Apparently Leopard is geared more towards elders than the blind.
Most Windows applications have keyboard navigation built in. I am not sure if this is a problem with OSX apps or if this is just a cultural thing within MS / Apple. Apple was always very visual and the use of the mouse was what made the Apple OS stand apart in the early days. But keyboard navigation should be standardized across the board. If a dialog box pops up in OSX and takes focus it is often impossible to select anything but the preselected choice. This is really annoying, not just for blind users (becomes impossible), but for all keyboard users. Just now a MobileMe sync alert popped up on my screen and stole focus. None of the choices were highlighted and I am unable to get rid of it using keyboard commands. I should be able to tab through the choices and hit enter. This is standard on the web and on Windows and I have never figured out why this isn't implemented in OSX.
US Government agencies, such as FEMA, strive to create JAWS friendly sites making them less interactive. Dreamweaver's Accessibility report is a partial solution, and PDF accessibility is time consuming flaky, the tagging features behave poorly.
US Govt sites are required to make their content accessible under Section 508 guidelines. Many large-scale corporations are under pressure and have been involved in lawsuits due to their lack of accessibility as well.
Accessibility should be a major element of all applications, GUIs and websites. Enhancing content visibility, operability of interfaces and the context of the information we come in contact with streamlines things for everyone and provides many net benefits. For websites, it also enhances google results.
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I personally haven't worked with a blind person but that is good to know. Anyway I found this helpful cnet article on the topic:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10784_3-9808510-7.html
Apparently Leopard is geared more towards elders than the blind.
Most Windows applications have keyboard navigation built in. I am not sure if this is a problem with OSX apps or if this is just a cultural thing within MS / Apple. Apple was always very visual and the use of the mouse was what made the Apple OS stand apart in the early days. But keyboard navigation should be standardized across the board. If a dialog box pops up in OSX and takes focus it is often impossible to select anything but the preselected choice. This is really annoying, not just for blind users (becomes impossible), but for all keyboard users. Just now a MobileMe sync alert popped up on my screen and stole focus. None of the choices were highlighted and I am unable to get rid of it using keyboard commands. I should be able to tab through the choices and hit enter. This is standard on the web and on Windows and I have never figured out why this isn't implemented in OSX.
US Government agencies, such as FEMA, strive to create JAWS friendly sites making them less interactive. Dreamweaver's Accessibility report is a partial solution, and PDF accessibility is time consuming flaky, the tagging features behave poorly.
US Govt sites are required to make their content accessible under Section 508 guidelines. Many large-scale corporations are under pressure and have been involved in lawsuits due to their lack of accessibility as well.
Accessibility should be a major element of all applications, GUIs and websites. Enhancing content visibility, operability of interfaces and the context of the information we come in contact with streamlines things for everyone and provides many net benefits. For websites, it also enhances google results.