Web Design & Accessibility Resources
Tools for designers and developers
- Cynthia Says: Cynthia Says allows you to test one page per minute for accessibility issues. The report from Cynthia is not always the most accurate guage of accessibility, but it is a good litmus test for problematic pages.
- GrayBit: GrayBit allows designers to view their pages in greyscale to text their design's contrast.
- Firefox: While Firefox isn't exactly
an accessibility tool, the following extensions for Firefox will help
you develop better, more accessible and standards-compliant pages:
- Checky: "Easy to use interface to many free and commercial Online Validation and Analysis Services." Checky provides a quick and easy way to validate your pages for Section 508, proper use of HTML and CSS, link validation and much more.
- Fangs Screen Reader Emulator: Screen Readers are expensive and the free demo versions are often time-limited, requiring you to restart your computer after a half hour's use. The Fangs Screen Reader Emulator allows you to hear what vision-impaired users will hear when they come to your page.
- FireFTP: FireFTP allows you to transfer files from your browser.
- Web Developer: The Web Developer extension is a suite of tools designed to make your life easier as a designer and developer. From showing CSS entities to cache clearing, this extension also provides shortcuts to different validating tools, form tools and many other extremely helpful tools.
HTML and XHTML guides
Don't be intimidated by that extra letter, XHTML has replaced HTML as the standard. XHTML has a few differences, but it's not difficult to learn and worth the time!
- HTML Techniques
for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines page is somewhat old, but still extremely useful and a necessary read.
- XHTML Tutorial from the W3C
School
The XHTML Tutorial site from the W3C School has excellent tutorials on XHTML, talks about the differences between XHTML and HTML, and provides reference guides for web developers.
- XHTML Guidelines
and Benefits: NYPL online Style Guide
The New York Public Library's online style guide takes a common sense approach to web design and explains terms in plain english. This is a great guide for non-techies.
- HTML Dog's Guide to HTML and CSS
HTML Dog offers tutorials for three skill levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced. While the name says HTML, HTML Dog teaches XHTML and does it well.
Government Sites With Accessibility Standards
- Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards
- Section 508: The Road to Accessibility
Other Sources
- Dive Into Accessibility: 30 days to a more accessible web site
- A List Apart: A List Apart is an online magazine dedicated to educating designers and developers. This is a treasure trove of tutorials and articles on design and development for every skill level.
- Accessify: Accessify is a group publication on accessibility issues. Accessify provides tutorials as well as articles on recent developments in web accessibility and design.
- Web-Graphics: "Web-Graphics is a compilation of hypertext design resources, links, and commentary."
- West Civ: West Civ offers many great, free, downloadable courses in design and development. Free courses rotate frequently.
- The Web Standards Project: "The Web Standards Project is a grassroots coalition fighting for standards which ensure simple, affordable access to web technologies for all." Check out their tutorials and their "Buzz" weblog.
- Jim Thatcher Section 508 tutorial: Jim Thatcher's Section 508 tutorial approaches Section 508 compliancy from a unique angle: accessibility first, then tie it all in with Section 508 guidelines.
- WEBAim Tutorials: WebAIM provides articles and tutorials about accessibility from concepts to practice.
- International Center for Disability Resources on the Internet: ICDRI is a great starting point for information regarding disabilities and accessibility.
- Oregon State Section 508 Site: Curious about how other universities are approaching web accessibility? See how Oregon State is advocating accessibility on campus.
- Getting Started: Making a Web Site Accessible: The Web Accessibility Initiative's guide to gettting started with web accessibility is a good beginner's resource for accessible web development.
- Adaptive Technology Resource Center (Toronto): Want to know more about adaptive technology? Here's a good place to start.
- Web Accessibility Initiative: The Web Accessibility Initiative develops standards and guidelines for accessibility that are internationally accepted and practiced globally.
- National Center for Accessible Media: NCAM provides more advanced information, including specifics on MAGPie, a captioning system for video and audio files.
WebCT
- WebCT Accessiblility and Compliance: From the WebCT website, regarding WebCT and Section 508 compliance.
- Section 508 For WebCT Course Designers: Also from the WebCT website.
- WebCT, Accessibility, Usability and the Disabled Student: A learning module from Evergreen College.
- WebCT: Good Practice Guide: An excellent guide to best practices in WebCT course design from London Metropolitan University.