Web Accessibility
Eco-Photo Explorers understands the need for web accessibility. We are making the best effort to use the latest techniques and tools for evaluating accessibility of our Website, and to retrofit them to become more accessible and usability for people with disabilities. At present we are now are using liquid web pages to adjust themselves to the users monitor resolution, using scaleable fonts in the main body section which will allow users to increase the size of the fonts, making our web pages print friendly and making sure all Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) for our web pages conforms to the W3C standards.
- Access Keys Help Page
- Web Browser Keyboard Shortcuts
- Changing Text Size
- Changing Browser Colors
- Web Design Guidelines
- Tools and Techniques
Access keys
Access keys are shortcuts to provide quick and easy access to common pages without the need for a mouse and have been included to assist users with disabilities navigate around the web site. Access Keys are available for the menu on the left hand side as well as the top navigation bar and are used by holding <Alt> and pressing the corresponding key from the list below. Access keys may not function if you are using other Web browsers or earlier versions of Internet Explorer or Navigator.
Depending on your browser type use the following:
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 and up: press Alt+ access key
- Netscape 6: This accessibility initiative is supported
- Macintosh Users: Press Ctrl+ access key
Access key Shortcuts
Windows: Alt+ access key / Macintosh: Ctrl+ access
key
Print Shortcuts Alt+P
/ Ctrl+P
1 Homepage
2 Company
3 Contacts
4 Programs
5
Departments
6 Announcements
7
Products
8 Mutual Links
9 Terms of
Use
0 Privacy Statement
- Copyright &
Disclaimer Notice
= Site Search
w
Web Accessibility web page
k Access
Keys List
s Site Map - then use < Tab > key to
move down
m Move to top of page
z
Select first link on top menu
then use < Tab > key to move across
x Select
first link on left menu then use
< Tab > key to move down
Web Browser Keyboard Shortcuts
Common keyboard shortcuts can help you efficiently browse the
Web.
Windows: Ctrl+ character / Macintosh: Cmd+
character
Print Shortcuts
| Description (General) | Shortcut (Windows / Mac) |
| Refresh | F5 / |
| Help | F1 / |
| Search | F3 / |
| View the History window | Ctrl+H / Cmd+H |
| Select All | Ctrl+A / Cmd+A |
| Copy | Ctrl+C / Cmd+C |
| Cut | Ctrl+X / Cmd+X |
| Paste | Ctrl+V / Cmd+V |
| Exit (quit the application) | Ctrl+Q / Cmd+Q |
| Description (Browser) | Shortcut (Windows / Mac) |
| New Navigator window | Ctrl+N / Cmd+N |
| Close current window | Ctrl+W / Cmd+W |
| Bring up the Open Location dialog box | Ctrl+L / Cmd+L |
| Open local file in Navigator | Ctrl+O / Cmd+O |
| Ctrl+P / Cmd+P | |
| Reload | Ctrl+R / |
| Stop page loading | Esc / Esc / Cmd + . |
| Find in page | Ctrl+F / Cmd+F |
| Find again | Ctrl+G / Cmd+G |
| Go back | Alt + left arrow / Cmd+[ |
| Go forward | Alt + right arrow / Cmd+] |
| Organize favorites | Ctrl+B / Cmd+B |
| Open favorites side panel | Ctrl+I / |
Changing Text Size
Some users might find the site easier to read by increasing the size at which text is displayed. To do this you can adjust your browser's settings by going to the Tools menu, then select "text size" or "text zoom" or "zoom" and increase the size of the text.
Microsoft Internet Explorer
Hold Alt + V
Then press X followed by Return
Netscape
Hold Alt + V
Then press Z followed by 0 (zero) (or replace the 0 with 2 for
extra large text)
Opera
Hold Alt + V
Then press Z followed by 0 (zero). Opera also allows you to press
the + and - on the keypad to increase and decrease the size
respectively.
Changing Browser Colors
Changing the site's background color can be particularly useful for users who rely on magnification technology as white can produce an uncomfortable glare. It is also possible to change the color of body text on the site. Both can be achieved by changing preferences in your browser:
If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer, go to the Tools menu, select Internet Options, select Accessibility, and put a tick in the box next to "Ignore colors specified on web pages", then select OK. Now go to Colors, select Colors and make changes to text and background colors in the Colors panel.
If you use Netscape Navigator, go to the Edit menu, select Preferences, open the Appearance menu and select Colors. You can set the color of text and background from here.
If you use Opera, go to the File menu select Preferences, open the 'page style' (under fonts and colors). Ensure 'user mode' options use own settings (default settings). Now go into fonts and colors and you can change the color options. Select 'View' then select 'Style' then select 'user mode'.
Web Design Guidelines
- Images and animations: Use the alt="text" attribute to provide text equivalents for images. Use alt="" for images that do not convey important information or convey redundant information.
- Image Maps: Use client-side image maps and alternative text for image map hot spots. If a server-side map is needed, provide equivalent text links.
- Graphs and Charts: Summarize the content of each graph and chart, or use the long description attribute to link to the description or data.
- Multimedia: Provide captions or transcripts of important audio content. Provide transcripts or audio descriptions of important video content.
- Scripts: Ensure the functionality of scripts is keyboard accessible. If the content affected by scripting is not accessible, provide an alternative.
- Applets, Plug-ins, and non-HTML content: When an applet, plug-in or other application is required to be present, provide a link to one that is directly accessible, or provide alternate content for those which are not directly accessible.
- Forms: Make forms accessible to assistive technology.
- Skip to main content: Provide methods for skipping over navigation links to get to main content of page.
- Frames: Provide a title for each FRAME element and frame page. Provide an accessible source for each frame.
- Table Headers: Use the TH element to mark up table heading cells. Use the headers attribute on cells of complex data tables.
- Cascading Style Sheets: Web pages should be readable without requiring style sheets.
- Color & Contrast: Ensure that all information conveyed with color is also conveyed in the absence of color.
- Blinking, Moving or Flickering Content: Avoid causing content to blink, flicker, or move.
- Timed Responses: When a timed response is required, alert the user, and give sufficient time to indicate more time is required.
- Text-only Page: If accessibility cannot be accomplished in any other way, provide a text-only page with equivalent information or functionality. Update the content of the text-only page whenever the primary page changes.
- Verify Accessibility: Test the accessibility using available tools.
Tools and Techniques
After a Web site or template has been created, check the site to ensure that it complies with accessibility requirements. Several techniques are available to verify that the content on your Web pages is accessible to people with disabilities. The tools used to test accessibility are outlined below.
The following techniques are recommended to enhance testing:
- Test the software using assistive technologies such as screen readers and screen magnifiers
- Include people with disabilities and assistive technology developers in the beta and usability tests of the web site and applications
- Test the software using web tools for accessibility
- W3C Link Checker
- W3C CSS Validation
- W3C HTML Tidy
- W3C Markup Validation Service
- W3C: Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)
- W3C: Alternative Web Browsing
- WDG HTML Validator
- A-Prompt (Accessibility Prompt) - evaluate Web pages for accessibility barriers
- WebAIM - Web Accessibility Information
- UsableNet - Web Accessibility Testing
- HTML Validator
- Bobby
- IBM Home Page Reader
- Lynx - Text-only browser
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 - Keyboard shortcuts
- Microsoft Accessibility Information
- Making Your Web Site Accessible to the Blind
- Designing More Usable Web Sites
Bobby is a tool for analyzing Web pages for accessibility and conformity to HTML specifications. Bobby was originally developed by the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) with IBM as one of Bobby's main sponsor's. Bobby was sold to Watchfire, Inc in September 2002.
Bobby comes in two flavors. With the Web version of Bobby you insert a URL for an Internet page, and obtain a Bobby report on-line. Alternatively, the Web developer should download Bobby and use the tool on Web pages under development or inside a firewall.
IBM Home Page Reader is designed for people who are blind or have low vision. A full function thirty day trial version of IBM Home Page Reader (HPR) is available at the IBM Accessibility Center Web site.
The Home Page Reader product can be purchased at ShopIBM.
For a detailed explanation of how to use Home Page Reader to test Web sites for accessibility, please see Testing Accessibility with Home Page Reader.
Lynx is a text-only browser. Using a text-only browser is an effective technique in determining if the alternative text content is available to assistive technologies such as screen readers. You can obtain Lynx from the Lynx Information web site.
You can obtain Internet Explorer 5 from the Microsoft's IE5 site. Internet Explorer keyboard shortcuts are documented in the Help. Use the tab key to navigate to links and form controls. To turn off images:
- Select Tools - Internet Options - Advanced.
- Select "Always expand alternative text for images."
- In the multimedia section deselect "Show pictures."
Please email all questions or comments with this site to Technical Support.
