Southern New Hampshire University

Accessibility Insights for Web (Browser Extension)

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How to Add Microsoft Insight Extensions to Chrome

Accessibility Insights for Web helps developers find and fix accessibility issues in web apps and sites. This browser extension for Chrome and the new Microsoft Edge runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux computers.

Select "Add to Chrome"

Add to chrome button boxed in red.

Select "Add extension"

"Add extension" pop-up box with "Add extension" boxed in white.

Select the Puzzle piece to add Microsoft Insights to your extension toolbar.

Puzzle piece icon in the toolbar menu boxed in red.

Select the pushpin icon of the extension in the toolbar.

Menu for the extension toolbar with the pin icon boxed in white.

The Microsoft Insights extension will now be pinned to the toolbar.

Microsoft insights extension icon pinned to the toolbar and boxed in red.

Overview of Accessibility Insights for Web

Accessibility Insights for Web is a Chrome and Microsoft Edge extension that helps users find and fix accessibility issues in web apps and sites.

  • The tool allows you to test in two ways:
    • FastPass is a two-step, automated process that identifies high-impact issues in less than five minutes.
    • Assessment is a more thorough process that walks you through assisted and manual testing and provides automated Fastpass results.
  • SNHU’s Digital Accessibility and Compliance team recommends using Assessment for your forms, page templates, or when introducing new code or functionality into a page.
  • To learn more, watch Accessibility Insights for Web's Introduction video

Assessment testing includes:

  • Automated checks: the tool automatically checks for compliance with approximately 50 accessibility requirements.
  • Manual tests: step-by-step instructions, examples, and how-to-fix guidance are provided for approximately 20 tests; many tests are "assisted," which means that the tool identifies the test instances or provides a visual helper.
  • To learn more, watch the Accessibility Insights for Web's Assessment video.

How to-test web forms using Accessibility Insights for Web:

  1. Download the extension for the appropriate browser
    1. Chrome
    2. Microsoft Edge
  2. Open the web form in the appropriate browser
  3. Open Accessibility Insights for Web extension
  4. Select Assessment 
Accessibility Insights extension pop-up with "Assessment" boxed in red.
  1. Start the assessment in the order it is listed on the left-hand side
    1. Automated checks are first
  2. Continue with manual tests
    1. Starting with keyboard navigation, use Tab to navigate forward and Shift+Tab to navigate backward through each field.  
  3. When testing manually, if you are unable to move from one element to another using the keyboard, use your mouse and resume testing
    1. Note any issues where you can not use the keyboard in your results.
  4. If unsure how to test an element, expand the arrow by “How to Test.” 
  5. If you have specific questions regarding why the manual test is essential or how it can be fixed, select the “i” icon
  6. Record your results for each manual test instance
    1. If you find any failures select fail and note them.
    2. Otherwise, select pass.
  7. You can share results at any time by exporting
    1. We recommend waiting until you have completed 100% of the assessment to share the results.

Testing tips:

  1. Turning on the visual helpers is recommended because it highlights relevant elements. 
  2. If you run into any testing issues, you can always start over by clicking the "start over" button on the top right of the test.
  3. Keyboard shortcuts can help run automated checks and turn on visual helpers without navigating away from the page.
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