My approach to accessibility

Through a post from Ethan Marcotte I got drawn into the accessibility topic. Web accessibility, like defined by the W3C, was not on my radar until then and that is not good.

The power of the Web is in its universality. Access by everyone regardless of disability is an essential aspect.

Tim Berners-Lee, W3C Director and inventor of the World Wide Web

Web accessibility means that websites, tools, and technologies are designed and developed so that people with disabilities can use them.

To quote the Mozilla Developer Network:

Accessibility is the practice of making your websites usable by as many people as possible. We traditionally think of this as being about people with disabilities, but the practice of making sites accessible also benefits other groups such as those using mobile devices, or those with slow network connections.

I want to explore this field, develop my skills and make better, accessible websites.

Why accessibility matters to me

What do I have to accept

To imagine my future self as someone who is not so quick anymore is one thing, but it must be a different experience of not being able to see the contents of a page and still navigating the web. I don´t have that experience and it´s frightening me. Considering how many years it took me to develop a desired direction, an understanding and a style for my website designs, I have to accept that it takes probably years to develop the necessary skills to build accessible websites.

What I want to do about it

I want to start improving now. Here is my plan: I focus on the topic of accessibility

I will maintain a list of useful things, like articles, tools, or techniques. I hope, by learning from it I will make accessibility more accessible for myself and provide a more inclusive user experience with my web projects.

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