CD-ROM Access
Resources for Producing Accessible Science and Math-based Multimedia
Table of Contents
Helpful Tips for Creating Accessible Software
Technical Resources
Accessibility Guidelines
Overview of User Interface Needs for Users with Disabilities
Samples of Assistive Technology
Helpful Tips for Creating Accessible Software
With a bit of planning, you can ensure that your software can be used by individuals with disabilities. Following these tips also offers greater flexibility of access for all users, including the ability for users to operate software more easily in very noisy environments or in very quiet environments. It is not necessary to limit software to purely text presentation in order to make it accessible. Strategies exist for making even richly graphical systems accessible. Strategies include:
- Use system tools whenever possible, including standard controls and standard text drawing routines. When this isn't possible, use Microsoft Active Accessibility to provide similar usability.
- All important information which is presented visually should also be available to the user in both auditory and text form.
- All important information which is presented in audio should also be available in visual form. This should be provided as closed captions and could also include a text transcript. Movies could contain an optional sign language track.
- All video or animated presentations should include optional audio descriptions of visual information for use by blind and visually impaired users. You may wish to include the text of the description for review.
- Software which is presenting information should have the capability for increasing or reducing the speed of presentation, or pausing the presentation, to allow for different levels of comprehension.
- All controls should be operable in an efficient manner without a pointing device (mouse). Providing keyboard commands for all important functions will support users who cannot use a mouse or who use alternative input devices, including speech recognition.
- All text should be user adjustable for font, size, and color.
- Users should be able to zoom in to view portions of the screen in more detail.
- Use established "standard" encodings such as HTML and XML for text, GIF and JPEG for images, WAVE, QuickTime, MPEG, and AVI for sound and video.
- Software which requires an individual to simultaneously monitor two events occurring at opposite edges of the screen can be difficult for someone to operate by using screen magnification. Try to avoid this situation.
- Any information delivered via the World Wide Web should follow the content design principles established by the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
Technical Resources
The CPB/WGBH National Center for Accessible Media (NCAM)
Visit NCAM for information on accessibility of multimedia for users with sensory disabilities. See especially the CD-ROM Access Project for user interface issues and making math and science content accessible. On this site you'll also find a comprehensive set of Software Selection Guidelines, which you may find helpful to follow when purchasing software. For information about ongoing work to make science and math content more accessible, check out Links to Related Projects
The Web Access Project provides information on accessible media on the Web.
MAGpie 1.0 is now available! MAGpie is a tool for adding closed captions and audio descriptions to digital video.
Microsoft
The web site for Microsoft's Accessibility and Disabilities Group contains lots of information about accessibility in Microsoft systems.
Learn more about Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange (SAMI), Microsoft's format for adding captions to Windows Media Player media.
IBM Accessibility Center
IBM's Accessibility Center is a resource for guidelines and assistive technology. If you're developing in Java, check out IBM's Self-Voicing Kit for Java, a tool developers can use to add an audio interface to Java applications.
Sun Enabling Technologies
Sun's Enabling Technologies team is developing the accessibility architecture for Java.
World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
Check out Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language, a W3C recommendation for multimedia on the web (or elsewhere) that supports closed captions and audio description.
Visit the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). The WAI is a subgroup of the W3C, and offers an array of information including Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
Accessibility Guidelines
Technical Guidelines
Guidelines for Writing Accessible Applications Using 100% Pure (tm) Java
Java Foundation Classes provide built-in accessibility features. These guidelines tell developers how to take advantage of them.
Microsoft Windows Guidelines for Accessible Software Design
These guidelines provide developers and others with the information they need to design and build accessible applications. Application designers, builders, testers, and documentation writers for the Microsoft(r) Windows(r) 9x, Microsoft 2000, and Microsoft Windows NT(r) operating systems will benefit from these guidelines.
Application Software Design Guidelines: Increasing the Accessibility of Application Software to People with Disabilities and Older Users
General guidelines from the Trace Research and Development Center.
Overview of User Interface Needs for Users with Disabilities
Blind and visually impaired users
- High contrast color schemes
- Navigation using the keyboard
- Feedback in audio
- Compatibility with screen readers and magnifiers
- Description of key visual images
Deaf and hard-of-hearing users
- Adjustable sound levels
- Visual feedback in addition to audio
- Closed-captioned audio and video
Mobility impaired users
- Adjustable time delays
- Navigation using the keyboard
- Compatibility with non-standard input
Samples of Assistive Technology
Examples of screen readers and magnifiers
- Jaws for Windows from Henter-Joyce
- Outspoken for Macintosh or Windows from Alva Access Group
- Window-Eyes from GW Micro
- ZoomText Xtra (magnifier for Windows) from Ai Squared
- inLARGE (magnifier for Macintosh) from Alva Access Group
For more information contact:
The CD-ROM Access Project
Phone: (617) 300-3400
E-mail: tom_wlodkowski@wgbh.org
