U. S. Government agencies are required to apply standards defined at www.access-board.gov/sec508/508standards.htm. These may also apply in some situations to U. S. Government contractors, vendors to U.S. Government agencies, and potentially others subject to U. S. Government requirements. See subsections1194.21 (applications software, including applets/plugins) and 1194.22 (Web based information) of 36 CFR1194. Many clauses of this recommended practice will facilitate ease of use and accessibility by diverseusers. Subclause 4.7.2 is focused specifically on access for those with disabilities, and includes recom-mended practices beyond those defined in the normative Web Consortium’s WAI guidelines.
36 CFR 1194.21 Software applications and operating systemsa) When software is designed to run on a system that has a keyboard, product functions shall be execut-able from a keyboard where the function itself or the result of performing a function can be dis-cerned textually.b) Applications shall not disrupt or disable activated features of other products that are identified asaccessibility features, where those features are developed and documented according to industrystandards. Applications also shall not disrupt or disable activated features of any operating systemthat are identified as accessibility features where the application programming interface for thoseaccessibility features has been documented by the manufacturer of the operating system and is avail-able to the product developer.c) A well-defined on-screen indication of the current focus shall be provided that moves among inter-active interface elements as the input focus changes. The focus shall be programmatically exposedso that assistive technology can track focus and focus changes.d) Sufficient information about a user interface element including the identity, operation, and state ofthe element shall be available to assistive technology. When an image represents a program element,the information conveyed by the image must also be available in text.e) When bitmap images are used to identify controls, status indicators, or other programmaticelements, the meaning assigned to those images shall be consistent throughout an application’sperformance.f) Textual information shall be provided through operating system functions for displaying text. Theminimum information that shall be made available is text content, text input caret location, and textattributes.g) Applications shall not override user selected contrast and color selections and other individual dis-play attributes.h) When animation is displayed, the information shall be displayable in at least one non-animated pre-sentation mode at the option of the user.i) Color coding shall not be used as the only means of conveying information, indicating an action,prompting a response, or distinguishing a visual element.j) When a product permits a user to adjust color and contrast settings, a variety of color selectionscapable of producing a range of contrast levels shall be provided.k) Software shall not use flashing or blinking text, objects, or other elements having a flash or blink fre-quency greater than 2 Hz and lower than 55 Hz.l) When electronic forms are used, the form shall allow people using assistive technology to access theinformation, field elements, and functionality required for completion and submission of the form,including all directions and cues. https://arudhrainnovations.com/
