Web Accessibility Initiative - Web Wiz Support and Community Forums

It's for helping disabled people to use a web site easier.

See: http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/

For levels and a checklist, see: http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/full-checklist.html

It's a long read, and the only way you're going to understand it is to do all the reading yourself. It's a pretty big spec, but it's not all that hard to get through. At the end of the day, you'll make better web sites if you understand it and can implement some of the recommendations there.

I don't care about handicapped people, so I just ignore it. Just kidding!

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Hi eddd82,

This is a topic that is near and dear to me. I have done some work for the US government (Military) and they are all about accessibility. It's difficult but there are ways to simplify it. Here are some resources I found in my favorites... but first, you say you are in Ireland, COOL. I have some friends on their way there at this very moment and I'm sending another friend there in July. (I own a travel agency too.) We are planning a group "pub crawl" for this time next year when I may get a chance to visit myself. (I've only been to Shannon to get fuel.) ANYWAY... here are the links.

General Overview

Accessibility is the word used to describe how to make Web Pages accessible to people with disabilities. The Links below provide an overall view of the factors involved.

AccessibleNet.org www.AccessibleNet.org: AccessibleNet.org is an independent, online directory of links and resources about Web accessibility.
AWARE Center www.awarecenter.org: The HTML Writers Guild's includes an AWARE Center. AWARE stands for Accessible Web Authoring Resources and Education and their mission is to serve as a central resource for web authors for learning about web accessibility.
CAST Universal Design for Learning www.cast.org: "CAST is a not-for-profit education research and development organization that uses technology to make education more flexible and accessible for all students, especially those with disabilities."
Disability Discrimination Act - Great Britain www.ddaguidelines.com: Describes how to apply Great Britain's DDA Guidelines to websites. "Apart from the moral case, there are nearly nine million disabled people in the UK with a combined spending power of �45 billion, and with the Disability Discrimination Act legislation coming into force there are many good reasons to make your website accessable."
IBM www-3.ibm.com/able/guidelines/web/accessweb.html: IBM has been committed to issues of accessibility since 1914. They have created a checklist for making Web Sites accessible with Links to useful descriptions of how to accomplish each checkpoint.
Microsoft www.microsoft.com/enable: "Microsoft� recognizes its responsibility to develop technology that is accessible and usable to everyone, including those with disabilities."
JimThatcher.com www.jimthatcher.com: Jim Thatcher is an Accessibility Consultant. His Web Site, and the book he co-authored, Constructing Accessible Websites, focus on the nuts and bolts of how to make Web Sites accessible.
Starling Access Services www.starlingweb.com: Starling Access Services offers Accessilbe Web Design, and Consulting Services as well as seminars and workshops. Their Web Site offers a good explanation of Web Accessibility in everyday language.
US Government Access Board www.access-board.gov/links/disability.htm: This Web Page is a list of Links to disability related organizations
Usability First www.usabilityfirst.com/accessibility/index.txl: This is a good general introduction to the topic of accessibility by a Web design service.

(source: http://www.ablewebeditor.com/Resources/Links-WebAccess.html )

MORE

http://www.section508.gov
http://www.w3.org/WAI/
http://www.watchfire.com/
http://bobby.watchfire.com/bobby/html/en/index.jsp
http://www.katsnet.org/section508.html

Thanks a million for all the replies people. Plenty of reading to be done!