>> And for those of you with legal requirements to use or avoid
>> certain features?great! Use
>> them as you will! But don?t criticize others who take a more
>> practical approach and aren?t
>> enslaved by the legal requirements which chain you down.
I don't believe that legal requirements providing equity of access to all
are a problem at all. In fact just the opposite. It's a delightful
challenge to work with standards and legal requirements so that anyone is
able to access web content without being hindered by artificial barriers
and constraints. While my legal requirements are specific, other laws are
now being attributed to all web sites here in the US. The recent Target
case was a rather expensive $6 million learning exercise for that company
and may have established a precedent for all (commercial) web sites in the
US. We will have to wait and see. Apparently Virgin Blue in Australia is
embroiled in its own problems with respect to standards and accessibility.
That case could go either way and also establish a precedent for web
sites based in Australia.
In many ways the approach is similar to the old Fram oil commercials that
used to run on TV here in the States ("You can pay me now or pay me
later.") Designing and building according to standards is more
cost-effective in the long run. It's a best practice. It's good for
business.
And yes, as already demonstrated in this thread, one must be cognizant
that not every web professional is able to effectively exercise their
professional judgement when it comes to standards. Being able to pay the
rent and put food on the table is pretty strong incentive to just put
one's head down and do the job. At the same time the challenge for web
standards is being addressed where that unfair burden does not exist.
>> You just don?t realize it, but you?re enslaved more by your
>> ?company? than I will *ever* be.
I fail to understand that doing the right thing for the greatest good
could ever been seen as enslavement. Removing artificial barriers has
never been a form of enslavement in my book.
Dennis Lapcewich
US Forest Service Webmaster
Pacific Northwest Region - Vancouver, WA
360-891-5024 - Voice | 360-891-5045 - Fax
dlapcew...@fs.fed.us
"People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing
it." -- George Bernard Shaw
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