Criteria

Evaluations were done using the following tools:

Criteria Explanation Procedure
Presence of Skip to Content or similar method Help non visual or mouse only visitor get directly to page content By tabbing and by inspection of page HTML
Use of semantic heirarchical headings to identify page topic, subtopics, subsubtopics, etc. Voice browsers often can use headings to navigate page WDT: "Outline -> Outline Headings" and "Information -> Display Element Information"
Linearization,. does sequence of page content make sense to a person encountering the content linearly? When using a voice browser or navigating a page without a mouse, the sequence in which content will be encountered can determine whether the page is usable. WDT: "CSS -> Disable All Styles" Turn off CSS and evaluate what displays
Use of semantic markup to enable more meaningful interpretation of content Semantic element types (paragraph, heading, list, etc.) can be used to better present and navigate through the content. Visual inspection of content HTML. WDT: "View Source"
Keyboard navigable - Can you effectively navigate the page content without using the mouse A person with limited dexterity or poor (or no) vision will not be able to use the mouse. Can they still use the site? Set aside the mouse and try to navigate through site content just using the tab, arrows and space keys
Focus highlighting to make it apparent which element has focus is on the screen A person navigating without a mouse has to tab to the link they want. Without focus highlighting, knowing where the focus is can be difficult.
 Tab through the pages trying to identify where the focus is
Menu functionality without using mouse Menus that require use of the mouse to select are  unusable by people who have vision limitations or dexterity problems Attempt to navigate menus using tabs, arrow keys, and cursor
Validated HTML
 Syntax errors in HTML can produce unpredictable behaviors in assistive and adaptive technologies, not to mention CSS and scripts Process page with a validator or HTML Tidy
Alternative text associated with graphics, particularly when graphics are used as buttons Alternative text is displayed or read when the graphic itself cannot be displayed or seen. Purely decorative images can have empty ALT attributes (alt="") WDT: "Images -> Display Alt Attributes"
ALT Text and Visible text congruence Voice controlled browing is becoming common. If the text on a graphical object (for example, "Contribute Today") is different from the ALT text for the object ("Give by Friday") the user has no way to go directly to that object. WDT: "Image -> Display Alt Attributes" and compare text in the graphic to ALT text
Contrast of color combinations Contrast between text and background should be at least 4:1 for it to be readable by most people. A higher contrast is even better Evaluate with the Color Contrast Analyzer
Associate form field with text labels by using the <label> element Text explaining what a form field is for can be separated from the form field itself. Using the label elements clearly associates the text with the field. WDT: View source code
Organize form fields in logical order and sets A person using a voice browser will be moving through the form in a linear sequence. Does the sequence in which they encounter the form's various fields make sense. Tab through the form.

Score Sheet

Scoring sheet for rating the Article & Research Databases linked to at
http://www.lib.washington.edu/types/databases/

Criteria Academic Search
Complete (EBSCO)		 Web of Science Academic OneFile (Gale)
Presence of Skip to Content or similar method      
Use of semantic heirarchical headings to identify page topic, subtopics, subsubtopics, etc.      
Linearization,. does sequence of page content make sense to a person encountering the content linearly?      
Use of semantic markup to enable more meaningful interpretation of content
      
Keyboard navigable - Can you effectively navigate the page content without using the mouse      
Focus highlighting to make it apparent which element has focus is on the screen      
Menu functionality without using mouse      
Validated HTML
      
Alternative text associated with graphics, particularly when graphics are used as buttons      
ALT Text and Visible text congruence      
Contrast of color combinations      
Associate form field with labels by using the <label> element      
Organize form fields in logical order and sets