Too much accessibility

By bim
Before being accused of blasphemy, let me explain. It's my view that some HTML attributes, or techniques designed to improve accessibility, are often over-used or over-helpfully chosen, resulting in content that is less, rather than more, accessible. Perhaps this over-egging of the pudding stems from web authors being unaware of how disabled users interact with their web sites. Or perhaps they don't fully understand what the techniques achieve and how they function. Either way, it's an awful waste to have such good intentions so badly misdirected.

As a user of two different screen readers as well as screen magnification, and being a regular user of keyboard commands for navigation, I've a vested interest in casting light on this knotty subject. So let's point a glaring spotlight on some of the ways that functional inaccessibility can result from misuse of, what should be, accessibility-enhancing techniques. Each of the culprit techniques or attributes will get it's own blog article.

If you've got a favourite, or least favourite, technique that needs a little light shed on it, get your torch out and add it to the list. To originate an article, just e-mail it to: bim.egan@rnib.org.uk with "too much accessibility article" as the subject line, and I'll post it with a link back to you.