WEB CONFERENCING ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES Norm & Beth Coombs 1

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 2

WEBCASTING VERSUSWEB 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 3

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 4

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 5

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 6

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 7

DIFFERENT DISABILITIES CAN COMPLICATES ACHIEVING ACCESSIBILITY Different disabilities often have different accessibility needs: Visual impairments Cognitive impairments Hearing impairments Motor impairments Features that aid one disability may only exacerbate problems for others 8

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 9

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 10

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 11

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 12

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 13

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 14

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 15

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 16

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 17

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 18

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. 19

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 20

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 21

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 22

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 23

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 24

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 25

CHECK EASI WEBINARS chedule of EASI Webinars is online at: 26