Technology Overview—Accessibility and Section 508
Accessibility issues can occur in any level of technology. You should be aware of and understand what levels of computer technology are used in your applications. This will help you identify exposure points to investigate for potential Accessibility issues.
| Custom Code |
Users build or receive many custom applications. |
Applications and
Run-Time Libraries |
ESRI provides applications and runtime libraries. |
| Operating System |
Sun Solaris, Windows 98, Windows NT, HP-UX, Digital UNIX, etc. |
| Hardware |
Various UNIX and PC computers. |
| Computer systems have four layers of technology. Accessibility issues can occur at any level of technology. |
- Hardware
Various hardware platforms have different accessibility issues. For example, the support for alternate types of keyboard and computer monitor size and resolution. Check your hardware vendor's web site and your operating system vendor's web site for Accessibility issues.
- Operating System
The operating system handles many accessibility issues and facilitates the communication between the hardware and various assistive technologies (e.g., larger keyboards, dynamic Braille display…). For example, Microsoft Windows 98 and Windows 2000 include an Accessibility Wizard to help people adapt various operating system features to their needs. Check your operating system vendor's web site for Accessibility features.
- Applications and Run-Time Libraries
Applications are software that run on your operating system and work with various databases. ArcInfo and ArcView are examples of ESRI applications. Applications may contain accessibility features such as keyboard shortcuts.
- Custom Code
Custom applications are those built on top of ESRI software or that utilize ESRI software components (e.g., applications built with MapObjects or ArcInfo's ODE). It is definitely possible to build custom code that does not utilize the accessibility features of the underlying applications. For example, a custom-built user interface on top of MapObjects may not provide any keyboard short cuts for menu choices.
Summary
In order to gain a further understanding of the various technology layers at which Accessibility issues may occur, you should check your operating system vendor's web-site. A particularly good Web site for understanding these technology layers is Microsoft's Accessibility Web site.
|
