Have you kept up with the Target lawsuit lately? In 2006, a blind student filed suit against the online retail Target presence because he couldn’t gain access to the site. The code and layout prohibited him from entry. That lawsuit didn’t go away, despite the fact that little has been written about it. This month, a Scott Bradner at NetworkWorld wrote that Target’s appeal was denied in a Baltimore court this year and sentiment seemed against this retail giant in its bid to qualify for exemption from Web site accessibility.

The reason behind this lack of goodwill toward Target is that Web site accessibility is a human rights as well as a commercial compliance issue. In 2006, the UK produced the PAS 78 (see #72 below), a guide for UK businesses to follow based upon guidelines produced by the Disability Rights Commission. While this document pertains only to UK businesses, the change in attitude wrought by these guidelines has spread globally. In other words, if business Web sites don’t begin to follow accessibility guidelines now, a worldwide rush may be on to conform to these standards within the next few years or possibly face penalties for failure to comply.

Why wait? If you already lean toward the idea that accessible sites are good for humanity as well as for business, then this list will provide plenty of reference materials for you. If you don’t have a clue about the issues that surround Web site accessibility, then this list will help you to become well acquainted with the issues involved in this movement. The categories listed below are in alphabetical order, as are the sites listed within those categories. The numbers are for convenience, and they mean nothing as to the quality or preference of the sites listed below.