A bimonthly publication of AQU Catalunya

37

July 2008

AQU Catalunya has completely renewed its main Internet tool. The website has been redesigned and incorporates innovative applications that facilitate visitor access to the information and content in this online space.

The new website has a clear and elegant design that gives more importance to the colour white in order to facilitate clarity and visibility, while also representing a development of the corporate image.

Usability and accessibility were also factors taken into account on designing the new website. The guidelines for accessibility are those proposed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) through the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), which avoids potential barriers for people with disabilities when establishing communication and accessing information. The size of the text is not pre-set, but may be altered using the appropriate keyboard combination (e.g. ctrl + mouse wheel). The mark up language (XHTML) and the document presentation (CSS) are separate, so that screen readers for persons suffering from low vision or total blindness can read the documents in a logical fashion. The images that appear have alternative descriptions that facilitate the interpretation of content without the need to visualise the images.

The home page contains subdivisions in three sections which are designed to make information searches easier. Students, Teachers and Universities are the three fields that visitors can quickly access in order to focus the direction of their search. The content of the whole site is better regulated and organised on the basis of this initial option.

Another novelty in the new website is the search engine, which enables visitors to find what they are looking for by introducing key words or phrases.

In addition, the new website, thanks to the use of RSS technology, offers interested parties the possibility of receiving automatic updates of headlines, notifications, resolutions and other information published on the website.