Great Lakes ADA and Accessible IT Center

A Disability and Business Technical Assistance Center

Publications

The Great Lakes ADA & Accessible IT Center works with the National Center on Accessible Information Technology (AccessIT) at the University of Washington to develop publications that explain how making information technology accessible to everyone benefits schools, colleges and universities.

AccessIT Articles

Select a category and then, select a topical question to view the information on the AccessIT website.

• Desktop and Portable computers
• Distance Learning
• General
• Legal Issues
• Operating Systems
• Policy Issues
• Resources
• Self-contained, closed products
• Software Applications
• Telecommunications Products
• Video and Multimedia Products
• Web-based Information and Applications

 

Desktop and Portable computers

• Are Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) accessible?

[ Select another Publication category ]

Distance Learning

• Are chat rooms accessible to people with disabilities?
• How do various courseware products differ on accessibility?
• Where can I locate resources for making distance learning courses accessible?
• Distance Learning 101: A Case Study on Accessibility in Collaboration
• What considerations should be made in order to develop accessible web-based distance learning courses?
• Dr. Doe's Internet Course: A Case Study on Accessible Distance Learning
• Marion's New Job: A Case Study on Web Accessibility for Instructors
• How widespread is the use of distance learning in secondary education?
• DO-IT Mentoring: A Promising Practice in Creating an Accessible Electronic Community

  [ Select another Publication category ]

General

• How can I design a school computer lab to be accessible to all students?
• How do we make electronic resources accessible in our school library?
• What standards exist for procuring accessible desktop and portable computers?
• What are the functional performance criteria specified by Section 508?
• What are examples of accessible electronic and information technology in education?
• What is electronic and information technology?
• What makes electronic and information technology inaccessible to people with disabilities?
• What is universal design?
• What is assistive technology?
• What is accessible electronic and information technology?
• What challenges do people with disabilities face in accessing standard consumer products?
• What efforts are computer hardware and software companies making toward making their products accessible?
• What are good internet resources for learning about accessible technology?
• Where can I get information about accessible electronic and information technology in educational institutions?
• How can the use of accessible E&IT be promoted to K-12 educational entities?

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Legal Issues

• Must local emergency broadcasts be made accessible?
• What does Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act require?
• What is the Clinger-Cohen Act, and how does it affect people with disabilities?
• What is the relationship between Section 508 and the Clinger-Cohen Act?
• What civil rights challenges might our postsecondary institution have if our web sites are not accessible?

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Operating Systems

• Is Linux accessible?

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Policy Issues

• Do colleges and universities agree as to whether they must adhere to Section 508 standards?
• How can our school or district go about developing an accessible electronic and information technology policy?
• SMSU: A Promising Practice on Building Accessibility into Mainstream IT Policies
• Oregon State University: A Promising Practice in Establishing Hardware Purchasing Accessibility Guidelines
• California Community Colleges: A Promising Practice for Distance Learning Accessibility Guidelines
• California Community Colleges: A Promising Practice for Alternate Media Accessibility Guidelines
• Letter to the President: A Promising Practice of University Presidents Promoting Technology Accessibility
• Promising Practice: A Product Accessibility Template that can be Completed by Technology Companies to Help Procurement Officers

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Resources

• Whom should I contact in my state if I have a question about assistive technology?
• What are the similarities and differences in the goals and services of the ITTATC and AccessIT?
• What are the goals and activities of AccessIT?
• Who can benefit from AccessIT?
• What is the Accessibility Forum?
• What is the National Council on Disability (NCD), and how are they involved in accessible electronic and information technology?
• What is the World Institute on Disability (WID)?
• Where can I find information on the digital divide?
• Where can I learn more about technology accessibility in Canadian postsecondary institutions?
• What is the Access Board?
• Are there any discussion lists that address technology access issues for people with blindness or visual impairments?
• Where can I find online courses that include accessible electronic and information technology content?
• The Federal Government: A Promising Practice in Providing Assistance to Procurement Officials

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Self-contained, closed products

• Are there standards for developing or purchasing accessible fax machines, photocopiers, and other office equipment?
• Are touch screens accessible?

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Software Applications

• How can I tell whether a software application is accessible?
• Is PDF accessible?
• Which web browsers are most accessible?
• Is K-12 instructional software typically accessible to students with disabilities?
• What standards exist for developing and purchasing accessible software?
• What is rich media and how can I learn more about its accessibility?
• What is MSAA?
• How can postsecondary technology-enhanced learning environments be made accessible?
• Oregon State University: A Promising Practice on Establishing Software Accessibility Guidelines
• How do I create accessible educational software?

[ Select another Publication category]

Telecommunications Products

• Can all television sets display closed captions?
• What are the deadlines for closed captioning of all television programming?
• What access challenges do people with disabilities face when using a telephone?
• How does Section 508 relate to the Telecommunications Act?
• What should people who have visual impairments expect regarding accessibility of telecommunications products?
• What are Telephone Relay Services?
• What standards exist for developing and purchasing accessible telecommunications products?
• What is Video Relay Service, and how do I access it?

[ Select another Publication category ]

Video and Multimedia Products

• Is it better to caption or transcribe educational multimedia?
• What is the difference between open and closed captioning?
• How do I make multimedia accessible?
• What is the difference between SMIL and SAMI?
• What is audio description?
• What standards exist for developing and purchasing accessible video and multimedia products?
• To make our school web content accessible, does it mean I cannot use multimedia on my site?
• How can I display accessible rich media in Real Player, Quicktime, and Windows Media Player?
• DO-IT: A Promising Practice on Designing Accessible Videotapes
• NAD: A Promising Practice in Streaming Captioned Educational Video

[ Select another Publication category ]

Web-based Information and Applications

• What is the difference between the WAI Guidelines and the Section 508 standards for web accessibility?
• Is Flash content accessible?
• Is Java accessible?
• How do scripting languages affect accessibility?
• Is XML accessible?
• Are there web browsers that have been developed specifically for use by people with disabilities?
• How can agencies determine if their web sites comply with the standards under Section 508?
• Where can I find a useful list of web resources regarding web accessibility?
• Are there resources to help me in planning my web accessibility training?
• What is Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)?
• How can I test my web site for accessibility?
• How can I make sense out of the Section 508 guidelines for web accessibility?
• Are there any web-based tutorials on web accessibility?
• Can I make accessible web pages using web authoring tools such as FrontPage and Dreamweaver?
• Which educational entities have developed web accessibility policies?
• Web Pages Case Study
• University of Wisconsin-Madison : A Promising Practice on Development, Articulation, and Support of a Web Accessibility Policy
• How do cascading style sheets affect web accessibility?
• Ohio State University: A Promising Practice on Web Accessibility Support
• What web accessibility evaluation and repair tools are available?
• Are there accessibility guidelines for web browsers?
• How can I develop accessible Web-based forms?
• How well do screen readers support web accessibility guidelines?
• How does accessible web design benefit all web users?
• Where can I locate the results of studies that test the accessibility of web pages?