North Texas 23: Thing 3 – Flickr

Flickr is a ton of fun!  Since I already have several programs on my computer for organizing and editing photos, including Photoshop, I didn’t see the need to open an account.  However, I could while away endless hours browsing this fascinating site, and the options for making albums and other collectibles is intriguing.

Libraries and schools might have many occasions to use Flickr for different purposes, but it seems that if used as a storage location, some protocol for local backup would be desirable.

On a family trip over the 4th of July, I went to Louisiana. On the home page, I entered “Louisiana” as the search term, and on the first page of results, retrieved this lovely picture of the Calcasieu River Bridge (http://www.flickr.com/photos/80651083@N00/97228003/).  I’ve traveled it many times, and it often looks like this.

Flickr might seem to pose problems in use for people with visual impairments. Remember, if pictures from Flickr or other sites are to be incorporated in electronic resources, alternate text, or the “alt tag,” needs to be included.  This short list of tips from the American Foundation for the Blind gives a simple explanation (http://www.afb.org/Section.asp?SectionID=4&TopicID=167&DocumentID=1453).

North Texas 23: Thing 2 – Learn about Learning 2.0

After viewing the video with Stephen Abrams’ comments and reading the articles on Learning 2.0 and Web 2.0, the concepts are a little less murky. From my point of view, the technologies listed on the North Texas 23 list are not so “new” – they expand on existing features and capabilities of web and e-mail technology and add more bells and whistles.  I was vaguely aware of most of them, but hadn’t felt any real need to use them. Searching for, and using, established websites and keeping up with several e-mail lists met my needs for web technology utilization.

The technologies bundled under the terms “Learning 2.0” and “Web 2.0” are, in my opinion, more like “channels of distribution” that librarians need to be aware of for purposes of public relations. Some patrons may use these “new” technologies exclusively, and it would be foolish to ignore them. However, it’s hard for me to conceive that a library with a website and e-mail access would suffer dramatically by not using them.

I wonder if most of these technologies will exist as they are today within 5 years time? If they follow trends in software development and search engine launches, some will be gone completely, others will be a feature of Microsoft Office, and still others will be merged with other services.

Since a major concern of mine is universal accessibility of electronic resources for people with disabilities, I found it interesting that Mr. Abrams failed to mention the concept in his remarks.  James Coltham, a WordPress blogger from Edinburgh, UK offers his comments on the accessibility of social media for people with disabilities in this post: (http://www.prettysimple.co.uk/blog/index.php/2009/06/accessibility-and-social-media/).

To champion such technologies without acknowledging their deficiencies shows naivete’ that seems greatly at odds with librarians’ claims to be champions of  “access for all.”  The Web, Web 2.0, and Learning 2.0 are worldwide phenomena, and affect people with disabilities around the world. Advocates for people with disabilities in every country are aware of the issues, and the solutions they have found are widely and easily disseminated on the Web.

As a profession that claims a high level of expertise in the utilization of Web technology, a great deal of cognitive dissonance is created when librarians seem unaware of the deficiencies in access evident in many electronic resources. The information to remedy this deficit is available quite easily on the Web; it only takes a little effort to find it and apply it.

North Texas 23: Thing 1 – Set Up Blog

I approached this task with a certain degree of confidence. A blog is about writing – right? I can do that. I soon learned that my confidence was a little misplaced. I wanted to have a blog which was, as far as possible, “universally accessible,” that is, accessible to people with disabilities who have visual impairments and/or learning disabilities and use screen readers. I posted inquiries on a list that addresses access issues for people with disabilities, and received the recommendation that among Google, WordPress, and Typepad, WordPress was one of the most accessible blog hosting services.

One respondent noted that difficulties with accessibility could occur in a couple of ways: difficulty with logging on to the service because of  “Captcha” – the oddly arranged letters that have to be read and re-entered, and/or difficulty with reading the interface itself with ascreen reader.

I decided to try WordPress, and encountered my first difficulty – there is WordPress.com (the site for developing a free blog) and WordPress.org (requires a fee and offers more features). I wandered around the WordPress.org site for a while before realizing my mistake and eventually started the log in process for WordPress.com. I had several points of difficulty but found the help features to be excellent. I got back quick replies and in some cases the tasks where I had difficulty were completed for me.  However, I think an individual with a visual impairment might have a great deal of difficulty logging on to this site.

I was introduced to Web2Access (http://www.web2access.org.uk/) after this was originally posted.  After looking at the site,  I realized that most of my difficulty in setting up the blog had to do with item 11 on the Web2Access page for WordPress – Appropriate Feedback with Forms, which should tell the user what to do next (http://www.web2access.org.uk/product/4/).  Oviously, poor web design can impact anyone, not only those with disabilities.

After creating my first post on my theme, Spring Loaded, I felt like I had achieved quite an accomplishment!

I had received several comments from my question about accessible blogs, and some included link references for further information. Mrs. E.A. Draffan of the Learning Societies Lab, University of Southampton, England commented that two rich text editors could accessible blogs. TinyMCE (http://wiki.moxiecode.com/index.php/TinyMCE%3AAccessibility) is the rich text editor used by WordPress.com.  The editor can be reached using a keyboard and the menu buttons are accessible. The designer can change color contrast levels and text sizes.

Later, in my post on Thing 8 on July 26, 2009,  I mentioned that Mrs. Draffan had told me about this site – Web2Access (http://www.web2access.org.uk/).  It documents tests for accessibility run on numerous social media web sites, and the results are given in detail for particular types of disability.  Since those with visual impairments and other issues related to the visual sense often experience one of the highest levels of difficulty with poorly designed websites, I will comment especially on those results; however, I am well aware that people with many kinds of disabilities experience difficulties, and Web2Access provides abundant information on these issues.

A number of different tests for accessibility were performed on each website for each kind of disability.  The specific disabilities and the applicable tests are at http://www.web2access.org.uk/disability/#disability3. Results are expressed in percentages.  The site notes that “Percentages do not indicate how much of a site is accessible. They indicate the average figure of test results relevant to each disability. Select a disability to see which tests are relevant to it.”

Google’s Blogger received scores of  82%  for those with blindness/severe visual impairments, 78%  for those with partial visual acuity, and  78%  for those with issues about visual stress (http://www.web2access.org.uk/product/150/).  WordPress received scores of 83%  for those with blindness/severe visual impairments, 78%  for those with partial visual acuity, and  78%  for those with issues about visual stress (http://www.web2access.org.uk/product/4/).  Typepad was not evaluated on Web2Access.

CAST (Center for Applied Special Technology), an organization well-known for advocacy for people with disabilities, chose WordPress for its blog (http://udlguidelines.edublogs.org/).  Another respondent noted that WordPress.org had a forum for accessibility issues (http://wordpress.org/tags/accessibility), but WordPress.com required that I post questions through Help and Support. I got quick, friendly answers, including – in response to my question – a suggestion that K-2 Lite, rather than Spring Loaded might be an easier theme for screen readers to handle. However, my respondent from WordPress.com indicated that the site had room for improvement in its understanding of accessibility issues and even asked that I forward helpful links!

FCKeditor is another accessible rich text editor (http://docs.fckeditor.net/FCKeditor_3.x/Design_and_Architecture/Accessibility).

I received links to several sites that offer critiques of the accessibility of blogging sites for visually impaired users: The American Foundation for the Blind evaluated several blogging services (http://www.afb.org/Section.asp?SectionID=57&DocumentID=2753); How to Make Your Blog Accessible to Blind Readers (http://www.afb.org/Section.asp?SectionID=57&TopicID=167&DocumentID=2757) is also on this site.  Another respondent suggested All Access Blogging (http://www.allaccessblogging.com/), a blog about accessible blogs!

After reading through several of these, I noted that tips for accessible blogs were derivative of the accessible web design practices promoted by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG20/). They include: pay attention to page organization, use alt tags for images, be aware of color contrast issues etc.

For now, with my current level of knowledge about these issues, I am satisfied that WordPress.com is a good choice for this project and K-2 Lite is an acceptable, accessible theme.

Exploring DAISy (ANSI/NISO Z39.86-2005)

DAISy (digital accessible information system) is a complex topic, but many resources exist to explain its facets.  For those who want to begin to learn more about DAISy, the home page of the DAISy Consortium is a great place to start (http://www.daisy.org/).  For those without a background in HTML and other similar computer languages, the article by Lynn Leith, “Reading the DAISY Way,” provides a good introduction to DAISy (http://www.digitaltalkingbook.com/publications/docs/20070315155100/intro-article1.html).  The “History of the DAISY Consortium” gives the background on the development of DAISy from its beginnings  (http://www.daisy.org/about_us/history.php).  Moto Kaneko’s story of his company’s involvement with DAISy illuminates one of the international contributions to the story of DAISy (http://www.daisy.org/stories/shinano-kenshi.php).   Gaeir Dietrich’ s synopsis in “DAISY 101”  provides an outline of DAISy’s essential features (http://www.digitaltalkingbook.com/publications/docs/daisy101/daisy_101.html).

DAISy fits into the larger context of digital book publication. The article by Janina Sajka and George Kerscher, “Surpassing Gutenberg – An AFB White Paper,” explains how DAISy fits into the larger world of digital publishing(http://www.afb.org/Section.asp?SectionID=4&TopicID=222&DocumentID=1224).  To receive updates on current events in the world of DAISY, subscribe to the monthly e-newsletter, “The DAISY Planet”  (http://www.daisy.org/news/newsletters/subscribe.php).

After Some Consideration…

As sometimes happens, I’ve found that my initial plan demands revision. I had hoped to explore the technologies involved in the NTLP 23 Things project, research any limitations they had in regard to universal accessibility for people with disabilities, and post on my findings. I had simultaneously hoped to post on developments in the world of DAISy.

After starting this blog, and accomplishing some research on universal accessibility and blogs, I found that I had accomplished very little else! In order to finish the NTLP 23 Things project by the end of its timeline, I find that I will have to postpone additional research on the universal accessibility of these technologies, and in-depth comments on DAISy, until a later date.

Exploring New Social Media Technologies (with some comments on accessibility for people with disabilities)

I began this blog as part of the project sponsored by the North Texas Library Partners – North Texas 23 Things: A Roundup of Web 2.0 Technology http://northtexas23.blogspot.com/.  The project will allow for the exploration of a number of “new” technologies related to the social media – blogging, Flickr, Facebook, Ning, and a number of others.

Although I have never kept a diary or journal regularly, I had thought of beginning a blog to discuss one of my current areas of interest, the DAISy (digital accessible information system) standard -ANSI/NISO Z39.86-2005.

Since the first project for North Texas 23 was the development of a blog, it seemed the right opportunity and topic had been presented, and so I begin!

DAISy, the standard for digital talking books (or documents) is one of the most significant advances to date in the development of media in alternate formats for people with disabilities. Most current conferences devoted to accessible technology for people with disabilities are currently focusing on the enormous potential of DAISy to improve access to books – printed in the traditional sense; or published documents – those on the World Wide Web, in distance learning environments, or those disseminated by other means.

However, there are still many barriers in established modes of communication (including the World Wide Web), and new social media are no exception. Although a great body of information on designing accessible media exists, and much of it is freely available on the Internet, websites are still designed without thought given to useability by people with disabilities and new types of media are routinely introduced without consideration being given to accessible design.

As I explore the social media technologies required for the North Texas 23 Things, I plan to comment on issues that arise for people with disabilities who want to use them.  When possible, Iwill provide links to discussions, resources, and “fixes” that have been developed  to increase their use.