Lexicon for Accessible Content
Developed by the Accessible Content Community of Practice, this Lexicon for Accessible Content provides a common language for everyone to use at Boise State when discussing content related to accessibility. Use the search field to filter the table content.
| Term | Definition | Examples in Context |
|---|---|---|
| Alternative Text | A written replacement for an image, audio, video, or media file for users unable to “see” the content. | Alternative text appears within the code as follows, in this case the image is also described:img width="1350" height="228" src="https://library.boisestate.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/bannerApril1-1.png" alt="Albertsons Library in Spring" |
| Animations | Images or textual content that includes movement such as GIFs or web animations. Often not controlled by the user. | Demonstrates a movement or task. i.e. finger pushing a button showing a person where to touch an object. |
| Audio Control | Users can control when audio, video, or media starts, pauses, or stops. They can also control volume and other functions. | Disable any automatic play features in animations, audio, video, or media published for users. |
| Audio description (standard) | An additional audio track that describes what is occurring in a video during existing pauses in dialog. It is intended for blind and visually impaired consumers of visual media so they may understand what is occurring in a video without seeing it. | The most commonly used form of audio description on videos or television shows. The description occurs during the natural breaks in dialogue. |
| Audio description (extended) | An additional audio track that pauses the video to describe what is occurring when natural pauses in the video do not allow for standard audio description. | May be used during a lecture to describe an image the speaker is referring to. The video is paused to allow for a more detailed description of the visual material then resumes. |
| Captions | Time coded transcript of the dialogue that includes a textual representation of the background noises, sound effects, and speaker identification. May appear at the bottom, top, or side of the screen. | Captions can often be displayed as transparent or opaque gray/black box overlays on the video with white text, as black boxes below the video with yellow or white text or as white text overlaid directly on the video. |
| Captions (live or real-time) | Captions created and displayed in real time as a presenter speaks. | Live online meetings, live presentations or events, live classroom instruction, live social media events. |
| Captions (closed) | Captions that can be turned on or off by the viewer. | The preferred form of captions. The video and the captions are separate files that are imported into the media player. |
| Captions (open) | Captions that always present and can not be turned off. | The captions are embedded into the video to create a single file. This may be used when the media player does not allow a caption file. |
| CC on | Turns on the subtitle or caption track on a video. | A control that allows the caption file to be displayed on the screen. |
| CC off | Turns off a subtitle or caption track on a video. | A control that hides the caption file from being displayed on the screen. |
| Contrast | The visual presentation of 1) essential graphical objects for user interface component(s) or a border line thereof, and 2) the focus and selection indicator(s) of user interface component(s), has a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against the immediate surrounding color(s). | Dark backgrounds use a light text or foreground colors with 4:5:1 contrast. Light backgrounds use a dark text or foreground colors with 4:5:1 contrast. |
| DCMP | The Described and Captioned Media Program (DCMP) is a non-profit that has educational materials and resources for students who are blind, deaf, visually impaired, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind. | Provides guidance for creating high quality captions. |
| Flashing Content | No content flashes more than three times per second. | Flashing content can cause seizures in some individuals and can be distracting for others. |
| Images (advanced) | Includes images such as form buttons, image maps, image slices, background images, logos, and other complex images. May require additional usability testing with screen readers to determine appropriate alternative text. | Describes the meaning of an image. i.e. The Boise State “B” would be described as a “forward facing B.” |
| Images (decorative) | Decorative images do not present important content, are used for layout or non-informative purposes, and do not appear within a link. Required null alternative text (alt=””). | Does not convey a meaning, only describes a decorative element. This should be a silent tag because it can be distracting to a person using a screen reader. i.e. A border may be described a as white dashed line. |
| Images (functional) | Images that provide content, and serve important functions, such as navigation or hyperlinks to other content. Requires succinct, concise, alternative text (alt=”text”). | An icon that allow a user to complete an action. i.e. Clicking on an envelope icon to email a person or a printer icon to print a page. |
| Keyboard Trap | Situation where keyboard only users can get “stuck” on an element with your content. | Once “trapped” the user must exit the page and restart. All audio, video, and media content controls should be operated with a keyboard alternative and should not “trap” users. |
| Media Alternative | A secondary alternative to an audio, video, or media file. Can include audio description, captions, or transcripts. | Creates accessibility by either merging the files together or by providing a separate file that user can click on the access the content. This may be used when a media player does not have the ability to import a caption or description file or when copyright restrictions prevent content from being edited. |
| Media-based content | Content that is shared using audio and/or visual media (images, video); it is used as an alternative to text-based content. | Files can include: JPEG, MP3, MP4. |
| Non-text content | Any content that is provided in a non-text format and includes audio, images, media, and video. | An image such as an infographic, PDF graphic flyer, or audio-only video. |
| Sensory Characteristics | Users can interact with content using more than one sense. | Written or audio instructions may appear as follows: To submit your entry, select the orange button labeled “submit” on the bottom right of the screen. Or a captcha. |
| SRT file | A file that contains subtitle information, including the sequential number of subtitles, their start and end timecodes, and the subtitle text. | The SRT file includes time stamps and text in chronological order as depicted here: 1 0:00:00,000 --> 0:00:20,000 Boise State University is located in Boise, Idaho. |
| Streaming Media | Video that is accessed via the internet as opposed to a download, using players such as YouTube or Vimeo. | A live link to an online video. |
| Subtitles | Time coded transcript or translation of the dialogue displayed at the bottom of a video, movie, or television screen. | Includes spoken dialogue only and omits speaker identification and sounds effects. Subtitles may appear in the same or different language than the dialogue on the screen. |
| Time-based Media | Media that can only be experienced through time such as video and audio. | Video, slide show, or recorded audio. |
| Transcript | A text equivalent of all the words spoken in an audio or video recording. Required for audio/video/media files without captions. | Transcripts identify speaker and content and may look like: >> NARRATOR: Boise State University is located in Boise, Idaho. [pause] |
| Video | A recording of moving visual images, often accompanied with audio. | DVD, YouTube, Motion Picture, tutorial, webinar, or Vlog. |
| VPAT “Voluntary Product Accessibility Template” | Document used to assess products and services with features that support accessibility. | This term is used during the procurement process to assess a vendors software, hardware, and/or content accessibility. |
| WCAG 2.0 | Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.0 | This term refers to the set of guidelines and standards required for accessible web content at Boise State. |