Pride Month is celebrated worldwide in June. This is a time when visibility, diversity and equality take center stage. What at first glance appears to be primarily a social and cultural focus can also be transferred to digital spaces. Today, participation means not only access to public and physical places, but also to digital offerings.
Accessibility in software plays a central role in this. It ensures that all people—regardless of physical or cognitive limitations—can use digital products and services on an equal basis. This is a basic requirement for inclusion in particular and cannot be treated as a minor issue.
It is worth focusing on accessibility, not only because Pride Month reminds us of the importance and relevance of equality, but also because manufacturers of digital products bear responsibility for whether people can participate in them or not.
What does accessibility mean in software?
Accessibility is about designing software so that it can be used by as many people as possible, regardless of whether they have limitations. It is about identifying and removing digital barriers.
Accessibility is not only aimed at people with disabilities, but also at older people with temporary limitations or unfavorable usage situations, such as very bright light or a noisy environment. Accessibility cannot therefore be classified as a special case, but is an essential part of a good user experience.
Typical aspects of accessible software are:
- Clear and consistent navigation
- Keyboard operability
- Screen reader compatibility
- Good color contrasts and scalable font sizes
- Alternative text and understandable language
Why accessibility is not just a “nice to have”
Accessibility is often seen as an extra or “nice to have,” but it’s way more than that. Accessibility is a legal requirement, a sign of social responsibility, and a quality feature of modern software.
- Legal obligation: Laws such as the Accessibility Enhancement Act (BFSG) and EU Directive 2016/2102 require manufacturers to design their digital products to be accessible.
- Social responsibility: In a digitalized world, access to software solutions is a decisive factor for participation—whether in communication, work, or education. Removing barriers in digital products enables more people to actively participate and use them.
- Accessibility as a quality feature: Many accessibility measures improve the overall user-friendliness of software.
Step by step toward accessibility: Current improvements in NEXIS 4
Accessibility is not an afterthought at NEXIS 4, but an integral part of the design process and product development. Over the past few months, we have been working specifically to further improve the accessibility of our software.
A key example of this is the filter areas: checkboxes now clearly and consistently indicate their status, making it immediately apparent whether a filter is active or not. Users who use screen readers no longer have to struggle with duplicate or contradictory output, but receive directly usable information.
In multi-step processes such as wizards, we have revised the ARIA attributes. The progress bar now clearly communicates where you are in the process – without generating unnecessary or repeated screen reader output. This provides orientation and reduces uncertainty when navigating through more complex processes.
Drop-down lists have also been adapted so that the currently selected option is programmatically recognizable. This makes it easier to select specific options and make decisions, especially when you cannot see the screen. Alternative texts for icons and images have also been revised: instead of generic descriptions, they now provide meaningful, context-related information that really helps screen reader users.
The login area has also been revised accordingly – in addition to visual adjustments, the focus was primarily on improving usability with screen readers. The form elements are now reliably read aloud, allowing users to log in without barriers.
These changes have one thing in common: they are intended to improve the actual user experience and not just meet technical requirements. It is important to us that NEXIS 4 is also easy to use for people with disabilities – and we are continuing to work on this step by step.
Conclusion on accessibility in NEXIS 4
Accessibility is an ongoing process in the further development of NEXIS 4, in which requirements and technologies are constantly changing. That is why this topic remains relevant to us, as it specifically improves usability for many people.
If you yourself encounter barriers when using NEXIS 4 or have suggestions for improving accessibility, we would be happy to hear from you.
Experience accessibility, don’t just read about it.
Discover NEXIS 4 live – and see for yourself how accessible software can be designed.
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