Navigation's what you need

Web developers need to remember that not all computer-users are able to use a mouse to move around the screen, says Shaw Trust’s Stephen Lloyd

I have athetoid cerebral palsy, which in my case means I use a wheelchair and have no speech. Nevertheless, with the use of my left hand, I can communicate using a word chart. I operate my computer with an expanded keyboard, using the numeric keys on the right of the keyboard to perform the actions of a mouse.

I can navigate myself anywhere on the computer – I just take a little longer.

I work as a web analyst for Shaw Trust. Besides testing for keyboard-only users such as myself, I also analyse websites for access for switch-users, who scan the page with the “tab” key and then select their choice with the “enter” key.

There are a number of types of switches. They include touch-sensitive pads, soft-squeeze pads, rocker switches (tiny devices like bulldog clips, operated by squeezing between the fingertips and releasing), pneumatic switches (rubber balloon-type devices which, when squeezed in the hand or by the foot, push air down a tube and activate a switch), and suck and blow switches, for people who can only move their mouths.

Most of us take a lot for granted when we surf the internet. We grab the mouse, double-click the internet icon on our desktop, and off we go. If only it was that simple for the switch-user.

One of the disadvantages of being a switch-user is that you cannot usually use any of the applications on the toolbar, the menu bar or the taskbar, or any function outside the web page itself.

Switch-users scan through the menu of links with one switch, and select the intended link with another switch.

But for switch-users, there is often no clear visual sign of where they are on the page, making it difficult to find links to other pages. We are trying our best to persuade web developers to highlight their links for switch-users.

It is also crucial for web developers to place anchor positions at the end of each page of text. Otherwise, it is very easy to accidentally skip large chunks of information.

Another problem is with the “accessibility” link, which is usually found at the top of a web page. This leads to a page of different tools to aid disabled users.

Unfortunately, the link is often relegated to the bottom of the page, which makes it difficult for a switch-user to find.

One really useful tool for switch and keyboard-only users is a website’s access keys.

They allow someone to visit the most popular pages using only two or three keystrokes, and are activated by the “ALT” key and number combinations.

Web developers should ensure they clearly label the relevant access keys and accessibility link.

If web developers take time to consider what disabled users actually say about websites – including keyboard-only and switch-users – it would go a long way towards bridging the gap between what they think is accessible, and what actually is accessible.