Two bits I didn't notice in the thread so far.
1. In the marketplace of ideas there are those who will enlist and those
who comply. Compliance is all about rules and regulations to set up some
'minimum bar' and is the basis of things like Section 508, WCAG, ADA and
international varieties. As most people know, you can comply and still
have something totally unusable or inaccessible. When somebody enlists
in an ideal they see it's value and want to do it. I think Apple has
enlisted in accessibility. Not only do they meet most standards for the
minimum bar, they went beyond and made it surprisingly usable. In
business speak they call it delighting users and you don't get that by
doing just enough to not get sued. So irregardless of what legal action
may or may not have happened, I think it's obvious that Apple is playing
at a higher level than mere compliance.
2. The NFB, being made of fallible people, is also made of divergent
viewpoints. It's really quite silly to say that the entire NFB thinks X
about Y. I was there at the NFB headquarters when they gave out the
award to Apple for the iPhone and the praise was tangible and real. They
noted that Apple had done what others for years said couldn't be, make a
non-tactile interface accessible and usable. Recognizing that some NFB
folks didn't do their diligence when reviewing VO and other bad
behavior, to toss the whole org out as a useless shill to entrenched
external powers is a bit extreme and glosses over the complexity of any
large organization. As some say, there is no such thing as bad publicity
and it's possible that the NFB missteps also brought attention to
Apple's technology that many were unfamiliar with. It also stirred up a
vocal minority to work harder at getting the word out about a different
way of working and playing. I'm not convinced the net effect was
entirely negative even if the intent was otherwise.
CB
Rob Lambert wrote:
I just got wind, from a friend of mine, that the only reason Apple is
accessible to us is because of a lawsuit by the NFB. The term of the
agreement was for accessibility improvements for three years. Here's a
question. First, what's your side of this ordeal? Second, who thinks
Apple will keep up with the accessibility improvements after this
three year term is up? I apologize for making smooth waters mirky, I
just wanted to know what your take on this was. --
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