W3C opens registration for Mobile Web Apps course - early bird rate available if you register before December 25, 2013

The W3C Mobile Web 2: Programming Applications online course is back! Now open for registration and to start on 13 January 2014, this course covers all techniques for programming successful mobile Web applications that can ship both online and in application stores. You will have access to high quality content material, be trained by a first-class expert, and learn step by step. Register before 25 December 2013 to benefit from the early bird rate. Learn more about W3DevCampus, the W3C online training for Web developers.

A new tool in my Accessibility Toolbox - The WAVE Toolbar for Firefox

In Part 2 of INDATA's Web Accessibility series, Wade Wingler, Director of Assistive Technology at the INDATA Project, introduces The WAVE Toolbar for Firefox.  The WAVE (web accessibility evaluation tool) Firefox toolbar provides an automated way to run WAVE reports directly within Firefox.

It provides you with information about your web page in four different ways:

• Errors, Features, and Alerts
• Structure/Order View
• Text-only View
• Outline View

Text-only View is especially useful if you want to see what a screen reader would read out loud about your page.

W3C WAI Mobile Accessibility Task Force - Seeking Participation

The W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) has established a Mobile Accessibility Task Force to develop more specific guidance on mobile accessibility related to WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) and UAAG (User Agent Accessibility Guidelines).

The Mobile Accessibility Task Force expects to:

• develop mobile techniques for WCAG using HTML5, ARIA, CSS and JavaScript
• develop design guidance or mobile web accessibility best practices
• review existing resources, including those outside of W3C

The Task Force seeks to bring together individuals and organizations to contribute to this W3C/WAI work.

• Active participation in the Task Force takes about 4 hours per week, including teleconferences.
• Participation is through either the WCAG Working Group or the UAAG Working Group.
• More about participation is at http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/mobile-a11y-tf/#participation

More at: http://lists.w3.org/Archives/Public/w3c-wai-ig/2013OctDec/0000.html

Make the Internet Accessible for All

Many years ago, when I was working for state government, I wrote an article for civic.com (now Federal Computer Week), titled "Make the Internet Accessible for All." I discovered today that the article is still online after all those years (14 to be exact). After reading through it, I realized that most of what I wrote back then still applies today (except for my contact information), so I thought I would share the article with my readers and get your feedback.

I also found a couple of other articles on the Federal Computer Week web site that reference the work we were doing back then to make our state government web sites accessible: Enabling the disabled and Connecticut Legislature Launches 'CSPAN' on the Web.

Verizon adds support for TalkBack in a firmware update available today for the HTC DROID DNA

TalkBack is an Accessibility Service that helps blind and vision-impaired users interact with their devices more easily. This application adds spoken, audible, and vibration feedback to your device. It is a system application that was pre-installed on most devices and is updated when the accessibility service is improved. TalkBack is available for download at the Google Play Store.

Today Verizon is making an update available to add support for TalkBack to the HTC DROID DNA. After the update, you should be at Version 2.07.605.1 710RD. During the install, it will optimize all the apps on your phone to be more compatible with TalkBack.

Why is web site accessibility important?

In Part 1 of a 3 part series, Wade Winger, Director of Assistive Technology at the INDATA Project, explains why accessibility is important when building a website and conducts a short demo on how people using Voice Over on a Mac computer access a web page.

United States Access Board a casualty of the Federal Government Shut-Down

From an email I received this morning:

Because of the absence of a Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 appropriation, the Access Board is compelled to "shut-down" its operations. All Access Board employees have been placed in a furlough status. During the shut-down we will not be providing the following services:

• Complaint processing under the Architectural Barriers Act
• Guidelines and standards development
• Webinars
• Training
• Technical assistance
• Website maintenance and updates
• Publications fulfillment

We will return to work once a continuing resolution or an FY 2014 appropriation has been signed into law.

U.S. Access Board Launches Redesigned Website

The U.S. Access Board has redesigned its website, a leading resource on accessible design. The new site improves navigation so that the various resources available from the Board are easier to locate and search through. These include copies of all Board guidelines and standards and related information, such as companion guides and research reports. Site content is more clearly organized by subject matter across the different areas of accessibility addressed by the Board's work. The site also features enhanced search options and page layouts that improve usability and make related information easier to access.

Check out the new site at www.access-board.gov and be sure to update any bookmarks to internal pages. Comments or questions about the site should be directed to Bruce Bailey, the Board’s webmaster, at webmaster@access-board.gov

United States Access Board Webinar on Accessible Web Sites

Accessible websites will be the subject of the next webinar in the United States Access Board's free monthly series to be held on July 11, 2013,  from 2:30 - 4 pm (ET). This session will review requirements in the internationally recognized Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, also known as WCAG 2.0, issued by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The Board, which is updating its Section 508 standards for information and communication technology, has proposed referencing the WCAG 2.0 to address web accessibility.

The webinar series is made available in cooperation with the ADA National Network. For more information, including registration instructions, visit http://www.accessibilityonline.org/ . Questions for the webinars can be submitted in advance through this website. Archived copies of previous Board webinars are also available on the site. Webinar attendees can earn continuing education credits (CEUs).

Easy Checks - A First Review of Web Accessibility

The Web Accessibility Initiative at the W3C has published Easy Checks - A First Review of Web Accessibility. Easy Checks help you assess the accessibility of a web page. With these simple steps, you can get an idea whether or not accessibility is addressed in even the most basic way.

These checks cover just a few accessibility issues and are designed to be quick and easy, rather than definitive. A web page could seem to pass these checks, yet still have accessibility barriers. More robust evaluation is needed to evaluate all issues comprehensively.

It addresses the following issues that need to be checked and addressed to ensure your web site is accessible to people with disabilities:

• Page title 
• Image text alternatives ("alt text") (pictures, illustrations, charts, etc.) 
• Text: Headings, Contrast ratio ("color contrast"), Zoom 
• Interaction: Keyboard access and visual focus, Forms and errors, Multimedia (video, audio) alternatives