Text, formatting and coding issues

Use logical tags rather than physical tags

You can mark up HTML text using logical style tags or physical style tags. Examples of logical tags are: "blockquote" for multi-line quotations, "em" for emphasis, "code" for programming code, "strong" for items that should be emphasized, "h1" for the top headline on the page and "h2" for second-level headlines on the page. Examples of physical tags are: "b" for bold, "i" for italics and "font size='14'".

Logical tags give a logical structure to documents. For example, "h1" indicates the main headline and "p" indicates a paragraph. Browsers that read text aloud use these tags to present material coherently. When combined with cascading stylesheets (CSS), logical tags provide an excellent way to style a web page without resorting to physical tags in the markup. Always use logical tags the way they were meant to be used. If you use "blockquote,' for example, to indent some copy rather than to indicate a quotation, you're the undermining the purpose of logical tags.

Use proportional font sizes

Proportional or relative fonts use these kinds of size specifiers -- "x-small," "90%," or ".80em." Fixed fonts use these kinds of size specifiers -- "14pt" or "24px." On many browsers, fixed fonts remain fixed in size, even when readers select larger text size options. Proportional fonts respond accordingly when readers adjust the text sizes on their web pages and thus are more accessible.

Don't use moving text

Avoid using "blink" and "marquee" elements on web pages. People with learning disabilities can have difficulty understanding moving text. In addition, flickering or flashing of a web screen can trigger seizures in people with photosensitive epilepsy.

Try navigating with the tab key

People who have difficulty handling a mouse will navigate through links on a page using the tab key. Tab navigation doesn't work on some web page features, such as drop-down lists. Test your page by tabbing through it. Are all of the important links found?

Proportional fonts allow readers to adjust the text sizes on their web pages.