The A360 Blog

Inaccessible Math Changes Lives

The lack of access to accessible math is a true impediment to individuals, such as myself, who are blind. Yes, there are many examples of people who are blind moving on to become mathematicians, software engineers, and other types of professions which require and use high-level math skills. But for each of these success stories, there are many others who may have been denied access to these fields due to the barriers caused by inaccessible math content. I would like to tell my story of dealing with inaccessible math in college, and how it affected my course of study.

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Project Euphonia: Google's Speech Recognition Project

In recent years, Google has released popular voice-activated technologies such as Google Home and Assistant to help people make phone calls, adjust lighting, etc. However, these useful tools may be difficult for people with speech impairments. That’s why Google has launched Project Euphonia, an ongoing research project designed to improve speech recognition among Google products.

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A360 Offering Digital Accessibility Assessments to Non-Profits!

As part of A360’s ongoing initiative to support non-profit organizations, we perform digital accessibility assessments every few months for various non-profits. We recently completed a digital accessibility assessment of the Jungle Theater’s website. The Jungle Theater creates courageous, resonant theater that challenges, entertains, and sparks expansive conversation. We enjoyed working with them on this assessment process, and applaud them for their continuing commitment to digital accessibility!

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accessible-slick: A new accessible carousel library

Here at Accessible360, we see a lot of carousels and sliders, and we’ve learned a thing or two about making them accessible. Our team of expert Accessibility Engineers finds them on most websites across all industries and company sizes, from small nonprofits to large e-commerce platforms, and practically all of them have one thing in common: they are largely inaccessible to screen reader and keyboard users!

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Creating Accessible Emails

When organizations review the digital accessibility of their products and/or services, HTML emails can be overlooked. Although most email systems allow users to view HTML and text-only versions of messages, making most messages fairly accessible, the text-only version may not contain all of the information that is in the original message. So how do we solve this issue? Below are a few suggestions:

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My Experience with WCAG 2.1.1: Accessing VoiceOver

Due to the fact that I have cerebral palsy, it is often difficult for me to make very quick keystrokes. A good example of this is using VoiceOver, Apple’s built-in screen reader. VoiceOver is an invaluable tool for people with visual impairments. Turning it on, when I am testing apps for Accessible360, can be very difficult. The default double-tap timeout setting for VoiceOver is 0.25 seconds, meaning users have to tap twice on the screen in 0.25 seconds to turn it on. Because I am unable to do this, I needed assistance to increase the double-tap timeout setting to 0.5 seconds, the maximum amount of time for this setting. This works for me but is still quite fast.

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Accessible360 Acquired by T-Base Communications!

Human Rights Day December 10

Join us this Thursday, December 10, to celebrate Human Rights Day! Human Rights Day has been observed annually since 1948, when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The UDHR is a document that “proclaims the inalienable rights which everyone is entitled to as a human being” - regardless of race, religion, sex, etc. Fun fact: The UDHR is available in more than 500 languages, making it the most translated document in the world!

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Celebrate International Day of Persons with Disabilities December 3!

On December 3 (tomorrow), the United Nations will celebrate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD). The IDPD is an annual celebration that was started in 1992, with the goal of promoting the rights and well-being of people with disabilities in all aspects of life. The IDPD also aims to increase disability awareness worldwide.

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The AODA: Ontario Digital Accessibility Requirements

The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) was passed in 2005, making Ontario the first Canadian province to enforce mandatory digital accessibility guidelines with some of the most comprehensive accessibility standards in the world. In Ontario, it is estimated that about 14% of the population has a disability, with that number expected to rise to 20% by 2036. This legislation was considered necessary in order to meet their goal of a completely accessible Ontario by 2025.

The 2005 AODA was built on the 2001 Ontarians with Disabilities Act, which called for all provincial websites to be accessible by the end of 2002 but failed to detail any enforcement measures, leading to calls for greater action. In 2005, they created the AODA, which includes accessibility standards for five categories: customer service, information and communications, employment, built environment, and transportation. 

The AODA also created definitive deadlines for website accessibility, this time with detailed enforcement efforts. By January 1, 2021, all Ontario businesses and nonprofits with 50 or more employees, and public sector organizations with 20 or more employees, must make all websites and digital content accessible. These organizations must also submit an Accessibility Compliance Report confirming that all accessibility requirements are met. If an organization does not meet the deadline, they could be fined up to $50,000 CND (approximately $37,500 USD). Note: these requirements do not apply to companies based in other countries.  

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