People With Disabilities Reach for Web Access

People with limited vision or other disabilities are left behind by the Web--unless assistive products, and Web sites themselves, help out.

Six years ago Paul D'Addario was struck with retinitis pigmentosa, and his vision began to fail.

His condition creates tunnel vision, "and it began affecting my ability to read both print material and a computer screen," says D'Addario, a database administrator for the American Society of Industrial Security in Alexandria, Virginia. "It's like looking at the world through a keyhole."

But D'Addario's not cut off from his PC or the Web. With the help of trainers from the Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind and a supportive employer, he uses the Winvision screen reader and Internet Explorer to search the Web for information that helps him do his job.

"Now ... with Internet Explorer ... I'm able to work in the same environment as other people," says D'Addario.

D'Addario's story illustrates how cooperation between mainstream computer companies and niche manufacturers of assistive technologies makes it possible for people who are disabled to stay in the workforce.

The Internet has become a powerful tool in improving the lives of people with disabilities. People with disabilities that range from blindness to quadriplegia to learning disabilities have a new way to connect to the outside world, work online, and participate in Web communities, e-commerce, and research.

Many of these new technologies will also aid people with less severe physical difficulties, such as aging baby boomers whose eyesight isn't what it used to be.

More Multimedia, Less Access

But with the increasingly complicated navigation of many Web pages, as well as the growing prevalence of graphics and multimedia, advocates for people with disabilities warn that the barriers may be rising again.

In response, major high-tech firms have begun to incorporate accessibility features into their product designs. They are also collaborating with established assistive-technology companies, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations such as the World Wide Web Consortium to provide broader access to the Web.

However, all these products and technologies depend on help from those creating Web sites and services--help that's often missing in action.