👋 Level up your software testing career with Professional Membership. Available for individuals and teams.

Testing Ask Me Anything - Accessibility

10th January 2023

Locked

Matthew Parker

Testing Ask Me Anything - Accessibility image

Like Bookmark

How do you try to get people to take accessibility seriously?

What do you think the split is between automated assessment tools and manual checking for conformance?

What's the difference between accessibility and general usability or user experience?

If you could pick one accessibility issue to fix, what would it be?

How do you best move from just testing for visual impairment to broader accessibility issues?

How would you improve accessibility for this Ask me Anything?

Is there more to accessibility testing than simply checking conformance to some independent guidelines?

Is there a particular area where you see most sites are failing when it comes to people with cognitive disorders?

As new devices and tablets enter the market with new technology - ie gesture controls - what challenges do you foresee for accessibility?

How to add accessibility to specs so it would be clear to developers what is expected from them?

Do you have any resources you'd recommend, like books website etc?

Are there any guidelines specific to native mobile apps - as most that I've come across are focussed on mobile web that then try to apply it for native apps?

Can you recommend any groups to get in touch with that are open to contact and assist at the end user experience specifically for informing development?

ChaptHow do you ease yourself into accessibility testing? I've been reading the WCAG docs but find them very difficult to comprehend? Are there any guides that are a bit easier for a beginner?er Title

Description

Our host Vernon Richards was joined by Matthew Parker to answer all your questions.

When we talk about accessibility many people think about making software and websites easier to use for people with visual or motor impairments. That is an important part of it but there is more to it. Accessibility is about building products that have no barriers to use and that are designed and built to support and encourage use by anyone and everyone. This often translates into ensuring visual and motor impairments are considered but also that general usability, look and feel and general experience cater for as many people as possible through inclusivity and diversity.

This Testing Ask Me Anything was sponsored by Wonderproxy.

If you operate internationally, do you know for certain what your site looks like in those international locations? If you don’t know, you could be missing bugs – and you could be losing revenue. WonderProxy shows you what your website looks like in all your markets, whether they’re down the street or on the other side of the world.

Matthew Parker

I've been in testing for 15 years now. My passion for testing comes second only to my family. I am passionate about continual improvement and challenging myself. My early career was very much driven by learning from books and colleagues as I was thrown into the deep end as QA Manager (as the only developer showing any interest in making sure any testing was done and no test department). After a number of years in test and test management positions I realised the part of the job I enjoyed the most was supporting the teams growth and development. I’ve recently taken the step into contracting and consultancy.