It sounds like a girl’s name. But you did not say who is Bobby? your question is what is Bobby? I like this site because it allows you to think out loud with humor.
What is WebXACT (formerly known as Bobby)? WebXACT is a tool for analyzing your web page(s) for accessibility. It was developed by the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) and is available for free on the web. It is a legal requirement – Equality is a basic democratic right and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA), requires all publicly accessed websites to be compliant with Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) guidelines, an initiative set up by the Internet’s governing body, the Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C). Bobby is only an automated tool that points out where the guidelines appear to be broken. It can very well be that certain guidelines are indeed followed. Every website is unique and therefor, the Bobby accessibility report should not be taken literally. All information contained in the report should act as support in the process of improving accessibility. A human evaluation by the webmaster supported by the Bobby accessibility report are the optimal instrument one can use into identifying accessibility problems and finding solutions.
There are many ways to define web accessibility, but one simple definition is to allow equal access to information and core functionality of your website to all users. This does not mean that everyone will see or hear the same thing while visiting your website: that would be next to impossible, as people all access the internet using different methods or in different environments. It does mean that your website should be able to deliver the same service or information to all users, depending on your target audience and the service you provide to your users.
How does it affect your website design?
Of course, no matter how well organized your web site is and how effective it is at grabbing the visitor’s attention, they have to view your web site as important. You have to give them reasons to stay and browse your site, to bookmark your site so they can refer to it again and to tell others about your site so you can build new visitors. Offer something of value such as: newsletter, free tips, monthly coupons. Put effort into the words of your web site. If visitors can’t get around easily on your web site, they want stay very long.
Because it covers all accessibility guidelines, Bobby can identify problems which are ultimately easy to fix but often overlooked. It’s often the case where there was no one to point them out. At the end of the process webmasters will see that by thoroughly going through the report and making minor or less minor changes to their website, the degree of accessibility of their website will have improved significantly.
Improving accessibility should be a motivation alone. Even if a website does not pass the Bobby test it is not to say it is not usable or accessible to a degree or another. There are many very usable and accessible web sites on the web that pay attention to their users and yet do not get the Bobby Approved rating. Improving your web site for users is enough to start with. It is a step forward for your website and your users if you’ve just taken the accessibility path.
