Hamilton, the accessibility specialist.
“How much of this spectrum can use
what we produce is entirely dependent on
the decisions we as designers, developers
and content producers make. It’s about
avoiding a mismatch between what we
produce and the needs and abilities of the
people who use it.”
So can we assume developers are aware
of these fundamental principles? Yes,
says Eric Bailey, designer at thoughtbot.
“It has just been so normalised into
technology that we oftentimes forget
its roots,” he explains. “What is really
important in accessibility awareness,
especially for emerging technologies, is
communicating that it’s something that’s
essential to some but useful to all.”GAME-CHANGING TECH
Designing with this awareness of a11y
across current and emerging technologies
is therefore a crucial point. “Nowadays,
with the emergence of new devices andusages, being accessible doesn’t mean
that your website only has to work
for screen readers,” explains Nicolas
Garnier, freelance creative developer.
“Smartphones definitely changed a lot in
terms of how we develop websites. With
each manufacturer and browser came
its own set of rules and touch gestures
played a big role in the importance of
forging good UX.”
Indeed, Hamilton agrees we only
have to look at our smartphones to see
how accessibility problems can spawn
fantastic technological solutions that
are useful to the majority. “A few of the
features you use the most on it are a
touchscreen, a microphone and a virtual
keyboard,” he says. “The multitouch techfocus on how we can be inclusive to those
with cognitive impairments.”STANDARDS SHIFT
So what impacts the tools we use as
developers and how do these go on to
impact accessibility? It can seem a little
bit of a chicken and egg scenario, with
new coding standards driving technology
and vice versa. “HTML5 has allowed
many developers to effectively translate
the vision of designers with a wide range
of tools that were only available during
the Flash era,” Garnier explains. “With
these tools came some good and bad
practices, which in turn influenced theAbove Zara Gemmell, accessibility
director, HeX Productions“WHAT IS IMPORTANT IN ACCESSIBILITY AWARENESS,
ESPECIALLY FOR EMERGING TECH, IS COMMUNICATING THAT
IT’S SOMETHING ESSENTIAL TO SOME BUT USEFUL TO ALL”
that Apple bought for the screen of the
first iPhone was developed for repetitive
strain injury.”
Such hardware innovations and
modes of input have continued to evolve
of course, creating new web-enabled
experiences that can’t be ignored.
“Smart devices and wearables have been
a game-changer, bringing much more
interactivity to everyone be it gestures,
speech or touch,” says James Hall,
creative director of HeX Productions.
“These technologies offer disabled
people another point of access – but in
many ways smart technology is assistive
technology for everyone. And, just like
we did with mobile devices, we need to
ensure we test this technology with real
users and understand the varied ways
that people use these technologies to
better their life. This means that if you’re
developing or designing skills or add-ons
for these devices, you need to be aware of
the people that are using them.”EVOLVING NEEDS
And this isn’t something that’s fixed: just
as technology is changing, you must also
be cognisant of exactly how accessibility
needs are shifting. “In short, a user,
regardless of their disabilities, be they
physical or cognitive, want to use digital
services in a way that does not separate
them from society or create any barriers
that a person without a disability wouldn’t
face,” says Ben Leach, digital marketing
and PR exec at HeX Productions. “I think
with additional focused research, we are
getting a better understanding of exactly
how people are using the technology
that is being built. In the latest edition of
WCAG 2.1, we’ve seen a greater emphasis
being put on access for blind users on
mobile devices, as well as an increasedFEATURES
The new frontier of accessibility