Resources for Testing Applications

Source: Department of Rehabilitation (DoR)

Manual accessibility testing techniques can vary widely. Manual testing has the benefit of being highly accurate, provided the person doing the manual testing is sufficiently qualified. Manual testing allows finding accessibility problems which cannot be found in the automatic testing. DoR estimates that automatic tools can only find 25% to 30% of accessibility issues. Only a human can tell if the site is easy to use and navigate for a person who is using any assistive technology.

The resources provided below are for informational purposes only; the State of California does not specifically endorse the use of any particular site or tool over another.

Operating systems compatible with listed resources

• Microsoft Windows 7 SP1 or above (Extended Support runs to 2020)
• Apple OS-X 10.7 (Mountain Lion) or above (Support ran out for Apple OS-X 10.6 and below)

Most used internet browsers, compatible with listed resources

• Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 or higher
• Mozilla Firefox 10.0 or higher
• Google Chrome 17.0 or higher
• Apple Safari 5.0 or higher

Screen Readers

• Freedom Scientific JAWS 14 or above (Support for Windows 7, Internet Explorer 9)
• NonVisual Desktop Access 15.2 or above (Support for Windows 7, Internet Explorer)
• Apple VoiceOver (Built-in screen reader for OS-X)
• AiSquared Window-Eyes 8.0 or above (No longer supported.)

Voice Recognition Software

• Nuance Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12.5 or above (Support for Windows 8, Internet Explorer 9)

Magnification Software

• AiSquared ZoomText 10.0 or above (Support for Windows7, Internet Explorer 9)
• Freedom Scientific Magic 12 or above (Support for Windows 7, Internet Explorer 10)