Fwd: [WebAIM] Accessibility or usability recommendations for differentiating menus visually

Do we have anything to cover this? Interactive contrast? Graphic contrast?

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Preast, Vanessa <vanessa.preast@dmu.edu>
Date: Thu, Feb 9, 2017 at 8:45 AM
Subject: [WebAIM] Accessibility or usability recommendations for
differentiating menus visually
To: WebAIM Discussion List <webaim-forum@list.webaim.org>


Hello,

I'm looking at a site design which is generally a "flat", minimalist,
monochrome design of Black on very light grey. I, personally, am having
trouble easily differentiating the menu from the content areas below. There
is a thin line separating the menu from the body of the page. The body of
the page contains two columns of "widgets", each with a title bar with a
gradient background.  The menu text is about the same size or smaller than
the widget title bar text. The menu has no background shading different
from the rest of the page.

Is there any accessibility or usability advice about menus clearly
distinguished from body text?  (Please share the links/resources)

I'm wanting to advise increasing the weight of the separator line, bolding
the menu font and/or increasing the menu font to help differentiate the
menu area from the rest of the page.  I thinking that it would really help
a user's ability to scan the page and quickly find what they need. All I
could find for references were articles such as "Flat Design"
https://www.w3.org/WAI/PF/cognitive-a11y-tf/wiki/Flat_Design, but these
refer to buttons having a more 3-d appearance, not menus clearly
differentiated from document body.

Best,
Vanessa
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-- 
Jim Allan, Accessibility Coordinator
Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
1100 W. 45th St., Austin, Texas 78756
voice 512.206.9315    fax: 512.206.9264  http://www.tsbvi.edu/
"We shape our tools and thereafter our tools shape us." McLuhan, 1964