Additional Web test techniques

View the page with a graphical browser and move the cursor over the image to verify alternative text has been provided for the image.

This is a quick test for checking alternative text on a page, but it is not a comprehensive test for all images.

Pass:

Alternative text for each image is displayed as a text pop-up in supported graphical browsers. If the image is unimportant or redundant, it should be tagged with alt="" and nothing will pop-up when the cursor is held over the image.

Fail:

If an image is important and no text pop-up appears, the image is missing alternative text.

Turn off images in your browser. To turn off images in Microsoft Internet Explorer:

1. Select Tools - Internet Options - Advanced.
2. Select "Always expand alternative text for images."
3. In the multimedia section deselect "Show pictures."

This is another quick test for checking alternative text on a page, but it is not a comprehensive test for all images.

Pass:

If alternative text has been provided, the image is replaced with its alternative text.

Fail:

If the image is does not have alternative text, it is replaced with a small placeholder graphic and the page is not accessible.

View the page with a graphical browser and move the cursor over the client-side image map to verify alternative text has been provided for each map area.

This is a quick test for checking alternative text on a page, but it is not a comprehensive test for all image map areas.

Pass:

Alternative text for each image map area is displayed as a text pop-up in supported graphical browsers. If the image is unimportant or redundant, it should be tagged with alt="" and nothing will pop-up when the cursor is held over the image.

Fail:

If an image is important and no text pop-up appears, the image map area is missing alternative text.

View the page with a graphical browser and use the Tab key for navigation. Tab to each area on the client-side image map.

This is a quick test for checking keyboard navigation of the image map.

Pass:

The visual focus moves to each area of the image map.

Fail:

The keyboard cannot be used to navigate to the areas of the image map.

View the page with a graphical browser. Use the alternative methods provided to access the server-side image map (all valid coordinates including, if used, 0,0).

This is a quick test for checking alternative access for server side maps.

Pass:

The browser displays the alternative method that enables access to the same links available from the server-side map. When the cursor is moved over a server-side image map, only the alternative text for the entire image is displayed. The status area displays the coordinates that are passed back to the server.

Fail:

The browser does not display alternative methods for accessing the server-side map links.

View the page with a graphical browser and move the cursor over the graph or chart to verify alternative text has been provided.

This is a quick test for checking alternative text on a page, but it is not a comprehensive test for all graphs and charts.

Pass:

Alternative text for each graph or chart is displayed as a text pop-up in supported graphical browsers.

Fail:

If no text pop-up appears, the image is missing alternative text.

Turn off images in your browser. To turn off images in Microsoft Internet Explorer:

1. Select Tools - Internet Options - Advanced.
2. Select "Always expand alternative text for images."
3. In the multimedia section deselect "Show pictures."

This is another quick test for checking alternative text on a page, but it is not a comprehensive test for all images.

Pass:

If alternative text has been provided, the graph or chart is replaced with its alternative text.

Fail:

If the image is does not have alternative text, it is replaced with a small placeholder graphic and the page is not accessible.

Test the page with Internet Explorer using only the keyboard.

For information on keyboard shortcuts in IE, go to | Help - Internet Explorer keyboard shortcuts.

Pass:

All content on the page can be navigated with the keyboard.

Fail:

Some or all content cannot be accessed using only the keyboard.

View the page with a screen reader to verify that alternative text was added to the APPLET element or the OBJECT content.

Pass:

Screen reader reads the alternative text for the applet or object. If equivalent alternatives are provided, they are rendered and read.

Fail:

There is no alternative text, so it is not read by the screen reader.

Turn off Java in your browser. Verify that pages that contain applets are still usable when the function is disabled in the browser.

To disable Java in Netscape Navigator 4.7:

1. Click Edit | Preferences.
2. Click Advanced, and then deselect Enable Java.
   

To disable Java in Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.x and 6.x:

1. Go to Tools | Internet Options |Security.
2. Click Custom Level and scroll down to the Microsoft VM section. Under Java Permissions select the option Disable Java.

Pass:

Alternative content for applets is rendered and accessible.

Fail:

Equivalent content is not rendered when Java is disabled. Important information is missing and essential tasks on the Web page cannot be performed.

View the page with a screen reader to test heading skips. Use the screen reader’s heading navigation mode to skip between headers.

Pass:

Screen reader can skip between headers.

Fail:

Heading tags have not been defined. Screen reader cannot skip between headers.

Test the Web site with a Web accessibility checking tool. Examples of these tools are listed on the Worldwide Web Consortium web site.

The capabilities of Web accessibility checking tools vary from one tool to another. Select a tool that can verify the proper use of the headers attribute on cells of complex data tables.

The tool may be able to identify the existence of tables, but might not be able to determine if the tables are used for layout or data. Since this checkpoint only applies to data tables, you may need to manually verify that the tables analyzed by the test tool are in fact data tables.

Pass:

For any data tables on the Web page, the Web checking tool does not identify any errors with the headers attribute. (Remember, you must also test with a screen reader, as documented in the testing techniques for Web Checkpoint 10.

Fail:

The Web checking tool identifies errors with the headers attribute for a data table on the Web page.