Top > Webmaster > 2006 > February > 2006-02-02

The Best in Website Accessibility

Having a website that is easily accessible by all users from all platforms is a great way to ensure that you are getting the most out of your business. In today`s advanced technological world, many potential clients are accessing sites through mobile and handheld devices. Having a website that can be viewed regardless of location and device is the best move for any internet based company. Webcredible today unveiled a re-designed version of their website, which they claim is one of the most accessible sites of its kind. The new site goes way beyond the traditional guidelines most accessible websites attempt to follow. It goes so far as to offer what some would call the ultimate in accessibility.

Web accessibility has become a mainstream topic across the Internet in recent years, primarily due to it being a legal requirement under the Disability Discrimination Act. Under the Act, websites must be made accessible to blind and disabled web users. A blind person may use a screen reader to read the content of the page aloud to them, someone with poor vision may use a screen magnifier to blow up the text size, a web user with dexterity issues may be unable to use a mouse.Advanced accessibility techniques on the website include the use of hidden headings to help blind web users better orientate themselves, a larger than normal line spacing to aid web users with dyslexia or learning difficulties, highlighted links for keyboard-only users, and a visible font resizer.

Although text can be resized through the browser, research conducted by Webcredible has shown that most people don`t know this functionality even exists. The site also attempts to debunk common accessibility myths, namely that PDFs can`t be made accessible, JavaScript should be avoided and accessible sites are necessarily ugly. (JavaScript is a scripting language that many websites employ, but traditionally has been inaccessible to screen reader users.) By correctly structuring and tagging PDFs, and using JavaScript in an unobtrusive manner, both of these technologies can be used in an accessible manner.