The 'Accessible Search' project has been headed up by Google's T.V. Ramana, who has been blind since childhood when he lost his sight to glaucoma. This new service will make finding accessible websites a lot easier for people with visual impairments.
The new search algorithm will be based on the normal Google search algorithm, but will take into account many more accessibility factors such as the quality of design of a site, and the simplicity of the layout of its pages, and whether or not a site will trip up a screen reader.
"This accessibility evaluation is not an easy process," says Ramana, "but the process will receive a big welcome from the visually impaired community."
This new search project is good news for the disabled community, but it should also flag up concerns for the rest of us too. If and when Google do perfect this approach they may also include it as part of the mainstream Google algorithm.
This will mean that in the future, if your website does not meet accessibility guidelines it will not perform well in Google - an important point to be noted.
The 'Accessible Search' project is still in testing, but can be checked out in the Google labs. It might be a good idea to have a quick early check to see how your site is performing for accessibility.
