Jim Thatcher and others. 2002. Birmingham, UK: glasshaus. [ISBN 1-904-151-00-0. 415 pages, including index. $49.99 USD (softcover).]

Constructing accessible Web sites is impressive for its wide scope and thorough detail. Web site accessibility is a topic mysterious to many: What does accessibility mean? What are the standards? What is required to comply? By including everything from accessibility principles and laws to HTML code examples, this book will serve as a valuable resource for any technical communicator responsible for a Web site or any aspect of Web site content or layout.

The book successfully covers the wide range of accessibility issues, most likely because of its team of eight authors, each with different areas of expertise. One of the authors is Cynthia D. Waddell, who developed the first accessible Web design standard for U.S. local government (in San Jose, CA). Another author is Jim Thatcher, who helped develop one of the first screen readers for IBM in 1984-1985 and continued working on accessibility devices and issues for IBM through 2000. The book also underwent technical reviews by 10 other field experts. This extensive authoring and review process had paid off with a resource of comprehensive, precise, and current information.

The book introduces accessibility as part of a larger concern: usability. Accessibility is essential to a usable Web site. Usability involves principles such as learnability (learning how to use the Web site), memorability (remembering how to use the Web site), effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction. Accessibility involves ensuring these principles are met for "more people in more situations," such as visually impaired people using text readers or people using PDAs or other mobile devices. The book stresses that creating an accessible Web site is a process, and it advocates the established user-centered design process. In this process, the users' needs and interests--including accessibility--are considered and addressed throughout the development of a Web site.

Accessibility has received increased attention, particularly in the U.S., largely because of U.S. law. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires U.S. federal agencies and covered entities to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. This book describes these requirements and provides information on the development of accessibility standards around the world and through the World Wide Web Consortium. The book makes the important point that a Web site can technically comply with a standard and still not be accessible, providing examples such as all text.

To help increase understanding of the issues involved in accessibility, the book thoroughly describes assistive technology browsers, such as screen readers and voice browsers. Understanding how these technologies work can help Web designers understand the difficulties people using these technologies may encounter when visiting an inaccessible Web site. These assistive technologies also are important to testing, "an indispensable assessment tool for the web developer. It is not possible to determine a web site's compliance with most of the requirements of accessible web design using a conventional browser alone" (p. 53).

After clearly presenting the background and context of accessibility, the bulk of the book details how to make various aspects of a Web site--content, navigation, and data input (forms)--accessible. The book provides clear descriptions and examples of the HTML code required. In addition, it details how to use Web development tools, such as DreamWeaver, FrontPage, and GoLive, to create accessible Web sites. Or perhaps more accurately, it describes the tools' pitfalls that may cause you to create an inaccessible site.

Essential to the accessibility of any site is testing, and this book describes how to test, by both manual check and algorithm (automated) check. The book also assesses two accessibility testing tools, Bobby and LIFT.

A testament to the currency of the authors' knowledge, the book also addresses fairly new or advanced Web development concepts and how they relate to accessibility. Separating content from presentation through cascading style sheets, developing a site in Flash MX, and dealing with multimedia are covered in detail, with code examples and screen shots. The book also previews technologies on the horizon and how they may relate to accessibility.

Finally, the book offers insights into how to pursue accessibility within an organization by creating a group devoted to developing and enforcing accessibility policies, which this book calls an "accessibility organization." The book describes a model accessibility organization, including its makeup, scope, mission, and functions.

Completing this in-depth resource are appendixes including a quick reference, a glossary, the complete text of Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act, and an index. The publisher also provides the example code and glossary online at www. glasshaus.com.

This book is clearly written and skillfully balances text with visual aids. Each chapter is well organized into sections and ends with a concise summary. Because each chapter is written by a different author, sometimes the transitions between chapters lack cohesion. The real strength of the book is its thorough, up-to-date content. As a technical communicator who has done Web writing, information architecture, and design for the U.S. federal government and the private sector, I find the wealth of information in Constructing accessible Web sites helpful on many levels, from understanding the background and purpose of accessibility to applying accessibility principles through precise Web site code.

My only concern is whether the book itself is offered in an accessible format. Portions of it are available online, but I have found no mention of whether the entire book is available in an accessible electronic version. The book is aimed primarily at Web site designers and developers who are new to accessibility issues and not necessarily to people with disabilities, but it seems the book should serve as an example of offering information to as wide an audience as possible.

COLLEEN JONES earned her BA in English with a concentration in technical writing and her MA in technical communication at James Madison University, where she won an STC graduate scholarship. An STC member, she has worked in Web communications in fields ranging from mechanical engineering to public health.