[access-uk] Re: Google is more accessible from today
- From: "Adrian Higginbotham" <adrian.higginbotham@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2006 13:50:57 -0000
Certainly it makes skimming through results easier for this user but is
it an improvement to accessibility or just a confluence by design or
miss-fortune of one feature within one popular screenreading product and
the semantics of a single website.
To my mind tailoring your Website to fit with the functionality with
one, or a small number of specific products is not accessibility. What
about users of systems or technologies that don't have the ability to
use that particular feature. The purpose of international standards and
specifications, or guidance such as the WAI WCAG guidelines is that
accessibility can be implemented in a way that is technology
independent.
I'd rather see assistive technology venders make their product conform
with wcag guidance than websites that adapt to the functions of the
products.
Headings should be used for structural mark-up which arguably this is
not.
Use a header to identify the beginning of the search results section by
all means but rely on the Links from that point onward.
Adrian Higginbotham
Project manager, Standards
British Educational Communications and Technology Agency - BECTA
Tel: Direct dial 024 7679 7333 - Becta switchboard 02476-416994.
Email: Adrian.Higginbotham@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Web: http://www.becta.org.uk/
BECTA, Millburn Hill Road, Science Park, Coventry, CV4 7JJ
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: 15 November 2006 12:03
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Google is more accessible from today
Hi all.
Have you noticed that Google is more accessible from today?
When it returns your search results, each result is a heading. So, with
jaws for instance, you can just whip thru them quickly using the letter
H or do insert-F6 to bring up the list of headings.
This gets my accessibility of the year award 2006 because it
significantly decreases my research time on search engines.
Give it a go. I'd be interested to hear your feedback and it's the kind
of thing I'd like to share with the BBC's accessibility gurus. A small
thing like this can really make a difference. Does it make a difference
to you?
...Damon
http://www.bbc.co.uk/
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