Accessibility

• When uploading images to Drupal, add "alt text" for every image through the interface.
• "alt text" is not a caption—it is a short description of an image that a screen reader will "read" to the user.   
• Alt text length: Keep it short—less than one hundred characters. 
• Decorative elements: If a non-text element is merely decorative or does not convey meaningful information, assign it the "null" alt attribute. This is alt ="", where the quote marks have nothing between them: <img src="spacer.gif" height="1" width="10" alt="">. 
• Do not repeat an image's alt text in the adjacent text, such as captions. 
• Graphic link elements: Provide text links if using graphic elements for navigation. 
• Image file size: Keep image sizes as small as possible (file size should not exceed 50KB).

• Link text should be meaningful enough to make sense when read out of context. 
  Example: write "Read more information about the department" instead of "Click here." 
• Links should not open in a new window.

• Use file compression, when possible, for faster download. 
• File type should accompany all downloadable files. 
• Provide concise how-to information for plug-ins or extras needed to access items.
• Create accessible PDFs and Word Documents

• Each element in Drupal page layout uses appropriate heading structure to accommodate accessibility. Use the styles available to you to select headings.  
• Use header elements for all headings. Using font size or bold type to indicate headings visually is not compliant.
• Order header elements properly (numerical order): <H1> <H2> <H3> <H4>, etc. 
• Do not "skip" levels (e.g., <H1> <H3>).

Buffalo State uses Ensemble Video to manage and store audio and video files. To meet accessibility requirements, all video files need to be close captioned and audio files must contain a text alternative or transcript. 

Create an Ensemble video account
Ensemble training
Ensemble support  
Request captioning

Avoid linking to documents whenever possible. Content should be placed on your web pages, not external documents.

• The viewer may not have the correct software to view the document
• Creating accessible Word, PDF documents, etc. is complex.

Avoid linking to document-based forms

1) Makes for an overly complicated workflow (the process of data collection)
2) Documents that need to be filled out by hand and returned are inherently inaccessible themselves
3) Online forms streamline the workflow and guarantees accessibility

Placing documents on your site
If it is unavoidably necessary to place a document on your site, there are tools available to verify their accessibility, and all documents must meet these standards before being placed on your site.

Document accessibility testing tools

When performing your own site review, please follow accessibility guidelines:

All web pages must follow guidelines to ensure ADA compliance, and self-publishers uploading work to official university servers must:

• To gauge the accessibility of your pages, review the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
• Run their sites through a code check, such as WebAIM WAVE

• Optimize pages for viewing on as many devices and screen resolutions as possible.
• For added ease-of-use, maintain a consistent layout throughout the site.

• Maximize the color contrast between backgrounds and text.
• Avoid using colors only to convey meaning.
• Adhere to the built in styles of your template with headings, buttons, and colors.

Use proper markup for data tables to allow screen reader users to navigate through the table