WCAG in brief

Contributed by Matthew Goddard and Mark Williams in October 2005.

Introduction

Through its Web Accessibility Initiative, the World Wide Web Consortium provides a series of guidelines and checkpoints which, when satisfied, help to improve the accessibility of a website. However, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines are very long and detailed so this article is an attempt to summarise them.

A word of warning

This article is not intended to be a comprehensive summary of the WCAG. It only encapsulates the very topline issues under each guideline and further reading is required to gain a good understanding of all the issues involved.

The guidelines

There are 14 guidelines to considered when making a web page accessible; these are:

1. Provide equivalent alternatives to auditory and visual content
2. Don't rely on colour alone
3. Use markup and style sheets and do so properly
4. Clarify natural language usage
5. Create tables that transform gracefully
6. Ensure that pages featuring new technologies transform gracefully
7. Ensure user control of time-sensitive content changes
8. Ensure direct accessibility of embedded user interfaces
9. Design for device-independence
10. Use interim solutions
11. Use W3C technologies and guidelines
12. Provide context and orientation information
13. Provide clear navigation mechanisms
14. Ensure that documents are clear and simple

1. Provide equivalent alternatives to auditory and visual content.

Provide content, that when presented to the user, conveys the same function or purpose as auditory or visual content.

• Describe images appropriately
• Provide a transcript of video or auditory information

2. Don't rely on colour alone.

Ensure that text and graphics are understandable when viewed without colour.

3. Use markup and style sheets and do so properly.

Mark up documents with the proper structural elements (<p>, <strong>, <em>, <address>) and control presentation with style sheets rather than with presentation elements and attributes.

4. Clarify natural language usage

Use markup that eases pronunciation or interpretation of abbreviated or foreign text.

• Use <abbr> or <acronym> to describe abbreviated text and acronyms
• Use the lang attribute to notify if there is a change of language

5. Create tables that transform gracefully.

Ensure that tables have necessary markup to be transformed by accessible browsers and other user agents.

6. Ensure that pages featuring new technologies transform gracefully.

Ensure that pages are accessible even when newer technologies are not supported or are turned off:

• Pages still work and read well when style sheets have been turned off
• Pages still work when javascript (client side scripting) has been turned off

7. Ensure user control of time-sensitive content changes.

Ensure that moving, blinking, scrolling, or auto-updating objects or pages may be paused or stopped.

8. Ensure direct accessibility of embedded user interfaces.

Ensure that the user interface follows principles of accessible design: device-independent access to functionality, keyboard operability, self-voicing, etc

• If you have a flash or Java application embedded into your page, it too should be accessible.

9. Design for device-independence.

Use features that enable activation of page elements via a variety of input devices.

• Ensure that your page can be navigated via a variety of different input devices such as keyboards, braille devices, head wands, microphones etc. (Generally if your form work with just a keyboard you’re okay)
• That your form elements (input boxes etc.) have a logical tab order.
• Provide keyboard shortcuts to important links

10. Use interim solutions.

Use interim accessibility solutions so that assistive technologies and older browsers will operate correctly.

• Do not create pop-up windows without informing the user
• Use labels within forms
• Make sure that when tables are user for structure the text is read correctly in a screen reader

11. Use W3C technologies and guidelines.

Use W3C technologies (according to specification) and follow accessibility guidelines.

Where it is not possible to use a W3C technology, or doing so results in material that does not transform gracefully, provide an alternative version of the content that is accessible.

12. Provide context and orientation information.

Provide context and orientation information to help users understand complex pages or elements.

• Associate labels with their form elements (as in Visual basic where you have a label and text box associate)
• Divide large blocks of information into more manageable groups where natural and appropriate.

13. Provide clear navigation mechanisms.

Provide clear and consistent navigation mechanisms - orientation information, navigation bars, a site map, etc. - to increase the likelihood that a person will find what they are looking for.

14. Ensure that documents are clear and simple.

Ensure that documents are clear and simple so they may be more easily understood.

Beyond WCAG

Accessibility is about more than just ticking boxes; it’s about providing an exceptional, inclusive user experience regardless of physical or mental ability.

Moreover, the WCAG is not the only set of accessibility guidelines. In the US, for example, Section 508 requires that Federal agencies' electronic and information technology is accessible to people with disabilities, and it provides its own set of standards.