Multimedia Content and Forms
Multimedia content and forms can liven up your interface, organize content, and add context to
your web page. But these elements must be designed and coded so all users can engage with
them.
Image Descriptions
When adding images to web pages and documents, include alt text, which is a short written
description of an image. These often have to be included in the page code, but many platforms
and products, such as Adobe, WordPress, and Twitter, offer easy front-end ways to include alt
text when creating content.
Forms
When creating forms, it’s important that all text fields, buttons, checkboxes, and other controls
have a text label and are accessible by keyboard. Learn more with W3C’s accessible form
tutorials.
Interactive Content
Moving content
Moving content, like carousel banners, videos, and ads, should not auto-play or auto-update
without user knowledge. Users must be able to control options such as start, stop, and pause,
or hide interactive content using screen readers and keyboards. Include buttons such as
“Play/Pause,” “Rewind/Previous,” “Forward/Next,” as well as timeline and volume sliders. If
audio does automatically play, it should be no longer than three seconds.
Make sure that your interface does not include any content that flashes or blinks more than
three times per second, because it can cause seizures in people with photosensitive epilepsy.
Embedded content
Content embedded from another application may not be accessible, and should be reviewed
independently to meet the guidelines listed in this document. This content should also be
tested to make sure it has full keyboard access and doesn’t create a "keyboard trap," in which
there is no way to exit the embedded object and return to the main website.