In the digital world, online tools are the tools of websites. They help us to do many things on the Internet. For example, writing emails, shopping online, communicating with other people or, as in the case of Pinpoll, sharing personal opinions.
In order for everyone to be able to use these tools, they must be accessible. This is defined by the international standard and EU directives called WCAG 2.1 (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines). This clearly states that web content must be perceivable, operable and understandable for everyone. Regardless of whether they have special needs or not. These can be people with disabilities, older people, people with slow internet connections and even people who don't have much experience with computers.
Accessible online tools ensure that everyone can participate on the Internet. This is fair and helps everyone to participate in digital life on an equal footing. If companies and organisations do not comply, they can get into trouble. By providing accessibility, a website can attract more visitors and potentially earn more money. This opens up new opportunities for companies and organisations.
How Can Accessibility Be Achieved?
- Follow standards: It is important to adhere to international accessibility standards (WCAG). These standards provide clear rules on how to design accessible websites and online tools.
- Simple design: Websites and tools should be simple and easy to understand. Clear structures, easy-to-read fonts and clearly visible controls are important.
- Alternative information: Images should have alternative texts, multimedia content, transcriptions and graphics should be described. This helps people who have difficulty seeing or hearing.
- Keyboard operation: Make sure that all functions and content can also be operated using the keyboard, as many people do not use a mouse or touchscreen.
- Tests and feedback: Regular testing and feedback from users with different needs is important to ensure that the website or tools are truly accessible. Use tools to check to fix problems that are found.
Cooperation Fit4internet And Pinpoll
In the course of the cooperation with the project fit4internet of the Federal Chancellery of Austria, we revised Pinpoll in 2021 so that it meets the requirements of WCAG 2.1 , even if not all functions are compatible.
By means of www.accessibilitychecker.org we have used an example to check which functions we still need to optimise. We will continue to improve this on an ongoing basis.
Benefits of accessibility for the customer:
- Click paths for own account usage: All the necessary steps and ways to use your own account.
- Settings for visual display: Customisations for fonts, colours and images used in polls, quizzes, personality tests and ads.
- Functionality of elements: From the creation of the elements to the further processing of the collected data.
- Implementation on your own website: Inclusion and integration of these functions and tools on your own website.
Benefits of accessibility for the user:
- Self-reliance and independence: Users with special needs are given a feeling of independence and autonomy through simple operation.
- Self-reliance and independence: Users with special needs are given a feeling of independence and autonomy thanks to the simple operation.
- Accessibility and ease of use: Operation is possible regardless of physical or technical limitations, for example through the use of keyboard controls or through an easy-to-understand design of the content.
We are endeavouring to expand the range of functions step by step.