Accessibility
Web sites do not look the same for every user. Some users may be unable to open a page at all, if they have an old browser version or other browser than what the site was designed for. Disabled people need more guidance on navigating the Web.
Validated XHTML: works in all browsers
Microsoft Internet Explorer is the major browser software and its popularity has grown to around 90%. The rest of the Internet users have a Netscape , Opera or other browser. We cannot afford to neglect any of them.
We use validated XHTML in coding Web pages to avoid problems that different software developers have created for the World Wide Web. XHTML works in all browser software.
XHTML is backwards compatible. Pages can be viewed with old browser versions.
It has been estimated that 60% of Internet surfers will use other platform than PC (personal computer) to view Web pages by 2006. XHTML works in various browser software and hardware.
Disabled people use the Internet
Disabled people can benefit of the Internet more than normal people.
The blind can use the Internet, if Web sites provide the needed tools for navigation. Validated XHTML requires the use of alt-tags to describe images. Using title attribute with hyperlinks helps disabled (and normal) people to navigate through the Web.
One in every 12 people suffer from color blindness. We consider the color-blind in developing Web sites.
Read more
- Considering the Color-Blind, Web Techniques, Aug 2000
- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, W3C Recommendation, May 5 1999
- Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), W3C Web Accessibility Initiative