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Re: accesskey

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From: Birkir Rúnar Gunnarsson
Date: Nov 5, 2010 7:39AM

Hey gentlemen

What is the reasoning behind providing an AccessKey for search? I
would think it is not of much use since search can be gotten into by
going into the edit field (unless the search is a link to a search
page or there is a lot of edit fields on the page).
I used to be for 'AccessKeys, as a blind user, if they are used
correctly and infrequently.
I think GMail does this very nicely with alt-i for inbox, I use that
quite a bit, same with alt-0 for Mobile Facebook.
But I have seen web sites that think accessibility = AccessKeys and
they provided 20 AccessKeys on one page and sometimes did not even
bother to make sure they were unique, so it was an ugly and
unnecessary mess.
Also, keep in mind an AccessKey could cause problems for the screen
reader user if it clashes with a screen reader specific function key,
though I have never had an issue with this personally.
I think well thought out and sparsely used AccessKeys that make sense
in the context and are placed on web sites that users are likely to
frequent (such as email, work web sites, libraries perhaps etc) are an
accessibility improvement, but in general I would recommend making
maximum use of lists, headings and tables for quick page navigation
and layout.
Thanks
-Birkir


On 11/5/10, Denis Boudreau < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
> Hi Bruna,
>
> We've asked ourselves the same question as we were developing the
> accessibility standards up north in Quebec[1]. Accesskey have always been a
> matter of religion: people are usually either for or against them.
>
> Given the discoverability issues related to accesskeys and the fact that an
> organization just cannot expect its users to learn/remember the special keys
> reserved on every website they visit, we decided that accesskeys would not
> be allowed on public websites at all.
>
> However, on intranets or applications (where people were expected to use
> them on a regular, if not daily basis), then accesskeys can certainly prove
> useful because users might be tempted to learn and remember them in order to
> improve their efficiency.
>
> Same logic went for multimedia players, because we expect to offer a
> standardized player for every government agency or organization. Relying on
> the same player and making sure it uses control keys can and actually
> proves, to be useful.
>
> We recommended using the following, which have always been consensually
> approved:
>
> 1 = Homepage
> 3 = Site map
> 4 = Search
> 9 = Contact Us
> 0 = Accessibility
> s = Skip link
>
> No recommendations were provided as of yet regarding a multimedia player.
>
> Hoping this helps.
>
> [1] http://www.msg.gouv.qc.ca/normalisation/standards/accessibilite/
> --
> Denis Boudreau
> <EMAIL REMOVED>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On 2010-11-05, at 8:52 AM, Bruna Poletto Salton wrote:
>
>> Hi everyone,
>>
>> I always read all the messages from this list, but this is the first time
>> I'm actually asking something.
>>
>> I'm Brazilian and I'm working on the brazilian government accessibility
>> guidelines. We are not really sure if we should recommend the use of
>> accesskey in the brazilian government websites. Do people really use the
>> given shortcuts? Do they really work well?
>>
>> Thanks!!
>>
>> --
>> Bruna Poletto Salton
>> Projeto Acessibilidade Virtual da RENAPI | Núcleo Bento Gonçalves
>> (Virtual Accessibility Project)
>> www.bento.ifrs.edu.br/acessibilidade
>> (55) (54) 3455 3219
>>