Accessibility to the Disabled



Jan Willard   07/23/01


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Need for Accessibility

Even today with all of our infinite wisdom, the Internet has missed the mark when it comes to creating electronic information that allows everyone access to the same information. Those not having access are the disabled people of the world.  Until several years ago, this was an issue no one was even thinking about.  But today, anyone actively involved in designing, implementing and developing web sites needs to be aware; there is a great need for accessibility by all people, regardless of their physical limitations.  Much of the information, including audio, visual and graphics, are lost to the handicapped in the mecca of our web sites.

As this great nemesis of information and technology continues to grow, fewer and fewer disabled people can even begin to benefit from the technology.  It is not just a need for this segment of the population; it is a missed opportunity for all business and developers.  People do not lose value just because they may become disabled.  Quite the contrary; in many cases, their contribution becomes even larger and highly focused.  Without accessibility, everyone will lose.


For a blind person, unless the site has been designed to use a screen reader, which can read HTML pages out loud, chatting as it continually recites everything that it finds, the retrieved information will be confusing to the disabled user (Locking out the disabled, 2001).  What makes the process even harder, the buttons, java applets and forms are all indecipherable, if not properly coded for the screen reader.  Statistically speaking, one in five Americans has some disability, meaning in the future, as the country we live in ages, that percentage will rise (Locking out the Disabled, 2001).  If sites are made navigable by a program like screen reader, this will allow the disabled to access phones, palmtop devices, and even old computers.

In many cases, the accessibility problem has been ignored, even though we acknowledge the disabled with wheelchair ramps, braille markings and closed captioning.  But in the same breath, out of 30 major shopping, search, auction, news and financial-type web sites, only a few seem even interested in making sites accessible (Locking out the Disabled, 2001).  This is not a reassuring picture of possibilities for the disabled.



Reasons for not doing something

Why don't more firms do anything?   According to one consultant, "…They, being the firms, don't see the market.  They say the market isn't big enough for them to turn a profit "(Locking out the Disabled, 2001).  Is it really back to, "Everyone's in it for the Money"?   It may be, however that smart companies are starting to realize that it can be cost effective and actually make good business.  One new company, http://election.com has decided to provide accessibility to those with little or no vision, reduced sense of hearing or impaired type of manual dexterity as their platform to accessibility (Smart Biz: Enabling the Disabled, 2001).  To help this effort is ongoing federal legislation that could help this problem.


Meaning of Section 508

What puts the bite in all this is the current federal legislation, that has gone into effect as of the last of June 2001.  This is commonly referred to as Section 508 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act, requiring all government agencies to abide by the standards established within Section 508. This is part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, that requires electronic and information technology developed, maintained or used by the Federal Government to be accessible to people with disabilities (Solution Focus, 2001).  Still with all the talk, there is between 4 and 17 percent of the online population having some kind of disability, whether it is physical, sight-related, hearing or cognitive.  Another way to say this is that there are six million users in the Unites States alone that are disabled (Smart Biz: Enabling the Disabled, 2001).

Impact to Government Web Development and Importance

In future federal government requirements, everything that is put on the web must be checked to make sure it is accessible.  This includes all graphics, movies, and page layouts, which must be in a format that is readable and accessible.  All government sites will be liable for meeting these standards (Solution Focus, Section 508, 2001).  However, this does not mean sites created prior to the acceptance of these standards have to be redesigned to meet these criteria.  This is only applicable from this time forward.

Summary

Who is liable?  Anyone and everyone!   Besides the possible loss of business due to non -compliance to government standards, it makes good business sense to provide accessiblity.   Small businesses may have to decide whether the electronic and information technology they or their customers plan to sell to the Federal Government will comply with the new Federal Standards.  Manufacturers may want to redesign, to be compliant and have a better opportunity of winning future federal contracts.   This change to the presentation of electronic information will not transform overnight.  Things are never changed that fast.  Anyone who is actively involved in the creation, development, maintenance, marketing, selling and delivering of information to the electronic medium is accountable and liable.  There could very well be financial considerations, goodwill and common sense at stake, if it is not done, but that is no guarantee that it will be done.  We owe it to ourselves to help make the medium one that serves all people, not just some.


References Used:

Delio, Michelle. (2001). Fed Opens Web to Disabled, (2000, Dec). 1-4. Retrieved
      from the World Wide Web: http://www.wired.com/news/politics/
     0,1283,40790,00.html

PCWorld: Locking Out the Disabled. (2001, July). Retrieved (July 18, 2001)
     from the World Wide Web: http://www.pcworld.com/resource/
     article.asp?aid=17690

Smart Biz: Enabling the Disabled. (2001, July). Retrieved (July 17, 2001).
     From the World Wide Web: http://www.wired.com/news/business/
     0,1367,39563,00.html

Solution Focus: Accessibility. (2001, July). Retrieved (July 18, 2001)
     from the World Wide Web: http://www.iqsolutions.com/accessibility/
     section%20508/whatis508.htm




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copyright©2001 Jan M. Willard, Mt. Airy, Md.

Last modified: 08-10-2001
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