GUI Accessibility

VOSS-4-UC provides a basic level of compliance to WS3 accessibility standards by conforming to the core standards required to navigate the GUI. This ensures that VOSS-4-UC content is accessible and more usable in general to people with certain disabilities. Functions to help with disability, including people who may not be able to use a mouse or who have visual impairments, include:

• Title display in the browser

  When choosing a menu option in the GUI, the selected menu option title is also displayed in the browser tab. This helps users know where they are and also helps them move between pages open in their browser.

• Images have alternative text

  Images on buttons that perform a function have additional alternative text, which is used by people who cannot see the image. This alternative text is displayed when the mouse pointer hovers over an image. People who are blind and use screen readers can hear the alternative text read out; and people who have turned off images to speed download or save bandwidth can see the alternative text.

• All headings given a meaningful hierarchy to ease navigation

  Web pages often have sections of information separated by visual headings. Each page typically has at least one heading. When there is more than one heading on a page, the headings have a hierarchy, which makes it easier for the user to navigate to a particular heading and to navigate between headings.

• Contrast ratio can be changed

  While some people need high contrast, for others, including people with some types of reading disabilities such as dyslexia, bright colors (high luminance) are not readable. They need low luminance. A Chrome plugin can be installed (on the Chrome browser), which allows the user to change the default colors on a page.

• Zoom capability

  VOSS-4-UC supports zooming without losing any information or functionality.

• Keyboard access and alternative visual focus

  Many people cannot use a mouse and rely on the keyboard to interact with the Web. People who are blind and some sighted people with mobility impairments rely on the keyboard or on assistive technologies and strategies that rely on keyboard commands, such as voice input.

  In a browser that supports keyboard navigation with the Tab key (for example, Firefox, IE, Chrome, and Safari):

  1. Click in the address bar, then put your mouse aside and do not use it.
  2. Press the ‘Tab’ key to move through the elements on the page.
  3. To move within elements such as select boxes or menu bars, press the arrow keys.
  4. To select a specific item within an element such as a drop-down list, press the Enter key or Spacebar.