Perhaps the only thing worse than a fire that could happen to the office of a web development company would be losing connectivity to the web. This is why Google Mail inserts a warning whenever you go offline. As noted in Marco Zehe’s 2008 blog post, Google was an early adopter of ARIA live regions. In this article, Heydon Pickering is going to create a script which tests whether the user is online or off and uses ARIA to warn screen reader users of the change in this status so they know whether it’s worth staying at their desk or giving up and going for a beer.
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Successful web accessibility is about anticipating the different needs of all sorts of people, understanding your fellow web users and the different ways they consume information. Armed with this understanding, accessibility becomes a cold, hard technical challenge. How do assistive technologies present a web application to make it accessible for their users? Where do they get the information they need? One of the keys is a technology known as the accessibility API.
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It’s very easy to get bogged down by accessible output and to forget that, ultimately, accessibility is about people. Whether you are working in product, UX, development or quality assurance, remember to always give users control, over the page integrate accessibility into annotated UX and style guides and design with choice in mind. In this article, Henny Swan will explain these, and more key principles which will ensure that products are inclusive and usable for disabled people. Listening to users and actively including their feedback, along with adhering to organizational standards and guidelines, are essential.
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Ruth John has met some resistance when talking about this API. People either can’t see a need for it with the web, or they would feel uncomfortable talking to their device — both valid views. However, he hopes he will inspire you to at least give it a go and think about it the next time you are building something. Start welcoming speech: It might be just what you’re listening for.
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If you browse your favorite website and close your eyes slightly so that your vision is a bit clouded by your eyelashes. Can you still see and use the website? Are you able to read the labels, fields, buttons, navigation and small footer text? Can you imagine how someone who sees differently would read and use it?
In this article, Cathy O’ Connor shares one aspect of design accessibility: making sure that the look and feel (the visual design of the content) are sufficiently inclusive of differently sighted users.
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Depending on how a user browses the Internet, modal windows can be downright confusing. Modals quickly shift visual focus from one part of a website or application to another area of content. This scenario is more common than it should be. And it’s fairly easy to solve, as long as you make your content accessible to all through sound usability practices. In this article, Scott O’Hara has set up a demo of an inaccessible modal window that appears on page load and that isn’t entirely semantic. First, interact with it using your mouse to see that it actually works. Then, try interacting with it using only your keyboard.
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Because the W3C’s mission from the outset has been to make the web accessible, accessibility features are built into its specifications. As responsible designers, we have the job of creating compelling web experiences without disrupting the inclusive features of a simpler design. We need to find a way to adopt new tools and techniques to keep the playing field level. It’s time to embrace change. This article is an excerpt of a chapter in the eBook that introduces many of the ideas and techniques presented.
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A 2013 survey of adults with disabilities found that 91% of people with disabilities use a “wireless device such as a cell phone or tablet.” Among these users, screen reader usage is common, even on mobile devices. However, many basic best practices for accessibility are forgotten on mobile websites. Therefore, disabled users are frequently presented with interfaces that are frustrating or impossible to use. In this article, TJ VanToll will show us a few practical measures that address the most common issues disabled users encounter which leads to a better experience for everyone.
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Siobhan McKeown reached out to people from across the WordPress community to ask what advice they would give to people just starting their WordPress journey. This article is a result of their insight, and we hope that it provides some encouragement and guidance to newbies.
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Web design is an ever-changing industry, and to keep getting better at your craft and stay up-to-date with what’s going on, you need to invest a lot of time and effort in getting reliable, good quality content. The Smashing Library grants you immediate unlimited access to all Smashing eBooks including digital versions of our printed books.
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