Accessibility
I used to think accessibility was just best practice, but I didn't realise the impact it had on people when approached correctly. After helping to reach WCAG 2.1 AA compliance, my opinion changed completely.
Compliance isn't a checklist
Complying with accessibility standards shouldn't just be treated as a checklist, it's meaningful work which makes design inclusive.
Accessible design is better design
Constraints that come with accessible design help to create stronger, more polished designs.
Accessibility creates a new perspective
Putting yourself in the shoes of users who rely on accessibility standards offers a valuable, new perspective.
Finding an accessibility gap
When I was designing improvements to how long it takes to bulk deactivate users in Genio Admin, I needed a number. Counting clicks gives you one, but it treats every action as the same size. Keystroke Level Modelling puts a real duration on each one, which is a far better indication of where the friction is, so I built a calculator for it.
Try it
Take a journey you know well. One part of a website to another, or the same thing in an app. Note down every action it takes, build it here, and see what it really costs.
Then switch the profile and watch that number move. The same journey costs one person twice what it costs another, and the interface has no idea.
How I used it
Running the Admin flows through it turned up something I wasn't looking for: keyboard users hadn't really been considered. Repetitive actions with nothing to skip, a focus order that walks every cell of a table, nothing to jump between.
Every route cost more without a mouse, so keyboard improvements went in.
Operators
Sequence
Nothing yet. Press an operator above.
Predicted time
0.00s
No impairment, Desktop. Sequence: empty. Predicted time 0.00 seconds.