Web Access Issues
Article: Libraries Without Walls
by Richard Banks
EASI Electronic Resource Manager, Library Learning Center, University of Wisconsin at Stout
by Norman Coombs, PH.D.
Professor of History College of Liberal Arts, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, New York
Web site: http://www.isc.rid.edu/~easi/lib/csun96bc.html
Summary of article:
The authors tell us how the invention of the printing press increased the availability of written material. They explain how the mass production of the printed word widened the information gap between those who could see and the visually handicapped. The article discusses how adaptive computer technology is narrowing the gap and turning the so-called print disabled into a new class of library patrons. The author describes ways information can be manipulated to meet the different types of disabilities. Such as the ability to enlarge print, to digitize text, convert text to speech, to talk to your computer, and to have alternative input-output devices. The invention of these devices has greatly enhanced the access to information for the handicapped. The article informs us of how standards organizations are establishing standards for hardware and software manufacturers to meet the needs of the disabled.
As a graphic arts teacher, I
taught students about the invention of the printing press and how
important it was to the development of reading for most people. I
wanted them to know that prior to the invention of the printing
press most people could not afford books and information was
shared primarily through the spoken word. I never thought to
teach my students that a gain for most was not a gain for the
print disabled. I had an exercise in which I removed all printed
words from their use. I wanted them to be aware of how important
the printed word is to our daily lives.
This article and class exercises has served to educate me and
make me more sensitive to the needs of the handicapped. Teaching
students to be aware of the needs of the handicapped should be a
part of any course teaching the use of technology. I believe it
will be necessary to educate students about the different ways of
presenting information so that all people can have access. Maybe
the graphic arts teacher of the future will teach how important
the invention of the computer was to the development of reading
for all people.
Article: Accessible Design for Users With Disabilities
A column by Jakob Nielsen
Web site: http://lunch.ncsa.uiuc.edu/tom/articles/disabled_access.html
Summary of article
Jakob Nielsen states, "Making
the web accessible for users with various disabilities is to a
great extent a matter of using HTML the way it was intended: to
encode rather than appearance". He explains how to use
proper HTML markup to emphasize structure so the visually
handicapped can scan a long document easily. He includes guide
lines for using the ALT attributes for labeling graphics. He
describes how to use fonts in a web page for the visually
handicapped. He includes guidelines for creating web pages that
are useful for those with auditory disabilities, motor
disabilities and cognitive disabilities. For the auditory
disabled he recommends all sound clips and video clips should be
available in versions with subtitles. For motor disabilities he
recommends that all browsers should be capable of moving through
the links with keyboard control. He recommends site maps,
hypertext anchors, proper HTML structure for scanning long
documents, and spell checkers in browser search engines for
people with cognitive disabilities. He advises to read the book Universal
Web Design by Crystal Waters (also available in audio
cassette) for more detailed advice on designing web pages for the
disabled.
I am fairly new to the use of HTML and this article gave me
pointers in its use for creating web pages that are accessible to
the handicapped.
dbarber@ncsa,uiuc,edu.
Revised: June 25, 1998.