a11yblog

Blog

  • Getting started with web accessibility (without feeling overwhelmed)

    Web accessibility can feel intimidating for beginners. It’s easy to feel unqualified to even talk about them. But here’s the truth: most professionals I’ve met started without any formal certifications. The key is showing interest and starting small.

  • Common mistake: Not performing manual checks and relying on only automated tools

    “Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.” — Christian Lous Lange As accessibility professionals, we have an arsenal of tools and checkers to help us automate the WCAG, or Section 508, testing and remediation process. Sites like WAVE, plugins such as Axe DevTools, and license-based programs, including Siteimprove, are valuable additions to our…

  • Web tip: WCAG in Plain English by AAArdvark

    Have you ever read the official WCAG documents looking for answers regarding a specific problem, and found the requirements too vague? In that case, you are not alone. Fortunately, there are other resources describing the requirements, and an excellent one is WCAG in Plain English by AAArdvark. » WCAG in Plain English by AAArdvark I…

  • Common mistake: Missing or unhelpful alt texts

    One of the most common accessibility issues is missing or unhelpful alt texts. Text Alternatives is the very first guideline of WCAG: 1.1 Text AlternativesProvide text alternatives for any non-text content so that it can be changed into other forms people need, such as large print, braille, speech, symbols or simpler language. The requirement is…

  • Common mistake: Ignoring focus states on smaller screens (mobile)

    I admit: in previous years you might have heard me say “focus states only apply to desktop”. Because that was often the universal truth among my project members, that is, until we learned better. So I understand why I often encounter this mistake when performing accessibility reviews. Focus states actually need to be properly implemented…

  • Common mistake: Not adhering to HTML coding standards

    As a frontend developer and accessibility expert, I often run into the same issues over and over again. In a series of blog posts, I will address some of these issues, and I will start with perhaps the most basic one: not adhering to HTML coding standards. This of course includes an endless array of…

  • Welcome – and the whats and whys

    Welcome to the a11yblog. That’s a-eleven-y blog, or rather accessibility blog, as the following image explains. Image by mARTin.Hinterdorfer via Wikimedia Commons This is going to be a blog on web accessibility, which has to do with how we ensure web pages are possible to use in a multitude of ways, catering to the typical…