Posted by Els on 10/16/36 11:17

Travis Newbury wrote:

> dorayme wrote:
>>> Oh I completely agree with you. You can find a million times where I
>>> say that most sites, especially if they depend on their website for
>>> revenue, should be accessible to as many people as possible. But what I
>>> have a problem with is "need to be". I don't believe the web should be
>>> regulated so a site "has" to be accessible, or usable. Yes, if I am
>>> selling widgets it only make sense to have my site accessible, and
>>> usable by as many as possible.
>> That is not the impression you gave at the very beginning of this thread
>> when it was still called Trading Post. You were quite happy that the site
>> concerned was as slow as hell in operation on dial up.
>
> No I was not quite happy, I was indifferent. I am (as was stated later)
> on broadband and I do not see those speed issues.
>
>>> I am completely against any form of regulation on the web. And forcing
>>> a site to be accessible or usable to all would be a regulation. Yes it
>>> might be dumb for a site to take that route, and in most cases it
>>> probably is dumb. But I would rather have sites learn from their
>>> stupidity or g out of business because of it than to regulate what they
>>> can or can not do.
>>
>> Force? Any? Form? Regulation? Who is forcing what?
>
> The governments and lawyers are (trying to)forcing usability and
> accessibility. Many here are caught up on the bandwagon. It is easy
> to rally behind them when they use the "D" word (Discrimination)
>
>> I am wondering who you
>> are actually disputing? Who recognizes you as criticizing them in
>> particular? Name some names.
>
> US, UK and Australian governments.

Just to make sure I'm not misunderstanding things:
I thought the rule that websites have to be accessible and not
discriminate against for instance the visually impaired, would be
enforced for the same institutions that are by law required to provide
access for wheelchairs, like public libraries, government
buildings/websites, not the local grocery or the Beatles fanclub
magazine?

I do agree with the obligation for all government websites to be
accessible, but I can't see how any government could make it a law
that barbie.com has to be accessible.

No one /needs/ access to barbie.com, but it's illegal (imo) to
obstruct the entrance to the post office so that a disabled person
can't send a letter, or to make a public library site inaccessible to
the blind, even though they have enough braille books in their
collection.

--
Els http://locusmeus.com/
Sonhos vem. Sonhos vão. O resto é imperfeito.
- Renato Russo -

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