a11y (digital accessibility)

The Galaxy S25 is receiving a low-energy Bluetooth mode that makes it compatible with hearing aids. TalkBack is receiving updates to support braille displays and improved image descriptions generated by Gemini. These features should appear on the Android 16 beta and become available on other devices soon. #accessibility

This article by Lucy Greco highlights the shortcomings of the PDF format and why it is much easier to create an accessible document using Microsoft Word. #accessibility

Adrian Roselli's article highlights why you shouldn't wrap a figure in a link. He tests with a wide range of screen reading software to demonstrate how this can create an accessibility barrier. The article also finds that adding a title attribute does not improve the user experience. Check out the full article for more information. #accessibility

Karl Groves highlights why no ARIA is better than bad ARIA in this short YouTube Video. When using HTML elements like input type="radio" the behavior for the radio button is already defined. However, those behaviors are not conveyed when using span role "radio" This means you need to define the behavior of the element to ensure it is accessible. Adding in some ARIA to convey the role is not enough. This is why you should use HTML elements whenever possible. #accessibility

The Nintendo Switch 2 has been revealed this week. I thought I'd share a post from AbleGamers looking at the original Switch's accessibility at launch. Xbox and Playstation both have developed their own first-party accessible controllers. There was a third-party accessible controller developed by Hori and released in Japan for the original Switch. Nintendo should embrace gamers with disabilities by creating an accessibility-focused first-party controller. #accessibility

Check out this literature review on accessible and inclusive online learning in higher education by Dr. Lomellini, Dr. Lowenthal, Dr. Snelson, and Dr. Trespalacios. It outlines the barriers students face in an online learning environment and explores inclusive online learning frameworks like Universal Design for Learning. It explores the role faculty and instructional designers have in creating accessible online courses. Check out the full article for more information. #accessibility

Microsoft PowerPoint 365 on Mac has been updated to support exporting an accessible tagged PDF. This is a feature that was missing on Mac for years. Microsoft's Accessibility Checker has been updated to check for skipped heading levels. However, it does not flag documents with no headings. #accessibility

I hadn't thought of editing the CSS of the exported published course to make the focus indicator accessible. I wish Rise would make the focus indicator adjustable on a per-block basis. There are a lot of other helpful tips related to Rise accessibility too. #accessibility

If you use Equidox I have created a host of tutorial videos on how to remediate PDF documents using the platform. Remember to remove tags from the source document before uploading to Equidox to avoid compatibility issues. In Equidox you can add accessibility features including headings, alt text, lists, tables, and links. Check out the videos for more information. #accessibility

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/29703847

The video player is testing a new AI tool to create subtitles in over 100 languages.

The PDF Association displays technical techniques about how to create accessible PDF documents. They cover how to test, along with pass and failure descriptions. #accessibility

The DOJ issued a new rule requiring public colleges and universities to meet WCAG 2.1 standards in about 2 years. This rule applies to instructional content, which has previously been exempt. This requirement is a big step forward for accessibility but it will require universities to dedicate resources to making their web content and documents accessible. It should also lead to these institutions embracing a more proactive approach in the future. #accessibility

AccessiBe is one of the more well known accessibility overlay companies. This FTC settlement suggests that these accessibility overlay companies have been making unsubstantiated claims about the capabilities of their software. I recommend checking out the Overlay Fact Sheet for more information. For example, a lot of the automated fixes like adding alt text to images and field labels are not reliable. These repairs can also cause unexpected issues. Basically, these companies need to better represent the limitations of their product. Additionally, overlays offer assistive technology features like font and color changes. However, users who need these features are probably implementing them at the system or web browser level. An overlay only enables these features on one website, which isn't as helpful.

This study explores the accessibility of online courses at a Midwestern University. The results show that most faculty are not implementing accessibility features. Instead, they are taking a more reactive approach. When a student with an accommodation enrolls in a course then accessibility features are implemented. There is a need for universities to be more proactive and create accessible documents and video/audio materials. #accessibility

cross-posted from: https://rblind.com/post/3476242

As part of OurBlind's continued efforts to provide accessible online spaces for the blind and visually impaired community, we've developed custom themes for Lemmy, to use on our Lemmy instance on Rblind, and to make available for others, in keeping with the themes' license terms and the spirit of free and open source software.

If you're reading this on www.rblind.com and are not signed in, you're using RBlind-Dark. We hope you're enjoying it! If you log in, you can switch to RBlind-Light. Once logged in, go to your username, then Settings and, use the Themes dropdown to make your selection: we suggest RBlind-Dark or RBlind-Light at the end of the list.

Why these themes matter to us

We started this Lemmy instance back in 2023, prompted by the Reddit API protests. Reddit Inc., the company that controls the website our community r/Blind is on, had announced policy changes that made the apps most of us used to participate in the Reddit community impossible to maintain. During this time it became clear to us and many other online communities that a corporate-owned platform would always be subject to pressures that are contrary to our needs. We launched this site as our blind-friendly home base in the fediverse, a decentralized and often self-hosted social media platform.

The goal of having our own home server was always to be able to make our own decisions about the software we run on it. One of those decisions is that the visual styling should always be comfortable for low-vision users and other disabled people, as part of our core audience. That meant designing and providing themes that, within our technical limitations, conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

How we designed our Lemmy themes

OurBlind admins contracted Travis, a talented graphic designer from within the community, for this project. Check out his website here. Together we went over specific requirenments within WCAG and the site's usage, colors, layout, preliminary testing, and communication, to develop both the themes themselves and the framework for future work and sharing.

How these themes meet our goals

In short, the new themes ensure high contrast, colorblind friendly colors, readable fonts, and appropriately-sized and readable buttons and links.

Following are examples of the home feed using the new themes.

RBlind-Dark example

RBlind-Light example

Time for testing and feedback

These have been audited by OurBlind admins, but that's only part of the validation process. If you're using this site and have low vision, colorblindness, a cognitive or a motor disability, consider providing feedback. Do they work well given your needs and use case? Do you like them? Does something not work quite right? Comment below or fill out the anonymous survey. Don't hesitate to comment if you're not a member of this instance or not disabled - we want these to be helpful to as many people as possible. Thank you!

We'll be collecting feedback and open to revisions until February 1st 2025. Even after that, we'll still be interested in your experience, but will take longer to respond and adjust.

How to use these themes on your own instance

As mentioned, this project is all about the value of free and open source software in ensuring control and autonomy. We're making this our home in the fediverse and we want to be good neighbors. We already offer the broader community a place for discussions around blindness, but we also want to contribute back.

These themes are licensed under GNU AFFERO General Public License and available at the Codeberg repo to be used or modified. Updates to the themes that come as a result of user feedback will be available there. Definitely give Travis a star and consider hiring for your own design needs, he's been a delight to work with.

The repo is also mirrored on GitHub for accessibility reasons.

Thanks, from RBlind

This community's journey has been long and thrilling, across three platforms and over a decade. Everybody on the admin and moderation team has deeply benefitted from and grown with the community. These themes are a humble gift to our members and our neighbors on the fediverse. May they make all our lives that bit more comfortable.

cross-posted from: https://rblind.com/post/3405642

W3C, DAISY and NISO are co-hosting a webinar: Advancing Digital Accessibility for Scientific & Technical Publications

The DAISY Consortium, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and the National Information Standards Organization (NISO) invite you to this Webinar happening on December 17, 10:00-11:30 AM Eastern time, 15:00–16:30 UTC.

If you're looking to gather a wide range of accessibility news articles check out Deque's monthly Accessibility Reads newsletter. #accessibility

This research article explores common digital accessibility barriers relating to PDF files and Moodle course pages. Some of the common accessibility errors include a lack of alternative text on meaningful images, hard-to-read text, and redundant non-descriptive links. Please check out the full article for more information. #accessibility

I found this alternative text advice to be very helpful and to cover a wide range of use cases. #accessibility

This article highlights some of the accessibility issues related to read-only controls and why they should be avoided in most circumstances. #accessibility