Ebook accessibility tools and best practices: Mysteries of accessible apps and device features revealed

Most people who don’t use accessibility-enabled apps, or mobile device and computer accessibility features, really don’t have a clue about how actual accessibility-enabled apps and hardware features work. This fundamental lack of awareness and knowledge becomes a big problem for ebook production developers when they are told that ebooks must be “accessible.” Before you can make a truly accessible ebook, you need to understand how people really use accessibility apps and device features in the real world. Join Jean Kaplansky for a demonstration and discussion of how people with visual, hearing, physical, and/or cognitive disabilities really use accessibility software and features on mobile devices and computers. Along the way, we’ll discuss best practices for building accessible ebook content using HTML5, W3C WAI, CSS, and of course, EPUB 3. We will also look specifically at content architecture best practices enabling ebook production developers to create ebooks where accessibility is automatically built into content, resulting in more satisfying user experiences, and accessibility-enabled software and device features that just work.