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WAI: Strategies, guidelines, resources to make the Web accessible to people with disabilities

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Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)

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The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect.

-- Tim Berners-Lee, W3C Director and inventor of the World Wide Web

Highlights

WaSP Interview: Judy Brewer on WCAG 2

Judy Brewer discusses WCAG 2.0 status and upcoming drafts with Web Standards Project (WaSP) Accessibility Task Force member Jared Smith. See Interview with Judy Brewer.    (2007-05-07)

Updates: WCAG 2.0 and WAI Resources Handouts

WCAG 2.0 primary points, current status, and Web accessibility resources from W3C WAI are topics covered in new handouts that you can use for conferences and presentations. The handouts direct readers to the updated WCAG 2 FAQ, How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process, and other documents. See:

(2007-04-04)

For Review: EARL 1.0 Schema Last Call Working Draft

Evaluation and Report Language (EARL) is a format to exchange, combine, and analyze results from different evaluation tools and checkers. EARL 1.0 Schema Last Call Working Draft and HTTP Vocabulary in RDF Working Draft were published 23 March 2007. See:

Please send comments by 20 April 2007.    (2007-03-23)

For Review: Updated WAI-ARIA Working Drafts

W3C WAI's work on accessibility of AJAX, DHTML, and other application technologies includes the Accessibility for Rich Internet Applications (WAI-ARIA) Suite. Updated Working Drafts of the WAI-ARIA Suite documents were published 20 December 2006. WAI encourages you to review these documents and submit any comments. See:

Please send comments by 19 January 2006.   (2006-12-20)

First Authorized Translation: WCAG 1.0 in Catalan

The W3C Authorized Catalan Translation of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0 is now available. See:

This WCAG 1.0 Catalan translation is W3C's first Authorized Translation.   (2006-12-20)

For Review: ATAG 2.0 Working Draft

An updated Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) 2.0 Working Draft was published 7 December 2006. WAI encourages you to review this document and submit any comments. See:

Please send comments by 11 January 2007.   (2006-12-07)

Got Questions? View the New WCAG 2 F.A.Q.

WAI gathered a few frequently asked questions (FAQ) about Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 and provided answers in a WCAG 2 FAQ. There we address: When will WCAG 2.0 be done? What is the current status? When should I start using WCAG 2.0?   (2006-11-01)

For Review: Updated EARL 1.0 Schema Working Draft

Evaluation and Report Language (EARL) is a format to exchange, combine, and analyze results from different Web accessibility evaluation tools. EARL 1.0 Schema Working Draft was published 27 September 2006. See:

Please send comments by 25 October 2006.   (2006-09-27)

Accessibility for Rich Internet Applications: WAI-ARIA Suite Debuts

W3C WAI's work on accessibility of AJAX, DHTML, and other rich Internet application technologies is published as First Public Working Drafts. WAI encourages review and comments. See:

For information on how Working Drafts are developed, see: How WAI Develops Accessibility Guidelines through the W3C Process.   (2006-09-26)

WAI to Advise on 508 Standards Update

W3C WAI has been appointed to the Advisory Committee for the revision of U.S. Section 255 guidelines and Section 508 standards, which include Web accessibility. WAI looks forward to continuing to coordinate with organizations around the world to develop harmonized standards for Web accessibility. Additional information is available in the U.S. Access Board article: Board Names Advisory Committee for 508 Standards Update.   (2006-07-20)

Podcast: Interview on WCAG 2

Shawn Henry discusses WCAG 2.0 with UK UPA president Giles Colborne: transcript and audio files.   (2006-07-06)

Custom View of WCAG Two: Quick Reference

WCAG 2.0 Quick Reference lists the basic requirements of WCAG 2.0, which are the success criteria. For each success criteria, it lists techniques that tell you how to meet the requirements. You can customize the Quick Reference for the Web technologies you are using and for Levels 1, 2, or 3. See also: Overview of WCAG 2.0 Documents.   (2006-06-20)

Extended Deadline: WCAG 2.0 Last Call Review

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0) Last Call Working Draft and supporting documents were published 27 April 2006. WAI encourages you to review these documents and submit any comments. See:

Please send comments by 22 June 2006.   (2006-05-30)

For Review: WCAG 2.0 Last Call

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0) Last Call Working Draft and supporting documents were published 27 April 2006. WAI encourages you to review these documents and submit any comments. See:

Please send comments by 31 May 2006.   (2006-04-27)

Want to know how people with disabilities use your Web site? Ask.

Web accessibility guidelines, techniques, and tools provide the basis for Web accessibility. Including people with disabilities in the Web development process helps to understand the "why" behind accessibility. It leads to more effective accessibility solutions, developed more efficiently. See "Involving Users in Web Accessibility Evaluation".   (2005-11-02)

Web Accessibility 101: The Basics and Beyond

WAI's recently updated "Introduction to Web Accessibility" addresses key issues of making the Web accessible, including:

The Business Case for Web Accessibility: Three Carrots and a Stick

"Developing a Web Accessibility Business Case for Your Organization" describes the social, technical, financial, and legal and policy factors relevant to developing a customized business case for Web accessibility for a specific organization.    (2005-08-23)

Web Accessibility: The Fellowship of the Guidelines

Many people know about WAI's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and the responsibilities of Web developers in making the Web accessible to people with disabilities. But Web developers alone cannot make the Web accessible.

Web browsers, assistive technologies, and authoring tools also have a vital role in Web accessibility. Essential Components of Web Accessibility describes these roles along with the WAI guidelines.    (2005-07-22)

Blogs, Wikis, CMS... Got ATAG?

Web content is created by many different types of tools these days: Web log (blog) comment features, Wikis for editing Web pages, content management systems (CMS), e-mail archivers, word processors, and more.

All of these tool are covered by WAI's Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG), which explain:

Does your tool know ATAG?    (2005-07-22)

[Highlights Archive] WAI home page Highlights are edited by Shawn Lawton Henry, WAI's Education and Outreach Working Group, and other WAI Team and Working Groups.

Sponsors

WAI is supported in part by: the U.S. Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, European Commission's Information Society Technologies Programme, Canada's Assistive Devices Industry Office, CA, Fundación ONCE, HP, IBM, Microsoft Corporation, SAP, Verizon Foundation, and Wells Fargo.

WAI welcomes additional sponsors and contributors.

Validation Logos

Level Double-A conformance icon, W3C-WAI Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 Valid XHTML 1.0!Valid CSS!