Title: International Center for Disability Resources on the Internet (ICDRI)

Source/Sponsoring Agency: International Center for Disability Resources on the Internet

URL: http://www.icdri.org/

Date Checked: 11/24/2002      Status: Active

Date Annotated: 11/24/2002

Topics: Americans with Disabilities Act; AIDS/HIV; Computer Law; Education Law; Employment Law; Science and Technology

Other keywords: Health

Contents: A creation of two specialists in web design and accessibility, the International Center for Disability Resources on the Internet website is intended as a gateway for resources on disability, with a focus on accessibility issues. Yet the website is not in fact very clearly arranged, despite the wealth of information potentially available to the user. In the legal realm, there are resources pertaining to making technology accessible to people with disabilities, in particular compliance with Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which mandates this kind of access. It is necessary to browse the "New Features" section to locate the Section 508 materials, which include bibliographies and text documents on web accessibility. A "Best Practices" section contains very extensive collections of links to resources for Asian/Pacific islanders (with or without disabilities), caregivers, stroke victims, and general disability websites, including many government sites; having these in a separate section on the website seems superfluous. More efficient would be to go to the site map and browse under "Sites by Category." The site creators have made an effort to gather international materials on disability, coverage being principally from the UK, Canada, and Australia, with a collection of disability policies and pertinent legislation from a dozen or so foreign, mainly European, countries. Researchers in the legal profession will also wish to look at the sections on employment and education, or select the "Government" section from the sidebar on the home page. The website is searchable, and can be translated via Babel Fish into several European or Asian languages. It will be of greatest use to persons with (or working with) disabilities, and computer specialists in web and systems design.

Author of Annotation: A. Carson