WEB CONFERENCING ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES

Norm & Beth Coombs

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WHAT WE WILL COVER• Types of Web conferencing systems• System power and complexity• Typical system features• Accessibility problems and typical solutions• Which Webinar features create access problems

for which disability groups• Role of the presenter in whether or not a

Webinar is accessible

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WEBCASTING VERSUS WEB CONFERENCING

• Webcasting is a one-way broadcast with no audience interaction

• Web conferencing or a Webinar involves a virtual room on the Internet with live interaction between the presenter and the audience

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WHAT IS REQUIRED FOR A WEB CONFERENCE TO BE ACCESSIBLE?

An accessible Web conference can have 3 parts: • The Web conferencing technology has to

conform to accessibility guidelines and standards

• The content must also meet accessibility standards and be clear and well organized

• The attendee who has a disability may need special software and familiarity in using it

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PLATFORM COMPATIBILITY ISSUES

• Different Web conferencing systems have been created using different technologies and each needs to interface readily with a variety of user software systems and applications

• The user should not be required to understand or manipulate unfamiliar methods to permit the user’s computer and the Webinar software to interface easily and seamlessly

IS MORE ALWAYS BETTER?

• The power and capabilities of technology is increasing faster and exponentially

• Designers want to have the most feature-rich applications available

• Complexity can be confusing and distracting and also creates new accessibility issues

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LEGAL IMPLICATIONS OF WEB CONFERENCING

• Federal Government Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act

• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act• The Americans with Disabilities Act • Any relevant state legislation

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DIFFERENT DISABILITIES CAN COMPLICATES ACHIEVING ACCESSIBILITY

• Different disabilities often have different accessibility needs:

Visual impairmentsCognitive impairmentsHearing impairments

Motor impairments• Features that aid one disability may only

exacerbate problems for others

SAMPLE FEATURES & IMPACT ON DISABILITY GROUPS

• Co-browser (showing slides or Web pages)• Playing recorded audio• Playing recorded video• White board• Desktop sharing• Text chat (both individual and public)• Voice chat (both individual and public)• Polling• Emoticons for reactions• File sharing

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USABILITY ISSUES FOR DISABILITY GROUPS

• Accessible content may create usability difficulties

• Users with various disabilities may not be able to keep up with fast-paced text chat

• Users with visual impairments may not be able to simultaneously follow the presenter and the screen reader vocalizing content both from the co-browser and from the text chat

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ACCOMMODATING VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS

• Content should be readable by screen readers including alt text

• Controls should be keyboard accessible• User defined color/contrast themes• Audible notifications of key events:

hand raised incoming chat message

• Content should be scalable to accommodate screen magnification

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ACCOMMODATING USERS WITH HEARING IMPAIRMENTS

• All audio content should be captioned• Font size should be adjustable• Captioning window can be modified• Captions can be saved• Recording includes the captions

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ACCOMODATING MOTOR IMPAIRMENTS

• All navigation is keyboard accessible• All controls are large enough to be readily

manipulated by users with limited motor skills

• Short cut keys to facilitate navigation

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ACCOMODATING COGNITIVE PROCESSING IMPAIRMENTS

• Foreground and background colors adjustable by the user

• Font size and type adjustable by the user• User can simultaneously access both the

captions and the audio• Whiteboard can be saved to study later at

user’s own pace• User can obtain the recording to study later

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ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES OF THE WHITEBOARD

• The whiteboard provides a place for the presenter to either draw or to write

• It is actually displayed as an image even when it includes text

• It is inaccessible to screen reader software• Presenters talking about that content can

compensate for its inaccessibility

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ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES OF DESKTOP SHARING

• In desktop sharing, a digital image of the desktop is displayed and is constantly refreshed as it is used

• It cannot be accessed by a screen reader• When the presenter talks while using the

desktop, that provides a kind of accessibility

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THE PRESENTER IS KEY

• How the presenter delivers content will impact content accessibility

• The presenter frequently cannot know the audience’s abilities or disabilities or the user’s distractions

• Presentations require simplicity and clarity regardless of any disabilities of the user

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PREPARING A PRESENTATION

• Good color contrast in documents and slides

• Documents use Sans Sarif font of 10 or 12 points and in slides use 28 or 32 points

• Add alt-text for images• Do not pack text too densely

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ADDING ALT TEXT TO AN IMAGE

• Example: PowerPoint • Step 1: Click on the image• Step 2: Right clicking on the image. Choose

“Format Picture” or “Size & Position” option• Step 3: Click on the "Alt Text" tab, then enter

your description of the image.

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USING MULTIMEDIA IN A WEB CONFERENCE

• Various multimedia formats interact with the Web conference system differently

• Various multimedia formats interact with the user’s computer differently and may require that it have specific players

• Instruct participants in advance regarding use of any multi‐ media so that they can ensure they are using the most up to date version

• Ensure that videos are captioned and audio also has a text transcripts

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DISTRACTING CONFERENCING TOOLS

• In a small group, using hand raising, voting, emoticons text or voice chat can add vitality to a presentation

• In a larger group, these same interactions can become highly distracting for users who do or do not have a disability

• Some presenters strictly limit audience interactions till a specific time

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PREPARE PARTICIPANTS IN ADVANCE

• New users to any Web conference application may be overwhelmed by all of its features and will benefit from preliminary instructions

• Users with disabilities will find understanding and navigating the complex interface daunting and need tips on its accessibility features

• Different disability groups may want to use some features and ignore others

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PROVIDING HANDOUTS & A RECORDING

• Handout materials which are provided before or after the event, enable participants with or without disabilities information to maximize their experience

• A recording allows participants to review the conference in a comfortable setting and work at her/his own pace

• Both must be provided in accessible formats

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PRESENTERS: KEEP IT SIMPLE!

• Unless the Webinar’s purpose is entertainment, the focus should be communication

• Don’t use features just to impress the audience

• Restrict the features being used only to those that enhance the message and limit extraneous distractions

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TIPS IN SELECTING A WEB CONFERENCING SYSTEM

How do you select which car to buy?• A 2-seater sport convertible• Basic 4-door sedan• Jeep with 4-wheel drive• Truck• BMW or Mercedes• SUV

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CHECK EASI WEBINARS

• chedule of EASI Webinars is online at:• http://easi.cc/clinic.htm