* Dr. Internet columnist Steve Blass helps a reader find information on Web-accessibility guidelines and Section 508 standards
We’re revising several Web sites and want to ensure they meet Web-accessibility guidelines and Section 508 standards. Where can we find information on the standards, and are there automated tools for evaluating and updating pages and sites for accessibi
We’re revising several Web sites and want to ensure they meet Web-accessibility guidelines and Section 508 standards. Where can we find information on the standards, and are there automated tools for evaluating and updating pages and sites for accessibility?
The World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Accessibility Guidelines are at https://www.w3.org/WAI. Information on federal Section 508 standards is available at http://www.section508.gov. The Web Accessibility in Mind site (http://www.webaim.org) provides links to free and commercial evaluation and repair tools.
The site lists several online page-evaluation services and has as an accessibility toolbar download for Internet Explorer from the Australian National Information and Library Service, plus several commercial products and services for ensuring Web site accessibility.
Most of the free evaluation tools produce a report that describes the problems with your current page and provides recommendations for repairing it. Automated page revision and large-scale accessibility-compliance project-management features are found among the commercial products. For example, Dreamweaver MX includes Lift from Useablenet.com. To check a page for compliance in Dreamweaver, choose Reports from the Site menu, check the Accessibility box and click Run to generate a report.
