Myths of Accessibility

                When you mention web accessibility, many web designers get nervous.  So many myths have popped up regarding this issue that it clouds the wonderful benefits of accessibility.

Myth #1 - Accessibility is boring.

            Web designers think that web accessibility means the end of the "really cool" website in favor a drab, colorless, disability friendly website.  They think that web creativity will dry up because they will go from state of the art to boring with the click of a mouse. 

            The Truth: You don't have to get rid of color or pictures or even really cool graphics.  But you should supplement those graphics with <alt> text to describe what is going on in the graphics.  If there is a video clip, provide a transcript of what is being said.

Myth #2 - All people with disabilities need is assistive technology.

            Many companies believe that the technology that is available to help people access the web is foolproof.  That anyone with the right device can access the web.

            The Truth:  While there are quite a number of great tools out there, they only work as well as the page does.  Screen readers are not artificial intelligence...they can only read what is on the screen.  If the web page is a jumbled up mess of code, then the screen reader will read jibberish.

Myth #3 - Accessibility is too expensive.

            There is an element of truth to this one.  Yes, redesigning a large website from the ground up can be very expensive.  Retrofitting is always expensive (Clark, 9).  However, it will not cost you any more to create a page with the accessibility built in from day one.  And the long-term benefits will be seen when more people visit your page.

Myth #4 - Accessibility doesn't effect enough people to worry about it. 

            This is the biggest lie of all.  While the numbers vary from 15% to 40% of the population having some sort of disability, it still works out to millions of people.  That number is only going to rise as our population grows older. 

            Many believe that accessibility is such a limited issue that "...when suits come, it is likely that only a minority of them will emanate from established or well-known disability groups" (Olson, 51).  The harsh truth is that many people with disabilities are speaking up and taking action.  In 1998, America Online (AOL) was sued by the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) because their popular Internet software did not work with screen readers. (Heim, 182).

            These aren't the only myths out there.  These are merely the most common.  If you take some time to search the internet, you'll find other myths out there.

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