Faezeh Seyedarabi
ABSTRACT
This study has investigated accessibility issues faced by screen reader users when using the top three most popular search engines - Google, Bing and Yahoo - widgets. One of the features that search engines include is called "widgets". These widgets display information related to user's search query. Subsequently, users do not need to visit different websites to find their required information. In this study, widgets found in Google, Bing and Yahoo were identified and then compared for similarity. Three widgets were selected and audited in desktop, mobile and tablet using screen reader software. Furthermore, an accessibility evaluation using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG) were adopted in order to identify accessibility issues found in search engine widgets. Results from this study, showed that Google widgets has a higher number of accessibility issues in comparison to Bing's widgets; highlighting the fact that Google widgets are more complex than Bing widgets in terms of the level of information and functionality. Finally, considering the problems obtained in this research, some recommendations are proposed to improve the accessibility of search engine widgets.
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