The relationship between accessibility and usability can be a controversial issue especially with the advent of new web technologies. Does accessibility have a negative effect on usability and vice versa and is this in any way influenced by new web technologies? With the advent of new web technologies, some believe that the two apparently bipolar methods of web design and evaluation contradict each other even more. To determine whether this is actually true, this paper will examine the effect of new web technologies on accessibility and usability and current practices in each of these areas. This article considers various points of view on this topic, compares definitions and methodologies and concludes that even when using new web technologies, embracing both sets of practices and recognizing their points of similarity, it is still possible, with thoughtful use and Judicious of new web technologies, creates a web design that is usable and accessible. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Some accessibility professionals believe that applying new web technologies to a web design, due to the added level of complexity, creates another barrier to people with disabilities (Everett 2006). Some usability professionals believe that by applying accessibility practices, interactivity will be affected in some way (Koch 2002). In terms of new web technologies this is still the case. Is there any merit to these beliefs? Is it possible to find common ground to achieve some sort of balance? There appears to be a lack of clarity about what constitutes a usable website and a misunderstanding about what constitutes a truly accessible website. The purpose of this article is to discuss the relationship between usability and accessibility by first examining the differences between them and where they overlap. We will therefore need to understand current thinking on the relationship between accessibility and usability and how it is influenced by current web technologies. Will web standards and new web technologies have an effect on accessibility and usability? With the advent of Web standards (Featherstone et al. The Web Standards Project 1998) and updated Web accessibility guidelines (Henry et al. W3C 2008), it has become easier for developers to create more usable and accessible sites. This paper will also look at technologies such as AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) (Garrett 2005), and whether this will have further effects on the relationship between accessibility and usability. can be used by specific users to achieve specific goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specific context of use" Usability is defined by five quality components (Nielsen 2003): Learnability: the ease with which a fundamental task can be completed on the first try. Efficiency: The speed with which a task is performed Memorability: The ease with which an interface will be remembered. Errors: number and severity of errors Satisfaction: level of enjoyment or pleasure when using an interface An extension of usability is the term User-Centered Design (UCD) (Preece et al. 2006), in which users are involved throughout the life cycle of website developments using structured methodologies to determine and satisfy all the needs of the target user (Usability.gov 2009). Some of the techniques used include (Usability.gov 2009): Usability testing – Representative users are observed as they attempt to complete the task set. Notes are made on the observations ofuser behavior and comments. Sorting cards: Participants organize and even label cards representing site content into logical groups and categories to inform the information architecture of a site's design. Individual Interviews - Individual participants are typically interviewed for 30 minutes to an hour in person, by telephone, or by any available means that permit conversation. These interviews can be formal or informal and do not involve observation. Contextual Interview or Field Studies - Contextual interviews are similar to user testing because users are observed, however, they are not given a series of tasks but rather are observed in their natural environment. Observers also take notes. Surveys: These are used to obtain data from large groups of people in a relatively short time and are normally used to gather user needs. They can also be used for summative usability evaluation. Focus group: This is usually a discussion between eight to twelve current or potential users or stakeholders of your site led by an experienced moderator. Focus groups typically last around two hours and cover a range of topics that are decided in advance. Activity Analytics: This is used to determine the typical activities performed by users to achieve a particular goal. Work patterns are studied and broken down to provide a list of tasks and the order in which they are performed. Prototypes: These are representations of your website/application shown to users to inform its design and determine any major flaws before proceeding with further development. These can range from paper drawings (low fidelity) to almost complete products (high fidelity). Expert Evaluations: Experts are asked to evaluate the usability of sites using various methods such as heuristic evaluation where sites are evaluated against a set of usability principles. Other methods such as cognitive procedures and pluralistic evaluation are used (Preece et al. 2006). Will usability practices need to include accessibility practices to include people with disabilities or will they do so to minimize the usability of web products? 2) AccessibilityThe web gives people with disabilities the ability to do things they wouldn't be able to do with any other route. The web offers them freedom and independence. However, all these possibilities are removed if a website is not created in an accessible way. Essentially accessibility can be defined as access for all, regardless of what disability they suffer from (Berners-Lee, via Henry W3C 2009). Others have a more flexible approach such as Clark (2002) where he suggests that facilities should be provided for disabled users to make a website accessible. Another term used in relation to Accessibility is Universal Design, which incorporates elements of usability with the aim of making websites or any product as usable as possible by as many people as possible without requiring adapted or specialized design. (Mace 2008) The guidelines by which most accessibility professionals develop and evaluate websites are the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, updated standards developed by the World Wide Web Consortium ( W3C). These are written to accommodate new technologies and provide better and more comprehensive help to developers and designers when trying to make websites accessible. These standards consist of 12 guidelines organized according to 4 principles: perceptible, operable, understandable and robust. For each guideline,.