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dev corner: 2 useful accessibility tools.  

dev corner: 2 useful accessibility tools

December 11, 2019

written by
Joren Mathews

Accessibility Tools for Developers

Site accessibility is a big issue these days, but thankfully there are useful tools for navigating the byzantine requirements. Here are the two main tools we use.

Siteimprove Accessibility Checker

This Google Chrome extension works very well. Its greatest strength is the integration with the browser dev tools. Other highlights include:

  • Easily navigating to the elements that have issues is quite useful.
  • It also groups and collapses errors of the same type so you aren’t overwhelmed by a long list of largely identical issues and trust us, there are MANY.
  • Filtering by desired conformance level is also very helpful.

This is our preferred tool here at 3FO.

WAVE evaluation tool

This is a fair bit clunkier than Siteimprove’s version and the analysis of usage is as follows:

  • It also has a Google Chrome extension.
  • It injects icons that are meant to be helpful into your site, which tends to break the styling and layout and generally makes a mess of things, therefore, defeating the original purpose.
  • Also in lieu of integrating with Chrome’s dev tools, it uses its own low-function code inspector panel.

The main selling point of this tool, and really why everyone should be using it, is it throws errors on a few things Siteimprove’s tool does not, and is often used by people looking for violations. For this reason we use it regularly to make sure those errors are fixed.

300FeetOut 100% believes in inclusion for all and are fully aware that this is an on-going process. Websites are constantly being updated, browsers are pushing out new versions, and creators don’t always have empathy for their audience. Therefore, we work with our clients on a monthly basis to continually update and make sites easier for everyone to access. Because it’s not just about making sure that people can get the information they need to book a room or buy a shirt, it’s about leveling the playing field so that everyone has access to the wide world of every brand’s digital footprint. Or as our tagline says: Connecting brands with people.