On this site

Recent seminar venues

John Slatin Access U, Austin TX, sponsored by Knowbility, Inc.
- "This was the best class I had. I have numerous nuggets and ideas to add to my accessibility testing tools kit" –(attendee)
California Web Accessibility Conference, Long Beach CA, also sponsored by Knowbility, Inc.
International Conference on Technology and Persons with Disabilities, Los Angeles.
CSU Procurement Officers' conference, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
CSU Directors of Academic Technology conference, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Accessibility training

Our goal in training your staff or your vendors is to work ourselves out of a job. Yes, really! As soon as smart analysis and smart design become an integral part of your Web presence, you'll not only reach your own audience more effectively, you'll set the standard for others to follow.

One-size training does not fit all

In our work with the California State University system, we quickly learned that the 23 campuses had 23 different Web infrastructures, 23 different management policies, and 23 different sets of training needs. Your organization's infrastructure, management policies, and training needs are unique, too.

We'll tailor a training package to your audience (managers, programmers, designers), their familiarity with technology and accessibility, your current Web site and infrastructure, your Web readers, and the laws and policies that apply to your organization. We can present this training in a variety of modes to fit your needs—email us for details: info@theenabledweb.com.

Menu of training topics

This is a representative sample; as in any good restaurant, "ask the chef" for anything you'd like that isn't listed here.

Understanding your audience

Designed for the executive level and also good for developers new to accessibility, this topic expands on our discussion of accessibility barriers with specific illustrations of how disabled readers can use your site.

Principles of smart design

This topic covers the four layers of design—content, structure, presentation, and behavior—and shows how you can use them to improve both accessibility and maintainability. Good for managers and Web developers new to accessibility and those who have been working in a primarily graphic environment.

Standards-based enabling techniques

For a number of years, many Web developers have seen accessibility standards as vague, confusing, and now somewhat out of date. The newest standards, although still difficult to read at first, are much more specific and usable by developers. This topic will simplify them. Best for Web developers already familiar with HTML coding.

Smart analysis simplified

Based on procedures developed for the California State University system and updated for our analysis work here, this topic covers the role of automated and human-intelligence-based techniques in accessibility analysis; how to focus on issues that are most important to users; the difference between "compliance" and best practices in development, and how to use a number of simple tools to help you analyze sites quickly. Useful for both managers and developers.

Making your site dynamic and accessible.

You do not have to give up "cool features" to have an accessible Web site! Although interactive sites have deservedly gotten a "bad rap" in the past, modern coding standards and assistive technology can change that. This topic can be focused for either a general audience or for developers already familiar with JavaScript coding.

Planning and managing for site accessibility

This is more of a personalized consultation than it is a training topic. After you determine the accessibility of your current Web site (with our analysis or your own), we can help you develop a reasonable, cost-effective strategy to reach your goals.

Contracting for accessible Web sites

We can help you to design accessibility into your purchasing process. You and your vendors should both know: first, exactly what you require; second, how they can meet your requirements; and finally, how you will determine if they got it right. Also based on work we have done for the California State University system, this topic is appropriate for both technical managers and procurement specialists.