Main backgrounds based on enlarged or tiled images also are unacceptable, both because of the unpredictability of their appearance, their nonconformity to the ADA and their often extended load times. The default background color on most browsers is gray, which will appear if you do not specify white as your background color when you construct your pages. Colored backgrounds may be used for accent areas of your page, such as navigation bars, because they do not provide the bulk of your information and so users will not tire of reading over a colored background. Simply provide enough contrast between your background and your text color to ensure that the content will be easily readable, even if the color might vary somewhat on different machines and browsers. Textured backgrounds may also be used for accent areas, but be aware that textures more often vary unfavorably in terms of readability than colored ones do.
Some textures also are too large to work well in small accent areas.