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Alvaro Montoro

Spanish Longhorn

Principles of Web Accessibility

Heydon Pickering shared a set high-level guidelines on how to approach web accessibility

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Heydon Pickering recently shared some "Principles of Web Accessibility," a set of twelve high-level guidelines on how to approach web accessibility.

I highly recommend reading the whole thing —it's a short text—, but here's a summary of them if you want a quick "too long; didn't read" version:

  • Perfection is the enemy: nothing will be 100% accessible, but you can make a real difference by making it just a little bit better.
  • By default or death: accessibility is not something to be added later to a complete product. An inaccessible product is an incomplete product.
  • Parity is paramount: the goal is not to create "better experiences" but "comparable experiences" for different people.
  • Design for implementation: accessibility shouldn't be an afterthought in the development process, it should be there since the early stages.
  • Structure first: an intuitive interface that is well-structured and easy-to-use is better than a poorly-structured interface with no discrete errors.
  • Use your words: develop your writing and editing skills or include writers and editors in your process. What is written is as important as how it's written.
  • Tools are not identities: disabilities are not uniform. Don't design for a single person or user, design to support the capabilities of the assistive software.
  • Less is less: don't overdo it! Reducing complexities —keeping things simple— not only reduces errors, it also improves comprehension.
  • Get paid: accessibility is a job in itself. Include it in your role, be valued, and get recognized for it. Don't let people diminish its (your) importance.
  • Fishing, not fish: working on accessibility goes beyond solving specific problems. Set the stage and structure to facilitate it.
  • No points for performance: Companies tend to prioritize looking accessible over being accessible. Demand action and not only performance.
  • Let evil rot: there is plenty of inaccessibility; protect your reputation and mental health, and prioritize working with receptive companies and projects.

What do you think? Anything that you would add or change?

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