My newest web design project is making sure a website I am developing is at least “ADA Compliant.” I quickly learned this is not a straightforward as it seems. After several days of independent research, I phoned Cynthia Ng who presented for Novare Library and Florida Library Webinars on Making Online Accessibility Easy and Part of Your Work.
Through our conversation and my research, I created a list of resources I plan to use and feel I can recommend. The goal is to continually update this list as the project continues with information I learn and use.
Resource Guide
- HTML CodeSniffer. HTML CodeSniffer is a browser plugin that shows you errors and warnings for each page.
- WAVE Webaim. Run your website through this website and see the errors it generates. This can give you specific areas to focus on and improve.
- Cynthia Ng’s Blog Post Series on WCAG. The post puts the standards in an easy to understand language. The posts put understandable examples with the corresponding guideline.
- Cynthia Ng’s Webinar on Accessibility. The webinar walks you through the standards and how to comply in a strsaightforward manner.
- WCAG Standards – Quick Reference. One of the first things I have learned on this journey is the ADA doesn’t have the actual standards. The WCAG Standards are the standards behind the ADA, Section 504 and Section 508.
- Introduction to WCAG. Need an overview before you jump in, this website is the place to start.
- W3C. Standards for web design.
- W3C Code Validator Run your website through the validator for a list of code that needs tob e addressed.
- Improving Website Accessibility. From Section 508, this source will lead you through the specifics.
Overall, while its a bit overwhelming – most of the information points to three keys to accessibility: Making sure mark-up is complete especially image tags, following good coding standards and good writing/using headers and overall creating a great page.
