[nfbcs] Commercial IT Blindness Accessibility Issues

Fri Jun 13 14:18:32 UTC 2014

LOL, another government department. The government can't get much right now,
why would this be any different. It is better to add jobs to the private
sector, not to the government.

Government involvement would best be done with a simple law that makes it
mandatory for software companies over a certain gross sales level to make
their software accessible. Also have guidelines for receiving an exemption
on certain software. Example, it would not be necessary to make software
that truck drivers use in their truck to enter log data accessible with
screen readers.

The big issue would be how to define accessible. 

Michael

-----Original Message-----
From: nfbcs [mailto:nfbcs-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Mike Jolls via
nfbcs
Sent: Friday, June 13, 2014 08:28
To: nfbcs at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [nfbcs] Commercial IT Blindness Accessibility Issues

Here are some thoughts about how to make accessibility in computer software
a reality

I believe we have seen, given the track record of most corporations, the
lack of interest of most corporations in providing accessibility in their
products.  It all comes down to the dollar.  There are some exceptions such
as Apple, but for the most part I think the business views the investment of
money in making their computer software accessible as counter-productive to
their profit margin.  Therefore, they don't do it.  And if they do, they do
minimal work so that they can legally say that they have fulfilled the
requirement.

Since private industry has shown this track record, my thought is that if we
want accessibility in the software we use, such work needs to be funded
through the government. 
Perhaps a solution would be to have a government agency whose sole function
is to provide programmers that can work on accessibility issues.  These
individuals would work for the government, get paid by the government, but
would be loaned out to major corporations (Oracle, IBM, etc) to work with
the product engineers to make the products accessible.  In this way the
corporations would not be impacted by the cost of doing such development to
a large degree.  There would be some impact because the accessibility
programmer would have impact on the design of the product, and the product
engineer would have to make changes according to what the accessibility
engineer requested.  However, the cost incurred by the corporation would be
minimal.  There would of course have to be a standards organization in the
government that would analyze the requirements of such accessibility
programming to define what standards should be in place.  Then the
accessibility programmer would use those standards in their programming. 
You might also need to have blind and visually impaired testers that would
test the software to make sure it met the standard.  Of course, this
function might be automated if the software systems were correctly set up.

I think without such an infrastructure setup, you're simply going to see
more of the same that is currently going on.

Please comment.  if
you think my line of reasoning is valid, how do we get this going?  Talk is
cheap.  How could the blindness advocacy organizations help to make this a
reality? 
Putting feet on this would help solve the problems.  Personally, I'd love to
have a job like this.

Your comments?

To: gui-talk at nfbnet.org; blinux-develop at redhat.com; nfbcs at nfbnet.org
Date: Thu, 12 Jun 2014 20:08:09 -0500
Subject: [nfbcs] Commercial IT Blindness Accessibility Issues
From: nfbcs at nfbnet.org

Folks,

I have attached a four page paper which I would like to submit to the
Braille Monitor.  I have also pasted the note below my signature.  Please
let me know about any errors.  Thanks.
--
Title:  Commercial IT Blindness Accessibility Issues
Author: Louis Maher (ljmaher at swbell.net, 713-444-7838)
Date:   June 12, 2014

In a modern commercial environment, several blindness-related accessibility
issues remain.  Generally these issues can be grouped into lack of access
to: graphical user interfaces (GUIs), graphically displayed data, and
mathematically-based books and journals.  I will focus primarily on the
effects of not being able to access GUIs.

Bit Locker Encryption

In Microsoft Windows seven, Bit locker encryption is a Microsoft system for
encrypting all the information on a computer's hard disk.  At power-up time,
the user enters a personal identification number (PIN) and then the login
proceeds.  The PIN dialog screen is completely inaccessible.  While my
HumanWare Brailliant Braille display will beep when the pin dialog opens, if
I make a mistake entering the pin, then I cannot recover from this error.  I
must power-off my machine, by holding down the power button, and try again.
Often when a machine is abnormally stopped, it goes into a memory scan
screen or setup screen.  All these pre-login screens are inaccessible, even
to Microsoft narrator.  For this reason, a blind user cannot turn on their
own machine if they make a Bit Locker PIN entry error.  The only way out is
to go find a sighted colleague who can enable the blind employee to login
into their own computer.

The Linux Graphical User Interface (GUI)

Linux allows for computers, built out of many processors, to solve large
problems.  For this reason, most of the hard science problems are addressed
using the Linux operating system.  A commercially popular version of Linux
is distributed by Red Hat (http://www.redhat.com/).  Currently my company
uses Red Hat version 5.7.  Due to the need for an operating system to work
well with all the company's applications, and the need for a company to have
a stable operating system, operating systems, within a company, change
slowly.  An employee's desire to use company software, insures that the
employee must use the company's operating system.  For this reason, the
blind employee cannot choose which operating system they wish to use.

Graphical user interfaces allow users to use a wide variety of applications
with ease.  The GUI allows most of the parameters in an application to use
defaults. Only a few parameters within an application need be set.  Also
context sensitive help allows the user to rapidly find out how to set those
parameters.  GUIs also allow a user to string many processes together into a
dataflow so that complex tasks can be setup rapidly.  For these reasons, the
GUI has conquered computer space.

Character-based (also called command-line) interfaces are widely used for
computer programming and system administration, and have provided many blind
individuals with excellent career opportunities.  While the character-based
interface for Linux is wonderfully accessible, the Linux GUI is not.  Based
upon work by the now-bankrupt Sun Corporation, the Orca Linux screen reader
is available in open source packages
(https://help.gnome.org/users/orca/stable/).  Orca is not automatically
distributed with commercially popular Linux systems, and employees must go
through a long risk-assessment process to have it added to their systems.
Orca also accesses the Gnome desktop (http://www.gnome.org/)while most
commercial organizations would prefer to use the KDE interface
(http://www.kde.org/).  Also since there is no commercial organization
caring for Orca, there is no guarantee that it will work for any one
application.  People who work on Orca development, due it out of love of
computer science, and as an effort to improve the world.  The developers
work on what interests them, and on what they can find time to accomplish.
Also, Orca can only give access to programs running on the user's machine.
It does not allow users to logon to other remote machines using GUIs.

The Linux Graphical User Interface (GUI) Remote Access Issue

Linux GUI remote access represents another class of accessibility problems.
As mentioned above, Orca can only give access to programs running on the
user's machine.  It does not allow users to logon to other machines using
GUIs.  In modern industrial settings, the blind user will be sitting in
front of a Microsoft Windows based machine.  The user can have complete
character-based access to Linux through programs such as SecureCRT
(http://www.vandyke.com/products/securecrt/).  However, the blind user is
going to have to access several remote computers, using graphical user
interfaces, to get their work done.  While limited character-based work
around exist for some of these applications, in general, the blind user will
have to have their sighted counterparts do this part of their job, thus
reducing the flexibility of the blind employee.

Java

Java (http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/index.html) is a programming
language, supported by Oracle, to make applications portable on more than
one operating system.  The blind access Java applications through the Java
Access Bridge (JAB) (for Windows
(http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/tech/index-jsp-136191.html),
and for Linux
(http://linux.softpedia.com/progDownload/Java-Access-Bridge-Download-24104.h
tml).  I have found that most Java programs are not very accessible due to
the developer's unawareness of the need to write accessible code.

Graphically Displayed Data

Often commercial Linux packages generate plots to help the user analyze the
data in their processes.  These plots are generated by GUI's buried deep in
the commercial packages.  If the plots could be generated, and sent outside
of the commercial application which generated them, then they could be sent
to Braille printers for plotting.  Without GUI access, the blind user cannot
generate the plots, nor bring the plots to the outside world.

Mathematically Displayed Books and Journals

The news is a little better on the display of mathematically-based material.
If the blind user can contact the author of a book, and if the author is
willing to share their source files, then the blind user can read the book.
The best way to get this book would be in Microsoft Word format where the
author would have used the Design Science mathematical equation editor,
MathType (http://www.dessci.com/en/), to write the equations.  MathType
makes mathematics in Microsoft word completely accessible.  Another
accessible mathematical language is Latex
(http://www.maths.tcd.ie/~dwilkins/LaTeXPrimer/).

Mathematics on the web is still not reliable since bugs in the Microsoft
Internet Explorer versions 10 and 11 have kept math from being displayed.  I
have heard that the Apple Safari browser can display math, but an accessible
version of the Safari browser is not available for the Windows platform.

GUI Solution Issues

It is unclear how to approach the Linux GUI issue.  If a blind user wishes
to install Orca on a Linux workstation, the user will have several issues.
1. The blind individual will have to have a sighted individual install the
software because the Linux GUI environment is inaccessible out of the box.
Secondly, to be efficient, the blind user will need a Braille display.
Braille drivers are not part of the standard Orca package, and separate
software must be loaded for Braille displays.  Thirdly, only system
administrators will be allowed to load software on company computers.
Lastly, bringing new programs into the environment requires risk assessments
which can add months to introducing new software.

I am fortunate in that my company will purchase any accessibility system
that exists; however experimenting with unknown solutions is very tedious
and slow.  Due to the size of commercial organizations, it can take up to
two years to upgrade the operating systems of computers.  Also, if a blind
user installs Orca on one machine, the user has not achieved much, for the
user cannot access other remote GUI-based processors, which contain the
programs an employee will need.  Lastly, stand-alone work stations are
rapidly disappearing from our commercial environment. Our company is
experimenting with remote graphic servers (RGS)
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remote_Graphics_Software) which are
centrally-located graphics servers which are used remotely by windows-based
users.  Perhaps remote GUI accessibility can be built into such systems.

Conclusions

Both government and non-government blind employees are struggling with
accessibility because currently no one is insisting that these systems be
accessible.  If the government would follow its own rules, then the
accessible solutions would be available to all.

-- 

Regards
Louis Maher
Phone 713-444-7838
E-mail ljmaher at swbell.net
--- 

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