The Randolph Township Library web site has been designed to be fully accessible to all users regardless of technological or physical disability. This page outlines the specific features and initiatives which have been implemented to facilitate access.
A “Skip to main content” link is available at the top of every web page. This allows users with mobility impairments and those who use screen reader software to go directly to the main content of a web page without having to move through repetitive navigation links.
The “Skip to main content” link is hidden from visual browsers and is accessed through the keyboard. Upon landing on a web page, use your keyboard and press the TAB key. This should make the previously hidden “Skip to main content” link appear to the left of the lion’s paw in the top banner. Users of Explorer may need to tab several times before the link becomes visible. Once the link is visible, simply hit your ENTER key to activate the link. Safari users must first change a default setting under the “Advanced” tab in “Preferences” to “Highlight links as you press the Tab key.” The skip link is also available via access key “S,” as explained in the next section.
Access keys are quick keyboard shortcuts that can be used to navigate the web site in browsers that support their implementation. To use an access key, hold down the ALT key (on a Macintosh, hold the CONTROL key) and then press one of the keys in the list below. You may have to press ENTER to confirm your choice in some browsers. Firefox 2 for Windows users must now hold down the ALT key plus the SHIFT key plus the desired access key.
Windows/Explorer 6-7
ALT plus ACCESS KEY then ENTERWindows/Firefox 1.0-1.5
ALT plus ACCESS KEYWindows/Firefox 2+
ALT plus SHIFT plus ACCESS KEYMacintosh/Safari and Firefox
CONTROL plus ACCESS KEYAll library web pages contain a dynamic text size switcher in the left-hand column beneath the vertical navigation menu. Selecting the “Increase Text Size” option will adjust the text in the main content area to a larger size. In order for this to work, JavaScript and style sheets must be enabled. If first-party cookies are not allowed in your web browser’s security settings, the text size will reset back to the default when browsing between pages. This functionality is available to all modern web browsers including Internet Explorer 5 and above, Firefox, Mozilla, Netscape 7 and above, Safari and Opera 7 and above. This feature may also be toggled on and off via access keys, as explained in the previous section.
In order to provide online access to library documents and forms in their original formatting, we use Adobe Acrobat to create Portable Document Format (PDF) files. As explained on the township’s Online Forms page, to view PDFs, you will need the freely available Adobe Reader software installed on your computer. If you encounter difficulty with the PDF format, Adobe provides a free online converter tool which will allow you to convert a PDF to a text-only format.
This web site has been built using valid XHTML and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) in accordance with the standards created by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), the governing body for the web that sets standards for technical development. These standards, known as Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), set forth the requirements for making web site content accessible to people with disabilities.
Accessibility isn’t just about making sure blind people can use this site. It’s about removing barriers and making a web site usable to a wide range of people. This includes, for example, someone with arthritis or multiple sclerosis who has difficulty using a mouse, an older user with low vision, a site visitor with dyslexia as well as those who use assistive technologies to access the Internet.
Standards-compliant design may not sound particularly sexy but because web standards incorporate and support accessibility, a standards-compliant web site ensures that everyone has equal access to the same information—a basic tenet of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). A public library has the responsibility of providing information through a web site that is accessible to all residents.
Although not required by regulation or law, the library web site complies with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998). Accessibility is simply the right thing to do…and we do it because we can.
If you experience accessibility issues or if you use assistive technology and the format of any content on this web site interferes with your ability to access the information, please contact the web site developer at . I will get you the information you are seeking in a format that is accessible and I will work to make the web content you found problematic accessible going forward.