The National Cancer Registry Ireland

Conformance to the Accessiblity Guidelines

Listed below are the World Wide Web Consortium guidelines and our response to each. As part of the testing process it is assumed that any user-agent, e.g. a web-browser, which enables a certain functionality, must correctly support all standard features of that functionality in a standard manner. In acknowledgement of the current browser market, however, exceptions have been made for Internet Explorer 5 and above. No exceptions have been made for any other browser, notably Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer versions 4. On all platforms there are technically superior free of charge alternatives which will work on similar hardware.

Paradoxically, earlier versions of these browsers will render wholly accessible pages as they will ignore the Cascading Style-Sheet (CSS) files and render only the XHTML.

The World Wide Web Consortium has published their Accessibility Guidelines on their website.

Accessiblity Guidelines

1. Provide equivalent alternatives to auditory and visual content.

Provide content that, when presented to the user, conveys essentially the same function or purpose as auditory or visual content.

1. Provide a text equivalent for every non-text element (e.g., via "alt", "longdesc", or in element content). This includes: images, graphical representations of text (including symbols), image map regions, animations (e.g., animated GIF images), applets and programmatic objects, ASCII art, frames, scripts, images used as list bullets, spacers, graphical buttons, sounds (played with or without user interaction), stand-alone audio files, audio tracks of video, and video. [Priority 1]

   A text equivalent is present for all images on the site. Content is not generated using scripts, and fallbacks are present for when scripting is disabled. No other non-text elements are used.

2. Provide redundant text links for each active region of a server-side image map. [Priority 1]

   Image maps are not used on this site.

3. Until user agents can automatically read aloud the text equivalent of a visual track, provide an auditory description of the important information of the visual track of a multimedia presentation. [Priority 1]

   Visual tracks are not used on this site.

4. For any time-based multimedia presentation (e.g., a movie or animation), synchronize equivalent alternatives (e.g., captions or auditory descriptions of the visual track) with the presentation. [Priority 1]

   Multimedia presentations are not used on this site.

5. Until user agents render text equivalents for client-side image map links, provide redundant text links for each active region of a client-side image map. [Priority 3]

   Image maps are not used on this site.

2. Don't rely on colour alone.

Ensure that text and graphics are understandable when viewed without colour.

1. Ensure that all information conveyed with colour is also available without colour, for example from context or markup. [Priority 1]

   Colour is used to high-light headings and links. Headings can also be identified by size and content. Links are bold, and when hovered, underlined. In the edition for Visually Impaired, links are always underlined. In one instance in this document colour is used to highlight a particular area where the site fails to meet a standard in certain conditions. However this information is also available

   • From the text itself
   • From the introduction given on the preceding page

2. Ensure that foreground and background colour combinations provide sufficient contrast when viewed by someone having colour deficits or when viewed on a black and white screen. [Priority 2 for images, Priority 3 for text].

   The edition for Visually Impaired uses white text on a black background, providing maximum contrast. The standard edition provides black text on a white background, which is the next best, and uses sufficiently hight contrast on the navigation bar for those with colour deficits to comprehend. The map image on the Contact page is less easy to decipher, however the text and borders use ensure that someone should be able to distinguish roads from built up areas, and thus understand the map. Further, the information conveyed by the map, the location of the National Cancer Registry offices, is also conveyed in the preceding text.

3. Use markup and style sheets and do so properly.

Mark up documents with the proper structural elements. Control presentation with style sheets rather than with presentation elements and attributes.

1. When an appropriate markup language exists, use markup rather than images to convey information. [Priority 2]

   All information, barring the map on the Contact page is conveyed using markup. It is not currently possible to convey the information on the map any other way, the Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) standard still by and large unsupported. Further, the information conveyed by the map, the location of the National Cancer Registry offices, is also conveyed in the preceding text.

2. Create documents that validate to published formal grammars. [Priority 2]

   All pages validate to the Transitional eXtensible Hyper-Text Markup Language (XHTML) standard (version 1.0). All Cascading Style-Sheet (CSS) files validate to the CSS Level 1 standard.

3. Use style sheets to control layout and presentation. [Priority 2]

   All presentation on the site is controlled by style sheets. In some minor cases appearance has been tweaked using in-line stylesheets. This presents no barrier to accessibility.

4. Use relative rather than absolute units in markup language attribute values and style sheet property values. [Priority 2]

   In order to achieve the water-mark effect in Internet Explorer, fixed units had to be used to set the size of the page title and the right margin. Thus the edition of this site presented to users of Internet Explorer does not pass this checkpoint.

   Almost all other browsers on the market today have full support for the CSS Level 1 standard (in fact most are now in the process of finalising support for CSS Level 2) and so for them this effect could be achieved without resorting to fixed units. Fixed units are still used for

   • Border widths
   • Zero widths (i.e. setting a width to 0 pixels as opposed to 0 ems)
   • Widths used for padding

   Zero widths are not an issue. With regard to border widths and padding, these do not present any difficulty to accessing the content of the site. The actual textual content, and the size of the structures used to contain it are all sized in relative units, and will resize to accomodate the browser's settings. Consequently it is felt that the edition served to other browsers passes this checkpoint.

5. Use header elements to convey document structure and use them according to specification. [Priority 2]

   As has been stated, valid XHTML has been used throughout the site, the header elements have been used to clearly indicate structure, and have been used according to specification

6. Mark up lists and list items properly. [Priority 2]

   As has been stated, valid XHTML has been used throughout the site and the list and list item elements have been used to have been used according to specification

7. Mark up quotations. Do not use quotation markup for formatting effects such as indentation. [Priority 2]

   Quotations are indicated using the <blockquote> element. This has not been used for any other purpose.

4. Clarify natural language usage

Use markup that facilitates pronunciation or interpretation of abbreviated or foreign text.

1. Clearly identify changes in the natural language of a document's text and any text equivalents (e.g., captions). [Priority 1]

   The language is identifying four times, each time in a standard manner.

   • In the <!DOCTYPE> element
   • Using the lang attribute of the <html> element
   • Using the xml:lang attribute of the <html> element (this follows from the eXtensible Markup Language (XML) standard)
   • Using the http-equiv attribute of the <meta> element to set the "content-language" parameter.

2. Specify the expansion of each abbreviation or acronym in a document where it first occurs. [Priority 3]

   As can be seen from this very page, the expansion of acronyms has been specified in the content throughout the site. Further all acronyms are enclosed within <acronym> elements, which contain the acronym's expansion. An exception has been made for HTML and XHTML as these are already well known and understood. Their expansion is still supplied in the acronym tag. Where supported, a change in the cursor takes place when the user moves it over an acronym and the expansion is shown in a contextual help-box.

3. Identify the primary natural language of a document. [Priority 3]

   This is clearly indicated, refer to checkpoint 4.1

5. Create tables that transform gracefully.

Ensure that tables have necessary markup to be transformed by accessible browsers and other user agents.

1. For data tables, identify row and column headers. [Priority 1]

   The <th> element is used to identify row and column headers, and the scope of the header is clearly defined in all tables used on the site. Note that in the data section Data is available in HTML format. This is considered separate from the site and is not included as part of the accessibility testing. No conformance icon is shown on these pages.

2. For data tables that have two or more logical levels of row or column headers, use markup to associate data cells and header cells. [Priority 1]

   No tables on the site have more than one logical level of row or column headers (refer to checkpoint 5.1)

3. Do not use tables for layout unless the table makes sense when linearized. Otherwise, if the table does not make sense, provide an alternative equivalent (which may be a linearized version). [Priority 2]

   Tables are never used for the purpose of layout on this site..

4. If a table is used for layout, do not use any structural markup for the purpose of visual formatting. [Priority 2]

   Tables are never used for the purpose of layout on this site..

5. Provide summaries for tables. [Priority 3]

   Summaries are provided for all tables on this site.

6. Provide abbreviations for header labels. [Priority 3]

   Abbreviations have been provided for header labels where necessary.

6. Ensure that pages featuring new technologies transform gracefully.

Ensure that pages are accessible even when newer technologies are not supported or are turned off.

1. Organize documents so they may be read without style sheets. For example, when an HTML document is rendered without associated style sheets, it must still be possible to read the document. [Priority 1]

   The document is legible and navigable without stylesheets. Legibility may however by compromised by a non-standard CSS implementation, this is not considered to be a fault on the site's part. See the introduction for more.

2. Ensure that equivalents for dynamic content are updated when the dynamic content changes. [Priority 1]

   There is no dynamically generated content on this site.

3. Ensure that pages are usable when scripts, applets, or other programmatic objects are turned off or not supported. If this is not possible, provide equivalent information on an alternative accessible page. [Priority 1]

   The site features scripts. These are responsible for switching editions and the search functionality. When scripts are disabled, editions cannot be changed, but the site remains accessibly and usable. With regard to the search functionality, when scripts are turned off users are directed, via a link in a <noscript> element, to a pre-configured Google search. While "javascript:" links are used for compatibility reasons, the onmousedown, onkeypress and onselect handlers are also used for maximum accesssibility.

4. For scripts and applets, ensure that event handlers are input device-independent. [Priority 2]

   The onmousedown, onkeypress and onselect handlers are used for maximum device-independent accesssibility.

5. Ensure that dynamic content is accessible or provide an alternative presentation or page. [Priority 2]

   There is no dynamically created content. Stylesheets are selected dynamically. If scripting is disabled, the stylesheets for the standard edition as it appears in Internet Explorer are used. This may be considered an "alternative presentation"

7. Ensure user control of time-sensitive content changes.

Ensure that moving, blinking, scrolling, or auto-updating objects or pages may be paused or stopped.

1. Until user agents allow users to control flickering, avoid causing the screen to flicker. [Priority 1]

   Nothing on the site causes the screen to flicker.

2. Until user agents allow users to control blinking, avoid causing content to blink (i.e., change presentation at a regular rate, such as turning on and off). [Priority 2]

   No content on this site blinks.

3. Until user agents allow users to freeze moving content, avoid movement in pages. [Priority 2]

   Nothing in this site causes the movement of pages.

4. Until user agents provide the ability to stop the refresh, do not create periodically auto-refreshing pages. [Priority 2]

   No pages in this site auto-refesh

5. Until user agents provide the ability to stop auto-redirect, do not use markup to redirect pages automatically. Instead, configure the server to perform redirects. [Priority 2]

   The user is automatically re-directed from http://www.ncri.ie/index.html to http://www.ncri.ie/ncri/index.shtml using server scripts. If this functionality is ever disabled, an index.html file will have to be used for this purpose, however at the time of writing (September 18, 2003) this is not necessary.

8. Ensure direct accessibility of embedded user interfaces.

Ensure that the user interface follows principles of accessible design: device-independent access to functionality, keyboard operability, self-voicing, etc.

1. Make programmatic elements such as scripts and applets directly accessible or compatible with assistive technologies [Priority 1 if functionality is important and not presented elsewhere, otherwise Priority 2.]

   The onmousedown, onkeypress and onselect handlers are used for maximum device-independent accessibility. Where scripts are disabled, while the ability to switch editions is lost, stylesheets are selected and the search facility is duplicated via a specially constructed link to Google . In no area of the site are scripts necessary to access site content.

9. Design for device-independence.

Use features that enable activation of page elements via a variety of input devices.

1. Provide client-side image maps instead of server-side image maps except where the regions cannot be defined with an available geometric shape. [Priority 1]

   Image maps are not used on this site.

2. Ensure that any element that has its own interface can be operated in a device-independent manner. [Priority 2]

   The onmousedown, onkeypress and onselect handlers are used for maximum device-independent accessibility. Where scripts are disabled, alternatives are provided using the <noscript> element. By and large standard browser conventions will continue to work, scripts being used to augment rather than replace existing functionality.

3. For scripts, specify logical event handlers rather than device-dependent event handlers. [Priority 2]

   The onmousedown, onkeypress and onselect handlers are used for maximum device-independent accessibility.

4. Create a logical tab order through links, form controls, and objects. [Priority 3]

   Due to a logical design, including the absence of tables for layout purposes, a logical tab order is presented to the user.

5. Provide keyboard shortcuts to important links (including those in client-side image maps), form controls, and groups of form controls. [Priority 3]

   Access keys are used for all the links in the Navigation and Special Editions menus, and for a special "Go to content" link in the Visual edition. In the Normal edition the appropriate keys are indicated using underlining in the lower menu. In the Visual Edition, using Internet Explorer the appropriate keys are indicated using overlining in the upper and lower menus. In In the Visual Edition, using other browsers the appropriate keys are indicated using double underlining in the upper and lower menus.

10. Use interim solutions.

Use interim accessibility solutions so that assistive technologies and older browsers will operate correctly.

Note. The following checkpoints apply until user agents (including assistive technologies) address these issues.

1. Until user agents allow users to turn off spawned windows, do not cause pop-ups or other windows to appear and do not change the current window without informing the user. [Priority 2]

   Only in the contact page is there a link to a spawned window, the link text indicated that a new window will be created.

2. Until user agents support explicit associations between labels and form controls, for all form controls with implicitly associated labels, ensure that the label is properly positioned. [Priority 2]

   Labels are used with all form elements, and style-sheets are used to ensure they are properly positioned.

3. Until user agents (including assistive technologies) render side-by-side text correctly, provide a linear text alternative (on the current page or some other) for all tables that lay out text in parallel, word-wrapped columns. [Priority 3]

   Tables are not used for multi-column text, floating <div> elements are used, and these linearise easily. Further, linearised versions of the content are available using the Visually Impaired edition, or by disabling stylesheet support in the browser.

4. Until user agents handle empty controls correctly, include default, place-holding characters in edit boxes and text areas. [Priority 3]

   All controls on the site have place-holding text.

5. Until user agents (including assistive technologies) render adjacent links distinctly, include non-link, printable characters (surrounded by spaces) between adjacent links. [Priority 3]

   Links are never adjacent in this site. The lower menu-bar features links separated by a | character and spaces. The upper menus are creating by placing links in an unordered list, creating a natural break. In the Visually Impaired edition, links are separated by a substantial amount of spacing set using style-sheets. Where style-sheets are not enabled the natural formatting of an unordered list will separate the links.

11. Use W3C technologies and guidelines.

Use W3C technologies (according to specification) and follow accessibility guidelines. Where it is not possible to use a W3C technology, or doing so results in material that does not transform gracefully, provide an alternative version of the content that is accessible.

1. Use W3C technologies when they are available and appropriate for a task and use the latest versions when supported. [Priority 2]

   The site uses JavaScript 1.2, XHTML 1.0 Transitional and CSS Level 1. Currently the XHTML standard is at version 1.1, however almost none of the major browsers support this standard, and furthermore it breaks backward compatibility for older browsers. The CSS standard is at Level 3, however almost none of the major browsers support this, nor do they have complete support for the Level 2 standard. The marker leader, Internet Explorer, does not fully support the Level 1 standard. Further, there are very few features in the new CSS standards which are required by the site. The technologies which have been chosen are therefore the latest versions supported, and as has already been established, have been used to W3C specifications.

2. Avoid deprecated features of W3C technologies. [Priority 2]

   Deprecated features have by and large been avoided. In some cases, such as named anchors, both new and deprecated versions have been used for maximum compatibility, and therefore accessibility. Old standards and deprecated elements have not been used

3. Provide information so that users may receive documents according to their preferences (e.g., language, content type, etc.) [Priority 3]

   Language and content type information is provided. Refer to section 4.1. As regards content type, the character set is specified in the opening <?xml?> element following the XML and in a <meta> tag using the http-equiv to set the content-type header according to the Hyper-Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) version 1.1. The content type is also presented in this structure but can be deduced from the <!DOCTYPE> element in any event.

4. If, after best efforts, you cannot create an accessible page, provide a link to an alternative page that uses W3C technologies, is accessible, has equivalent information (or functionality), and is updated as often as the inaccessible (original) page. [Priority 1]

   The pages provided are accessible. A special edition for the Visually Impaired is made available, not because of faults on the part of the standard edition, but as part of a broader effort to make the site as pleasant and easy to read as possible for everyone.

12. Provide context and orientation information.

Provide context and orientation information to help users understand complex pages or elements.

1. Title each frame to facilitate frame identification and navigation. [Priority 1]

   Frames are not used on this site.

2. Describe the purpose of frames and how frames relate to each other if it is not obvious by frame titles alone. [Priority 2]

   Frames are not used on this site.

3. Divide large blocks of information into more manageable groups where natural and appropriate. [Priority 2]

   Information is packaged and delivered in a logical manner. Some documents may be longer than others, but splitting the longer documents would fracture the content structure and lead to a less accessible page. Information is kept in manageable blocks, and can be easily accessed.

4. Associate labels explicitly with their controls. [Priority 2]

   Labels are associated explicitly with their controls, and style-sheets are used to ensure the graphical presentation adequately represents this association.

13. Provide clear navigation mechanisms.

Provide clear and consistent navigation mechanisms -- orientation information, navigation bars, a site map, etc. -- to increase the likelihood that a person will find what they are looking for at a site.

1. Clearly identify the target of each link. [Priority 2]

   The text associated with links, and the context in which it occurs clearly and explicitly identifys the link target.

2. Provide metadata to add semantic information to pages and sites. [Priority 2]

   Information on the author and a description of the site is stored in the document headers. Further links to Home, Index and Help are provided. Home links to the homepage, Index links to the News section, which contains a list (i.e. index) of news stories and Help links to the Cancer Information section, which contains links to Information on Cancer in Ireland and a list of frequently asked questions. There is no one document on the site large enough to merit Next, Previous, Up etc. links. While the data section is broken up into three pages, we require that users take certains steps at each page and therefore cannot allow them to short-circuit procedure using such links.

3. Provide information about the general layout of a site (e.g., a site map or table of contents). [Priority 2]

   The Navigation menu presents links to all primary pages on the site. Where secondary pages exist, they have a primary page associated with them which provides a detailed table of contents - e.g. news stories and the News Page, or pages on cancer and the Cancer Information page. Tertiary Links only occur in the data section. It is felt that the existing navigation mechanism should serve most users. For others, a site-map and search functionality is provided.

4. Use navigation mechanisms in a consistent manner. [Priority 2]

   The Navigation bar in appearance and usage remains unchanged throughout the site. Where a page contains a list of links, e.g. Cancer Information and News these links are presented in a set manner, which does not change from page to page.

5. Provide navigation bars to highlight and give access to the navigation mechanism. [Priority 3]

   In the standard editions a vertical navigation bar is present at the side of all pages and a horizontal navigation bar is present at the bottom of all pages. In the edition for the Visually Impaired there are two horizontal navigation bars at the top and bottom of the pages.

6. Group related links, identify the group (for user agents), and, until user agents do so, provide a way to bypass the group. [Priority 3]

   Links are grouped using the standard <map> element. In the visually impaired edition, and when viewing the side in a text mode browser which does not support CSS a link appears immediately below the header, the first link on the site, which allows the user to skip the navigation and proceed to the content. This link also has an accesskey associated with it.

7. If search functions are provided, enable different types of searches for different skill levels and preferences. [Priority 3]

   The site makes use of some JavaScript to ask Google to search only this site for a particular parameter. Either below or alongside the controls is a link termed "Advanced" which bring the user to Google's advanced search page, pre-configured to search only this site.

8. Place distinguishing information at the beginning of headings, paragraphs, lists, etc. [Priority 3]

   Informative distinguishing information is placed at the beginning of headings, paragraphs, lists, etc, generally in the form of a short paragraph.

9. Provide information about document collections (i.e., documents comprising multiple pages.). [Priority 3]

   There are no documents containing multiple pages on this side. The data section is not a multi-page document, but rather a series of separate and equally important steps one must take in order to access our data.

10. Provide a means to skip over multi-line ASCII (i.e. character based) art. [Priority 3]

    There is no ASCII art on this site.

14. Ensure that documents are clear and simple.

Ensure that documents are clear and simple so they may be more easily understood.

1. Use the clearest and simplest language appropriate for a site's content. [Priority 1]

   The language used in this site is clear and concise, however by the very nature of the work the National Cancer Registry is involved in, jargon will sometimes be used. Where this is the case, it is usually explained.

2. Supplement text with graphic or auditory presentations where they will facilitate comprehension of the page. [Priority 3] Refer also to guideline 1.

   By and large, graphic presentations are not necessary on this site. In the Contact page a map image has been supplied to supplement the directions to the office. Icons are used to make it easier to find and distinguish links to software and data. However the site has at the same time avoided an over-reliance on imagery.

3. Create a style of presentation that is consistent across pages. [Priority 3]

   By using style-sheets and well defined markup structures, the site has a uniform look and feel across all pages.