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Re: Required Fields and Username / Password on a Website

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From: Sailesh Panchang
Date: Jul 25, 2012 7:39AM

> 1. Is it necessary (to meet conformance requirements) to have an
> asterisk next to Username and Password for a sign-in widget on a website?

For a log-in form or any other, if there is no indication (via text /
asterisk / color or other visual cue) to distinguish required and
optional fields, no user can tell which field is required. The UI
design / functional specs apparently did not require it. Then where is
the accessibility probblem?
In this situation, there is no need for any cue that is available only
to an AT user or a person with a disability.
(In case an input validation error is flagged, that should be
accessible but that is a separate issue).
On the other hand If a star or text or color or other indicator is
visibly available to mark required fields, then that must be conveyed
in a manner that is accessible and programmatically determinable.
Sailesh Panchang


On 7/23/12, Elle < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
> All:
>
> We're redesigning our website, and there's discussion about whether any
> indication of required fields is necessary for "username" and password" to
> sign into the member portal. All the Section 508 and WCAG 2.0
> documentation I see seems to state that it's a violation if you don't
> indicate "this field is required" by either an asterisk, an image, text
> (ex. "required"), or grouping like fields together by validation. However,
> the WCAG content seems more for multiple form fields. On the
> Section508.gov website, the Search text input field responds like a
> required field (it has a validation / error prompt if you hit Submit
> without entering text), but there is no indication that Search is a
> required field to successfully Submit. My UX team is telling me that
> Username and Password are obviously required if you want to sign in on a
> website, and that even an asterisk is unnecessary. So, my questions are:
>
>
> 1. Is it necessary (to meet conformance requirements) to have an
> asterisk next to Username and Password for a sign-in widget on a
> website?
> 2. If the guidance text ** Required* exists near the top of the page,
> can we remove it from a similar sign-in widget on the left rail?
>
>
> Thanks very much,
> Elle
> > > >