Main components of agricultural software web accessibility

Abstract

Information technologies and software improve the living conditions of people in rural areas, farmers and household owners, including those with disabilities. Various software is increasingly being used in agriculture, the number of thematic mobile and web applications is growing. Some users have limited capabilities and need special software functions for full-fledged work. Thematic Internet resources help people with disabilities to get access to goods and services, search for information, and carry out necessary operations. Web applications help users to solve many private tasks (making financial payments, providing educational and medical services), as well as professional ones (using an electronic signature, submitting reports, holding online meetings, and surveys). Online resources and specialized software for agriculture should also be designed and tested with consideration of web accessibility, as these resources can be used by both people with disabilities and workers who temporarily stay in a situation limiting their capabilities, e.g. an agronomist works with a tablet in a field in bright daytime conditions. The article highlights importance of conducting the development process in compliance with the requirements to web accessibility. The main components of web accessibility of agricultural software are reviewed in the work. A classification of the web application users with consideration of the type of disabilities is presented. The work defines types of devices and software that can be used by disabled people. The assistant technologies that can be used to ensure web accessibility of agricultural software are described. The stages of implementation of the web accessibility policy in the field of software development are outlined. The authors propose ways to solve the problem of software availability for agriculture.