide low interest loans and other alternative financing options to help
people with disabilities purchase needed assistive technology.

5. Color Contrast
For proper legibility the contrast between foreground and
background should be 4.5:1 or higher.
Generic web-based contrast checker
https://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/
MacOS app
https://usecontrast.com/

6. Color Blindness
There are MANY forms of color blindness. Do not use color
alone to indicate status (such as green for up/good and red for
down/bad). Use words and/or differentiating icons.
http://www.colourblindawareness.org/colour-blindness/types-of-
colour-blindness/
https://www.color-blindness.com/coblis-color-blindness-simulator/

7. Skip to Main Content
Users using assistive technology like a screen reader do not
always need to hear the navigation of a site before getting to the
page content. Give them an option to skip over listening to it go
straight to the main content
https://webaim.org/techniques/skipnav/

8. Test Your Website (few free trials)
Put your URL in and get a high level readout of accessibility
issues.
https://webaccessibility.com/

9. Screen Reader Samples
If you’ve never heard a screen reader (like Jaws) read content,
its enlightening (and fast!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEbl5jvLKGQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_ATY9gimOM

10. Information on Disabilities
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Learning Disabilities
• Mobility Disabilities
• Medical Disabilities
• Psychiatric Disabilities
• Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Visual Impairments
• Deaf and Hard of Hearing
• Concussion
• Autism Spectrum Disorders
https://www.mightybytes.com/blog/how-many-users-with-disabilities-on-
site/
https://www.rochester.edu/college/disability/faculty/common-
disabilities.html

11. Mobile Accessibility
https://developer.paciellogroup.com/blog/2017/11/mobile-
accessibility-testing-guide-for-android-and-ios-free/
https://www.digitala11y.com/free-mobile-accessibility-testing-
tools/
https://usabilitygeek.com/10-free-web-based-web-site-
accessibility-evaluation-tools/

12. Heading Tags
Headings communicate the organization of the content on the
page. Web browsers, plug-ins, and assistive technologies can
use them to provide in-page navigation.
https://www.w3.org/WAI/tutorials/page-structure/headings/

13. Alt Tags
ALT Tags are invisible descriptions of images which are read
aloud to blind users on a screen reader. Adding ALT text allows
authors to include images, but still provide the content in an
alternative text based format. See example below for what a
screen reader experiences when no ALT Text is used.
https://accessibility.psu.edu/images/alttext/
Charles Hall says it well:
saying nothing is a barrier
saying something is access
saying it well is quality

14. Select Boxes
Don’t use select boxes as jump nav or to refresh a page view. A
screen reader reads all the options and the onChange event
fires, so it is very jarring if you just want to hear the options..
Have an ‘activate’ button outside the select box to do the action.

15. Questions to Research…
Is there a way to implicitly know (from Google Analytics or
similar) how often a screen reader accesses your app/site? What
about keyboard only or other assistive technologies? Usually
they are not recorded in the browser User Agent data.
Update (Nov 11, 2019): A designer at HCA said an Accessibility
expert told him: Due to privacy and protection laws, you cannot
implicitly track the use of assistive technology, such as screen
readers.

16. Thanks!
Accessibility Primer
UX.Frkln
For info on future meetups, contact:
UX.Frkln@gmail.com