Posted by dorayme on 08/08/07 02:10

In article <Xns9985D05AA70D9karlkarlcorecom@130.81.64.196>,
Karl Groves <karl@NOSPAMkarlcore.com> wrote:

> dorayme <doraymeRidThis@optusnet.com.au> wrote in news:doraymeRidThis-
> 04D3DB.07283208082007@news-vip.optusnet.com.au:
>
> > In article <Xns9985931E96C42karlkarlcorecom@130.81.64.196>,
> > Karl Groves <karl@NOSPAMkarlcore.com> wrote:
> >
> >> Having observed disabled people actually using sites, I can say that my
> >> personal opinion is that it doesn't really matter (for blind users) so
> >> long as: a) they can access content easily without being burdened with
> >> repetitious tabbing past lists of links and, b) they can effectively
> >> navigate when they need to. c) they know how to do "a" and "b"
> >
> > Well said and there were more useful remarks too by you...
> >
> > I would like to see some examples of your advice being
> > implemented, have you any urls at hand that are in your opinion
> > fine enough examples please?
> >
>
> I believe that the WebAIM site does a good job of leading by example:
> http://webaim.org/
>

Thanks for this.

As JH says, body {font-size: .85em} is not the best, but in this
case, from a quick look, it actually looks fine with body
{font-size: 100%;) so there is no particular reason for the
smaller.

> One thing that concerns me is "discoverability" of the skip link where it
> is. The sad truth is that skip links are used so infrequently that only
> technically proficient users are likely to use it. In disabled populations,
> technical proficiency is far lower than in non-disabled ones. What may
> happen is that the disabled users may not look for (and therefore may not
> notice) the skip link or know what they should do with it. Once they do
> discover & use it, however, they're likely to appreciate it very much.

I expect authors would be reluctant to make it more prominent for
aesthetic reasons, they see it from the start as something
marginal, they would like to sort of hide it for the majority but
want also to include it for the minority.

There are at least two ways to go on this. Bite the bullet and
make it prominent and build it in to the design 'at the top' or
for first announcement. Unlike the url above where it simply
looks like a blemish, an afterthought.

The other way to go is this, make the skip to content the very
first item of a prominent 'navigation first' strategy.

In a way, I think there is not one good general answer to the OPs
question because so much depends on particular considerations.

--
dorayme

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