Study reveals overwhelming rate of inaccessibility in Web sites
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An investigation by the Disability Rights Commission reveals that more than 80% of Web sites are unusable by disabled people. The study shows that the Internet is become difficult or impossible to use for impaired users not because of technology shortcomings, but because of poor design and site construction. Moreover, the most common problems are likely to affect all users, not just those with disabilities.
Study reveals growing problem
The study, carried out by the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) in the United Kingdom, shows that despite the rapid Internet development over the last decade, large barriers have also been constructed. Especially affected by inaccessibility in Web sites are users with visual impairments. Despite using screenreaders, blind participants in the testing were unable to perform nearly all of the tasks that made up the test.
"Businesses have a social responsibility as well as a legal duty to ensure that disabled people can use their websites," said Julie Howell, Royal National Institute for the Blind spokesperson, who welcomed the report. For the survey, one thousand websites were tested using an automated software. In addition, detailed user testing was carried out on 100 sites, including government, business, e-commerce, leisure and Web services (such as search engines).
Accessibility is for everyone
Web site accessibility does not just involve disabled users. In fact, improving site accessibility improves the experience for all users. For example, the study sites the most common accessibility problems encountered as: cluttered pages, confusing navigation, failure to describe images and poor colour contrast between background and text. These situations can affect nearly any user to a site, and could be what drives away potential customers.
A design problem
Researchers at London's City University, who carried out the study for the DRC, also found that many Web site developers were unaware of what needed to be done to make sites accessible. Web accessibility, if incorporated from the initial development of a site, can actually improve performance such as faster loading times and better site indexing by search engines, and delivers ongoing benefits in increased development speed, reduced errors in coding, and site code that is easier to maintain.
How to have an accessible site
Even if you already have a Web site, it is not too late (nor too costly) to make it accessible. If you are designing a new Web site, try to incorporate accessibility by working with the designers and programmers. Here are some common points of Web accessibility:
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Provide text equivalents for non-text elements, such as the ALT tag, and avoid graphics as navigation buttons
- Ensure good color contrast between foreground and background and navigational elements
- Use style sheets to control the formatting and appearance of text
- Pages must be usable when scripts and applets are turned off or not supported by the users browser (Java, CGI, etc)
- Avoid movement or animation in pages
- Avoid pop-ups and do not open new windows without informing the user
- Divide large blocks of information into manageable chunks
- Clearly identify the target of each link
- Use the clearest and simplest language possible
Find out more about accessibility and your site
Contact ifPeople for a free accessibility assessment of your Web site. If you are interested in a Web site redesign, ask ifPeople about how to make it accessible and successful, or read about our ResponsibleIT services.Original article from the BBC.
