Did you know? Approximately 8% of men worldwide have some sort of color-blindness. The number increases to about 10-11% in areas with predominately Caucasian populations. The most prevalent type of colorblindness affects the red-green spectrum. In the image on the left, you can get a visual indication as to what is it is like for someone with red or green colorblindness to view color. Those with colorblindness may see these colors in a grayed out version of varying hues that might be very difficult to distinguish.
Color Contrast It is important that you remember to use colors choices that make it readable for all. Some contrasting colors make it difficult for those with color blindness or any user if not used correctly. "Most of the time color is irrelevant in understanding content on the web. However, when colors are used to convey or differentiate information—such as a pie chart or bar graph, or using green and red text to indicate pass/fail or good/bad, etc.—this information should also be provided in another way".
Texture Enhancement Because of this, it is important to not use color alone to convey information. For example, if you need to create a bar chart using different colors, have the bar also be textured too. This way if someone can’t distinguish the color, they can distinguish it by texture. If a line chart, have dashed and dotted lines to accompany the color. If you use colored text for emphasis, bold or italicize it too. Color is okay as long as it is used in the right way.
