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Access by Design : A Guide to Usability for Web Designers


by Sarah Horton

In just over a decade, the Web has evolved from an experimental tool for a limited community of technically inclined people into a day-to-day necessity for millions upon millions of users. TodayÕs Web designers must consider not only the content needs of the sites they create, but also the wide range of additional needs their users may have: for example, those with physical or cognitive disabilities, those with slow modems or small screens, and those with limited education or familiarity with the Web.

Bestselling author Sarah Horton argues that simply meeting the official standards and guidelines for Web accessibility is not enough. Her goal is universal usability, and in Access by Design: A Guide to Universal Usability for Web Designers, Sarah describes a design methodology that addresses accessibility requirements but then goes beyond. As a result, designers learn how to optimize page designs to work more effectively for more users, disabled or not.

Working through each of the main functional features of Web sites, she provides clear principles for using HTML and CSS to deal with elements such as text, forms, images, and tables, illustrating each with an example drawn from the real world. Through these guidelines, Sarah makes a convincing case that good design principles benefit all users of the Web.

In this book you will find:

Sarah Horton is coauthor with Patrick Lynch of the bestselling Web Style Guide. Her second book, Web Teaching Guide, won the American Association of Publishers award for the Best Book in Computer Science in 2000. Sarah regularly writes articles and gives workshops on Web design with a focus on usability and accessibility. At Dartmouth College, she helps faculty use information technologies, such as the Web, for teaching and learning.

Access by Design : A Guide to Usability for Web Designers
by Sarah Horton - List Price: $24.99, Price: $16.49 You Save: $8.50 (34%) Paperback: 288 pages; Publisher: New Riders Press (July 12, 2005); Language: English

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User Group Network News Service. (C) 2004, all rights reserved. Affiliate groups may freely republish this piece so long as they include the tag line: "From the User Group Network News Service at http://www.user-groups.net/"
Footnotes:
The User Group Network is sponsored in part by: The Design & Publishing Center, The News Serve Network, and the Designers' Bookshelf. The User Group Network is the first, and the original user group network for computer users everywhere including, Apple, Mac-Pro, User Group Organization to support Macintosh, IBM PC, Microsoft, Compaq, Amiga, BE/OS, Linux, UNIX, and other leading computer platforms. Hosting services are provided by The Graphic Design Network to serve the computing community. For information about the UGNetwork, to get involved or have your own groups' home page located at user-groups.net, please contact us. Copyright 1994 through present. This site is maintained in the community interest by The Graphic Design Network c/o Showker Graphic Arts & Design, a Corporation of the Commonwealth of Virginia, 22801, established in 1972.