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Thread: Could anybody help, advice me on this?

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From: Coca Rivas
Date: Wed, Apr 20 2005 11:45AM
Subject: Could anybody help, advice me on this?
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Could anybody help advice me on this?

My company is designing a web application build in
Flash (accessible via pop up link, from the main
site), this web application will be a visual tool to
provide a very visual and user friendly overview, of
the existing content for this site main large (content
speaking) website.

I am aware that the application as it is will not meet
Accessibility guidelines. (Build in Flash and popping
up form a new window browser)

Will it be ok (in terms of accessibility) if we
provide also an alternative HTML version of the
information? A flat version will be a bit
contradictory with the whole purpose of the tool?

Thanks in advance


JT Rivas
Design Director

www.artlike.co.uk
= EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =
+44(0)7818063128

From: Jon Gunderson
Date: Wed, Apr 20 2005 11:53AM
Subject: Re: Could anybody help, advice me on this?
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Coca,
1. What are the features you can do in flash, that you cannot
do in accessible HTML?

2. The use of FLASH is also limits interoperability. For
example how do plan to support users with different graphical
screen resolutions?

Jon


---- Original message ----

>>Date: Wed, 20 Apr 2005 10:45:02 -0700 (PDT)
>>From: Coca Rivas < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = >
>>Subject: [WebAIM] Could anybody help, advice me on this?
>>To: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =
>>
>>Could anybody help advice me on this?
>>
>>My company is designing a web application build in
>>Flash (accessible via pop up link, from the main
>>site), this web application will be a visual tool to
>>provide a very visual and user friendly overview, of
>>the existing content for this site main large (content
>>speaking) website.
>>
>>I am aware that the application as it is will not meet
>>Accessibility guidelines. (Build in Flash and popping
>>up form a new window browser)
>>
>>Will it be ok (in terms of accessibility) if we
>>provide also an alternative HTML version of the
>>information? A flat version will be a bit
>>contradictory with the whole purpose of the tool?
>>
>>Thanks in advance
>>
>>
>>JT Rivas
>>Design Director
>>
>>www.artlike.co.uk
>> = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =
>>+44(0)7818063128
>>_______________________________________________
>>To manage your subscription, visit http://list.webaim.org/
>>Address list messages to = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =



Jon Gunderson, Ph.D., ATP
Director of IT Accessibility Services
Campus Information Technologies and Educational Services (CITES)
and
Coordinator of Assistive Communication and Information Technology
Disability Resources and Education Services (DRES)

Voice: (217) 244-5870
Fax: (217) 333-0248

E-mail: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =

WWW: http://cita.rehab.uiuc.edu/
WWW: https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/jongund/www/

From: Patrick H. Lauke
Date: Wed, Apr 20 2005 2:12PM
Subject: Re: Could anybody help, advice me on this?
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Jon Gunderson wrote:

> 1. What are the features you can do in flash, that you cannot
> do in accessible HTML?


Exactly the crux of the argument. If this tool does something like show the top level links only, and then lets the user visually drill down into the site until they reach the individual pages, this could well be replicated in HTML with javascript assistance and as a final degradation step in a forms-based set of dialogs, with multiple calls back to the server.

> 2. The use of FLASH is also limits interoperability. For
> example how do plan to support users with different graphical
> screen resolutions?


This, however, seems to be a non issue: Flash's vector content (including text) can be scaled seamlessly. As long as the pop-up that contains it still lets the user resize, then the Flash movie can be made to fit.

--
Patrick H. Lauke
_____________________________________________________
re

From: Webmaster
Date: Wed, Apr 20 2005 3:40PM
Subject: Re: Could anybody help, advice me on this?
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This is how site made in Flash looks on my new browser Firefox 1.0.3
(see attached screen shot). It seems to me I had the plug-in on version 1.0.

brgds Alex

From: Jon Gunderson
Date: Wed, Apr 20 2005 3:47PM
Subject: Re: Could anybody help, advice me on this?
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Responses in JRG:


>>
>
>>>> 1. What are the features you can do in flash, that you cannot
>>>> do in accessible HTML?
>
>>
>>Exactly the crux of the argument. If this tool does something

like show

>>the top level links only, and then lets the user visually

drill down

>>into the site until they reach the individual pages, this

could well be

>>replicated in HTML with javascript assistance and as a final

degradation

>>step in a forms-based set of dialogs, with multiple calls

back to the

>>server.


JRG: It seems like this could be done with CSS and some failry
fairly simple javascript.

It also sounds what you would like is some type of search
function. Again why not use GOOGLE to index html pages?


>>
>
>>>> 2. The use of FLASH is also limits interoperability. For
>>>> example how do plan to support users with different graphical
>>>> screen resolutions?
>
>>
>>This, however, seems to be a non issue: Flash's vector content
>>(including text) can be scaled seamlessly. As long as the

pop-up that

>>contains it still lets the user resize, then the Flash movie

can be made

>>to fit.


JRG: Some more questions about flash:

1. Is the resizing only to fit the size of the current
graphical window in FLASH or can the user say they want bigger
text in the current size window?

2. Can users restyle the foreground and background colors of
the text rendering in FLASH?

Thanks,
Jon





Jon Gunderson, Ph.D., ATP
Director of IT Accessibility Services
Campus Information Technologies and Educational Services (CITES)
and
Coordinator of Assistive Communication and Information Technology
Disability Resources and Education Services (DRES)

Voice: (217) 244-5870
Fax: (217) 333-0248

E-mail: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =

WWW: http://cita.rehab.uiuc.edu/
WWW: https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/jongund/www/

From: Kevin H. Spruill
Date: Thu, Apr 21 2005 8:50AM
Subject: Re: Could anybody help, advice me on this?
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>1. What are the features you can do in flash, that you cannot
>do in accessible HTML?

>2. The use of FLASH is also limits interoperability. For
>example how do plan to support users with different graphical
>screen resolutions?

>Jon


Excellent first point - it's always one of the first questions I ask when I'm asked if something can be done in flash and be accessible. The second point though is relatively easy to address simply by using a "fluid layout" in your flash movie... giving it a 100% size versus static HxW dimensions - the movie and content can be resized to fit whatever display size the user prefers.

There are much bigger issues with interoperability however... not all users will have access to the latest versions of JAWS or Window-Eyes - and even they have limited, though vastly improved performance with Flash movies. There are some "tips and tricks" involved in making flash movies accessible that even today, I find most developers unaware of... what parent and/or child objects within the movie to "make accessible", what parts of embedded movies to "make accessible" (make accessible is in quotes because I'm referring to the symbol/object properties in the flash movie), etc.

Flash can be made accessible... but it requires preparation and thought prior to actual creation, and adequate testing throughout the development life-cycle. Unfortunately, that doesn't occur as much as is needed - leading to alot of follow on work to remediate the movie.
___________________________________________
Kevin H. Spruill AWA/CNTR/FAA
FAA Section 508 Technical Support
202.385.8059