oz: the blog of glenda sims ( the goodwitch)
Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore.
I’ll admit, when it comes to accessibility technology advances, I believe it when I experience it on my very own computer. So, while the news about iTunes 8 being fully accessible to screenreaders made me grin from ear-to-ear, I had to confirm it for myself.
I’m thrilled to say that iTunes 8 and JAWS 10 (beta) are working like a charm. I couldn’t find any specific documentation on JAWS 10 keyboard commands for iTunes 8, so I’ve put together this list. I hope you find it helpful too!
So, you say you don’t have any blind or deaf users. Or at least you don’t have enough to justify the cost of making your web site accessible. Well, let me tell you, you have an incredibly important blind user. Millions of people consult with this blind user every day, asking for his opinion and seeking his advice. This blind user’s name is…
My university has decided to close the UT Accessibility Institute effective today. I have voiced my concern directly to the decision makers and provided data and context to explain why I believe it is critical to continue funding for academic research on accessibility at UT.
If you share my concern, I encourage you to sign the petition to Save the Accessibility Institute.
The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) and Target made accessibility history today when they announced a $6 million class action settlement. The lawsuit originated when the NFB sued Target alleging that target.com is not accessible to people with disabilities using screen-readers. Highlights of the settlement include
I encourage y’all to head over to A List Apart and participate in their 2nd Annual Survey for People Who Make Websites. Help ALA collect data that will allow them to draw the picture of the ways web design is practiced around the globe. And even better, by making this kind of data available we could have a positive effect on best practices and employment, and even enhance public understanding of, and respect for, our profession.
Who should take the survey? Designers, developers, information architects, project managers, writers, editors, marketers and everyone else who makes websites.
With all my heart, I want to see the web reach it’s full potential. To do that, I think we must stop wasting our time coding for different browsers and focus on developing with web standards. Yes, yes, that means that the browser vendors have to play by the same rules. Good news is, IE8 is coming out soon with the best standards mode ever released in a Microsoft Browser. I do believe that MS has seen the light!
So, while it may seem surreal that we no longer have to beg browser vendors to care about web standards…this opens up a whole new arena for web standards adoption. The arena is education. Have you dropped into your local high school or college web class to see what is being taught there? Is their curriculum up to date? Or (shudder) is it the same curriculum that the instructor has been using for 10 years?
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the web community worked together to build a Web Standards Curriculum that was up to date? Well, close your eyes, make a wish and then head over to the Opera Web Standards Curriculum. And realize that this is only the beginning!
I love the smell of a new version of a standards compliant browser freshly installed on my laptop. (inhale, sigh). Care to join me? Head on over to Spread Firefox.
And I’m curious, what is your browser of choice these days?
How can I possibly explain the magic of SXSWi? Imagine you are high in the sky with Willy Wonka in the great glass elevator. Anything is possible. Magic is probable. (Sigh) That is how SX feels. What moments took my breath away in 2008? Let me share a few.