Web accessibility is being more properly handled by browser creators using magnification functionality, which more effectively provides a better, more satisfying user experience because images, as well as text, can be magnified. While previous magnification functionality has required users to scroll horizontally, that, too, is being addressed by browser creators.
So designers can be a good bridge to a better future for users, ultimately the browser creators will provide better solutions than we can...and I'm a visually impaired user who does not want to have a better view of only the text, but the entire layout as designed. Rick On Wed, Jul 1, 2009 at 5:33 PM, Dennis Lapcewich <dlapcew...@fs.fed.us>wrote: > > If you are unsure that web accessibility should play a role, take this > test. In a group of people have everyone stand up. Those who are unable to > stand may remain seated. Now pose these three requests, in order: > > 1) If you are wear glasses, contacts and/or have had corrective eye > surgery, please sit down. > 2) Of those who remain standing, if you know for a fact you are > color-blind, please sit down. > 3) Of those who now remain standing, everyone aged 35-40 or more, please > sit down. > > Those who are left standing have little to no "immediate" need for web > accessibility, but they will in time. Of those who sat down, while many > (most?) may not meet a legal definition as being "disabled," for all > intents and purposes they are web disabled and are in immediate need of web > accessibility. I average 80 percent or more end up sitting down every time > I perform this test. > > The short three question test is not scientific. It is not "technically" > accurate. But as an illustrative tool to raise accessibility awareness, it > is 100 percent effective. Here in the USA, 20 percent of the population is > disabled. That's sixty million people. Many of these disabilities have no > connection with web accessibility. If you believe web accessibility > provides no revenue return for a site owner, think again. Those who possess > the wealth and spend the money are those who are sitting down. They are the > ones that vote. It only took one blind person in California to bring down > target.com, using a law not written to address web accessibility. > > Accessibility is not about the law. It's about doing the right thing. And > when it comes to web accessibility, everyone at some point will be a > disabled web user. > > Dennis Lapcewich > US Forest Service Webmaster > DRM Civil Rights POC > Pacific Northwest Region - Vancouver, WA > 360.891.5024 - Voice | 360.891.5045 - Fax > dlapcew...@fs.fed.us > > "People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing > it." -- George Bernard Shaw > > “…where conflicting interests must be reconciled, the question will always > be decided from the standpoint of the greatest good of the greatest number > in the long run.” --Gifford Pinchot, Chief Forester, 1905 > > ******************************************************************* > List Guidelines: http://webstandardsgroup.org/mail/guidelines.cfm > Unsubscribe: http://webstandardsgroup.org/join/unsubscribe.cfm > Help: memberh...@webstandardsgroup.org > ******************************************************************* -- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Ninety percent of the politicians give the other ten percent a bad reputation." Henry Kissinger ******************************************************************* List Guidelines: http://webstandardsgroup.org/mail/guidelines.cfm Unsubscribe: http://webstandardsgroup.org/join/unsubscribe.cfm Help: memberh...@webstandardsgroup.org *******************************************************************
