When I was beginning with my web creations in the previous millennium – yes, I am so old – I started with “image as a website” solution. It was so easy, I just picked a nice background and then imported it in a software that enabled me to add text in the image. Then I could mark the clickable parts and here you go – a clickable image, online.
The software was so simple and I have helped an anti cancer association (non government) with their first webpage. Sure, it was static and I had to update the content manually but it worked for them.
I thought this is so great – it is on the internet, everybody (!) with a modem (a device that connected a personal computer (PC) with the internet, via old school telephone lines (opens in new window)) could see it.
I was so ignorant – not educated properly, almost nobody talked about accessibility then. But there was a board member who was using a screen-reader for the PC and I got a first-person demo of how the site was totally useless to him.
Suddenly I have understood my mistakes. Experienced them live. And remembered to think about them next time.
With really understanding other person’s experiences from their point of standing – empathy – we can all be better (developers / designers / humans / …).
me, reflecting over past experiences.
We live in amazing times. Internet is making the world even smaller than it was. Knowledge is shared, problems are solved, people are connected. But it has to include all. It has to be accessible. And when I read about difficulties that are still preventing some people to use this amazing online possibilities I am even more motivated to make accessibility a key ingredient of my works.
Understanding problems that we can cause helps a lot when we fix them. So I will try even harder to really actively seek the real problems that real people are having.
To understand the problems that fellow human experience is the first step to think about how to solve them
I’ve discovered this amazing person that lives with dual sensory loss (he is deaf and blind) – but he is able to set up a blog for himself and producing great content that can help everybody on their way to be better at understanding the needs for accessibility.
I am citing this from his website (Screenless Switcher (opens in new window)):
There is not a day that passes that I do not encounter or suffer at least some kind of problem when accessing a computer, or the internet. Although things have come a long way in recent years, not everything is accessible, or useable for a screenless switcher.
By Gizmo { DeafBlind } (opens in new window)
If you are reading my blog I invite you to also read his blog, to get first-hand information and to also experience for your self that internet really is and should be for everybody and also by everybody.
