[NFBCS] Accessibility for programmers

Tue Feb 25 17:26:16 UTC 2020

I can't tell you the number of blind IT professionals who's careers I 
have seen destroyed by getting backwatered. It almost happened to me in 
my previous job. Little by little, my job got narrower and narrower 
until it consisted mostly of waiting for someone to call to have their 
password reset.  I went to my boss and said I felt I was capable of so 
much more. He said what's your problem, you're still getting paid, 
aren't you?  At the time, it didn't occur to me  to worry about my 
career, I was just not getting my ego stroked the way I needed. Now I 
look back at it and I'm glad I was so ambitious. I taught myself Linux 
systems administration and now I'm the manager of the super-computer 
cluster at the Math Department at the University Of Wisconsin.

But the fact is that its still happening to me. My current supervisor is 
fantastic. She frequently suggests that I take  the time to see if 
something can be made accessible even when I tend to think its not worth 
the trouble. But the truth is that there are lots of times where we let 
somebody else do something that would normally be my job just because 
its easier. The problem of getting backwatered is something everybody in 
IT has to deal with but it is an especially huge problem for blind people.

On 2/25/20 10:08 AM, Tracy Carcione via NFBCS wrote:
> Jack, I agree with everything you said.  I'm willing to help as best I
> can.  I should have more time soon, as I get backwatered.
> Tracy
> 
>> Yeah, I think if the NFB got behind a group for blind IT professionals,
>> we might be able to do some good. As I said, I tried to get something
>> like that started independently but it fizzled out. Here is a list of
>> the goals of that organization.
>>
>> 1. Communicate with hardware & software manufacturers about
>> accessibility problems. If their new router software has accessibility
>> issues, does Cisco even know it? Lets make sure they do.
>>
>> 2. Help current IT professionals avoid being "backwatered". (I
>> personally coined that phrase). Getting backwatered is my term for being
>> stuck in a job dealing with obsolete technology because its what has
>> always been accessible -- until its not. Your skills get narrower and
>> narrower. You don't get to play with the new stuff because its not
>> accessible.  These are huge problems in a very competitive job market.
>>
>> 3. Provide a place for IT professionals to exchange knowledge of how to
>> deal with accessibility issues. All of us know tricks to get around
>> accessibility problems. I am sure that by now, many blind IT
>> professionals have missed out on an opportunity when there was a
>> workaround they didn't even know about.
>>
>> 4. Encourage young people to consider information technology and comp
>> sci as a career. With the right education and tools, a person can earn a
>> place in one of the most sought after and highly paid professions
>> available to a blind person. Not to diss musician or massage therapist
>> but IT pays better and there are more jobs.
>>
>> On 2/25/20 9:10 AM, Tracy Carcione via NFBCS wrote:
>>> When I was complaining about 32	70 accessibility a couple weeks ago,
>>> some
>>> people seemed to say that it was because 3270 emulation is old and not
>>> used so much anymore.  I see that.  I know I'm a bit of a dinosaur.
>>> But this morning, I thought I saw an opportunity to start moving out of
>>> the old legacy system and into another system supported by my group.  I
>>> asked my boss about the possibilities, and he said that that would be
>>> fine, except that system has a lot of Citrix-hosted applications, and we
>>> know making Jaws and Citrix play together is a real pain.
>>> Citrix is common as dirt.  I think my whole IT department uses it a lot,
>>> but not me.  I know how to get Jaws to work with it, but it takes quite
>>> a
>>> bit of coordination, and, if that coordination is with outside vendors,
>>> it's even more complicated.
>>>
>>> I think Jack is right.  We of NFBCS should be working on accessibility
>>> for
>>> programmers.  I don't know what that would entail, but I think we need
>>> to
>>> do it, or we'll have more and more problems.  The things we need access
>>> to
>>> are a lot more complicated than Granny getting her email.
>>> Now, please, tell me I'm all wet, and there are simple solutions to my
>>> problems.
>>> Tracy
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> NFBCS mailing list
>>> NFBCS at nfbnet.org
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbcs_nfbnet.org
>>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>>> NFBCS:
>>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbcs_nfbnet.org/john%40johnheim.com
>>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> NFBCS mailing list
>> NFBCS at nfbnet.org
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbcs_nfbnet.org
>> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
>> NFBCS:
>> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbcs_nfbnet.org/carcione%40access.net
>>
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> NFBCS mailing list
> NFBCS at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbcs_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for NFBCS:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbcs_nfbnet.org/john%40johnheim.com
> 