Bobby - the First Automated Accessibility Testing Tool

Shortly after the publication of the W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines in 1999, the Centre for Applied Special Technology (CAST) designed an automated accessibility testing tool called Bobby.

Desktop and online versions of the product were available, and for some time Bobby was the de facto automated testing tool. However, development stopped and it was soon overtaken by other products that were more accurate and offered more features. Nevertheless it remains perhaps the best known automated tool.

Bobby was acquired by Watchfire Corporation in 2002 and incorporated into their WebXACT tool. The free online version was available until 01 February 2008, when it was taken offline by Watchfire's new owners, IBM. WebXACT was also discontinued at the same time, but Bobby lives on at the heart of the IBM Rational Policy Tester Accessibility Edition.

Choosing an Automated Tool

In recent years Bobby has been overtaken by many automated tools. Labscape can help you select the one that best suits your needs and ensure that you obtain the best return on your investment.

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