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Validation & Accessibility Testing : Before You Test
You can save yourself a lot of time and aggravation by checking a few items yourself before running the page through the automatic validation and accessibility checkers.
Image ALT text (508 a)
You can verify that all the images on your page have ALT text by opening your page in Internet Explorer and running your mouse over it. Holding your mouse over each image for a couple of seconds will make the text appear (this will not work with FireFox).
If you don't find ALT text you can add it:
Summaries for Tables (WCAG 5.5 (Pr.3))
All tables must have summaries, even if it's only "For layout only."
- Dreamweaver users can verify that every opening table tag contains a summary attribute using Code View. If you encounter an opening table tag that does not contain a summary statement (e.g. summary="For layout only"), you can add it by editing the HTML directly.
- Contribute users can check their pages by selecting View > Source
in their browsers. They cannot add the summary attribute to an existing
table, but can copy the table provided in the page templates:
- Create a new template-based page.
- Select the optional layout table with your mouse, right-click and select Copy.
- In the "target" page, place your cursor where you'd like to insert the table, right-click and select Paste. Return to the page from which you copied the table, and cancel it.
- Cut and paste text into the table as necessary; insert or delete rows and columns as necessary.
- Data tables (not used for layout only) should have summaries reflecting their content, such as "2003 Acquisitions Statistics." Contribute users who need to use such a summary should seek assistance from the webmaster.
Page Structure
Headings (WCAG 3.5 (pr.2))
The main heading on your page is formatted as <H1>. The next structural divisions of your page should be organized under <H2>-formatted headings; subsections of material under an H2 heading can be further organized under H3 headings, and so on.
In order to conform to accessibility guidelines:
- Heading format must be used where applicable. Don't just use paragraph format with the BIG style applied.
- Heading format must not be used just to make text big or bold; a heading must have an organizational function.
- Headings have to be properly "nested," without skips. For example, you can not follow an H3 with an H5.
You can check the headings structure in your page using the Accessibility Toolbar. Open your page in Internet Explorer. In the Accessibility Toolbar, select Structure > Headings, or Structure > Headings Structure. Apply or fix headings format as necessary:
List Structure (WCAG 3.6 (pr2.))
Lists of items must have HTML list formatting applied to them. Unordered (or bulleted) list format should be applied to lists of items whose order is not relevant (as in a list of resources). Ordered (or numbered/lettered) list format should be applied to lists of items whose order is relevant (as in instructional steps). For more information, see When and How to Use Lists.
Links
Does linked text make sense out of context? (WCAG 13.1 (pr.2))
Read the linked text out loud -- does it clearly identify where the link is taking your user? It is more helpful to link a descriptive phrase (see a, below) than a single word (see b, below). Never use "Click here" as a linked phrase.
- Find out more about seventeenth-century printing process by examining the First Folio of Shakespeare's Works (PDF) facsimile from Octavo Press.
- Find out more about seventeenth-century printing process by examining the First Folio of Shakespeare's Works facsimile (PDF) from Octavo Press.
Is each linked phrase on the page unique?
Repeated occurrences of the same phrase used to link to different URLs will hinder your progress to a AAA rating. If using the same phrase repeatedly is unavoidable, please contact the web master for help.
Are adjacent links separated by more than whitespace? (table cells and paragraphs don't count as separation!) (WCAG 10.1 (pr.3))
Successive links must be separated by:
- list structure (each link must be a separate list item) OR
- unlinked text (such as ; , / . | - etc.). You can make the unlinked text invisible by applying the "invisible" style to it.
Do the links work?
It's best to test this once you have uploaded the page.
Accessibility Toolbar Tip:
Select Doc Info > List Links to view linked text and links side by side.
Manual Accessibility Checks Using the Toolbar
This page created by Elizabeth Altman, Library Web Developer. Please send questions or comments to ealtman@csun.edu
18111 Nordhoff St. Northridge CA 91330 (818) 677-2285 |
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