The Internet is tremendously important in our daily lives, including the lives of people who are blind or visually impaired. We check the news, sports, weather, and stocks, engage in social networking, and make banking transactions and travel plans alongside fully sighted friends.

Not every website, however, is optimally designed for use by people with visual impairments. When a website is built without regard to proper web design, they become inaccessible by people with vision loss who use access technology.

Everyone Benefits From Accessible Websites

The same good techniques that make web pages accessible to those of us who use access technology benefit users of other devices as well. For example, people with slower Internet connections and those using devices such as cell phones or tablets that have smaller screens.

Learning About Accessible Web Design

If you are serious about making your web site accessible, the most valuable resource available is the website of the Web Access Initiative (WAI), part of the World Wide Web Consortium. There you'll find guidelines for making web pages along with explanations and techniques. The content guidelines are found at www.w3.org/TR/WCAG20/.

You will also find valuable help in this web accessibility area of the AFB website. You can learn about a variety of accessibility topics and tips via the links below.