greg smart

I have been working to complete an overdue project this week and have a customer that keeps going back and forth on design elements. This can often be a frustrating time in the design process for both sides in this development equation. In addition to dealing with design issues I have also been trying to communicate with our Project Manager, Graphic Designer, and Content Developer as to how the requested changes impact the the process and ultimately the end product.

I pasted a portion of an email below that I think highlights the struggles and technical challenges web developers face as they try and bring a project to fruition.

Okay, I have finished another round of changes. I just wanted to think out loud with this email, I figured we could approach this as an opportunity to help illuminate some of the issues we struggle with on our side (Development). The client wanted the new images larger, so we have now made them 25% larger. Apparently the client has a large monitor that he runs on a high resolution and keeps asking for changes related to how he is viewing the site. This is beginning to cause some issues that the team should be cognoscente of and we should attempt to educate the client, especially if he requests more changes like these:

1. The Fold - I know that we (web nerds) say this should be a non-issue. On most web pages it is good practice to disregard the fold since monitor resolution varies so widely, this is generally regarded as a print concept that is not necessarily applicable to the web. While I subscribe to this concept I think in this case it is coming to bear. I use a 1024px X 728px monitor resolution and about half of the image rotation is below the fold. This means that the full effect of the home page image rotation will be lost on the majority of the visitors to the site, unless they have an unusually high monitor resolution. What I expect to happen here is that the client will start getting feedback from other decision makers on his team and he will ask us to change it back once again.
2. Image Quality - This is actually a double whammy (#3). I had to compress the images to find a happy medium between page performance and image quality. I don’t want to decrease it further.
3. Page Performance - Image size(s) directly impacts page performance. I have decreased the image sizes as much as I can. I think the page performance is suffering somewhat, but it is always a balancing act.
4. Accessibility - This is closely associated with #3. We spend a lot of our time creating code that is as standards compliant as a site can be while still meeting the requested design criteria. As the page performance decreases so does site accessibility. I would imagine that anyone on a limited-bandwidth internet connection will have some difficulty viewing this site. The images in the rotation are around 500kb/.5MB and they will have to view a partially rendered page until all of the images are downloaded.

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As we go through the development process at Pleth, LLC I am consistently compelled to climb onto my soapbox to preach about the tenents of Web Accessibility. As you can see in this Northeast Arkansas Advertising Federation related post we, at Pleth, recently won an Addy award for our own website. While we were honored to receive the award it did raise many questions about the judgement criteria vs. the priority that design firms like Pleth place on Web Accessibility as a design element. These likely represent two distinctly different sets of considerations.

Whether it be graphic artists, customers, or judges I am continually reminded that what is needed is an effort to educate the appropriate players as to the necessity of designing sites that are truly accessible.

“Web accessibility means that people with disabilities can use the Web.”
Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)

Strategy and Technology

As defined by the WAI, people with disabilities utilize adaptive strategies which are techniques used to improve interaction(s) with the Web, such as increasing the font size in a common browser. This is a critical point when tasked with designing a commercial website. The methodology used to address this point is found within the CSS document. As designers we can sacrifice a little control by designating a base font size, then utilizing subsequent font sizes as percentages of that original base. This is a necessary since designating specific font sizes for each element removes the browser’s ability to resize fonts, thus limiting accessibility.

Additional design techniques that affect accessibility can include:

• Describing (captions) images, graphs, tables, video, and audio
• Judicious use of Flash and Iframes
• Use clear language
• Don’t use color alone for emphasis
• Ensure adequate contrast
• Avoid opening new windows unnecessarily
• Use descriptive anchor link text (avoid “click here”)
• Use descriptive heading
• Avoid time limited tasks
• Avoid fine motor skills requirements

Assistive technologies also come into play here and includes software or equipment that people with disabilities use to improve interaction with the Web, such as screen readers that read aloud Web pages for people who cannot read text, screen magnifiers for people with some types of low vision, and voice recognition software and selection switches for people who cannot use a keyboard or mouse.

There are definite benefits to designing highly accessible websites that fall outside the scope of access for the physically or mentally impaired. Theses include web accessibility as a social issue, improved technical performance, reduction in legal liability (example lawsuit), and improved Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Implications

What does this mean for your business? As a web developer it is part of my duty to stand guard for my customers, particularly when it comes to legal liability on the web. There are many different approaches to building websites and as I often explain to my clients every element on the Web has both positive and negative implications. I most often see the negative implications when a client is requesting a wholly Flash site or content which is embedded in graphical elements. While these formats may be aesthetically pleasing, they may not lend themselves to highly accessible content. The implications of which can range from alienating potential customers to opening up your business to legal or social liabilities.

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