TAW Accessibility Checker

Swift, light, and WCAG-encompassing, TAW Accessibility Checker is an online tool for automated accessibility testing. For 15 years, the online platform has been one of the go-to accessibility scanners. TAW focuses squarely on the World Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.0) standards. TAW is a consulting firm that specializes in web development services such as accessibility and compliance scanning, monitoring, training, and certification. ​​

A rule of thumb of accessibility compliance is that a perfect blend of manual and automation is the best way to get 100% results. TAW acknowledges this truth. There is a bold caveat on its website that automation alone will not help users achieve full compliance. When owing to this fact, TAW, though an automated solution, runs its compliance analysis on two levels: automatic and manual. Automatic issues are flagged automatically by the system and require urgent attention. Manual issues, on the other hand, are automatically flagged but reserved for manual review. So, there is a need for human intervention to resolve these issues.

There is not much difference between TAW’s online compliance check and what we have witnessed with competing brands like Siteimprove, aCe, and so on. Each of these solutions is appreciably easy to access except axe, which is primarily meant for people with some digital technical expertise such as coding and UI/UX design. Being an automatic scanner that it is, TAW follows the same procedure.

Running a compliance scan on TAW is as simple as falling off a log. And the swiftness of the audit is remarkable. We had an effortless experience while checking out the tool. To run a scan, you type in your website URL then hit the “analyze” button. Meanwhile, before initiating a check, you could select a preferred level of analysis you want, according to the WCAG. Similar to aCe, TAW compellingly displays your audit report. You would recall that the system has been designed for experts and non-experts. Therefore, the result comes up understandably. You could request your audit report in your mail if you wish. This is another similar reference point to aCe accessibility scanner. However, one big difference between both platforms is that TAW does not have provision for a portable document format (pdf) of the report, whereas aCe does.

TAW’s accessibility check is one of the fastest we have seen. It completed an audit in under twenty seconds when we conducted demo testing. As soon as the test rounded off, a summary of the scan pops up under three segments: (a) Problems (b) Warnings (c) Not reviewed. Each of these segments carries additional information on the total number of issues under it, including the number of WCAG success criteria the violation had occurred. For example, 40 Problems, in 5 success criteria; 70 Warnings in 8 success criteria; and 15 Not reviewed in 30 success criteria. For errors tagged as Problems, they are those that require corrections. Warnings require further review and a human decision. While Not Reviewed issues are beyond the scope of the system and, thus, require full manual attention.

Following the general guidelines of the World Content Accessibility Guidelines for accessibility, issues are classified under Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust. According to the WCAG, for content to be deemed accessible, it must be perceivable. And by perceivable, it means that website owners and content creators must ensure that the user interface component and web content are presented to users in a way that end-users can conveniently perceive it. As for being operable, this refers to the ease with which end-users, especially individuals with disabilities, navigate the website. Understandable means that users can understand the information and user interface on the website. And, finally, robust refers to the extent to which content is reliably translatable by assistive technologies.

Requesting for the audit report in your mail gives you access to more detailed information about the scan. The email version of the report is more comprehensive and actionable. In this “Analysis Information,” as it is titled, issues are listed in five columns or tabs, which are Tipology, Checking, Techniques, Result, Problems, and Line numbers. By many standards, TAW’s evaluation report is one of the most comprehensive. Under Tipology, it describes the issue in terms of its type (where text or non-text violations such images). The next column, “Checking,” describes the real violation in precise terms ( e.g., images without the “alt” attribute). Still, on the same issue, the next column states the aspect of the WCAG that applies to this issue (this is what is referred to as “technique”). Next to this is the “Result” of the item against the accessibility standard (either Problematic and in need of urgent attention, or Warning and requires human resolution, or Not Reviewed and reserved for manual attention). The “Problems” column states the number of times such issues reoccur throughout the page. This feature is similar to Siteimprove, which equally states the number of occurrences of a given issue. Last but not least is the column indicating the code location of the issue under the label “Line problem.”

You could attach the TAW logo to your website to demonstrate your site’s accessibility effort. Just as accessibility brands grant a certificate of compliance to their clients, TAW lets you enjoy a similar reference on your website for public purposes. Only that this logo indicates that your site has undergone an accessibility validation by TAW, this interesting feature allows for specifying the compliance level of the WCAG requirements your site was tested against. Thus, you can proudly show your achievement level on your site. Meanwhile, there is a price that comes with this feature, lest every Dick, Tom, and Harry would flaunt the badge when they have not attained that level of compliance.

Now, what price is attached to the accessibility badge? To display any of the three badges (each represents the three levels of the World Contents Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 success criteria), your website must be free of all automatic problems and all manual problems of priority in each level. So far, we have not seen this with any other accessibility checking platform. Although this could appear insignificant, it, nonetheless, is a point of uniqueness. Not to mix it up, TAW’s accessibility scanning does not come with automatic remediation. What the tool promises are a detailed audit as well as a comprehensive analysis. Hopefully, by requesting for TAW Monitor, one could enjoy this service.

Unlike other solutions that incorporate an assortment of accessibility regulations, TAW remains faithful to the WCAG 2.0 at the exclusion of other regulations. Perhaps, this is because this solution is targeted at Spanish-speaking users. You would recall that the ADA (American Disabilities Act) carries an American undertone and is binding on businesses domiciled in the US. The same applies to AODA (Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act), which carries the Canadian spirit. The WCAG is a much more universal version of these regulations, hence, exclusively incorporated by TAW for accessibility testing.

TAW’s online accessibility engine works on technologies like HTML, CSS, and fairly recently incorporated the javaScript within its ambits. You can run a successful scan with this online technology on both mobile devices as well as web browsers.

TAW web accessibility is a free online resource for all and sundry and has been so for years. It seems this accessibility platform is a public project by CTIC Technology Centre.