Sorry - just realized now that I sent my reply to Judi, but intended on posting it to the list:
Derek. ************Ah, a subject near and dear to my heart :) On Nov 15, 2007 12:28 PM, Wunderlich, Judi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I have a question and would love to get everyones take on it. Does > the use of AJAX make a site more or less accessible in terms of users > with disabilities? The answer, of course, is yes, the use of Ajax makes a site more or less accessible to users with disabilities. It really depends on what you're trying to do, and how you do it that determines if the end result is an accessibility benefit or nightmare. Joseph already responded with a few ideas, so I'll expand on them, or add my take to them: "chances are that what you will want to do with AJAX will end up making it harder for a person using a "reader" (such as JAWS) to navigate through your site -- and probably impossible." We definitely must ask the question "what should we be using Ajax for in the first place?" Is it because it makes the interface easier to use, or is it just because we can use Ajax? This is impossible to answer without context, so I won't dwell on it, but asking that question is critical for any use of Ajax, not just as it relates to accessibility. I don't agree with the "probably impossible" assessment that Joseph provides, though. Nothing personal, but in my experience and my opinion, this isn't the case. It comes down to implementation and planning correctly. Done correctly, it can actually make it *more* accessible and easier to use for someone using a screen reader. "JAWS is not able to successfully interpret all javascript. Drag and drop for example is beyond JAWS, as are other complex interactions" Right - this is not an Ajax/JavaScript problem or a JAWS problem, it is a keyboard problem. Generally speaking, any screen reader user won't be able to use drag and drop in their operating system either. However, at the operating system level, they have alternative mechanisms for accomplishing the same tasks -- all of the actions/operations are found in menus and are easy to access with a screen reader. The drag and drop issue goes away if it isn't your only mechanism. Other people might have greater difficulty with drag and drop - people with mobility/dexterity impairments may well prefer "click and stick" to drag and drop, and a screen reader user would need to use another mechanism. "For example, where javascript is used to call up more data (such as in an i-frame) JAWS simply may not be able to tell the user how to access the information." This is quite true - it really does depend on how the page is updated with the new information/data. However, this is mostly an implementation issue. And, in some ways - it isn't the responsibility of JAWS to tell the user how to access the information. It is the responsibility of the developer to ensure that they are: 1) updating the page in a way that is technically correct, and 2) providing cues/clues that something has been updated. "I recommend, if you or your clients are needing to become more compliant with accessibility requirements, that you acquaint yourselves with JAWS and other readers for the visually impaired." I'll be honest - I recommend that you don't. Acquainting yourself with JAWS and other screen readers isn't the way to go. Acquaint yourself with how people use them by watching them in their environment is much much better. If you simply download or purchase a screen reader and try to use it, you'll find that it is difficult, learning how to use the screen reader is difficult, and nothing more than an approximation of how a screen reader might sound at a very technical level. It does not give you any sense of how people actually use them, interact with web applications and sites, and can easily lead to a false sense of security. Hope this helps... Derek. Derek Featherstone work: http://furtherahead.com blog: http://boxofchocolates.ca learn: http://north08.webdirections.org ________________________________________________________________ *Come to IxDA Interaction08 | Savannah* February 8-10, 2008 in Savannah, GA, USA Register today: http://interaction08.ixda.org/ ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help
