My reply to Mr. Morales' post could hardly be described as "Apple Bashing", nor could it be said that I've personally attacked anyone regarding their views on the matter at hand. But what's more, I'm baffled by the notion that this issue is "off topic".
As I had stated in my previous post, "Accessibility has NEVER been a sexy issue for any mainstream software company of note. " The statement was broad enough to include firms such as Microsoft, Macromedia, Logitech, Oracle and many more. However, as this is a board about use of the Mac by the blind and visually impaired, it makes sense to focus the discussion strictly on Apple's so called initiative on accessibility. The point of all this is to explain what should be the obvious. Given the fact that we are a minority, from a business standpoint, absent of our urging, Apple will not ensure that it's operating system is accessible to us, much less its flag ship applications and that making excuses for its glacial pace is counter productive. It is an honest difference of opinion. A difference that I'm willing to accept provided that we are all respectful to one another. But this is not the case. John Denning voiced these same opinions, and Mr. Curmudgeon summarily dismissed him as a "skeptic". Some have called him worse. Others in the past have conveyed similar views and been characterized as "whiners". If you read my post carefully and honestly, you will find that I did not personally attack anyone. I simply said that I was surprised at the number of blind apologists of Apple on this board", a statement of which I was careful not to specifically indict anyone. But if you find such a claim personally offensive, it is only because you personally identify with it, and that is your problem, not mine. This topic is pertinent for a couple of reasons. The first is that it specifically addresses the central purpose of this board. But more importantly, the resulting conflict is symptomatic of an ongoing problem that I think (for a change) we need to address honestly. First, It is funny how something becomes "off topic" when certain people lose standing on the matter discussed. Good god, If you happen to believe that the discussion of accessibility of iTunes and other flag ship applications with voiceover is "off topic", then what isn't? Secondly, if there is any one thing the results of this discussion has shown us, is that certain members of this board are incapable of communicating in a manner conducive to learning. But I'm not saying anything you wouldn't know already. In fact, my first post on this board was an attempt to address the virulent manner in which key participants communicate with other members; and worse yet, how certain other members let it happen. It was a response to some personal attacks made at John Denning last year, after he'd shared with us a bad experience at an Apple store. For that, I was called a Camel Jockey. Again, the people who cry foul, claiming that there is no civility on this board, the ones who through a whim and a fit, say "I can't take it anymore, I'm leaving...", those same individuals who huff and puff, pretend to leave, though miraculously come back (every single time), did nothing to chastise the person who said those things to me. Instead, they accused me of "trolling". An instigator of the continuous kerfuffle accused me of being a purveyor of "list controversy". Yet those people never look in the Mirror. By the way, I thought Gabe was kicked out. Just goes to show... As I said before, "...it is asinine for anyone to presume arbitration over "productivity". The reasons why Cheryl bought a Mac is different for the reasons why John bought one, and those reasons are no more or less important than the other. Such a view is far more respectful than the notion that John's need for a fully accessible iTunes is less important than Cheryl's need for a fully accessible Word-Processor. And the point that I've made that many seem to miss is that if Apple changes its development strategy of Voiceover, and makes accessibility a central consideration of their development process, most of these applications can be made accessible simultaneously and in relatively short order. Of course, I'm not the only one saying this. There are a number of experts saying the same thing. Finally, there is an individual who is on the record as saying "Personally, [they'd] rather be a Mac apologist than a Microsoft fanboy. Now it's fair to say that there aren't any Microsoft fanboys on this list, I'm most certainly not one of them, and frankly I think its a waste for such a person to spend their time here. What's tragic about the above quotation is that it exemplifies the willful abdication of objectivity. But what's worse, is that some are criticized for choosing to hold on to their's. How sad... Abdul
