I am currently trying to find out what issues, in particular, silver surfers face when using the internet. And the Lovefilm site in particular. I understand that an accessible website is accessible for a large proportion of users not just the ‘disabled’. see my poster ‘accessibility is not about disability.’ What I have found so far is that:
- Links need to look like links. Most silver surfers are quite new to the internet. If it doesn’t look like a link they may not realise that it is a link. This one will become less important over time as the market matures.
- Don’t use tiny text. And allow users to resize the text.
- Ensure contrast and brightness is suitable. This is one of my favourite pet peeves. Subtle colours look good but lack of contrast makes it hard to read.
- Design for a low screen resoloution, many silver surfers are using 800×600 (I know my dad does, it drives me mad) Older people tend to stick with the same kit they have had for years.
- Download something extra to see this site. No-one likes change, dont make users download extra stuff to use your site. Silver surfers are like the rest of us in this respect, perhaps even more so.
- Trust is very important to the silver surfer, especially if they are going to habnd over credit card details. What is your privacy policy and terms and conditions.
Some useful articles:Speaking freely http://speakingfreely.wordpress.com/2007/01/22/site-design-for-silver-surfers/
