08/03/2008 R Tyler 0 Comments

Web page layout conventions

Just read this article by Andy Rutledge in which he examines a couple of the inferior Web design conventions still ‘knocking around’ the web. He exposes their flaws and then suggests more effective alternatives to these conventions, explaining why they work better.

Do take a look at the link if you find web design issues interesting.

Andy Rutledge Article Link Bad Layout Conventions

READ MORE
19/02/2008 R Tyler 0 Comments

Testing Web Sites with user agents Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 & MSIE 7 on the same machine.

I’ve had the problem of testing the IE6 user agent rendering of my Web Sites for a while now! The notorious browser bugs of this Web Browser were being handled by my use of multiple style sheets (and still are – only now I use the Explorer built in comment selection of styles). After install of IE 7 though everything went pear shaped (as no support for checking IE6 was avaiable after the browser upgrade).

READ MORE
08/12/2007 R Tyler 0 Comments

14. Ensure that documents are clear and simple.

Guideline 14. Ensure that documents are clear and simple.

Ensure that documents are clear and simple so they may be more easily understood.
Consistent page layout, recognizable graphics, and easy to understand language benefit all users. In particular, they help people with cognitive disabilities or who have difficulty reading. (However, ensure that images have text equivalents for people who are blind, have low vision, or for any user who cannot or has chosen not to view graphics. Refer also to guideline 1.)

READ MORE
08/12/2007 R Tyler 0 Comments

13. Provide clear navigation mechanisms.

Guideline 13. Provide clear navigation mechanisms.

7th December 2007 Provide clear and consistent navigation mechanisms — orientation information, navigation bars, a site map, etc. — to increase the likelihood that a person will find what they are looking for at a site. Clear and consistent navigation mechanisms are important to people with cognitive disabilities or blindness, and benefit all users.

Checkpoints:

13.1 Clearly identify the target of each link. [Priority 2]

READ MORE
08/12/2007 R Tyler 0 Comments

12. Provide context and orientation information.

Guideline 12. Provide context and orientation information.

Provide context and orientation information to help users understand complex pages or elements.
Grouping elements and providing contextual information about the relationships between elements can be useful for all users. Complex relationships between parts of a page may be difficult for people with cognitive disabilities and people with visual disabilities to interpret.

Checkpoints:

12.1 Title each frame to facilitate frame identification and navigation. [Priority 1]

READ MORE
08/12/2007 R Tyler 0 Comments

11. Use W3C technologies and guidelines.

Guideline 11. Use W3C technologies and guidelines.

Use W3C technologies (according to specification) and follow accessibility guidelines. Where it is not possible to use a W3C technology, or doing so results in material that does not transform gracefully, provide an alternative version of the content that is accessible.
The current guidelines recommend W3C technologies (e.g., HTML, CSS, etc.) for several reasons: • W3C technologies include “built-in” accessibility features.

READ MORE