UW Accessibility Policy

  1. Adhere to the section 508 guidelines
  2. Each University Web site must contain an accessible link or a person to contact if users have trouble accessing content within the site. This would usually be the Web page developer.

Section 508 Guidelines

(a) A text equivalent for every non-text element shall be provided (e.g., via "alt", "longdesc", or in element content).Alt text:

  1. missing alt text.
    Bad Example #1 - Good Example #1
  2. alt text for images with no content, i.e. decorative images.
    Bad Example #2 - Good Example #2
  3. Spacer Gifs (invisible gifs) that are used for layout. Don't use "spacer" for the alt text.
    Bad Example #3 - Good Example #3
  4. bad alt text, e.g. not including the words on an image.
    Bad Example #4 - Good Example #4
  5. longdesc or D-link for images with a lot of expanation, e.g. charts and graphs.
    Bad Example #5 - Good Example #5
  6. Use "", not " ". Don't put in "" in a Web Site Developer program.
    Bad Example #6 - Good Example #6

(b) Equivalent alternatives for any multimedia presentation shall be synchronized with the presentation.

  1. Captioning must by synchronized with the video. Just providing a transcript is not sufficient.
    Bad Example #7 - Good Example #7
  2. Audio file are not considered multimedia and can and should have transcripts.
    Bad Example #8 - Good Example #8

(c) Web pages shall be designed so that all information conveyed with color is also available without color, for example from context or markup.

  1. e.g. Asking users to fill in boxes marked with red. Use asterisks instead.
    Bad Example #9 - Good Example #9
    Bad Example #10 - Good Example #10
  2. e.g. asking users to click on the green button.

(d) Documents shall be organized so they are readable without requiring an associated style sheet.

  1. What are style sheets?
  2. Users can specify their own style sheets so yours might not be used.
  3. Hard to screw that up except when using style sheets for positioning.

(e) Redundant text links shall be provided for each active region of a server-side image map.

  1. What is a server-side image map?
  2. Server-side image maps are rarely used and rarely necessary.
  3. You need to provide a separate list of links.

Client-side image maps shall be provided instead of server-side image maps except where the regions cannot be defined with an available geometric shape.

  1. Don't use server-side image maps.
  2. Use alt text for each area in the image map just like for regular images.
    Bad Example #11 - Good Example #11

(g) Row and column headers shall be identified for data tables.

  1. Data tables are not the same as layout tables.
  2. Easy to do with the TH tag.
    Bad Example #12 - Good Example #12
  3. Some programs like Dreamweaver let you specify that a cell in a table is an header.

(h) Markup shall be used to associate data cells and header cells for data tables that have two or more logical levels of row or column headers.

  1. Use the SCOPE="COL" attribute to specifiy that table headers apply to the whole column.
    Bad Example #13 - Good Example #13
  2. Use the SCOPE="row" attribute to specify that the first cell in a row is the label for that row.

(i) Frames shall be titled with text that facilitates frame identification and navigation.

  1. Give each frame a title just like any web page.
    Bad Example #14 - Good Example #14
  2. Screen reader users can be confused about what frame they are in.

(j) Pages shall be designed to avoid causing the screen to flicker with a frequency greater than 2 Hz and lower than 55 Hz.

  1. Flickering images can cause seizures.
  2. Don't use them.
    Bad Example #15 - Good Example #15

(k) A text-only page, with equivalent information or functionality, shall be provided to make a Web site comply with the provisions of these standards, when compliance cannot be accomplished in any other way. The content of the text-only page shall be updated whenever the primary page changes.

  1. The key to that is the phrase "when accessibility cannot be accomplished in another way".
  2. Just about any page can be made accessible.
    Bad Example #16 - Good Example #16

(l) When pages utilize scripting languages to display content, or to create interface elements, the information provided by the script shall be identified with functional text that can be read by assistive technology.

  1. Rollovers are O.K.
  2. Javascript pulldown menus can be a problem.

(m) When a Web page requires that an applet, plug-in or other application be present on the client system to interpret page content, the page must provide a link to a plug-in or applet that complies with 1194.21(a) through (l).

  1. Provide a download link.
    Bad Example #17 - Good Example #17

(n) When electronic forms are designed to be completed on-line, the form shall allow people using assistive technology to access the information, field elements, and functionality required for completion and submission of the form, including all directions and cues.

  1. Use the label tag.
    Bad Example #18 - Good Example #18

(o) A method shall be provided that permits users to skip repetitive navigation links.

  1. Use an explicit link or else an invisible gif.
    Bad Example #19 - Good Example #19

(p) When a timed response is required, the user shall be alerted and given sufficient time to indicate more time is required.

  1. Tests, banking sites, staying logged in, especially on Active Server Pages.
    Bad Example #20 - Good Example #20

Principles of good accessible design.

  1. Deprecated tags. e.g. font.
    Bad Example #21 - Good Example #21
  2. Use headers and lists.
    Bad Example #22 - Good Example #22
    Bad Example #23 - Good Example #23
  3. Using CSS.
  4. Blockquotes.
    Bad Example #24 - Good Example #24
  5. Links that point to different places.
    Bad Example #25 - Good Example #25
  6. Don't use URLs in the hyperlink name unless you also use the title attribute.
    Bad Example #26 - Good Example #26
  7. Don't use "here" as a URL.
    Bad Example #27 - Good Example #27