The Best Of The Internets

The Trouble With Preprocessing Based on Future Specs

Lots of gold in this post from Chris Coyier. I agree with a lot of what he’s saying, but this passage really resonated with me:

[T]here are concepts that I think belong in an abstraction of a language and not the language itself. Variables could be an example here again. Preprocessor variables and native variables could co-exist and be useful in their own ways. If native CSS could do everything ever dreamed up in a preprocessor, it would be slow, complicated, and likely wouldn’t have seen the success that CSS has had as a language.

I could not agree more.

Note: I no longer use “native” in this context, but it remains in quoted material.

Windows 10 upgrade considerations for screen reader and magnifier users

The recommendation of IE over Edge may seem strange, but there’s a reason: Microsoft is changing APIs from MSAA (Microsoft Active Accessibility) to UIA (UI Automation) and it’s a work in progress. Consequently, the Microsoft Edge browser is not as accessible as the team would like it to be… yet. But, as Jacob Rossi covered in response to Steve Faulkner, it’s coming and the end result will be far better for folks who rely on assistive technology.

The Value of Content

This is a great post from Andy Beaumont regarding the sad state of affairs when it comes to content vs. conversions on the web. I look forward to the talk!

Why is so much of the internet still inaccessible to disabled people?

The internet represents one of our greatest post-ADA social failings, as a communications medium that had the potential to build accessibility into its very backbone, but didn’t. As the web becomes even more of a way of life in the next 25 years, the disability community will likely have to continue to fight for basic online accommodations, a telling testimony to their status in society.

Amen.