WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

E-mail List Archives

Re: Re-order page content

for

From: Chagnon | PubCom
Date: Jun 1, 2017 12:43PM

150 years' worth of scientific research on human behavior has proven beyond any designer's doubt that if you want something to be noticed and read by visually sighted people, put it on the right side of the page, preferably on the upper right side. Sighted people do not focus on the left side of the page. They focus -- and comprehend -- on items on the right side.

I'm worried about some of the following assumptions in the original post.

Quote: "This seems like bad design to me."

That's your opinion as a programmer. But the designers' decision is spot on. They want sighted people to read the instructions first, before clicking into the login fields. You want the same end result for those using AT: read the instructions first before logging in.

So the designers need the instructions placed on the right to meet the goal. And AT users need them placed before the login fields in the DOM.

That's why we created stylesheets throughout all communication/publishing technologies and media; to allow the stylesheet to adjust the presentation to meet the users' needs.

It's crazy to degrade the experience for sighted users to meet accessibility requirements for those use AT.

Accommodate all users. A L L users.


Quote: "I know that we want the visual order to match the DOM order."

Why? Give me a good reason why this is beneficial to anyone, sighted or AT user or designer or programmer.


Quote: "Basically this is the reverse of the standard "don't use CSS to break visual and DOM order"

When did this become a standard? It might be a recommended practice in some situations, but it certainly doesn't fit all situations, including the one you've described.

--Bevi Chagnon
Award-winning designer in multiple disciplines and programmer with undergraduate and graduate study in human behavior, perception, and design.