Accessites.org
2007 September

To the benefit of the entire industry, I ask that you do the same [help spread the word]

I had once written a text-sizing script, but in the article that accompanied it, I stated I didn’t feel it was really something that was necessary or that should be added to a web page because this is already a function of the browser and really doesn’t bring anything new or marvelous to the table. It’s not that it’s harmful, but rather just needless. Unfortunately, ignorance prevails and lots of people who surf the web don’t know even a fraction of what their browser is capable of. So the responsibility of accommodating the needs of site visitors ends up on the shoulders of the conscientious web developer. But that’s not how it should be.

Continue reading “Don’t Provide Text Resize Widgets — Educate” »

Kuba Zwolinski’s SnowDog web site is an excellent example of a meld of unique design and standards-based web accessibility. The aged-paper and tape motif is elegantly put together, resizes well, and just plain looks great. From an accessibility perspective, Kuba has clearly put some thought into the site’s underpinnings. The site is easy to navigate by keyboard, since links have strong :focus states and are well-organized. The site also makes use of a script to allow users to set their own access keys, which is a great way to offer custom keyboard shortcuts.

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The comments made in response to Mel Pedley’s excellent article, Web Usability, started to take on a life of their own as it pertained to the relationship between “web accessibility” and “web site usability.” I personally feel that the two — accessibility and usability — have an incredible amount of common ground and are hopelessly intertwined. Married until-death-do-you-part, if you will. Being a commenter myself, I had written the following:

Continue reading “A Comparative: Accessibility and Usability” »