[blindlaw] West Publishing

[James Pepper]

The law for accessibility in documents is Section 508 and you can lay out
your content correctly and still not be accessible.  The problem here is
that there is no clear cut solution, whereas with a wheel chair ramp the
solution is obvious, you build it, but with accessibility in electronic
documents all you have to do is prove that the doucment is section 508
compliant and that is that.

Section 508 is not accessibility.  We all know this right here on this
list.  What is needed is a definition of accessibility that is a real
solution and is not a plessy versus ferguson type of situation where people
claim that accessibility is in existence but it doesn't actually work.

We are in the same boat.  The problem which has not been defined and I
define it here, is that software companies are only concerned with the
solution as it holds for their own software, they seek out section 508
compliance and that is all they can do.  They do not make their content
accessible to a wide range of products because you cannot anticipate all of
the scenarios and so we are stuck in this situation where a publisher can
lay out their content as accessible in section 508 and yet be completely
inaccessible when it gets to market.

There are so many variables that it is a miracle that anything is
accessible.

But if you want it to work every time, you will have to pay for it.  And
don't look now but when a company makes its ramps accessible to the disabled
that cost is recouped in the price of their product but you guys want them
to give away books for free. Should houses be free for the blind, give away
free cars.   I think we should re-evaluate this free book plan because there
is no incentive to innovate in accessibility.  Why should anyone fix this if
there is no benefit other than a pat on the back to solve this problem?  You
want your books for free, so does everyone else.