Err on the side of caution! If you have trouble reading/following your guide, change your guide.
Preview your guide on a mobile device and across various browsers.
For more information about any of the topics in this guide, contact a member of the LibGuides Working Group at ut_libguides@live.utk.edu.
Do all your images contain equivalent alt text?
See this Springshare blog post on adding and writing effective alt text.
Is the image purely decorative?
If the user will not miss any information if the image is eliminated, then you can leave the “Alternative Text” field blank.
Does the image contain text or information?
If yes, then add the text as Alternative Text (keep it brief) or in a surrounding paragraph. Better yet, reconsider if it needs to be an image.
Do you have images of documents, PDFs, or screen captures of text?
Then consider importing the item as a downloadable document or transcribing the text into the guide.
Does your embedded video/audio/media have captions?
If not, add captions.
Be sure to edit auto-generated captions.
If you did not create the media, ask the creator to add captions or consider an alternative.
Are you using bold or larger fonts to create headings?
These need to be changed using the Heading element in the rich text editor.
Are you using the Heading element for anything else beside headings?
Heading tags should be used only for headings and not to make regular text appear bolder or larger. (Headings 1 and 2 are reserved for page and box titles.)
Did you copy/paste text into the rich text editor?
Then highlight the text, and click on the “Remove Format” icon. You can check the "Source" code icon to see if extra formatting was carried over.
Are you using tables to create columns of text or a certain look?
If so, rethink your design or pull the information out of the table format.
Do you absolutely need a table?
At the very minimum, tables must have appropriate headers.
Ask for help because it’s difficult to make tables accessible. Alternatively, you could put the table in a spreadsheet and import it into your guide.
Consider providing the information in accessible alternative formats, such as a list.
Are you using a table to keep information organized?
Perhaps a simple list would serve the purpose better.
Are you using Enter/Return to create a list?
Instead, use the provided Ordered and Unordered Lists. These elements provide more navigational information.
Did you change any font, link, and/or background colors from the default?
Reset the colors to the default to ensure sufficient contrast.
Can you read the text?
If not, change the colors back to the default.
Orange is not an acceptable color for fonts, links, etc.
Are your links ambiguous (e.g, “Click here,” “more information,” “here”)?
Then rename the link or reword the sentence so that the user knows where they are going.
Do any of your links have the proxy in the URL?
Then change the link to a permalink from a database, catalog, or the Database A to Z list.
Do your guides and pages have friendly URLs?
Create them so that users can easily navigate to your guide. Plus, if you need to change a link, using a friendly URL makes this process easier than changing the link everywhere you've used it.
Do you have a large, complicated guide?
Consider creating a landing portal page instead of having an excessive number of tabs.