Having
acquired a print disability at the age of 35 I was introduced to a world of
assistive technology and was trained in a technology called a screen reader.
This technology enabled me to access the digital world with the help of a text
to speech interface with destop/ smart phone applications/ websites navigation
aided by keyboard/ touch.
The screen
readers that I use are:
On my
desktop/ laptop: NVDA (Non Visual Desktop Access) and JAWS (Job Access With
Speech)
On my smart
phone: VoiceOver for IOS
However, to
enable complete accessibility of applications and websites the applications and
websites need to be WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) compliant;
otherwise I am introduced to barriers due to inaccessibility. In this article I
am sharing with you a few accessibility barriers and nightmares I have using
the many digital resources with the help of my screen reader.
Example 1:
Using color or in page messages to indicate error/ action: This is another
favorite nightmare for someone who is print disabled or color blind. This
barrier is when an error message is indicated to the user on the webpage or has
a color indication of the error. For example; when filling up a form you type
an invalid mail address and you are unable to submit the form because you made
an error. The user who is color blind will not be able to see where the error
is because it is being visually represented on the webpage in a color that the
user cannot perceive due to his/ her limitation or not being able to see the
screen at all. OR perhaps the error message is displayed on the same screen but
the user cannot get to it with their keyboard/ screen reader.
Example 2:
Action messages that visually indicate the user to perform an action on the
webpage/ application; like Click the green button to continue OR the red button
to cancel. This barrier can be eliminated by providing alternative ways to
indicate to the user about the error. I discuss them below for your
understanding.
Pop-Up
dialogue box: Any error message can be either represented as a POP UP dialogue
box with the list of errors the users needs to fix.
References
for further reading:
Web Content
Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Overview
https://www.w3.org/WAI/standards-guidelines/wcag/
NVDA Screen
Reader Overview
https://assistivlabs.com/assistive-tech/screen-readers/nvda
JAWS Screen
Reader Overview
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