Whether you are an independent web developer or you work for a consulting firm interested in web accessibility, a veteran in the accessibility industry, a tester or a novice, you’ll want to be sure to attend Chetan Bakhru’s presentation outlining the advantages and disadvantages of automated web site accessibility testing tools. Use of these tools, while thought by some to be a labor saving shortcut, when used by someone without thorough knowledge of accessibility, can paint a misleading picture of web access compliance. For example, an automated tool cannot make a determination as to how descriptive alt text may or may not be, as it cannot interpret what is contextually relevant or considered to be descriptive enough. Chetan generously granted my request for an interview, and explained for my readers what they can expect when they attend his session at the CSUN Conference on Disability.
LL: Please describe for the readers of the AI Blog the goals for your presentation.
CB: The goal of my presentation is to educate individuals and organizations on what the advantages and disadvantages of using automated accessibility testing tools to verify the accessibility of websites are, what the characteristics of good automated testing tools are, and why the use of other methods of testing for accessibility is essential.
LL: Who is the target audience for your talk?
CB: The target audience includes testers, developers, QA engineers, and/or anyone else interested in learning more about how to properly test for accessibility.
LL: What do you hope attendees take away from your presentation?
CB: The takeaway from this presentation is that automated testing has an important place in a tester’s toolset. The use of a good automated accessibility testing tool can result in increased productivity, efficiency and in the accuracy of results. However, there are many issues that these tools are unable to check for, and users of such tools must not rely on the tool to be the final determining factor in whether their site is accessible. Anyone using these tools should be well trained on their use, how to interpret their results, and have a good knowledge of accessibility.
More about Chetan Bakhru:
Chetan Bakhru is an IT consultant, web developer, technology trainer and accessibility advocate. He obtained his Bachelor’s of Science degree in Information Technology specializing in Software Engineering from the University of Phoenix in 2009, and his Master’s degree in Software Engineering from Penn State University in 2013. Over the past several years, Chetan has worked for many organizations providing technical support to customers, training users on the use of computers and assistive technology, developing websites, and helping make existing websites, desktop applications, and mobile apps accessible to people with disabilities. He is originally from southern California, currently works in the DC metro area as an Assistive Technology Tester at SSB Bart Group, and intends to relocate back to the west coast sometime soon. On the side, he also runs a website called Blind Planet (blind-planet.com), a site which labels itself as “Your one-stop resource for anything blindness related” and which contains a wealth of technology-related material. Blind Planet also provides web development, assistive technology, and general computer training services to those who are blind or low vision at a nominal cost. Some of the websites Chetan has either developed or helped make accessible include www.nib.org, www.worldaccessfortheblind.org, www.nonvisualdevelopment.org, and www.colorfascination.com
To learn more about Chetan, or to follow his work, here are his contact details:
Twitter Handle: @cbakhru
Twitter Page: twitter.com/cbakhru
LinkedIn Page: www.linkedin.com/pub/chetan-bakhru-pmp/2a/663/15a
Facebook Profile: www.facebook.com/chetan.bakhru
Google+ Profile: plus.google.com/112898281638210974817
Website: blind-planet.com
Email: chetan@bakhru.net or webmaster@blind-planet.com
Phone: 714-816-4105
Don’t forget to click on the link to indicate your interest in this session, and save yourself a seat. Go to the CSUN Conference session details page:
www.csun.edu/cod/conference/2014/sessions/index.php/public/presentations/view/173
Be sure to use hashtag CSUN14 when tweeting about the event.
See you there!
LL