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 ccessbility SIG

Society for Technical Communication

 
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Frequently Asked Questions

 
 
 
Q. What are some good reference books?
A. The SIG maintains four lists of recommended books for Accessibility, Disability, Internet Accessibility/Usability, and Usability.
Q. What is Section 508?
A. Section 508 requires reasonable accommodation for employees with disabilities; program accessibility; effective communication with people who have hearing or vision disabilities; and accessible new construction and alterations. For example, the provisions of Section 508 will ensure that the software procured and used by a Federal agency is compatible with screen reading technology or other technologies that a blind individual could use to access the information. Section 508 requires the provision of interpreting services for deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind Federal employees. For more information and references, see U.S. Government Section 508 Website Accessibility Guidelines in the SIG's Internet Accessibility area of focus page.
 

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Q. Do Section 508 guidelines apply to commercial products or Web sites?
A. Section 508 is specifically for Federal government products and services. This includes contractor's products or services made for the government or under a government contract. It does not apply to purely commercial products or services but it is good practice to implement the accessibility guidelines now to expand your audience. It is easier to include accessibility needs in the beginning of a design rather than retrofit it later when the guidelines do apply to commercial products and services.
 

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Q. Do Section 508 guidelines apply to state governments?
A. The following is adapted from the Association of Tech Act Projects (ATAP) article: "Section 508 Information Technology Access: Questions, Answers, and Unknowns for State and Local Entities."
The scope of section 508 is primarily focused on the Federal sector. However, states that receive Federal funds under the Assistive Technology Act (ATA) of 1998 are required by that Act to provide an assurance of compliance with Section 508. Currently all states and territories receive Assistive Technology Act dollars and all have some form of Section 508 assurance. These state Section 508 assurances most frequently take the form of a simple assurance statement with limited or no specifics regarding implementation.
There is no definition of "state" for the assurance and thus there is no clear delineation of who is covered. Those most questionable include agencies that are closely related to state government but might not necessarily be considered the "state" such as colleges and universities, local government and municipalities, local school districts, and other entities that have significant state and local funding.
The Department of Education, the agency responsible for administering the ATA, issued guidance which indicates that states should use the final Access Board standards. However, a number of states and educational entities had already adopted other standards (for example, W3C Web Access Standards). Since these standards are similar, it is unclear what action will be taken to align state adopted standards with the Access Board's standards.
It's unclear if the Access Board standards are appropriate to use in the determination of accessibility of instructional technology, especially teaching and learning media used with young children. Alternative access guidelines, such as those developed by the National Center for Accessible Media, may be more appropriate for educational entities to use, or perhaps the use of a combination of standards may be the most comprehensive way of assuring accessibility of instructional media. Currently, there is no national consensus on access standards for the full range of instructional technology products.
 

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Q. Does Section 508 require that you make something accessible even if you know that you have a controlled user population and some disabilities will be ruled out based on the physical requirements for the job?
A. There is a lengthy answer for this that is on a separate page. See Controlled Populations and Section 508.
 

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Q. How do I join SIG?
A. Click the "Join the SIG" navigation button on the left or the link at the bottom of the page to go to the Join the SIG page.
 

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Q. How do I join the discussion list?
A. Click the "Discussion List" navigation button on the left or the link at the bottom of the page to go to the stc-accessibility Discussion List page.
 

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Q. What is the SIG's History?
A. For the background on how the SIG evolved from an initial committee for special needs to the AccessAbility SIG, see our History page. The logo was revised when the SIG was renamed. For information about the past and present logos, see Logo History.
 

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Q. Are there any SIG-related photos from the annual conferences?
A. Yes. Photos from recent STC annual conferences are in the Conference Session Materials page under Conference Photos. Anyone may contribute photos by sending them to the .
 

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Q. What is "technical communication" and how do I become a technical communicator?
A. Technical communicators translate technical information into plain language that is easily understood by the user. They can convey scientific and technical information precisely, accurately, and clearly. Technical communication is recognized as an increasingly essential occupation in business and government. Technical communicators work with scientists and engineers in offices, factories, banks, hospitals, laboratories, from home, and on military bases. They work on a team, by themselves, as staff writers, contractors, and consultants. For more information and references, see the Technical Communication section in the blog.
 

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Q. How do I sponsor or give donations to the SIG?
STC is a Section 501(c)(3) not-for-profit educational, scientific, and charitable organization. You may support the SIG by giving donations of money or gifts in kind and by becoming a corporate sponsor. Our corporate sponsors are listed on the About the SIG page in the Sponsors section.

Individuals or organizations who are interested in supporting the SIG by donating equipment, services, or financial assistance should contact

Lori Gillen
A-SIG Co-Manager:
strategic planning, administration
E-mail:

Make checks out to the Society for Technical Communication and include a note explaining that the check is for the AccessAbility SIG. Mail checks to

Society for Technical Communication
901 North Stuart Street
Suite 904
Arlington VA  22203-1822

 

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Q. Does it help the SIG if I buy books from Amazon.com through the links on the site?
Yes. The SIG participates in the Amazon Associates Program. You may buy books or other items using the links on the site to Amazon.com and we will be paid a portion of the sale. All books listed in the Reference book section, link to the Amazon.com site with our ID code.

Contribute to the A-SIG's budget. On this site, all suggested reading list links contain an ID code that identifies the AccessAbility SIG in the Amazon.com Associates program. Any item purchased through the Amazon.com search box and the Amazon.com Technical Reference Book lists (items do not have to be related to accessibility), will include the ID code for the first selected item only during a session. You may purchase books, music, appliances, apparel, tools, computer software and hardware through the selection search box on this page and on the home page. Items purchased through these links provide us with a commission of up to 8.5% of each sale. (There is no change in the price of any item.) We use these funds to help support the A-SIG's budget for operating expenses, printing, and so forth. See our Suggested Reading Lists for books related to accessibility, usability, and technical communication.

aStore logo Shop at our STC AccessAbility SIG's Amazon Associates Store and support the A-SIG's operating expenses!

 

Contact Us

Send comments, questions, and suggestions to the . Or contact the A-SIG Co-Managers directly:

 

Karen Mardahl
A-SIG Co-Manager:
international issues
E-mail:

Lori Gillen
A-SIG Co-Manager:
strategic planning, administration
E-mail:

 

Karen Mardahl
A-SIG Co-Manager:
international issues
E-mail:

Lori Gillen
A-SIG Co-Manager:
strategic planning, administration
E-mail:

 

Send link suggestions and Web comments to the .

 
Last updated: 25 January 2009
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