A high level introduction into ADA Compliance & Web Accessibility that also highlights their importance.

1. ADA Compliance: What it is and Why You Should Care
What is ADA Compliance?
Though estimates vary, most
ADA is an acronymic for Americans with Disabilities Act. There are
studies find that about one fifth
several other similar U.S. laws which govern these issues such as IDEA, (20%) of the population has some
and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Sections 504 and Section 508). kind of disability. Not all of these
Additionally, accessibility is addressed by many international laws. people have disabilities that make
it difficult for them to access the
While this article is only concerned with ADA Compliancy as it relates to internet, but it is still a significant
Web accessibility, do note that the above laws cover all facets of our portion of the population.
environment. ADA Compliancy exists everywhere from our schools and Businesses would be unwise to
offices to museums and government buildings. purposely exclude 20, 10, or even 5
percent of their potential
The governing body of the Web, the Worldwide Web Consortium customers from their Web sites.
(W3C), has developed international guidelines for Web accessibility that For schools, universities, and
have become the foundation for most Web accessibility laws government entities it would not
throughout the world. only be unwise, but in many cases,
it would also break the law. 1
Essentially, ADA Compliancy, as it relates to the Internet and specifically
Web sites, concerns itself with the ability of disabled individuals to
perform all the same tasks as able-bodied persons while browsing,
searching, buying, or otherwise navigating on the Web.
According to the World Health
Why Your Business Should Care Organization, of the world's more
than six billion people, between
Imagine the following scenarios… 750 million and one billion have a
disability. In the United States
A potential customer, Emily, who suffers from severe glaucoma, alone, there are over 54 million
enters the home page of your Web site hoping to purchase a people with disabilities. The
product Google has identified you offer. She attempts to traverse number is increasing, in part,
your site to find said product. However, your primary navigation is because people are living longer
constructed entirely of images that have no accompanying ALT and health programs are
attribute for the screen reader Emily depends upon to read to her continually improving. 2
the contents of a Web page. While Emily in our example is
fictitious, millions of people the world over who suffer from a range
of vision issues from poor eye sight to complete blindness depend
on such screen reading software in order to navigate the Internet. Recently, Target settled charges
Emily, after struggling unsuccessfully for several minutes, leaves that its website was inaccessible to
your Web site in frustration. Not only have you lost a potential the blind. The Company agreed to
customer and her immediate sale, but you have also inadvertently pay $6 million. Experts say that
demonstrated to her that she and others who suffer vision maladies this settlement will trigger suits
are not important to your business. Another Google result directs against other retailers and
Emily to your competitor who also has an image based navigation businesses. 3
structure but who wisely employs the ALT attribute. Emily is able to
03.19.09 | Alpine UI Group | UIGroup@alpineinc.com | Author: Ezio Magarotto, Senior UI Architect/Developer

2. ADA Compliance: What it is and Why You Should Care
locate the product she was seeking, makes her purchase, and leaves
your competitor’s Web site feeling happy and pleased that they
According to the World Health
understand and meet her needs. Organization, more than 750
million people worldwide have a
A potential customer, Mark who suffers from arthritis and cannot
disability and over 60 million are
use a mouse for his Internet use, enters the home page of your Web
in the United States. This makes
site hoping to purchase a product Google has identified you offer. people with disabilities the largest
He is able to locate the product category by selecting a link in your minority group in the U.S. And this
primary navigation, find the exact product he desires, and add it to number will continue to grow, in
his shopping cart. As Mark arrives at the registration/checkout part, because people are living
process he is met with a typical Web site form containing nearly two longer. 4
dozen text fields. Unfortunately, you have not employed Tab
Indexing which Mark relies upon – as do millions of others who
suffer motor disabilities caused by a range of conditions from
arthritis to multiple sclerosis -- to navigate Web sites. Without the Arthritis is a major cause of
use of a mouse Mark is unable to access the form fields and enter mobility issues for the elderly.
his shipping address, billing address, and payment information. The US-based Arthritis Foundation
After having spent a significant amount of time on your Web site reported in 2008 that 50% of
already he becomes very frustrated now that he is unable to Americans over 65 experience
complete his purchase. Not only have you lost a customer and his arthritis. 5
potential sale, but you have also shown Mark that he and those like
him who are unable to use a mouse are not important to your
business. Another Google result directs Mark to a competitor who A survey published in Information
employs Tab Indexing on all its Web site forms. Mark is relieved to Week found that the largest
not have experienced the same disappointment that he did on your increase of Internet usage has
site. He purchases the identical product you carry from your come from the 70–75 age group. In
competitor and leaves their Web site feeling happy and pleased that 2005 only 26% of this age group
they understand and meet his needs. used the internet, compared to
46% in 2008. 6
A potential customer, Jenny who is deaf, enters the home page of
your Web site hoping to purchase a product Google has identified
you offer. She navigates to the product page where you present a
multimedia tutorial of the product’s use and care. Unfortunately The fastest growing group of
you have failed to caption your videos. Jenny attempts to make Internet users is the Baby Boomer
sense of the tutorial but is not able to follow the visual generation. This group, which in
presentation. Disappointed, she leaves your Web site and returns large numbers will experience the
health changes that come with
to Google. Not only have you lost a customer and her potential
aging, will be the largest customer
sale, but you have also proved to Jenny that she and other
demographic on the Internet for
individuals who are deaf are not important to your business. She the foreseeable future.
locates a competitor’s Web site which offers not only video
captioning but also textual transcripts of their product and news
videos. Feeling confident she understands the product and its uses,
03.19.09 | Alpine UI Group | UIGroup@alpineinc.com | Author: Ezio Magarotto, Senior UI Architect/Developer

3. ADA Compliance: What it is and Why You Should Care
Jenny makes her purchase. She leaves your competitor’s Web site
feeling happy and pleased that they understand and meet her needs. Accessibility offers benefits for all
users. As with many
Scenarios like the ones above occur hundreds, if not thousands, of times
improvements intended for
each day as people with varying degrees and types of disability browse
individuals with disabilities, the
the Internet. Do you want your Web site and company to be perceived enhancements of accessible design
as unreceptive to the needs of a demographic which constitutes nearly offer benefits for all users of the
25% of the US population? At best your business will lose out on web. Anyone who has pushed a
thousands of potential customers; at worse it could be the target of a shopping cart out of a grocery
lawsuit. With the assistance of the ADA Compliance and Web store can attest to the value of
Accessibility experts at Alpine Consulting, Inc. your business can instead automatic doors and ramps cut
be a place where all individuals, regardless of abilities, are able to easily into curbs. Similarly, accessible
find the information, services, and products you provide. web pages are often easier to read,
easier to navigate, and faster to
download. 7
How Alpine can Help
Contact the Alpine UI Group 8 today to schedule a Detailed ADA
Compliance Report of your Web site accompanied by our Web
Accessibility Recommendations.
Please direct any questions or comments regarding this White Paper to
Ezio Magarotto at emagarotto@alpineinc.com.
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About Alpine Consulting, Inc. Headquartered in Schaumburg, IL, Alpine Consulting is a professional Information Technology
services firm focused on helping IT organizations deliver business value. Alpine Consulting specializes in e-business
solutions, custom development and systems integration for medium and larger companies. Clients of Alpine Consulting
have successfully implemented e-business solutions that have resulted in significant business process improvements, faster
time to market and considerable return on investment. For more information on how Alpine can help with your e-business
solutions contact us at 847-605-0788, info@alpineinc.com or visit our Web site at http://www.alpineinc.com. For more
information about Alpine Consulting and our solution offerings, please contact Stan Duda at 847-605-0788 or
sduda@alpineinc.com.
1
http://www.webaim.org/intro/
2
http://www-03.ibm.com/able/access_ibm/qa.html
3
http://www.arthritis.org/apcca.php
4
http://www-03.ibm.com/able/access_ibm/reasons.html
5
http://www.financialweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080921/REG/309229989
6
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/ebusiness/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212903496
7
http://www.adobe.com/macromedia/accessibility/gettingstarted/accessibility.html#accessibility_important
8
uigroup@alpineinc.com
03.19.09 | Alpine UI Group | UIGroup@alpineinc.com | Author: Ezio Magarotto, Senior UI Architect/Developer