WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

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RE: CSS link backgrounds

for

From: Paul Bohman
Date: Jul 8, 2002 12:17PM

WebAIM did not implement this only for accessibility purposes. At the
time the site was designed, it was done more for the style and
"artistic" effect, if you want to call it that. Still, we were aware
that such effects may be of benefit to those with low vision, or even to
the general population, because links are more easily identified as
such. The links become more obvious. Visual cues can be useful when used
properly.

If you're wondering about the choice of yellow versus some other color,
we chose yellow because of it is an eye-catching color that stands out
against most backgrounds. We could have chosen orange or red, or some
other color (assuming that the text is still readable when the
highlighted color shows up), but yellow seemed to work better with our
color scheme on the site, and its usage, as you pointed out, is fairly
common.

Paul Bohman
Technology Coordinator
WebAIM (Web Accessibility in Mind)
www.webaim.org
Center for Persons with Disabilities
www.cpd.usu.edu
Utah State University
www.usu.edu