Lost in Translation

I was recently admitted to the Guild of Accessible Web Designers. This is a big deal for me, since accessibility has been a focus of mine from my earliest days learning web design. I was accepted after a review of my site, so I’m feeling rather proud of myself! This is just another step to demonstrate my commitment to accessibility.

Accessibility is a term that throws a lot of people at first. Even people who make websites, but may not be professional designers, don’t always realize what it is or the importance of it. Individuals at businesses and non-profits in charge of getting a site built are often surprised by the concept once they discover what it is.

So what is it?

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Since I’ve said it so often before, let me say again in my blog, right here in writing: Flash is not always your friend.

Yes, it is really great.

Sometimes.

As with all technology, just because it is really cool does not mean it is something that everyone should use every time.

Here’s why:

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As a web designer, I need photos and illustrations to put on websites. Frequently, these are provided by the site owners. Every now and then, I get a completely unusable image which results in them either having to track down a new image or me spending time re-creating that image. That’s right: if you fax me a copy of your logo, I can’t use it on your website, business cards, or anything else.

This leads to confusion on the part of the site owner who asks, “isn’t there a program that will fix that?”.

Ah Hollywood, I love you, but some days I want to smack you in the nose with a rolled-up newspaper.

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