accessibility of webdesign – barrier free websites

Accessible Webdesign

Barrier free in the strict sense means accessibility of information also for handicapped people. In a broader sense, Barrier free means the consequential implementation of webdesign in the sense of high user-friendliness and search engine visibility.

Because barrier free web sites don’t exclude handicapped people or search engines’ spiders.



Accessibility has been an important issue for many years already in the USA, where accessibility is a significant factor in the “political correctness” of all larger businesses. BITV has been valid in Germany since July 24, 2002. (The German acronym “BITV” stands for “Barrierefreie Informationstechnik-Verordnung”, which means “Barrier free Information Technology Regulation”.)

This regulation about accessibility stipulates that the Web sites of public facilities must be freely accessible to everyone, including people with handicaps. The BITV regulation also recommends that other web sites should be equally freely accessible.

top of page

What does accessibility mean for web design?

Barrier free web design is the art of programming a web site so that it can be read by everyone.

For example, a web site must be designed so that a screen-reader can read the text aloud to a sightless person. Website navigation must be possible via keyboard. Pictures must have alternative and descriptive texts.


In practice, the concept of accessibility distinguishes between “must” and “can” rules. In each particular case it has to be decided which degree of accessibility is necessary.

top of page

But accessibility is much more comprehensive.

It also involves ensuring that web sites can be visited via the greatest possible variety of different browsers. It also means that users from business networks with high security standards can access the site. (For example, that the web sites can also work without JavaScript or Active-X.)

The point is not only “handicapped accessible programming” but a method which allows for websites to be accessible for all people.

Here’s an important statistic about accessibility in the narrower sense of the phrase:

In Europe alone, more than 37 million people live with some sort of handicap.

But a “handicap” can also mean the following:

  • No alphanumeric keyboard is currently available (e.g. a computer in a car)
  • No mouse is currently available (e.g. at public terminals)
  • The user is presently behind a firewall with very restrictive security settings.
  • The user cannot hear anything or cannot hear clearly (e.g. traffic noise).
  • There isn’t much space on the monitor and the graphic-viewing capability is switched off (e.g. PDA or organizer).
  • The browser has been instructed to enlarge the depiction of the typeface because the user has temporarily misplaced his or her eyeglasses.

The bottom line is this: No one is handicapped, but many people are handicapped by something or someone.

Furthermore, some web site visitors aren’t actual human beings: they’re so-to-speak "blind" but are queried for information millions of times each day. Who are they? One such user is Google, the world’s most popular search engine. In principle, Google is a blind Internet user. Google can really do nothing other than take information from texts and import that information into the Google archive. Therefore website accessibility at the same time implies good search engine visibility.

If a Web site is programmed so that it’s equipped to handle all of these situations, then it’s also been programmed in a way that makes it accessible to handicapped people.

If requested to do so, we can create barrier free web sites and/or offer advice about how to adapt a site to make it barrier free. We also analyze existing sites with regard to the issue of accessibility.

 

top of page

 search

The Epilepsie-Netz website (German only) was designed and programmed in terms of accessibility because of its special requirements.

Fundamental Law of Accessibility:

Optimize your Website for humans, not for any kind of browser.

Because only what all of your potential customers are able to see is also useful for you.

Do you have questions about accessibility? Are you interested in our services?

Please use our contact form!