IBM Demonstrates Accessibility Technologies Portfolio

IBM introduced a range of solutions and developers’ tools that open up the World Wide Web and other information technologies to the aging workforce and people with disabilities at its annual PartnerWorld Conference at Las Vegas.

IBM provides accessibility solutions to its clients and partners to meet growing government regulations around the world and to move beyond compliance. At PartnerWorld, IBM’s Worldwide Accessibility Center demonstrated its toolkit of solutions.

“Empowering people with disabilities to access to the Web and the other information technology must be a rising initiative for all companies and organizations,” said Jay Leventhal of the American Federation of the Blind. “Web developers need innovative and effective tools to better enable them to build sites which can be accessible to the aging workforce and people with disabilities, a population that cannot be ignored in today’s world.”

IBM’s efforts to create tools for developers and end-users resulted in the following products:

• Home Page Reader, a talking Web browser, is also an effective tool for developers to test Web pages for accessibility early in the prototype/design stage as well as after the content or application has been deployed. Thousands of software developers inside IBM use Home Page Reader to check for usability and accessibility.
• aDesigner is a technology that integrates new patented accessibility testing technologies and existing tools for Web developers. It is particularly effective at checking the degree of color contrast on a page, the ability of users to change the font size and the availability of links in the page to promote navigability. The tool also checks the page’s compliance with accessibility guidelines. A handy feature: aDesigner’s site-wide feature automatically “crawls” through a website so that developers can check more than one page at a time.
• Easy Web Browsing — Easy Web Browsing benefits computer users who have low vision and can use the mouse. Organizations and companies are installing Easy Web Browsing to differentiate their own websites and make them more accessible to their members, employees and customers. Seniors and first-time Internet users appreciate its simple user interface.
• Web Adapt 2 Me allows people who have low vision, cognitive or mobility limitations to customize the way that Web pages are presented. Users can change the size of the text, increase the line spacing, and convert the text and links to high-contrast colors that are easier to see.

Source: IBM