The concepts of accessible web design empower designers to create beautiful and compelling experiences that everyone, including people with disabilities, can use. Here are some of the basics that new designers, or designers new to accessibility, should know.

Every new business needs to understand ADA and web accessibility requirements. Incorporating accessibility into your business plan from the beginning will make the process easier and your website more compliant. Read these 10 tips for proactively planning for digital accessibility.

The accessibility community is collaborative and generous with its content, but there are still a lot of myths and misconceptions out there about accessible websites and the people who use them. These are some of the most common myths and their realities.

The Americans with Disabilities Act provides civil rights protection to people with disabilities, prohibiting discrimination based on disability. WCAG serves as the standard in web accessibility guidelines. So, does the ADA require WCAG compliance?

Color contrast is a critical aspect of accessibility. Color contrast refers to the difference in light between text and its background. Make sure your website meets the minimum color contrast ratios to allow as many people as possible to view your content.

Published in June 2018, WCAG 2.1 adds to and does not replace WCAG 2.0. Because of this, adhering to WCAG 2.1 means you automatically also adhere to WCAG 2.0, as the existing guidelines and checkpoints remained unchanged.

It's back to school time! As an integral part of a fair and appropriate public education (FAPE), web accessibility helps students of all ages and abilities to be able to access online course content, understand video lectures, take quizzes and tests, and use class resources appropriately.

As the 2018 edition of NIAM draws to a close, and as children and parents prepare for the new school year, it’s the perfect time to look back on why web accessibility is so crucial for healthcare. Nearly 1 in 5 people in the U.S. has a disability, so making your website accessible is imperative to fully serve all of your users.

When developing their websites for accessibility, many organizations focus on assistive technologies for output.  Yet, input devices receive comparatively little attention. A variety of alternate input devices suitable for a variety of different situations are available to computer users with disabilities.

Assistive technologies such as refreshable braille displays have enabled computer users with visual impairments to access the internet independently. In order to adequately serve braille readers then, web developers and designers must evaluate the compatibility of their site with refreshable braille displays.

We’ve discussed screen readers in previous articles here at the Bureau of Internet Accessibility. However, with the June release of the updated Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, WCAG 2.1, it’s the perfect time to look back on what web developers should already know about screen readers, and what you should know moving forward.

In technology, something that is robust comes with a wide range of capabilities or is able to deal with many different situations. Robustness, as defined by WCAG, refers specifically to web content that is compatible with a variety of “user agents”: browsers, assistive technologies, and other means of accessing web content.

Content that is understandable can be read and comprehended by users without undue effort. This means that the content should be understandable both by the users themselves and by assistive technologies such as screen readers.

WCAG’s emphasis on perceivability ensures that users can passively take in and access the information on your website. Operability, on the other hand, also guarantees that users can interact with and make full use of the site.

With the release of the latest version in June, WCAG 2.1, now is the perfect time for a refresher on the four WCAG main principles. The first, perceivability, requires web content to be presented in a way that all users can recognize and understand.

The ongoing delay in the release of federal accessibility guidelines has contributed to the giant increase in website accessibility lawsuits in 2018. With the lack of a federal directive by the DOJ, law firms are actively pursuing suits, resulting in a large spike in the number of web accessibility cases being filed.

June 5th, 2018 saw the first evolution of the WCAG standards in a decade with the release of WCAG 2.1. These new recommendations include updates to address mobile devices, as well as to better serve people with low vision and cognitive difficulties.

In America, the declaration of the nation’s commitment that people with disabilities are afforded the same levels of freedom and independence as everyone else is demonstrated by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The legislation details the ways in which the federal government ensures that state and local government services, public accommodations and commercial facilities must accommodate the needs of people with disabilities.

As summer vacation begins, parents, businesses, and governments should all work to ensure that everyone, including children with disabilities, can enjoy facilities such as zoos, museums, public parks, and beaches. Web accessibility can play a vital role in helping people with disabilities find and interact with public and private facilities this summer.

The planning phase of travel is essential for people with a disability who may need to spend extra time researching and asking questions before setting off on a trip. Therefore, it is vital that websites serving the travel industry are fully accessible for all users.

Men’s Health Month seeks to encourage health exams and screenings, early treatment of injuries and diseases, and early detection of serious illnesses. Men with disabilities need accessible websites to gain access to health information and to use the Internet to interact with healthcare providers. 

A recent market study conducted by Mandala Research has found that American adults with disabilities spend more than $17 billion each year on travel. Hotel website and service accessibility is a necessity for the would-be travelers.

June is Cataract Awareness Month. For people affected by cataracts or recovering from cataract surgery, web accessibility can be vital, allowing them to continue to access information online and enjoy a high quality of life despite vision impairment. This includes the ability to access content via assistive devices such as screen readers.

As anyone who has gone to the wrong gate or nearly missed their flight can attest, navigating airports and catching planes can be stressful and sometimes confusing. These challenges are even bigger for people with visual impairments or hearing conditions. To help address this issue, the United States Department of Transportation has expanded the Air Carrier Access Act.

Two recent regulations from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services make it clear that web accessibility must be a priority for healthcare providers.