9.0 Documentation, online information and help
When developing documentation for your application in HTML, please follow the IBM Web accessibility checklist.
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) publishes Web content accessibility guidelines at http://www.w3.org/WAI.
9.1 Documentation in an Accessible Format
Provide documentation in an accessible format.
Rationale
Some users may not be able to access documentation if it is not in an accessible format.
Techniques
- Provide documentation in one of the
following accessible formats:
- ASCII text
- Javadoc in JDK 1.4 is now accessible
- Accessible HTML. Follow the IBM Web Accessibility Checklist to produce accessible HTML.
- Accessible PDF. Documentation in Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) can be accessible if it consists primarily of text. PDF can be converted to ASCII or HTML format using free tools available at access.adobe.com. The converter approximates the logical reading order of the text in a PDF document and reformats it into a single column of text. PDF which consists primarily of text can also be read using the Adobe Acrobat Access 4.0 plug-in for Windows. Products which provide PDF documentation should follow the Adobe guidelines for accessibility. For additional information, see the article "Optimizing Adobe PDF Files for Accessibility" (PDF, 86.2KB, 02-01-2006).
- Include text descriptions of illustrations and graphics in the documentation.
- If the documentation is not available in an accessible format, provide documentation in braille or audio cassette, upon request from the user.
Testing
Test the software to ensure that it complies with accessibility requirements.
- If the documentation is available in ASCII text, it is accessible and no additional testing is required.
- If the documentation is available in HTML, or Javadoc use assistive technology such as a screen reader to verify it is accessible.
- If documentation is provided in PDF format, use one of the methods offered by Adobe to convert the PDF file to HTML or text. Verify the converted document content is equivalent to the PDF document.
See section 8.0 Testing for Accessibillity.
9.2 Document Accessibility Features
Provide documentation on all accessibility features as part of the regular product documentation..
Rationale
People with disabilities cannot effectively use the software if they cannot access information on how to use accessibility features. This is particularly important for keyboard access. Since most products focus on navigation with the mouse, it is not always clear how to use the product with the keyboard. All keyboard navigation which does not follow documented system conventions should be documented.
Techniques
The following techniques are required.
- Provide a section where all accessibility features are documented. The online help documentation in Lotus Notes R5 is a good example of this technique.
- Provide a section where unique keyboard accessibility features are documented. If the software uses standard system keyboard commands for navigation, they do not have to be documented. The keyboard accessibility information could also be included as part of the general accessibility section.
- When the software provides instructions for completing tasks using the mouse, include the instructions for doing those tasks using the keyboard.
The techniques above are required; the following techniques are recommended to enhance accessibility:
- Include a keyword search and help topic item for accessibility.
- Document any shortcut keys in the software by adding the information next to the command in the pull-down menu.
- Include documentation on how to use a custom "Perk" for the Self Voicing Kit for Java.
Testing
Test the software to ensure that it complies with accessibility requirements. Several techniques are available to verify that accessibility information is documented.
- If the software does not use standard keyboard access or does not support the accessibility options available in the operating system, the accessibility features must be documented. Open the software documentation and verify there is a section which discusses accessibility features in the product.
- If the product provides "how to" instructions or pop-up help, verify that instructions for performing the actions using the keyboard are available in addition to instructions for using the mouse.
See section 8.0 Testing for Accessibillity.