As far as some accessible social media, here are my suggestions:
Twitter – Of course, use http://www.AccessibleTwitter.com
YouTube – http://icant.co.uk/easy-youtube/ OR http://tube.majestyc.net/
Facebook – http://m.facebook.com
LinkedIn – http://m.linkedin.com
MySpace – Nothing
Author: Dennis
So I’m starting to regret not attending the AHG conference this year (Accessing Higher Ground: Accessible Media, Web and Technology Conference). I attended (and presented) at the previous two events. This year looks just as good, if not better.
AHG 2010 will be November 15-19 at the Westin Hotel in Westminster, Colorado, located about 13 miles from downtown Denver. It’s a really nice venue with nice restaurants nearby.
Over 60 presentations and hands-on sessions and 35 hours of hands-on workshops are scheduled. You can read the session descriptions here. Maybe you’ll see me on the list next year!
The fees are affordable, and an early registration discount is available until October 1. Groups of 5 who register together are eligible for a 10% discount. You may register for AHG here.
I think something new this year are special session tracks from which to choose. The tracks are:
In celebration of its 5th anniversary, Dennis and Ross discuss the history of Web Axe and several memorable moments. Then, nine special guests provide excellent insight and information relating to web accessibility including Paul Boag and Bruce Lawson. It’s great stuff, don’t miss it!
Download Web Axe Episode 84 (Web Axe 5-Year Anniversary)
Some History
- Dennis Lembree launched Web Axe in September 2005 with a boost from the Detroit Podcasters Network.
- Co-host Ross Johnson joined September of 2006 in Lists and Accessibility — How and Why? (podcast #26).
- Readership continues to grow; over 5,400 Web Axe RSS subscribers (85% of my RSS subscribers are using Google Reader or iGoogle). Number of Twitter followers continues to grow (@WebAxe).
- Interesting topics for web accessibility: business reasons, bandwidth and loadtime, and screen resolution.
Memorable Moments
- Nominated three years in a row in the .net magazine Best of the Web awards.
- Web Axe featured in BBC Podcast, segment on accessibility in Pods & Blogs show.
- First interview: Jared Smith of WebAIM, Podcast #27 (September 2006).
- Podcast #74: Awards, Events & Back to Basics recorded from Santa Cruz, California (September 2009).
- Podcast #35: Usability and Accessibility Conference recorded from event in Lansing, Michigan (November 2006).
- Visit to Yahoo! Accessibility Testing Lab (July 2009).
- NFB vs. Target Lawsuit is Settled!
- Critiques invoke responses: Recovery.gov, ca.gov, section508.gov
Special Episode Podcast Contributors
- Bruce Lawson (Opera, HTML5Doctor) – great HTML5 info.
- Denis Boudreau (A11Y_MTL) – French Canadian up very late recording.
- Jennison Asuncion – Accessibility tester, researcher, and all-around nice guy.
- Karen Mardahl (STCAccess) – Wicked good technical communicator.
- Mike Gifford (OpenConcept) – Drupal expert.
- Paul Boag (Boagworld) – Well, everyone knows this guy!
- Steve Grobschmidt – User Experience Lead and blogger.
- Terrill Thompson – A cool musician, basketball fan, and Technology Accessibility Specialist.
- Tom Babinszki (Even Grounds) – Accessibility consultant and blogger.
Addendum: Podcast Corrections
- Steve Grobschmidt’s last name was announced incorrectly (it’s not “Aquinas”, that’s part of his Twitter handle).
- We state that there are 8 guest speakers; there’s actually 9!
- We mentioned that Boagworld is no longer podcasting, but failed to mention that they plan on returning in January 2011. (Paul mentions this in his commentary.)
- HTML5 Issue: Longdesc Retention (W3C wiki)
- Raakt – The Ruby Accessibility Analysis Kit
- Accessible ARIA Tabs by @jkiss
- UStream videos from Montreal accessibility conference (#a11yMTL)
- Developing an Accessible Star Ratings Widget (YUI blog)
- Report Finds Five U.S. State Benefits’ Websites Inaccessible (COAT)
- Ten tools to help test website accessibility
- Accessibility in Online Teaching – a great starting point
- How the Blind See the Internet (Gizmodo)
- Using NVDA screen reader to Evaluate Web Accessibility (WebAIM)
- Creating Your Own Accessible HTML5 Media Player by @terrillthompson
- Accessing Nav Drop-Downs
- Preparing InDesign Files for Accessibility (Adobe TV)
- Access Key Replacement (W3C wiki)
- CSSquirrel demos longdesc attribute in non-visual comic Alone In The Pitch Black Dark
- Accessibility Camp DC registration is open; event is October 9 at MLK Library
- YUI Theater: Accessibility on the Yahoo Homepage
- College Web Pages Are ‘Widely Inaccessible’ to People With Disabilities
- Web accessibility for cognitive disabilities and learning difficulties (Opera)
- Silverlight Accessibility Overview (Microsoft)
- Twitter and Web Accessibility presentation from INDATA Conference by @dennisl
- Caption any 5-minute YouTube video for $5
- Great list of free screen readers
- Video about Yahoo’s Accessibility Lab featuring Alan Brightman
Categories
Accessibility in .Net Mag Awards
Two nominations directly related to web accessibility appeared in the .net magazine’s 2010 Best of the Web awards. This site, Web Axe, was nominated for “Podcast of the Year” and Accessible Twitter was nominated for “Best API Use”. Please make your vote and support the importance of web accessibility and the efforts of these two services!
On October 20, nominations for each category will be reduced to three. A panel of over 100 judges will choose the final winners and will be announced on November 19.
