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Re: Web Accessibility For Notetakers

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From: Kevin Prince
Date: Nov 26, 2015 6:45PM

Poor usability is a classic - I call these equal opportunity inaccessible sites - my favourite was always Overdrive Ebooks (It may have improved, the iOS app was reasonably usable and very accessible). As a sighted user its desktop incarnation was tortuous, confusing and too hard to waste my time on; oddly enough it was technically quite accessible. It was therefore horrible for everyone :) but screenreader users often assumed it was inaccessible per se.

Some interesting comments here - I don't see anyt need to throw away those notetakes. For one thing they are a handy braille display and great for ‘taking notes'. Are they the best device for surfing the web? Unlikely but they pair neatly with your phone which probably is etc etc and will act as great add on to your PC.

I don't agree with the concept of trying to do everything on them(especially in education) - sighted people don't just use one device so why would blind users - go with the one that makes sense in the context you find yourself. I wouldn't write an essay on a phone, but I might fact check for it or catch my email on the fly etc etc

Kevin
Access1in5
0212220638
039290692
Independent Accessibility and IT Consultancy.



> On 19/11/2015, at 20:10, Cliff Tyllick < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
>
> "Ever so slightly too complicated"?
>
> Ella, in many cases that's an extreme understatement. Whenever I have given a presentation, I have found myself showing one example of an interface that is too complicated for everyone. (It's never the same example. Often, I find an example that is actually easier to figure out if you rely on a screen reader but can't see the screen.)
>
> Many who read your message will infer that you mean these sites should regress to a plain format. I'm sure you aren't suggesting that. What you mean is that the available features should be easy for everyone to discover and use—or, in the parlance of WCAG 2.0, "perceive" and "operate."
>
> There are two solutions to that problem that we haven't pursued enough:
>
> 1. Site owners, content managers, designers, and developers should conduct more usability testing of their designs, and they should include people with disabilities among the participants. Those who do will make it easier for all people to use the Web.
>
> 2. The accessibility community should build and maintain an application any Web professional can use to discover known techniques for producing usable and accessible interactions in the presentation technology they are using. The same application would allow developers to submit new techniques they have used to solve a previously unsolved problem or to improve upon an existing solution. Each technique submitted should be specific; include appropriate examples of its implementation; be tagged according to the interface or interaction (form, text input, error checking, labels for fieldsets, navigation menus, and so on), the presentation technology (HTML, PDF, XHTML, Word for Windows, Open Office, Drupal, WordPress, Plone, Bootstrap.js, and so on), the presentation environments in which it works (video, audio, wearables, smart phones, large monitors, haptic interfaces, and others), the disability addressed, the relevant WCAG success criteria, and other relevant features if I've missed any; and be linked to closely related solutions, relevant tutorials, explanations of the underlying principles, and the like.
>
> This application would make it easier for all authors, content managers, designers, and developers to build a highly usable and accessible Web. It would also help us win over people who fear that it's difficult, expensive, or time consuming to build accessible, usable interactions—because instead of having to stop everything to take a tutorial or figure out a checklist and its results, they could get a quick solution to their specific problem in their first experience with making their product accessible. (If there is no solution, or at least no ideal solution, they could find that out quickly and revise their plans accordingly. Maybe that means they would give this phase of their project more time. Maybe it means they would scrap the original approach and use another instead.)
>
> If the W3C won't coordinate the building of this application and then host it, the IAAP should. Rob Sinclair, the first president of the IAAP, lamented in an interview that he had once had to let a group of developers know that the solution they had worked so hard to develop was a duplicate of a solution others had developed two years earlier. With this application in place, it would be highly unlikely for that circumstance to arise again.
>
> Because even the most seasoned developer could quickly discover whether someone has finally figured out how to build a carrousel that will thrill users with its accessibility, usability, and relevance every bit as much as it thrills marketers and executives with whatever it is that thrills them about carrousels.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Cliff Tyllick
> Accessibility curmudgeon on my own time.
> In my day job, accessibility specialist for the Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services.
>
> Sent from my iPhone
> Although its spellcheck often saves me, all goofs in sent messages are its fault.
>
>> On Nov 18, 2015, at 11:38 PM, Ella Yu < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
>>
>> I totally agree with you, but some sites could be made somewhat simpler but still have the same features. Some sites are just ever so slightly too complicated.
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Harrison, Rita L" < <EMAIL REMOVED>
>> To: WebAIM Discussion List < <EMAIL REMOVED>
>> Date sent: Wed, 18 Nov 2015 21:49:22 +0000
>> Subject: Re: [WebAIM] Web Accessibility For Notetakers
>>
>> Good Afternoon List,
>>
>> After reading some of the comments, I would like to share my observation and personal opinion as follows, for those who may not be familiar with Notetaking Devices.
>>
>> First, I absolutely agree that there is no need to make sites simpler, if they are coded correctly. Individuals using Assistive Technology (AT), should be able to navigate without a problem, provided there is proper structure and all elements are labeled.
>>
>> Braille Notetakers serve many other purposes than just surfing the web. Having and using a braille display is an important piece in braille literacy, which allows someone the ability to read and write with ease, as those who have vision read and write print.
>>
>> I personally use and have done so for years, a Braille Notetaker and find it much more portable to use when I lead and/or attend meetings, when I'm doing a formal Presentation and for taking notes on the fly.
>>
>> Rather than discourage someone from purchasing and using a Braille Notetaker, perhaps the focus should be on those who manufacture and sell these devices, to use a more current browser, so everyone using these wonderful devices, are able to access the information they need when they need it, because the cost of these devices is high and we should expect to be able to access information online using a current browser.
>>
>> I absolutely understand some of the frustration voiced here and I thank you for affording me the opportunity to share my view.
>>
>> I hope everyone is having a great Wednesday!
>>
>> Rita L. Harrison, FDA 508 Coordinator
>> Lead, 508 Web Task Force
>> Chairperson, Advisory Committee for Employees with Disabilities (ACED)
>> OO/OIMT/DBPS/IIB
>> Web Support Team (WST)
>> Phone: 805-620-0203
>> <EMAIL REMOVED>
>>
>>