This site is committed to maximizing accessibility as much as possible. The following steps have been taken to improve your experience on the site.
Site design has been improved by the implementation of higher visual contrast (using Equalize Digital’s Accessibility Checker Pro and online contrast checkers).
For technical reasons, I replaced the Equalize Digital Plugin with WP ADA Compliance Check. This plugin includes a widget (available at the bottom right of each page). The widget gives users the ability to make the following adjustments.
- increase text spacing
- increase text size,
- change font
- display a big cursor
- display tool tips
- adjust contrast (four settings)
- outline links and buttons (among other things, useful for noticing when clicking on an image activates a link
- highlight page headings
- enable keyboard navigation (such as up and down scrolling with arrow keys)
- stop animations (not relevant to this site)
- reset (reverse all changes)
- dock toolbar at the bottom of the screen.
The plugin also provides a skip-to-content button, which can be accessed by pressing the tab key when a page has first loaded. This button should enable visitors using screen readers or keyboard to quickly skip the menus if they wish and proceed immediately to the main content of whatever page or post they are visiting. As a backup, a skip-to-content link has been added in the upper left-hand corner of the site header.
As an alternative way of navigating the site, a link to the sitemap has been placed in the upper right-hand corner of the header. Using the sitemap may be easier for some users than tabbing or clicking their way through the menus.
The few videos on the site were checked to ensure that they responded adequately to the use of YouTube’s autogenerated closed captions.
Other relevant aspects of the site were checked through the previously mentioned WP ADA Accessibility Check. Periodic checks will be done going forward to ensure that accessibility is maintained and, when necessary, enhanced.
However, it is important to be aware that a number of factors may cause the site to perform in unexpected ways. Updates to WordPress and the various plugins may have unintended side effects. Browser updates may also create unforeseen issues. If you experience any problems with the accessibility features, or if you wish to provide feedback on your experience with this site, use the comment form at the bottom of the page. (To protect your privacy, these comments will not be published but will be used to improve the site.)
Note to keyboard users: In recent versions of Windows, it’s been possible to simulate a mouse through the use of keyboard commands. Check out this Microsoft article that explains how to do it. If you haven’t tried this method yet, it might be worth a look. It could make the use of websites in general somewhat easier.