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Most of the web is off limits to disabled persons. According to a U.N study, conducted by the British technology firm [Nomensa][1], 97 percent of websites [fail to meet the minimum level of web accessibility][4].
The survey looked at 100 popular sites in twenty different countries and tested them against the [Web Content Accessibility Guidelines][2], the international guidelines for web accessibility.
While that's a pretty daunting statistic, and a dismal failure, the survey also outlined many of the problem areas and suggests most would be fairly easy to remedy.
The most common stumbling block was Javascript, which many so-called web 2.0 sites rely on for their graphical wiz-bang features.
followed closely by a lack of alternative text for images. Screen readers and other assistive devices rely on the <code>alt</code> descriptions in <code>img</code> tags to "show" visually impaired users the graphics on a page.
Another problem the survey touches on was the use of poorly contrasting color combinations, which make Web pages difficult to read for people with visual impairment like color blindness.
Looks like [Jakob Nielson][3] needs to write another book.
And the three success stories? The only websites that met all the minimum standards were the German chancellor's website, the Spanish government website, and the British prime minister's website. The only question is how those three sites ended up in a list of the internet's most popular.
[1]: http://www.nomensa.com/ "Nomensa.com"
[4]: http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID=2006-12-05T224424Z_01_N05332044_RTRIDST_0_OUKIN-UK-INTERNET-DISABLED.XML&WTmodLoc=TechInternet-C1-Headline-9 "Reuters on UN Study"
[3]: http://www.useit.com/ "Jakob Nielson on web standards and accessibility"
[2]: http://www.w3.org/WAI/ "W3C guidelines for web accessibility"
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