Hi, this really is shocking and I should be surprised on reading this but sadly I am not. It is par for the course regrettably.
It beggars belief that the soon to be unsupported XP is the most up to date version of Windows that it is claimed will be screen reader friendly. I know that many will continue with XP but wonder how many have changed to Windows 7 which is hardly a new release as 8 is already out but to disenfranchise JAWS and Supernova users as is evidently the case sends a rather clear message that we, the hard of seeing have yet again been overlooked by Central Government who would appear to be in danger of breaking the Equalities Act.
The idea of printing it out etc just goes to show just how limited is their collective knowledge of the problems the hard of seeing face on a daily basis. This just causes more problems for screen reader users who have little alternative options in respect of keeping up to speed with assistive technology that allows us to do so many things that would otherwise leave us as outsiders. I would like to know what the involvement of the RNIB, if any has played in this fiasco or if they were even consulted about this matter?
What a shambles, you really couldn't make it up, cheers, CJ. On 30/04/2013 13:38, Jonathan H wrote:
I find this pretty shocking. This is the government's current DLA claim site. Here is the requirements page: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/eservice/need.asp# Begin quote: "If you use Jaws or Supernova screen readers, we apologise for any problems you may experience. The service does not work properly with Macs or other Unix-based systems even though you may be able to input information. You are likely to have problems if you use Internet Explorer 7, 8, 9 and 10, Windows Vista. The latest supported operating system is Windows XP. This service doesn’t work with some modern browsers and operating systems". End quote. Now let's check the law: http://www.rnib.org.uk/professionals/webaccessibility/lawsandstandards/Pages/uk_law.aspx "If someone with a disability, such as sight loss, can't access the information on your website then it could be seen as discrimination. The Equality Act came into force in October 2010, replacing the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) in England, Scotland and Wales". It's one thing to have a shoddy blog website, but for a multi-million pound government disability website to violate the law quite so spectacularly and exclude screen readers is way beyond acceptable. When I phoned, they tried to claim that it can also be done by downloading a PDF, printing it out and filling it in. That's not an acceptable excuse - if you have a website, it needs to be acceptable. Complaints should be directed to eservicehelpdesk@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx I gave up waiting on hold to RNIB helpline to ask what to do about this, still waiting for callback since 11am. If anyone knows what can be done about this, then please let me know. ** To leave the list, click on the immediately-following link:- ** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=unsubscribe] ** If this link doesn't work then send a message to: ** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx ** and in the Subject line type ** unsubscribe ** For other list commands such as vacation mode, click on the ** immediately-following link:- ** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=faq] ** or send a message, to ** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the Subject:- faq
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