New Web Accessibility Standards (WCAG 2.0) Finalized
Posted on February 5, 2009
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This post announces new rules for making web sites accessible. The rules are called WCAG 2.0. WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. These rules help people make web sites that are easier for everyone to use.[Back to Introduction]
Simplified Summary of this Document
Introduction
On December 11, 2008, the World Wide Web Consortium announced new standards for accessible web content. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 were finalized after years of development and input from web designers, site owners, members of the disability community, WAI staff and volunteers, and countless others with a commitment to making the internet available to all users. Resources about the revised guidelines are provided at the end of this post.
The new guidelines supersede WCAG 1.0, the international standard that has been in effect since 1999. WCAG 1.0 was the standard used in many web accessibility settlement agreements reached using the Structured Negotiations process. According to the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), WCAG 2.0, as compared to its predecessor, “applies broadly to more advanced technologies; is easier to use and understand; and is more precisely testable with automated testing and human evaluation.”
As part of the adoption [...]