In this lecture, we discussed how accessible design is important when designing for a diverse range of users. I enjoyed this lecture as, growing up and learning with dyslexia, I know how design can help him learn and perform tasks.
firstly, I had a look at the gov.uk website, which explored the do's and don’ts of accessible design for users.
autistic spectrum
| do’s |
don’t |
| simple colours |
bright colours |
| plain english |
no figures of speech |
| simple sentences |
paragraph of texts |
| descriptive buttons |
non-labels buttons or vague |
| simple layouts with consistency |
complex and cluttered layout |
low vision
| do’s |
don’t |
| good contrasts and font size |
low contrast colours |
| all information published on web pages |
bury information in downloads |
| colour shapes and text |
only use colour to portray meaning |
| linear logical layout - visible at 200% magnification |
spreading content over a page - meaning users have to scroll horizontally at 200% magnification |
| buttons and notifications on context |
separate actions from their content |
physical or motor disabilities
| do’s |
don’t |
| large clickable actions |
demand precision |
| give form field space |
group interactions together |
| keyboard or speech use only |
make dynamic content requires a lot of mouse movement |
| mobile and touchscreen |
short time out windows |
| simple layouts with consistency have shortcuts |
have lots of typing and scrolling |
Deaf or hard of hearing
| do’s |
don’t |
| simple colours plain english |
figure of speech |
| plain English use subtitles or transcripts for videos |
video only |
| linear logical layout |
complex layouts and menus |
| break up content with subtitles and images and videos |
long blocks of content |
| ask users for their preferred communication support |
telephone the only mean of contact |
Dyslexia
| do’s |
don’t |
| use images and diagrams to support text |
blocks of heavy text |
| left aligned text and keep a constant layout |
underline words or use italics or capitals |
| materials in different formats eg audio or video |
force users to remember things from other pages |
| keep content short clear and simple |
reply on accurate spelling use autocorrect and provide suggestions |
| let users change the contrast between the background and text. |
too much information in one place |
British Dyslexia Association Style Guide
Readable Fonts
- Use sans serif fonts, such as Arial and Comic Sans, as letters can appear less crowded
- font size 12-14 some may request a larger font
- larger character spacing - improves readability - around 35% of the average letter width but if too big it can reduce readability