The A11y Path

I finally finished my overview article on WCAG's Operable Principle!.

You can read the post An Overview of the Operable Principle.

I've also finished reading the Understandable Principle and hope to write an overview on it this weekend.

WCAG 2.2 introduced four new success criteria to the Understandable Principle (Guideline 3):

• 3.2.6 Consistent Help
• 3.3.7 Redundant Entry
• 3.3.8 Accessible Authentication (Minimum)
• 3.3.9 Accessible Authentication (Enhanced)

These additions make a lot of sense and are extremely important. I had many "OH, THIS IS ACTUALLY REALLY IMPORTANT" moments while reading them. For example, consistent help ensures that if you have a "help" component, it remains consistent across your entire site and is easy to find. Redundant entry is also essential because no one likes entering the same information twice—another example of "accessibility is helpful to everyone." Accessible authentication is particularly interesting because some authentication methods, like puzzles, can be unnecessarily complicated. I'm glad WCAG addresses this.

I can't wait to share everything about the Understandable Principle in my upcoming post.

Here's something I Found Interesting

Not disabling user-select: I noticed that when I'm reading digitally, it's easier to follow the text if I highlight the section I'm reading. It never felt like a big deal until I encountered a blog where the selection style was hidden, making it impossible to follow along because text selection wasn't working. This experience prompted me to read more about the user-select property and its effects on accessibility. I learned the following:

• Some screen readers and assistive tools rely on text selection to read or interact with content. Disabling text selection can hinder these tools.
• Preventing text selection can frustrate users who wish to copy or highlight text for note-taking, sharing, or translating purposes.
• Like me, many people find it easier to read by highlighting content as they go.

So, while user-select might not explicitly be part of WCAG guidelines, it's best to avoid restricting users from selecting text unless absolutely necessary. If you decide to style your ::selection behavior, ensure it follows WCAG's color contrast ratio guidelines to maintain readability. Avoid drastic changes to the selection appearance that could disorient users; subtle enhancements are best.

I've included some resources I found on this topic below.

Resources

• MDN: ::selection
• This StackOverflow discussion: CSS' user-select and accessibility
• Understanding the CSS user-select Property: What You Should Know

Other Article I found helpful

• Respecting Users' Motion Preferences
• A Guide To Keyboard Accessibility: HTML And CSS (Part 1)

Honestly, Smashing Magazine is one of my favorite places online for accessibility resources!

Thanks for reading, have a nice day!