Located
in the suburbs of our nation's capitol, which is driven in large
part by the federal dollar, it is professionally responsible for
us to familiarize ourselves with industry standards. Among those
currently in effect, 508 compliance is probably the farthest reaching,
at least in the government sector.
In
1998 Congress significantly strengthened the Rehabilitation Act
of 1973 to require that Federal Agencies make their electronic
and information technology accessible to people with disabilities.
Federal agencies must ensure that this technology is accessible
to employees and the public to the extent it does not pose an
"undue burden." The details are to be found in Section
508. A website is said to be 508 compliant if all the requirements
have been met to the satisfaction of the applicable 508 Compliance
officer.
Among
the standards is a section on web-based Intranet and Internet
information and Applications (1194.22). The 508 standards do not
prohibit the use of website graphics or animation. Instead, the
standards aim to ensure that such information is also available
in an accessible format.
The
standards apply to Federal websites but not to private sector
web sites (unless a site is a provided under contract to a Federal
agency, in which case only that web site or portion covered by
the contract would have to comply). With some exceptions, the
scope of 508 does NOT impose requirements on the recipients of
Federal funds.
Sixteen
of the specifications for 508 compliance are:
A
text equivalent for every non-text element shall be provided
(e.g., via "alt", "longdesc", or in element
content).
Equivalent
alternatives for any multimedia presentation shall be synchronized
with the presentation.
Web
pages shall be designed so that all information conveyed with
color is also available without color, for example from context
or markup.
Documents
shall be organized so they are readable without requiring an
associated style sheet.
Redundant
text links shall be provided for each active region of a server-side
image map.
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.
Row
and column headers shall be identified for data tables.
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.
Frames
shall be titled with text that facilitates frame identification
and navigation.
Pages
shall be designed to avoid causing the screen to flicker with
a frequency greater than 2 Hz and lower than 55 Hz.
A
text-only page, with equivalent information or functionality,
shall be provided to make a web site comply with the provisions
of this part, when compliance cannot be accomplished in any
other way. The content of the text-only page shall be updated
whenever the primary page changes.
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.
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).
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.
A
method shall be provided that permits users to skip repetitive
navigation links.
When
a timed response is required, the user shall be alerted and
given sufficient time to indicate more time is required.
We
do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but rather
have those because we have acted rightly. —Aristotle
The
federal government is like a handicapped turtle trying to crawl
around and keep up with the rabbit, which is technology.
—James Breithaupt
It was once said that the moral test of government
is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life,
the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly;
and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and
the handicapped.
—Hubert H. Humphrey
Each handicap is like a hurdle in a steeplechase,
and when you ride up to it, if you throw your heart over, the horse
will go along, too.
—Lawrence Bixby
Since it is seldom clear whether intellectual
activity denotes a superior mode of being or a vital deficiency,
opinion swings between considering intellect a privilege and seeing
it as a handicap
—Jacques Barzun
French educator, b.1907
