[nfb-talk] Captcha, (I've had enough!)

Thu Apr 14 13:05:42 UTC 2011

Joshua, the spammers do not even have to be located in the United States.
They can spam from any location in the world.  So your "deport them"
argument is invalid.

Thanks, William

-----Original Message-----
From: nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Joshua Lester
Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2011 10:21 PM
To: NFB Talk Mailing List
Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Captcha, (I've had enough!)

If we're investigating spammers, it's something to consider.
I'm not starting a debate on illegal imigration, I'm just giving an
idea on who some of these people are.
Blessings, Joshua

On 4/13/11, Mike Freeman <k7uij at panix.com> wrote:
> Let's avoid that topic, shall we?
>
>
> Mike Freeman
> sent from my iPhone
>
>
> On Apr 13, 2011, at 16:02, Joshua Lester <jlester8462 at students.pccua.edu>
> wrote:
>
>> That's another great idea!
>> Also, ship the illegals back!
>> I wouldn't be surprised, if some of the spammers are illegal imigrants.
>> Blessings, Joshua
>>
>> On 4/13/11, Mike Freeman <k7uij at panix.com> wrote:
>>> Actually what I favor is a different approach:  deny foreign aid to
>>> countries that harbor spammers!
>>>
>>> Mike Freeman
>>> sent from my iPhone
>>>
>>>
>>> On Apr 13, 2011, at 14:16, Joshua Lester
<jlester8462 at students.pccua.edu>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Mr. Freeman, let's try to invent a new alternative.
>>>> I'm not a computer genius, but if someone can do this, I'd appreciate
>>>> it.
>>>> Blessings, Joshua
>>>>
>>>> On 4/13/11, Mike Freeman <k7uij at panix.com> wrote:
>>>>> Guys and gals:
>>>>>
>>>>> Let's get real here.  John Heim is absolutely correct:  his boss may
be
>>>>> a
>>>>> decent person.  But she doesn't care a farthing how CAPTCHAs affect
the
>>>>> blind.  There aren't enough of us to truly affect offenders' bottom
>>>>> lines.
>>>>> All webmasters want is to stop spam (something all of us can
sympathize
>>>>> with
>>>>> unless we are the spammers!).  If a few thousand people are
>>>>> inconvenienced
>>>>> or shut out of sites, so what?  The Federal agency for which I work
>>>>> gets
>>>>> something like fifty thousand spam emails (yes, you heard right) each
>>>>> *week*
>>>>> and this wastes a heck of a lot of resources and bandwidth.  I'd guess
>>>>> its
>>>>> websites do also.
>>>>>
>>>>> Fulminating and venting one's spleen in irrational outbursts avails us
>>>>> nothing.  Neither does writing to webmasters; we'd never be able to
>>>>> cover
>>>>> them all.  Even if we can get courts to rule that the ADA applies, I'd
>>>>> bet
>>>>> good money that Joshua's nemesis site would fall under the religious
>>>>> exceptions to ADA requirements.
>>>>>
>>>>> I sympathize with everyone's indignation; I am stymied by CAPTCHA's
>>>>> also.
>>>>> But I'm realistic enough to realize that it's an ongoing race between
>>>>> spammers/hackers and web developers.  CAPTCHAs certainly aren't the
>>>>> ultimate
>>>>> answer but, I submit, any solution that would allow screen-readers
>>>>> access
>>>>> will also allow spammers/hackers access.  And yes, I've used Delta
>>>>> Airlines
>>>>> wonderful alternative to the CAPTCHA available on their flights where
>>>>> one
>>>>> answers a math question.  But does this not discriminate against the
>>>>> learning-disabled?  And I could envision a spammer employing a Cray or
>>>>> other
>>>>> super-machine to simply sort through possible answers and brute-force
>>>>> its
>>>>> way to the solution.
>>>>>
>>>>> My psychological defense is to figure that any website that leaves me
>>>>> out
>>>>> I
>>>>> don't need either.
>>>>>
>>>>> I can see only two solutions:  build up a billion-dollar legal fund to
>>>>> sue
>>>>> every web developer or website owner (and we must figure on losing at
>>>>> least
>>>>> half the suits) or getting down to brass tacks and inventing and
>>>>> patenting a
>>>>> CAPTCHA alternative that appears convincing enough to be adopted by a
>>>>> majority of web developers.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Mike Freeman
>>>>> sent from my iPhone
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Apr 13, 2011, at 9:26, Joshua Lester
>>>>> <jlester8462 at students.pccua.edu>
>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> I also agree.
>>>>>> So, what's the holdup?
>>>>>> Let's get the sighted people on this list to visit every site, (I've
>>>>>> mentioned the sites on the Music Talk list,) and contact the
>>>>>> Webmasters.
>>>>>> Some of us can't contact them, because of the captcha.
>>>>>> Blessings, Joshua
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On 4/13/11, Gloria Whipple <ladygloria at webband.com> wrote:
>>>>>>> Peter,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I agree with you all the way!
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Gloria Whipple
>>>>>>> Corresponding Secretary
>>>>>>> Inland Empire chapter
>>>>>>> nfb of WA
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>>>>> From: nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org
>>>>>>> [mailto:nfb-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org]
>>>>>>> On
>>>>>>> Behalf Of Peter Donahue
>>>>>>> Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2011 09:05
>>>>>>> To: NFB Talk Mailing List
>>>>>>> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Captcha, (I've had enough!)
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Hello everyone,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>  Audio captchas are of no use to the deaf-blind . For God sakes if
we
>>>>>>> can
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> develop the technology that allowed us to put a blind guy behind the
>>>>>>> wheel
>>>>>>> of an automobile and drive it independently we should be able to
find
>>>>>>> a
>>>>>>> way
>>>>>>> to allow captchas to be recognized by screen readers while
protecting
>>>>>>> Web
>>>>>>> sites and such from the bad guys. The belief that the technology to
>>>>>>> do
>>>>>>> this
>>>>>>> is not there doesn't wash with me.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Peter Donahue
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>>>>> From: "Joshua Lester" <jlester8462 at students.pccua.edu>
>>>>>>> To: "NFB Talk Mailing List" <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>>> Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2011 8:38 AM
>>>>>>> Subject: Re: [nfb-talk] Captcha, (I've had enough!)
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> John, what's really bad, is if there are multiple blind people in a
>>>>>>> church denomination, and their site's contact form, or church
>>>>>>> locater,
>>>>>>> are inaccessible.
>>>>>>> My organization's Website is like that.
>>>>>>> They have an audio file that's supposed to play the captcha, but it
>>>>>>> won't
>>>>>>> play.
>>>>>>> I'll post the Website here.
>>>>>>> www.upci.org
>>>>>>> I've contacted their IT department, but they have done nothing about
>>>>>>> this.
>>>>>>> Blessings, Joshua
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On 4/13/11, John Heim <john at johnheim.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>> A few months ago, the Department of Justice said that the ADA
>>>>>>>> applies
>>>>>>>> to
>>>>>>>> web
>>>>>>>> sites. This is a big deal. Since the Department of Justice is
>>>>>>>> responsible
>>>>>>>> for enforcing laws like the ADA, if the Department of Justice says
>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>> ADA
>>>>>>>> applies to web sites, then it does.  A business would have to go to
>>>>>>>> court
>>>>>>>> to
>>>>>>>> show that the DOJ overstepped its bounds in making that
>>>>>>>> determination.
>>>>>>>> But
>>>>>>>> the burden of proof would be on them. Well, anyway, the point is
>>>>>>>> that
>>>>>>>> CAPTCHAs are now illegal.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> IMO, this is one of the toughest issues we face. My own boss came
to
>>>>>>>> me
>>>>>>>> yesterday wanting to put a captcha on our web site. I had to talk
>>>>>>>> really
>>>>>>>> long to get her to not do it. It was a really tough sell and I only
>>>>>>>> got
>>>>>>>> her
>>>>>>>> to agree on a provisional basis. If an alternate solution I came up
>>>>>>>> with
>>>>>>>> doesn't work, she will probably insist on using the captcha. Her
>>>>>>>> point
>>>>>>>> is
>>>>>>>> that the page we want to protect simply isn't visited very often by
>>>>>>>> blind
>>>>>>>> people. Its not worth the trouble to make it accessible.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I've pointed out that its a matter of principle. I've even
mentioned
>>>>>>>> what
>>>>>>>> a
>>>>>>>> bitter thing it would be for me to install captcha software. I've
>>>>>>>> pointed
>>>>>>>> out our legal responsibilities. All this makes little to no
>>>>>>>> difference.
>>>>>>>> All
>>>>>>>> that really matters is that captchas work. Honestly, I was sitting
>>>>>>>> there
>>>>>>>> thinking of trying to write software to break captchas and sending
>>>>>>>> it
>>>>>>>> to
>>>>>>>> every spammer I can find.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> By the way, my boss is not a bad person by any means. She is very
>>>>>>>> open
>>>>>>>> minded. I just think that if you're not blind, you don't see what
>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>> problem is.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>>>>>> From: "Joshua Lester" <jlester8462 at students.pccua.edu>
>>>>>>>> To: <nfb-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>>>> Sent: Tuesday, April 12, 2011 10:25 PM
>>>>>>>> Subject: [nfb-talk] Captcha, (I've had enough!)
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Hi, it's Joshua Lester.
>>>>>>>>> I've posted this on the Faith Talk list, and the Music list, but
>>>>>>>>> I'm
>>>>>>>>> not having any success.
>>>>>>>>> I've just thought of a question.
>>>>>>>>> I'd like everyone's feedback.
>>>>>>>>> How can we better influence the Webmasters of their sites, to make
>>>>>>>>> more accessible contact forms?
>>>>>>>>> How can they make them, where they can differentiate, between
Jaws,
>>>>>>>>> and
>>>>>>>>> a
>>>>>>>>> Robot?
>>>>>>>>> I want them to make the captcha, where Jaws can catch it, and read
>>>>>>>>> it
>>>>>>>>> to
>>>>>>>>> us.
>>>>>>>>> What can we do?
>>>>>>>>> Thanks for your ideas.
>>>>>>>>> This is for all Websites.
>>>>>>>>> Blessings, Joshua
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>>>>> nfb-talk mailing list
>>>>>>>>> nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
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>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
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>>>>>>> t
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
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>>>>>>
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