Considering accessibility for visually impaired users [Web site design]

The highly visual nature of the World Wide Web makes addressing visual disabilities one of the most pressing concerns faced by Web designers. Such concerns should be addressed early in the design phase, with special attention paid to specific design elements, such as colors and fonts, as well as the infrastructure of the Web site. This paper covers design conventions that will increase the accessibility of a Web site for visually impaired audiences. Why is this important? According to Bergman and Johnson (1995), accessibility is "a category of usability". Therefore, before a Web site can be tested for usability, its coding and design must first be accessible to the targeted users, i.e. accessibility must be in place before a conventional usability test can be conducted on representatives from the target audience-in this case, the visually impaired.