Comments on: Is it time to take mashups and use them to solve real issues? http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/ Chris Heilmann - Accessibility, Web Development and Pragmatism - can talk, will travel Fri, 05 Dec 2008 10:50:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Stéphane Deschamps http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7816 Stéphane Deschamps Fri, 06 Jun 2008 12:26:35 +0000 http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7816 I've been lobbying for a time here in France about this idea that for instance checkboxing "can be used without JS" isn't nearly sufficient, and I want to have accessible JS, because it simply produces HTML and as such should produce useable/accessible stuff. And this is where I put my money, too. All the projects who tell me "hey, this works on lynx", I just pat them on the back and tell them it's only step one. Step 2 (and I try to help them come up with solutions, of course) is: make it accessible with JS turned on. The real world is this: people have mainstream browsers and don't even know what JS is, all the more not knowing how one disables it. Same goes for Flash and other technologies, by the way. So (to make a long story short) yes, this would be interesting, yeah. In the UK, I suppose? I’ve been lobbying for a time here in France about this idea that for instance checkboxing “can be used without JS” isn’t nearly sufficient, and I want to have accessible JS, because it simply produces HTML and as such should produce useable/accessible stuff.

And this is where I put my money, too. All the projects who tell me “hey, this works on lynx”, I just pat them on the back and tell them it’s only step one. Step 2 (and I try to help them come up with solutions, of course) is: make it accessible with JS turned on.

The real world is this: people have mainstream browsers and don’t even know what JS is, all the more not knowing how one disables it. Same goes for Flash and other technologies, by the way.

So (to make a long story short) yes, this would be interesting, yeah. In the UK, I suppose?

]]> By: Andrew Ronksley http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7800 Andrew Ronksley Thu, 05 Jun 2008 21:47:06 +0000 http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7800 Hi Christian. This sounds like a great idea! I'd certainly be up for something like this. I think the work you have done in this area already with the YouTube captioning and accessible player is fantastic - the word certainly needs to be spread on the concept! To second what Henny has said already, we can promote through the RNIB and I'm in the process of setting up a personal blog which I can also promote through. Cheers! Andy. Hi Christian.
This sounds like a great idea! I’d certainly be up for something like this. I think the work you have done in this area already with the YouTube captioning and accessible player is fantastic - the word certainly needs to be spread on the concept!
To second what Henny has said already, we can promote through the RNIB and I’m in the process of setting up a personal blog which I can also promote through.
Cheers!
Andy.

]]> By: Olivier http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7785 Olivier Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:10:35 +0000 http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7785 Hi Chris, that's very appealing ideas and concepts you expose here, indeed. I'll do my best to spread the word here in France (I've just posted up a short summary of your point of view on my blog -- that's a start, already!). From my own experience, people tend to be shy about computers. Timesavers as simple and straight-forward as shortcuts, or menu customization, in desktop apps, are simply ignored by most mainstream users, it seems. It's like they take things for granted, and do their best to adapt their practice to the computer, and not the other way around. I'm hopeful, though, that if they knew they have the right and ability to bend the thing to meet their needs, and moreover, to demand improvement wherever it's needed, things would be different. Talented guys like you would have better-defined goals, and people like all the other ones, including me, would have more user-friendly software to deal with. Nothing on par with the kind of stuff you tackle, but on a very humble basis, I 'hack' some websites myself by applying user style sheets via Stylish (a Firefox extension) where beneficial, like for underlining links on Wikipedia. Surprisingly, there are very few tips&tricks of the like, that I could find by (lazily, admittedly) searching on the web. Some great user styles are available here and there, but I'm probably the only person I know of who ever heard about Stylish, let alone the user style concept. It's a shame, as I believe such basic tricks deliver genuine improvement, with a tiny piece of self-investment. What you intend to do can not produce anything but goodness and more general well-being, so go for it, Chris! I'm looking forward to seeing the hackday idea come to a prosperous life. Cheers, Olivier Hi Chris,
that’s very appealing ideas and concepts you expose here, indeed. I’ll do my best to spread the word here in France (I’ve just posted up a short summary of your point of view on my blog — that’s a start, already!).

From my own experience, people tend to be shy about computers. Timesavers as simple and straight-forward as shortcuts, or menu customization, in desktop apps, are simply ignored by most mainstream users, it seems. It’s like they take things for granted, and do their best to adapt their practice to the computer, and not the other way around. I’m hopeful, though, that if they knew they have the right and ability to bend the thing to meet their needs, and moreover, to demand improvement wherever it’s needed, things would be different. Talented guys like you would have better-defined goals, and people like all the other ones, including me, would have more user-friendly software to deal with.
Nothing on par with the kind of stuff you tackle, but on a very humble basis, I ‘hack’ some websites myself by applying user style sheets via Stylish (a Firefox extension) where beneficial, like for underlining links on Wikipedia. Surprisingly, there are very few tips&tricks of the like, that I could find by (lazily, admittedly) searching on the web. Some great user styles are available here and there, but I’m probably the only person I know of who ever heard about Stylish, let alone the user style concept. It’s a shame, as I believe such basic tricks deliver genuine improvement, with a tiny piece of self-investment.

What you intend to do can not produce anything but goodness and more general well-being, so go for it, Chris! I’m looking forward to seeing the hackday idea come to a prosperous life.

Cheers,
Olivier

]]> By: Chris http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7780 Chris Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:58:18 +0000 http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7780 @dan, the current release version is available <a href="http://icant.co.uk/easy-youtube/?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i0-btCTdN8" rel="nofollow">here</a> and the build is visible <a href="http://icant.co.uk/sandbox/easy-youtube/index2.html?http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i0-btCTdN8" rel="nofollow">here</a> Feedback please on <a href="http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/05/27/making-youtube-easier-and-more-accessible/" rel="nofollow">the other blog post</a>. In terms of using and hosting, it is best to wait till the build is ready. Antonia Hyde is helping me with the testing and the final will be fully template driven and comes with docs :) @dan, the current release version is available here and the build is visible here

Feedback please on the other blog post.

In terms of using and hosting, it is best to wait till the build is ready. Antonia Hyde is helping me with the testing and the final will be fully template driven and comes with docs :)

]]> By: dan mcquillan http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7779 dan mcquillan Tue, 03 Jun 2008 15:20:39 +0000 http://www.wait-till-i.com/2008/06/02/is-it-time-to-take-mashups-and-use-them-to-solve-real-issues/#comment-7779 hi christian first off, thanks again on behalf of the organizers for helping to judge social innovation camp. accessihacking - yes! an excellent concept. i would definitely support a hack-event around that. i've also been a tad cheesed off with mashups-for-the-sake-of-it and tried to write up why: <a href="http://www.internetartizans.co.uk/the_unbearable_lightness_of_mashups" rel="nofollow">The Unbearable Lightness of Mashups</a>. when will it be possible to have a look at your accessible youtube hack? i've got some contacts in the learning disabilities scene who would be very interested. dan hi christian

first off, thanks again on behalf of the organizers for helping to judge social innovation camp.

accessihacking - yes! an excellent concept. i would definitely support a hack-event around that.

i’ve also been a tad cheesed off with mashups-for-the-sake-of-it and tried to write up why: The Unbearable Lightness of Mashups.

when will it be possible to have a look at your accessible youtube hack? i’ve got some contacts in the learning disabilities scene who would be very interested.

dan

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