Assessment Information
eResource Title |
Vendor |
Overall Grade |
ACM Digital Library |
ACM |
B |
Assessment for ACM Digital Library by Fanshawe - Module 1: Interface Appearance | Status: Complete | Grade: C
Key Findings
Strengths
- Information is not distorted when zoomed in at 200%
- Information is preserved at different screen resolutions
Weaknesses
- Some text and images meet contrast requirements
- Some images contain a textual alternative
Images
Positioning of Images
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are the images positioned prominently and easy to find? |
Sometimes |
ACM Digital Library logo (and home button) appears in the top left-hand portion of the screen in every instance. The ACM Digital Library database's homepage scrolls extensively and many images and buttons are located below the section break. |
|
Functional images embedded in the background
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are there functional images embedded in the background? |
Sometimes |
The ACM Digital Library logo contains alt text ("ACM Digital Library home") and the ACM Proceedings section of the homepage includes an image with alt text. Other homepage areas, including the navigation bar and Recent Award Winners carousel, contain title descriptions rather than alt text. The homepage is mostly very responsive, but some issues did occur around 768 x 1024 where the ACM Books carousel did not resize appropriately.
Examining other pages, such as the search results page, there are more instances of title attributes (e.g., search button icon), and a lack of title or alt text attributes (e.g., edit search icon, save search icon, RSS icon). Tooltips and facet icon images contain alt text; however, citation and add-to-folder icons do not contain alt text. |
|
Presence of Icons
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are there icons where appropriate, such as icons to indicate PDF Full Text, Download, Folder, Citation, etc? |
Always |
On the search results page, there are buttons to view articles online or as PDF; however, these buttons and icons do not contain alt text, rather they contain descriptive aria labels and are listed (li) as an unordered list (ul). As noted previously, icons to indicate add-to-folder or citations do not contain alt text, but rather aria labels. |
|
Alt Text
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Do informative images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? |
Sometimes |
There are more instances of title attributes (e.g., search button icon), and a lack of title or alt text attributes (e.g., edit search icon, save search icon, RSS icon), particularly on the search results page. Tooltips and facet icon images contain alt text; however, citation and add-to-folder icons do not contain alt text. |
|
Do functional images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? |
Sometimes |
The ACM Digital Library logo contains the appropriate alt text. As previously noted, many functional images, including icons, contain title attributes and aria labels, rather than alt text. |
|
Do images used as text contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? |
Always |
The most common instance of images used as text is the ACM Digital Library logo, which contains the appropriate alt text. The database uses many buttons and divs to convey much of this information. |
|
Content Scaling
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
When zoomed in at 200%, is text intact, readable, and not cut off? |
Always |
The database is quite responsive, so I did not run into issues regarding unreadable text on the homepage. |
|
Are images clear and unpixelated at 200%? |
Never |
When viewing the homepage at 200%, the majority of images, except for the logo, appear pixelated. When examining the search results page at 200%, the 'Published by ACM' tooltip that appears next to the search results is highly pixelated and seems to have lost its formatting. Other tooltips that appear next to search results appear clear and well-formatted. |
|
Is horizontal scrolling minimized at 200%? |
Always |
|
|
Colour and Contrast
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Do text and images have a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1? |
Sometimes |
There are many (44) instances of contrast issues on the ACM Digital Library homepage with contrast ratios starting from 1:1. Many text sizes are 'normal', according to WAVE. By examining the CSS in web developer tools, I can see that font sizes are responsive (rem), but appear to start around a 14pt font size on a desktop monitor. |
|
Colour
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Do colour coded graphs have text equivalents? |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Are blocks of content separated from one another using visual separation (such as whitespace or borders)? |
Always |
Blocks of content tend to be separated by white space and/or borders. |
|
Are text alternatives provided where colour is used to indicate an action? |
Sometimes |
The ACM Digital Library has suppressed link underlining; however, on the search results page, unopened links are blue and opened links are purple. |
|
Text to speech
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Is there a choice embedded within the database that offers text to speech or read aloud options? |
Never |
There is no embedded text-to-speech or read-aloud option. If users require a read-aloud option, they may need to download and open a PDF in an application such as Adobe Acrobat Pro, which contains read-aloud functionality. |
|
Clustered Links
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Using your mouse, is the clickable area around links and buttons large enough for users to see and activate easily? |
Sometimes |
On the homepage, the clickable area around links and buttons appears to be large enough for users to see and activate easily; however, some users might run into issues the further they delve into the database, such as in the search result page. There is a top navigation with clickable areas only as large as the text, which could be problematic (it might even require some additional padding). |
|
Using your mouse to test links, are links and buttons far enough apart for users to accurately activate? |
Sometimes |
The more important links on the homepage appear to be spaced appropriately; however, there are some instances of links/buttons located closely (e.g., ACM Special Interest Groups, ACM Journals, ACM Magazines). Again, navigation links on the search results page are closely spaced and are only the width of the text. |
|
Using any method to test links, are all links and buttons functional (i.e., not dead)? |
Always |
Links and buttons appear to be functional. |
|
Are links or buttons accessible via keyboard navigation? |
Sometimes |
Most links on the ACM Digital Library homepage are functional via keyboard navigation; however, I did experience issues attempting to follow links within carousels. |
|
Dynamic content
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Can users pause carousel movement? |
Always |
Carousels are not automatically scrolling and require either mouse or keyboard input from the user. |
|
Is all functionality, including navigating between carousel items, operable by keyboard? |
Sometimes |
Carousels are fully keyboard navigable (and skippable), though I had issues following links within carousels. |
|
Liquid layout
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Is the order of the text preserved at all screen resolutions, without overlap? |
Always |
|
|
Do images avoid overlapping at all screen resolutions? |
Always |
|
|
Is the overall reading experience preserved at all screen resolutions? |
Always |
|
|
Assessment for ACM Digital Library by Fanshawe - Module 2: Interface Navigation | Status: Complete | Grade: B-
Key Findings
Weaknesses
- The platform’s layout and navigation is somewhat consistent across all pages
- Some user input fields contain labels and clear instructions to help users successfully complete the form
- Page content sometimes has appropriate headers and is tagged appropriately
Labels and Instructions for Interactive Elements
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are user input fields accompanied by clear instructions on what the user needs to do to successfully complete the form? |
Sometimes |
The search bar field contains placeholder text ('Search') and an aria label ('Search'). Autocomplete for searching appears to be turned off. On the advanced search screen, labels and aria labels are present. |
|
Do user input fields contain labels in addition to overall instructions mentioned above? |
Sometimes |
ACM Digital Library has opted for aria labels rather than alt text or form labels. |
|
Are descriptions for fields and boxes easy to understand? |
Never |
There are few form labels within this database; however, aria labels are present. |
|
Are labels placed above the user input fields and clearly associated with each field? |
Never |
|
|
Are text cues for coloured form control labels available? |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Are other visual indicators provided consistently, such as an asterisk for required form fields? |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Error Prevention
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are user input fields either reversible, checked, or confirmed? One of the three is acceptable. |
Always |
|
|
Error Reports
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are alert messages clearly visible to the user, either at the top of the form field, inline, or through a dialog box? |
Always |
|
|
Do alert messages clearly indicate the field in which the error has occurred and a description of the error and the fix? |
Sometimes |
When attempting to sign-in, the database indicated that my username or password was incorrect, though this tends to be standard practice. |
|
Is the user able to easily access the user input field to correct the error? |
Always |
|
|
Is the user able to resubmit the form and re-validate their submission? |
Always |
|
|
Do error reports follow a logical reading and navigation order? |
Always |
|
|
Search function spell-check
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
When a user spells a word incorrectly, does the search function offer spelling suggestions or synonyms? |
Never |
There is no spell-check feature present. |
|
Functionality of Interactive Elements
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are icons such as to save, download, or print consistent across the site? |
Always |
|
|
Is alternative text clear and consistent for each icon type? |
Always |
There appears to be a lack of alt text associated with icons; however, aria labels (e.g., 'Export Citation', 'Save to Binder', 'View online with eReader') are present. |
|
Are actions consistently labelled across the site? For example, the “search” button is always labeled “search”. |
Always |
|
|
Are icons that have adjacent links consistent? |
Always |
|
|
Can the purpose of each link be determined from the link text alone? |
Sometimes |
For the most part, link text is descriptive; however, on the database's homepage, there are 'Read More' links associated with each book under ACM Books. |
|
Consistent Navigation
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the eresource have a consistent layout and navigation across all pages? |
Sometimes |
The homepage has slightly different navigation than other pages within the database, and the main navigation bar is located under the search bar as circular buttons. Once into the various pages of this database, the navigation bar is located along the top left-hand side of the page along with a smaller search bar. |
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Are search fields located in the same places throughout the website? |
Sometimes |
On the homepage, the search bar is located in the centre of the page. On other pages of this database, the search bar is situated in the navigation bar and often within each page. |
|
Do other features occur in the same place throughout the website? |
Sometimes |
The ACM Digital Library homepage is different than other pages within the database; however, these other pages maintain consistency. The ACM Digital Library logo consistently resides in the same location, as well as the 'Browse', 'About', 'Sign In', and 'Register' buttons. |
|
Are links, buttons, images, and other components that are used repeatedly throughout a website labeled consistently? |
Always |
|
|
Pop-up windows/Interruptions
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the electronic resource avoid the use of pop-up windows which open automatically in a new tab if a user clicks on a button? |
Always |
Links tend to open in the same tab. |
|
Does the database avoid launching pop-up windows automatically when the database is loaded? |
Always |
|
|
Where pop-ups occur, are users able to postpone or suppress any pop-ups? |
Sometimes |
The only pop-up I have encountered while using the ACM Digital Library is to accept cookies upon my initial visit. The database can still be accessed without interacting with the pop-up. |
|
Does the database avoid launching pages in a new browser window with the usual browser controls missing? |
Always |
|
|
Headers
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Is page content subdivided hierarchically into appropriate headings and tagged appropriately? |
Sometimes |
Headings are structured as actual headings with a heading tag. Headings on the homepage follow a logical structure; however, the more internal pages (e.g., Journals, Magazines) use nonconsecutive heading levels. |
|
Are headings concise and clear, and accurately reflect the content under that heading? |
Always |
|
|
Menus
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Do database page menus have a reasonable number of navigation items and drop-down options? |
Always |
There only appears to be one level of navigation items with no dropdown functionality. |
|
Does the main navigation and drop-downs contain a reasonable number of menu items? |
Always |
|
|
Can all menus and submenus be accessed with screen readers and via keyboard navigation? |
Always |
|
|
Change of context
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the “results” page or item record view avoid opening in a new tab without a warning? |
Always |
|
|
Is there an "update now" button that requests a refresh of content rather than automatically updating the content? |
Never |
There is no 'Update Now' button; filters are applied automatically when searching. |
|
Does the database avoid automatic redirection? |
Never |
|
|
Change of Context: Focus
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the form refrain from submitting automatically when a component receives focus? |
Always |
|
|
Does the database avoid launching new windows when a component receives focus? |
Always |
|
|
Does the database avoid change of focus when a component receives focus? |
Always |
|
|
Are you able to tab through a page using keyboard navigation without the keyboard focus moving away from the control? |
Always |
|
|
Assessment for ACM Digital Library by Fanshawe - Module 3: Interface Structure | Status: Complete | Grade: A-
Key Findings
Strengths
- All interactive functionality works consistently for users who are navigating a site via keyboard
- Screen readers accurately capture information presented in tables
Navigation Links
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Can the purpose of each link be determined from the link text, or from the link text together with its surrounding context? |
Sometimes |
Most of the time, the purpose of each link can be easily determined from the link text; however, there are certain instances where the links can be vague. For example, within each article there is a references section, and beneath each reference is a link to view the article on Google Scholar, however, NVDA reads it as 'Google Scholar'. |
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Keyboard Navigation
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Can keyboard focus be moved to all page elements? |
Always |
The ACM Digital Library has a strong semantic structure that allows the keyboard focus to follow a logical flow. |
|
If moving keyboard focus away from a component requires more than arrow or tab keys, is this clearly indicated on the page? |
Not Applicable |
I have not come across an instance of this. |
|
Is default keyboard navigation order logical and intuitive, following the visual flow of the page as described above? |
Always |
|
|
When using a keyboard to navigate the interface, is the keyboard focus indicator visible? |
Always |
|
|
Does all interactive functionality work via keyboard, and does it behave consistently and as expected? |
Always |
|
|
Does focus order move sequentially across form fields? |
Always |
|
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Skip Links
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are there skip links (either visible or invisible)? |
Always |
|
|
Are skip links visible or invisible? |
Always |
|
|
Are skip links (visible or invisible) positioned prominently near the beginning of the page? |
Always |
The database homepage has additional skip elements, such as 'Skip Slideshow'. |
|
Are skip links labelled properly? |
Always |
|
|
Are skip links accessible via keyboard? |
Always |
Yes, in some cases I have Shift+Tab in NVDA at the beginning of the page to get the skip link to appear. |
|
Do anchors (link destinations) appear at the beginning of the relevant content? |
Always |
|
|
Do skip navigation controls appear in the same place on every page? |
Always |
Skip content links appear in the same place on every page; however, the ACM Digital Library homepage contains additional skip elements, such as 'Skip Slideshow'. |
|
Tables
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the reader capture accurate information as it appears in the table and the columns and rows? |
Always |
Order in which information makes sense in each table I tested. I tested with both Read&Write and NVDA. Read&Write could not read MathJax code, but NVDA could read the content. |
|
Frames
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the screen reader successfully navigate from one frame to another? |
Always |
Frames are not used frequently in the ACM Digital Library; however, the few frames there are I can navigate easily. |
|
Does each frame have a meaningful title that tells the user the purpose of the frame? |
Always |
|
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When navigating the page using keyboard navigation, is the user able to navigate effectively from one frame to the next? |
Always |
|
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Assessment for ACM Digital Library by Fanshawe - Module 4: Content | Status: Complete | Grade: C
Key Findings
Weaknesses
- PDFs are searchable but not tagged
PDFs
Searchable PDFs
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are the sampled PDFs image-only? |
Never |
I checked a variety of PDFs from the 1950s, 2000s, and 2020s, and all were extractable and searchable. Presumably, the 1950s and 2000s articles are scans. |
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Are the sampled PDFs locked (secured)? |
Never |
|
|
Are the sampled PDFs fully searchable? |
Always |
|
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Tagged PDFs
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are alternative descriptions provided? |
Sometimes |
Of the articles I audited (ranging from the 1950s, 2000s, and 2020s), only one received a passing grade for alternative text. |
|
Is primary language specified? |
Sometimes |
Of the articles I audited (ranging from the 1950s, 2000s, and 2020s), only one received a passing grade for primary language. |
|
Is reliable character encoding provided? |
Sometimes |
Of the articles I audited (ranging from the 1950s, 2000s, and 2020s), several received passing grades for character encoding. |
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Are all page elements tagged? |
Sometimes |
The latest article is appropriately tagged, but even an article published in 2020 did not have adequate tagged elements. |
|
Are list and table structure correct? |
Sometimes |
The latest article is appropriately tagged, but even an article published in 2020 did not have adequate tagged list and table elements. |
|
Structure: Reading Order
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the Read Out Loud function read the PDF in a logical way, preserving the order of the text and various sections? |
Sometimes |
The Read Out Loud function reads through the PDF fairly well; however, instead of reading through the full article, the function reads through the reference for the article before continuing to read the article. When using the Read Out Loud Function on the 1950s article, the whole first page was empty, but Read Out Loud could read the article starting on the second page. The 2000s and 2020s articles both functioned well enough. |
|
Does the Read out Loud function avoid problematic elements such as excessive blank spaces read as “blank”? |
Not Applicable |
Did not run into situations where there may have been blank spaces. |
|
Are the controls consistent and effective for navigating through the document? |
Always |
|
|
Magnification
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
When zooming in to 250%, does all text, images, tables, and other elements appear clear and easy to read? |
Always |
|
|
Images
Positioning of Images
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are the images positioned prominently and easy to find? |
Always |
|
|
Alternative Description
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Do informative images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? |
Never |
None of the articles I tested contained alt text for informative images. |
|
Do images used as titles contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Do rich images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? |
Never |
From the sample of articles I tested, no suitable alternative text could be found. |
|
Tables
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are tables tagged and described with in-text summaries where appropriate? |
Sometimes |
For the most part, the Read Out Loud function read tables row by row, though it had issues with the 1950s article. Another table in the 2000s article was not formatted correctly as a table and could not be read. |
|
Do table headers allow for easy navigation with screen readers? |
Sometimes |
The user can use their keyboard to navigate through table headers; however, some articles are scanned and tend to run into issues. |
|
Additional Navigational Aids
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Does the bookmarks panel display bookmarks? |
Sometimes |
Of the articles I checked, only one had any bookmarks at all, and this was for the references list. |
|
Do bookmarks link to the correct sections in the document? |
Always |
On the single article I found with bookmarks, the bookmark does link to the references list of the article. |
|
Video Captions
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Are videos captioned? |
Not Applicable |
|
|
If captions are closed, and need to be turned on by the user, is that process straightforward and intuitive? |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Are captions typo-free and grammatically correct (unless slang and grammatical errors are intentionally used in the video)? |
Not Applicable |
|
|
Does caption placement avoid blocking any important visual components necessary to understand the video? |
Not Applicable |
|
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Are the captions in sync with spoken words? |
Not Applicable |
|
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For videos that contain captions, are transcripts provided? |
Not Applicable |
|
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For videos that do not contain captions, are transcripts provided? |
Not Applicable |
|
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Described Video
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Do videos include described video, or if not, is there a text equivalent of the video provided on the same page or via a link? |
Not Applicable |
|
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If the video includes described video or a text equivalent of the video, is it an accurate description of the video contents? |
Not Applicable |
|
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Audio Accessibility
Question |
Answer |
Notes |
Images |
Is a link to a text transcript provided in reasonable proximity to the audio clip? |
Not Applicable |
|
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If a transcript is provided, does it accurately capture the content of the audio? |
Not Applicable |
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