• WCAG 2.1 - what is it and how does it work?
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WCAG is an acronym for "Web Content Accessibility Guidelines", which are recommendations for creating accessible websites. The standard defines a number of guidelines as necessary to make websites more accessible to people with disabilities.
29. 04. 2022
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Who needs to implement WCAG 2.1?
It’s about blind people and people with other kinds of disabilities. As the name suggests, WCAG 2.1 is the next, third version of these guidelines. The first one - WCAG 1.0 - was implemented in 1999, and the next one - WCAG 2.0 - came out in 2008. Ten years later, the current version was created, this time marked with the number 2.1.
The recommendations contained in WCAG 2.1 apply to all public entities that must now have their own websites. Among those, there are budget units, local government units, as well as many other entities. According to the updated version of WCAG, they must introduce changes that will improve the responsiveness of the website, increase the spacing between lines, and also improve the handling of keyboard shortcuts. If a website meets the WCAG 2.1 requirements, it is the responsibility of its creators to create an accessibility declaration, which will include information on the tools thanks to which an entity implements solutions related to the accessibility of its website.
Content analysis of the WCAG website
WCAG 2.1 is a set of specific rules and the whole reason behind it is to improve the accessibility of website content. Not complying with the rules is associated with specific, severe financial penalties. What is more, the website analysis for WCAG can be performed using a specialized tool: the WCAG 2.1 validator. In simplest words, the tool checks- line by line - individual fragments of the page’s code. There are three levels of compliance with WCAG. In the case of WCAG 2.1 aa, we mean the optimal scope of compliance, which is implemented on most websites of public entities. When creating WCAG 2.1 compliant websites, the Aria Label tool is often used, being a set of attributes which allows you to improve the accessibility of websites within a given standard.
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