Contrasting Color Is the Issue!
Originally posted August 21, 2008
SECTION 508 – There are obvious issues with color being used to obtain a user response or depicting information within a specific context. Section 508 calls for alternative graphic or textual information to obtain a user response or depict information. I am not color blind, so I am not personally affected by web pages that instruct the user to “click the green button” or “fill in the fields with the red labels”. But for color blind individuals, this is a significant issue. Fortunately, Section 508 has easy remedies for color blind accessibility. Jim Thatcher’s blog post does an outstanding job of discussing color accessibility requirements and resolutions.
For me, contrast is the real problem. Apple has popularized the “Aqua” look and feel and Microsoft Vista has emulated it to perfection. The Mac OS/X development team did such an outstanding job of making the innovative OS accessible and then they fell short on their selection of colors. To me, the Apple web site is another example of problems with contrasting colors. Combinations of pastel colors on a white background make it difficult for visually impaired web page visitors to find and consume information.
Section 508 calls for the presentation of text, (and images of text), in electronic documents to have a default contrast ratio of at least 5:1, except if the text is pure decoration. Large-scale text, (or images of large-scale text), must have a default contrast ratio of at least 3:1. Tools are available to analyze color contrast.
I have some questions about these requirements
- Is a contrast ratio of 5:1 adequate? If Apple and Microsoft are using a 5:1 ratio, it is not usable to me and many other visually impaired people I talk to.
- Is decorative text insignificant to the visually impaired? Decorative text has content, or why show it? Why isn’t there a functional equivalent?
- Why are foreground/background colors the only concern for contrast specifications? What about window border contrast to help distinguish one window from another? What about contrast ratios between buttons or links and background color?
- Should there be contrast specifications for rollover graphics? Graphic-to-graphic contrast is an issue, especially when the rollover implies an optional action that can be taken.
- Can size alternatives overcome contrast issues? People are always offering me magnification as a work around when what I am having is contrast issues. I believe I could drive a car if I could drive at night because of the fact that I can see lights better than shapes, (ridiculous example I know, but I can dream can’t I?).
- Why aren’t spacing requirements specified? Like contrasted items placed too close together can be very confusing to the visually impaired. I have significant problems with low contrast links placed too close together.
- Should color contrast requirements be specified for lists? I find it very helpful to have the beginning of list items differentiated.
For the totally blind, the 508 standards are adequate. For the low vision web user, the standards do not go far enough. Perhaps this will be resolved in the future.