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Re: WCAG 2.0 understanding conformance

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From: Steve Green
Date: Feb 6, 2021 12:38PM

When requirement 5 refers to "technologies", it is referring to things like CSS, JavaScript, Flash, SVG etc. As such, the overlay is not a technology - it is simply an application that is built using a variety of those technologies.

The approach for testing a website that has an overlay is:
1. Test the website as usual with the overlay turned off.
2. If you find any WCAG non-conformances, turn on the overlay and see any of its features provide fixes or workarounds that would allow you to claim conformance for any of those success criteria. The navigation path to the feature and the feature itself must be WCAG conformant, but it does not matter if features you do not rely on (or the paths to them) are non-conformant.

Coincidentally, a couple of days ago we tested a website that has the ReciteMe overlay. Of all the non-conformances, we identified three that an overlay could potentially address. However, due to the design of its features, and constraints that would affect any overlay, it was not able to adequately address any of the three non-conformances. And of course there were also the non-conformances that we knew it wouldn't be able to address.

This adds to the overwhelming weight of evidence against the use of these overlays. I would like to write a report on these findings, but I don't think there is any chance our client will let me because it makes them look stupid. I am also reluctant to do a similar test on the website of a non-customer, so that only leaves the ReciteMe website itself so I think we will have a go at that.

Steve Green
Managing Director
Test Partners Ltd