Barrier-free Web Design online workshop begins Feb. 28 2000.
More than half of American homes own a computer, and the vast majority are
connected to the Internet.  More than 50 million Americans have
disabilities, and they are becoming connected too.  Are you denying them
the ability to access your web site?  For many the web provides their first
opportunity to have information readily available that they can read by
themselves with only the help of some special software.  Yet, many pages
are designed in ways to rob them of this freedom.

This four-week workshop explains the World Wide Web Consortium's guidelines
for accessible design.  The workshop is taught by instructors experienced
in adaptive computer technology and experienced in distance learning.  It
is taught with e-mail and the web.  It includes the use of some multimedia
requiring you to download the RealPlayer to hear and view material.  (All
media is transcribed.)  It is not a course in HTML, but teaches principles
and features necessary to make your HTML accessible.  It focuses on 2
different audiences: web designers who know HTML but want to learn how to
design with access in mind and those who do not design web sites but want
to know how to pursuade web designers that accessibility is possible.

 ** For information on workshop fees or how to register, go to:
http://www.rit.edu/~easi/workshop.htm

Topics covered include:

Lesson 1. Introduction:
This will include: advantages of the web for people with disabilities;
problems
of the web; the law and web access; the WAI (Web Access Initiative; and
instructors' and participants' introductions.

Lesson 2.
General design principles for accessibility: This will  include: layout for
clarity and simplicity; design for rapid comprehension; and  layout for
navigation;

Lesson 3. Graphics and other visual features:
This will include: graphics; pictures; icons; graphical links; use of colors;
and how to provide accessibility for users who are blind, low vision or have
learning disabilities.

Lesson 4. Audio and the audio portion of video content:
This will  include: the need to provide text transcriptions for deaf and
hard-of-hearing;
the use of synchronized text with audio and video; and the use of
descriptive  video.

Lesson 5. W3 style sheets and mark up features:
This will include: cascading style sheets; HTML 4.0 markup features in
general
but especially those enhancing accessibility.

Lesson 6. Older browsers and with special screen reader features:
This will include how to use new HTML features in ways that gracefully
transform
pages when accessed with older browsers or by special adaptive software that
reformats pages based on its HTML coding.

Lesson 7. User control issues:
This will include an explanation of how to use the user control features of
HTML  4.0.

Lesson 8. Validation for HTML and for accessibility features:
This will include: how to validate your HTML code; how to check your pages
for
accessibility; submitting a page to qualify for continuing education units.

EASI (Equal Access to Software and Information) is a non-profit organization,
part of the Teaching, Learning and Technology Group and affiliated with the
American Association for Higher Education. Our mission is to help make
information technologies more accessible to users with disabilities.

Norman Coombs [log in to unmask]

EASI's online workshop on accessible Web design,
Barrier-free Web Design, begins Feb. 22.
Making your Web pages accessible is the right thing to do,
and it is the law.  For information, go to
http://www.rit.edu/~easi and click on workshops.