Accessible Internet are web deals that can be used by all users regardless of physical or technical possibilities fully ( accessible). The use of the term Internet is here a colloquial equating the term "Internet" with the World Wide Web.

• 4.1 scalability
• 4.2 Logical Structure
• 4.3 Positioning of elements
• 4.4 Acronyms and Abbreviations
• 4.5 text alternative for graphical information
• 4.6 images for layout purposes
• 4.7 Interactive Buttons with CSS
• 4.8.2 motivation
• 4.8.3 Practical Application

• 5.1 European Union
• 5.2 Germany
• 5.3 Austria 5.3.1 Legal framework

• 5.4.1 Legal framework
• 5.4.2 Policies and implementation

Basics

Accessibility includes both people with and without disabilities and users with technical ( text-only browser or PDA) or age-related limitations ( poor eyesight ) and Webcrawler, acquire by which search engines the content of a page. Since this can not be fully achieved due to the numerous soft, predominantly individual barriers, it is also called low barrier or accessible.

Statistically, people with disabilities often than the average on the internet and it rely on special treatment of the websites, which go beyond the usual representation ( rendering on the screen, audio data conversion). Blind and visually impaired users can be read by software or spend in Braille, deaf or hard of hearing people whose first language is sign language Web sites tailored to their need, specific modes of the Internet.

In addition to the consideration of the needs of disabled people means " barrier-free" ( disabled denotes only one aspect ) that, in general anyone barriers shall be placed in the way. Even non-disabled users should not extend obligations to use exactly the same hardware and software configuration as accessing Internet services as the author of the tender ( technical accessibility). Beyond accessibility ( Accessibility), it is also about the platform independence - an internet offer is to remain usable with both screen in any format as well as PDA, mobile phone. It should work independent of the operating system and the software, provided that such work standards compliant.

At least as important as technical access conditions is that the content is clear and presented in easy to understand language. Accessibility also includes to ask any excessive, but adapted the subject requirements for education, training and intellectual level. This context is binding, in particular for public websites in order to realize the demands for equality by linguistically gehandicapten in a country people (different from the majority native language ), but also records the problems of older people who are not with the possibilities and methods modern communications have grown, and socially disadvantaged people.

Conceptual history

The concept of accessibility was originally used in the building and designated buildings that are accessible without barriers, for example, for wheelchair users. In the field of information technology, the term was first time in 1993 from Dortmund center disability and studies ( DoBuS ) is used as a metaphor for user interfaces of software and coined the catchy term " barrier-free user interface ," which has become generally established in German-speaking today. The club was first made ​​the demand for barrier-free Internet publicity. But the term originally used in the construction industry at that time was transferred to the rapidly developing area of the Internet. The main demand of the association was that all information on the Internet should be made available to all users regardless of the application of certain programs.

Internet technologies represent, the barriers

The modern technologies of information processing and the web offer a plethora of different technologies to represent contents that go in the last decade, increasingly rapidly over the pure preparation of text (plain text). Because resources can the tools necessary to represent, often can not be adequately tracked, if it comes to marginalized groups. Such action on the part of providers of web presence, but also the providers of infrastructure and operating software are called exclusionary mechanisms.

• Well structured text can be read by blind people on a Braille display with appropriate software ( screen readers ). Also sighted benefit when browsing and editing of texts, if they are well structured. Pictures - or text contained in images - are inaccessible for blind and should be supplemented with an alternative text. Frames are not an obstacle if they support the structure, for example, separate navigation and content.
• Visually impaired need scalability of the type in the browser to adjust the font size to their visual performance can.
• People with impaired vision may need a strong contrasts and clear fonts, and control over the color of text and background.
• For people with a color deficiency, such as due to a red-green color blindness, it is problematic when information about color mediated alone. Therefore, information should like " Press the red button" to be avoided.
• Visually impaired are at a navigation that consists of images, Java applets or Flash objects at a disadvantage.
• Flashing or animated texts are for people with a visual impairment and / or a cognitive disability, a barrier, since they distract from the actual content.
• People with spasticity and other motor disorders that can operate a mouse must navigate with the keyboard. They move (usually with the tab key ) through links, form elements and other active objects on the page. In order for a website is well done with the keyboard, it is important that the elements are driven in a sensible order, and that at any time can be clearly seen, which element has the focus.
• Deaf people have often learned as a first language sign language. For them, the written language is a foreign language and the most difficult to understand. Also acoustic contents can not be picked up by deaf people. They should therefore be replaced by visually perceptible content or accompanied by them. Accessible websites are for them that are represented in sign language.
• People with cognitive disabilities often have problems, long and cumbersome texts formulated with difficult foreign words and complex sentences and complex navigations to understand. That's why it makes sense to write Web sites in so-called " plain language " or to offer translations in " Plain Language ".
• Many of the currently available content management systems (CMS ) create pages that are difficult to access for people with disabilities. Very few systems or procedures to support the authors with accessible input options.
• Failure to comply with technical standards (incorrect coding of umlauts, invalid HTML) generated web pages that are displayed as desired by the author only certain browsers.
• Dynamic conditioned and interactively accessible information is an informational sociological innovation to a similar extent as the Internet itself dar. However, the risks exclusionary mechanisms to increase according to the diversity of options. With the proliferation of Ajax is a risk that the accessibility gets even faster behind.

Context of Web accessibility for people and accessibility for Robots

Increasingly, information is not only requested from the user, but also on the software itself, in general, relatively simple scripts that in a suitable form further convey the data to more complex programs or human. Because these run automatically or semi-automatically, they are commonly called Robot or Bot.

Internet search engines to index the World Wide Web with the help of automated programs ( web crawlers ) or robots. These programs take a page similar to true as visually impaired users. You can evaluate only text in the rule. Images, animations and the like remain hidden from them in most cases. As a rule of thumb: Anything that prepares visually impaired problems is also an obstacle for Robots.

However, a generalization of the rule of thumb is not possible. A blind person may still receive output via an optional voice output. A robot, however, the tones can not parse, is then able to index any information. The other way round, there are also examples where human blind have any more information, Robots, but still be able to analyze something ( such as structures or watermarks within images ).

As a real problem prove the Captcha systems that have been designed to distinguish Robots and humans (Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart, " Fully automated Turing test to distinguish man and machine "). The images in this case normally used by distorted lettering must be visually recognized, the test fails and thus the blind and visually impaired people are treated by the system as a "machine". There are more advanced Captcha methods with speech output, or suspected of " simple questions " alternate end systems but which may be a problem for non-native speakers. In fact, the test for accessibility test proves to the Turing test, and there is still no reliable method that can really distinguish between man and machine.

Basic techniques for web accessibility

Basic requirement for accessible websites is the correct use of web standards ( valid HTML / XHTML). The required strict separation of structure of a document (Document Object Model) and its presentation (layout) can be achieved by the correct use of Cascading Style Sheets ( CSS). Compromises in the design are not necessary. Some basic options:

Scalability

Fixed font sizes set in some browsers is a barrier because they are difficult to change by the user. So should the unit especially for fonts, but also for areas, distances, etc. be relative (in em or%).

Logical Structure

The most important rule for accessible websites is to use the HTML elements according to their meaning (semantics). Using the example of headings in the document to be clarified. For headings, HTML elements h1 to h6 are provided and should be used for award:

Heading 1 < / h1 > Highlighting only by an enlarged font as with

Heading 1 < / span > While acting in a CSS - capable browser for normal- users such as a headline, but is semantically incorrect and does not depict a structure. The fact that it is a heading with such a highlighted text, is transported solely by the presentation and recognized on the basis of reading habits and typographical conventions from ( seeing ) readers "at a glance ". The screen reader a blind Internet user, however, interpreted the span element as normal text. For the user, this makes it difficult to orient themselves in the HTML document.

This example makes it clear that accessibility has less to do with "design", but rather with the correct structure of (X ) HTML source code. Positive side effect: search engines evaluate semantically correct and valid websites, which affects a better search result. Comparably, this approach is also the principle of the style of a Word document. Who does not work here structured, is constantly encounter problems.

Positioning of elements

To place elements on a page, can be used for a table constructions, on the other hand elements with Cascading Style Sheets can be positioned using precise coordinates. Through the use of tables in the source text is unnecessarily bloated, as well as areas need to be defined that are not used at all. Above all tables should be used only when it comes to present tabular content, not to generate a layout grid. With Cascading Style Sheets only elements must be defined, which are also needed. Overlaps of individual elements ( foreground and background elements in different planes) are possible. The use of DIV elements has proven here.

But is particularly advantageous in particular the independence of the displayed position of the source code. It can be defined only at the end of the HTML document, the head region of the visible content. If the latter is provided with banners, which tend to be quite disturbing for users with disabilities, they are defined at the end of the source code. Thus, users of screen readers do not have to uninteresting "read", but can directly use the relevant content. Very useful also intra-page Anchor links (anchor) as jump to the content are ( Skip navigation ).

Navigational elements such as menus should be defined as a list (UL, LI) and are then designed by stylesheets visually as a horizontal or vertical menus. For a blind man as a list contents index is better to interpret.

Acronyms and Abbreviations

Also Acronyms and abbreviations should be defined with the specially provided for HTML elements.

If one uses the acronym element so spelled a screen reader rather than the individual letters, but pronounces the word as far as possible from as a whole. In contrast, the abbr element is ( for abbreviation to German: Abbreviation ). Here reads the screen reader before the respective acronym letter by letter.

Examples:

BITV title="Barrierefreie Informationstechnik-Verordnung"> BITV < / acronym >
BITV BITV For ease of operation, the dissolution of an abbreviation in brackets following is recommended under certain circumstances:

Example: BITV ( Barrier-free Information Technology Ordinance )

In modern browsers, this means CSS ( generated content, attribute selector, content property ) can be accomplished without the HTML code to have to change.

Abbr [title ]: after {    content: ' ( ' attr ( title) ')'; } Text alternative for graphical information

Information may not be present alone in the form of graphs, but must alternatively be accompanied by a descriptive text.

< - False: -> <- Right: -> on a stone Images for layout purposes

Often, images are only for layout purposes, but not used for information transfer. In order to meet the required standards, ie to create valid HTML, you have pictures with an alternative text (ALT attribute) provided. Is it the pictures to graphic elements for the page layout, but an ALT text would be disruptive for the blind, which is why it should be left blank. In the method for aligning elements 1 × 1 pixel transparent to use large graphics that are then placed in large numbers after the other, should be entirely dispensed with, and instead used CSS for positioning. Serves an image only the layout / design and transported no relevant information, so it should be defined as a background image in the stylesheet ( background-image ).

Interactive Buttons with CSS

Often navigations still be realized using JavaScript or using plug -ins. This can make the code unnecessarily extensive and locks users out if, for example:

• Whose browsers support JavaScript (Lynx )
• JavaScript support is disabled in the browser (eg for safety reasons)
• The required plug-ins are not installed
• Or the user is through a disability unable to perceive the navigation or to use.

For most buttons in the internet just background color or image and text color and decoration to be replaced. This is easier with CSS many times and the code shrinks (bundling of format specifications in classes). Of course, this also reduces the document size, which at the same time the transfer volume is smaller and the page will load faster. Further improvements in terms of volume transfer and charging time can be achieved by a spin-off of CSS values ​​in an external file as the formatting only once - and not each time you call - must be transmitted to the user.

Unobtrusive JavaScript ( lit. unobtrusive JavaScript also: barrier-free JavaScript) is a concept for a contemporary use of JavaScript in Web pages. Javascript should therefore provide an extension of the functionality instead of being fundamental for the operation. The concept is gaining in particular in connection with the barrier-free and mobile Internet is becoming increasingly important.

Basic principles

• Distribution of content, behavior and presentation of web pages (Model View Controller)
• Use of best practices in order to avoid problems of traditional JavaScript programming ( different display in different web browsers, lack of scalability )

Motivation

Historically, JavaScript had a reputation as a clumsy, unpolished programming language that is useless for " serious " software development. This is mainly due to inconsistent implementations of the script environment and the DOM in different browsers, as well as the extensive use of copy -paste code. Runtime errors were so common and difficult to repair that many programmers waived improvements as long as the script had approximately the desired behavior. It was tolerated that such scripts did not work in some browsers.

The advent of standard - compliant browsers, JavaScript libraries and better debugging tools made ​​organized and scalable JavaScript code possible and Ajax- based user interfaces made ​​this even necessary.

Where JavaScript has been previously used only for small, non-critical tasks, it is now practical to implement large, complex projects, which often form part of the core functionality of a website. Runtime errors are so that no imperfections, but fatal failures.

The concept of accessibility within the meaning of JavaScript programming is dominated by the article Unobtrusive DHTML, and the power of unordered lists by Stuart Langridge. In this article Langridge discussed the concept strictly separate JavaScript from HTML. Since then he has illustrated this concept in several articles and a book in detail.

Practical Application

This concept is supported in ASP.NET MVC 3 using Ajax plugin.

Guidelines for Accessibility of online content

In order to make the Web more accessible, the Web Accessibility Initiative ( WAI) has been established by the W3C. This initiative in 1999 published the first internationally recognized standard "Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 " (WCAG ). The latest version of WCAG 2.0 was released after more than nine years of consulting on December 11, 2008.

European Union

In the EU there are 38 million people with disabilities, mild disabilities ( visual impairments ) to severe disabilities ( such as blindness or severe multiple disabilities). The proportion of older people in the total population is steadily increasing. Currently, about 20 percent of the population are over 60 years old.

The eEurope initiative (December 1999) on the Information Society appoints as one of ten goals the participation of all, regardless of age and disability. The e- Europe Action Plan are the following for this project at: Introduction of the guidelines of the WAI to 2002 in public administration and design - for-all standards up to 2003, the European Council adopted on 10 April 2002 a resolution in which the. Member States were invited to devote more efforts to implement the guidelines of the WAI and this laid down in national law.

This was supposedly already achieved barrier-free access ( e-accessibility) in the following Action Plan 2005, the eEurope initiative no longer a priority issue. It was taken up as a priority only again in the i2010 initiative: in addition to the goal to create a single European information space and to create global excellence through innovation and investment in ICT research an information society is demanded here that is inclusive, provides high quality public services and contributes to raising the quality of life.

The organized at the invitation of the Latvian government, EU ministers meeting in Riga in 2006 was focused on this third focus of the i2010 initiative. The Riga Ministerial Declaration was unanimously of 34 European countries - EU Member States, candidate countries and EFTA-EEA - signed.

Germany

In Germany, four out of five people with disabilities, the World Wide Web. On May 1, 2002, the Act on Equal Opportunities for Disabled People and amending other laws ( Disability Discrimination Act - BGG ) has entered into force on 27 April 2002. In this Act, the federal government has established rules for the preparation of accessibility in information technology for its management set. Thus, the Federal is committed to its publicly available Internet and Intranet offers in principle accessible.

A statutory instrument ( Barrier-free Information Technology Ordinance - BITV) of the Federal Ministry of the Interior and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs regulates the provisos of this. The Schedule 1 of the ordinance contains no standards for basic equipment ( servers, routers, protocols), but lists requirements that are based on the guidelines of the WAI. The federal government operates a total of 14 requirements and 60 are arranged in two priority levels on conditions to be fulfilled. For the adaptation of existing services already at that time, a transition period was provided until 31 December 2005; since all offers must consider the arrangements immediately.

The new version of the now-obsolete BITV is currently in the EU notification procedure. The deadline for comments from the EU Member States ended on May 16, 2011.

Basically, the BITV addressed only to bodies governed by public law which are subordinate to the federal government. Institutions and organizations of the countries are recognized over their own country - equality laws. In general, the countries have laws on the BITV orient. It is disputed whether the equality laws also require that pages are translated and available in German sign language.

The Action Alliance for barrier-free information technology have disability organizations, research institutions, and others joined together to promote the implementation of Web accessibility. AbI offers to the information portal WOB11 information on accessible Internet. The action man and the Digital Opportunities Foundation draw every year the best German, barrier-free websites from the BEE - Award. An official " barrier free MOT " test does not yet exist, however, because a standardized test procedure remains elusive must be ensured in terms of detail and scope and comparability. In addition, websites - in contrast to, for example, barrier-free buildings - easily and frequently changed, a certificate would have to be checked regularly.

Austria

Legal framework

The accessibility of the Internet cites the Federal Constitution. The Art 7 para 1 B- VG formulated the principle of equality, also contains an express prohibition of discrimination for disabled people, and a state goal, which requires the legislature to active realization of de facto equality. Federal, state and local governments profess based thereon to " ensure the equal treatment of people with and without disabilities in all areas of daily life. " This will be implemented via the Disability Equality package that has come since January 1, 2006 to carry.

In § 6 para 5 Disability Discrimination Act states that a facility is barrier-free, "if they are basically for people with disabilities in the general way, without any particular difficulty and without the help of others accessible and useful. " Here, in the guidelines WCAG 1.0 level A of the Web Accessibility initiative ( WAI) of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C ) formulated basic conditions of accessibility based on, as long as there are no binding European or Austrian standards. Level AA means that all Priority 2 guidelines are fully implemented. These extend the equality concept in this context thus also on the on disability other wider aspects of Accessibility ( operating system and browser independence, " clearest and simplest language that is appropriate," and others).

In particular, relates to the web presence of the administration and their electronic implementation ( e-government) to implement the eEurope initiative. With the E -Government Act of 2004, the implementation by January 1, 2008, in § 1, paragraph 3 required and is currently (January 2008) in conversion. Also included are accurate concepts about e- delivery, so the access to forms on the Internet.

Switzerland

Legal framework

In Switzerland, the accessibility is regulated to internet presentations of the state for people with disabilities in the Federal Constitution and the regulation of accessibility of websites is substantiated by law and regulation.

• The Disability Discrimination Act ( BehiG ) entered into force on 1 January 2004. It aims to help people with disabilities as possible to a life that is comparable to that of non-disabled people.
• In the Disability Equality Regulation ( BehiV ), which entered into force at the same time, is described in detail in Article 10, that the information and the communication and transaction services via the Internet for speech, hearing, visual and motor disabilities must be accessible.

Specifically, this means the law: Internet Deals of the State (Confederation, cantons, municipalities, federal -affiliated companies ) must be accessible to the disabled without aggravating conditions. Internet services by the private sector have no obligation to disabled refinement, but they must not discriminate against any population groups.

With the entry into force of the Act and Regulation, the Federal Office for Gender Equality of People with Disabilities ( FBED ) was created in 2004. Its mission is to promote equality between people with and without disabilities, as well as to work for the removal of legal or actual disadvantages.

Policies and implementation

The federal guidelines for the design of barrier-free Internet offerings ( P028 ) based on the W3C WCAG 2.0 standard, this international guidelines have not been changed. Compliance with all checkpoints of Conformance level AA must be guaranteed. P028 explicitly requires the accessibility of all the presented PDF documents. PDF documents must be legible with disabilities or whose contents are in other, equivalent form, for example as a text document available for people. Once the WAI is a newer form of the WCAG in force, shall within 3 months of the interdisciplinary commission meet and find whether and how the standard P028 to be updated.

For implementation at cantonal and municipal level, the Section Accessibility was formed within the Association for eGovernment Standards ( eCH ). It consists of federal agents who bring in their experience, representatives from the cantons and larger communities as well as volunteer experts from the private sector and experts from the Access for All Foundation. The Department developed the open standard eCH 0059, consisting of guide and resource. Its purpose is to give managers and project staff directives, such as an Internet project can function accessible. The guide lists the measures necessary for each project phase.

Mid-2007 was the second study inventory of accessibility of Swiss websites of the community for people with disabilities published by the Access for All Foundation. It showed on the one hand great progress in the accessibility of websites of the federal authorities, on the other hand large and partially striking deficits of the websites of the cantons and the semi-public enterprises.

USA

According to estimates 39.1 million Americans apply (15 percent of the population) as disabled. The U.S. is on the introduction of accessibility in public administration at the federal and individual state - level leader: As early as 1990 was enacted with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA ), a Disability Equality Act, its implementation is monitored by the federal Department of Justice. The 1998 expanded section 508 ( section 508 ) of the Rehabilitation Act is binding on all federal agencies with respect to their information services. The here developed by an independent federal institution rules have even been included in the procurement specifications and must be met by all companies that sell to the government provides goods or services.

Most states offer their Internet offerings alternatively in a "text only " version or to fulfill, such as Delaware, already complete all Priority 1 requirements of the WAI. The e -Government control center of Delaware is so concerned to promote the implementation of the WAI guidelines for all administrative services of the state. Also in the communal area there are examples. Thus, the Internet site of the city of Orlando (Florida ) also the WAI guidelines met the priority 1

Norms and Standards

• International: Template: Internet resource / maintenance / access date not in ISO format template: Internet resource / Maintenance / date is not in the ISO FormatBen Caldwell; Michael Cooper; Loretta Guarino Reid; Gregg Vanderheiden: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG ) 2.0. W3C 11 December, 2008, accessed on 13 December 2008 (English ).
• European Union: Template: Internet resource / maintenance / access date not in ISO format Action Plan eEurope, i2010 strategy. In: Europa: Information Society, activity reports of the EU legislation on conditions. EU Portal, accessed on 28 June 2008 ( German ). Template: Internet resource / maintenance / access date no programs in ISO formats Content Plus. EU Portal, accessed on 28 June 2008 (English ).
• Germany: Act on Equal Opportunities for Disabled People (BGG ), Barrier -Free Information Technology (BITV ); Appendix 1 BITV 2.0Vorlage: § / Maintenance / buzer
• Austria: Federal Disability Equality Act ( BGStG ), Federal Equal Treatment Act (B- GlBG ), Federal Act on Equal Treatment ( GlBG )
• Switzerland: Disability Discrimination Act ( BehiG ) (pdf ), Disability Equality ( BehiV ) (pdf ); Policies Accessibility - Legal Framework; P028 - Federal guidelines, all admin.ch
• Liechtenstein Law on the Equality of People with Disabilities ( bglG )