The document discusses accessibility issues and efforts to improve accessibility of online content. It defines accessibility, describes typical accessibility problems people face, and covers support and guidelines from organizations like the W3C. Technologies discussed that can improve accessibility include XML, CSS, SVG, and MathML. Author support and tools for validation and evaluation of accessibility are also mentioned. The document advocates describing content in terms of user needs and preferences to avoid issues around disabilities and legal liability.

1. Accessibility Issues Liddy Nevile

2. Overview Accessibility definitions Current work to minimise problems IMS accessibility activities Matching content to people’s needs Implementations References

3. Overview Accessibility definitions Not … Telecommunications …. Or is it? Economic equity … or is it?

4. Typical problems Can’t see screen Can’t see colours Can’t read text Can’t hear Can’t control cursor Can’t type

5. OS support Add this to Favorites folder Add this to startup items Apple channel …..

6. Browser support (?) Lynx IE Netscape/Mozilla iCab Opera Amaya There are about 35 browsers in common use… (Note W3C UAAG - includes LMS)

7. ATs for people with vision disabilities

8. Jason White

9. Other assistive technologies

10. Other accessibility problems

11. Accessibility definitions W3C - device independence, separation of content from presentation U.S. - s. 508 for Federal Govt. contracts Australia - common law system with regulations UK, European Commission … IMS/MMI-DC Working definition: mismatch between user needs and content

12. W3C Guidelines Accessibility guidelines Techniques Checkpoints Checkpoint techniques QA and Certification - for authors, authoring tools, user agents

13. Localisation of W3C guidelines University, system, organisational guidelines Controlling systems and templates EuroAccessibility efforts CEN MMI-DC Workshop IMS Accessibility Guidelines ( -> maths interest)

14. W3C Technologies that work Cascading style sheets (CSS1) eXtensible Markup Language and CSS2 Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) Synchronised Multimedia Integration Language (SMIL) eXtensible Stylesheet Language (XSLT) ChemML, MathML, MusicML, ...

15. SVG example

16. SVG example Image is represented as vectors in text Sub-images can be identified Metadata can be added Rights management can be used Behaviours can be controlled Eg an interactive knee dissection linked to external resources

17. Technologies that work (contd.) XML => MathML, ChemML, etc MathML as an example The equation x 2 + 4x + 4 =0

18. Separate presentation from content Presentational markup to ensure display can be controlled - with style sheets to define the display characteristics Content markup to provide machine readable version of content so it could be read into content manipulators

19. <mrow> <mrow> <msup> <mi>x</MI> <mn>2</mn> </msup> <mo>+</MO> <mrow> <mn>4</mn> <MO>&InvisibleTimes;</MO> <MI>x</MI> </mrow> <MO>+</MO> <mn>4</mn> </mrow> <MO>=</MO> <mn>0</mn> </mrow> MathML is like HTML…

20. Screen presentation It can be read aloud by screen readers It can be used in maths applications It can be programmed for interactivity It can be programmed for feedback But it can’t yet be used in Braille.

21. Technologies that work (contd.) XML and RDF and EARL …. XML - human readable, schemas etc ….. RDF - this ‘object’ has property ‘this’ EARL - this ’agent’ said this ‘object’ has this ‘property’ on this ‘date’ Eg “The application ‘Lift’ evaluated this page as accessible (didn’t fail) on 3/9/2002”.

22. Author support W3C described what to do, how to do it, when and why,… Automatic support is required -> W3C Authoring Tools Accessibility Guidelines - note s. 508

23. Accessibility tools Accessible tools Tools for accessible authoring Validators ie code validators Evaluators ie compliance with guidelines producing metadata (EARL) Digital repositories for descriptive metadata (re-usable metadata??) On-the-fly repair tools (SWAP, TILE, ..)

24. New IMS/DC/…approach Think of the user and work towards user needs and preferences Provide a good, easy way to record user needs and preferences Describe content in terms of needs and preferences Avoid all issues to do with disabilities and to do with legal liability

25. Accessibility issues Direct accessibility Compatible accessibility Alternative modality Equivalent content User choice

26. User profiles Control Display (presentation) Content A special element to add to the LIP because this info is usually managed by a different person from the teacher (and sometimes the student) Multiple, cascading profiles

27. AccLIP (User profile) AccessForAll: http://www. imsproject .org/accessibility/

28. Content profiles Control Display (presentation) Content A separate element as the information is usually an EARL statement Same schema for exact matching and easy maintenance

29. AccMD (Content profile) An EARL statement … so a URI: http://www. imsproject .org/accessibility

30. Implementation The Inclusive Learning Exchange at http://inclusivelearning.ca/

31. References http://w3.org/ http://w3.org/WAI/ http://www. imsproject .org/accessibility http:// dublincore .org/groups/access/ http:// inclusivelearning .ca http://www. OZeWAI .org/