What would life look like if I didn't have glasses? - The importance of accessibility

I recently attended a workshop by Derek Featherstone on accessibility as part of the Webstock event held in Wellington. It was a huge eye opener in realising what some people have to put up with because the rest of us aren't aware of the importance of accessibility.

Featherstone referenced a mobile phone conference, where someone who was visually impaired was asked what features they want for a mobile phone.

Their response – “a dial tone”.

If you're like me then the first thing that would cross your mind is "What's a dial tone?". We've been using mobile phones for so long now that the dial tone has died and most of us didn't even notice. For a lot of us it would never cross our minds that a dial tone would be something someone would want the most.

It made me think... what if I was someone who had issues seeing properly?

Then I realised... I am.

However, I'm one of the lucky ones that have an easy solution to my vision impairments. But what if I wasn't. What if I had to live my life without glasses. What if everyone who needed glasses or contacts had to live without them?

Writing this blog I had to change the font to size 28 before I could read it clearly without my glasses. If everyone were to navigate the internet with a font size of 28, would that affect how you design your webpage?

I would like to challenge you to try the straw test. Clench your fist as though you are holding a straw. Close one eye and look through the gap in your fist with your open eye. This is what life would look like if you have low vision. Imagine filling out a form online with low vision. What could you do to make things easier for a user with low vision?

Accessibility isn't a high priority for most IT projects these days but I really hope that this changes soon.

I'm really thankful for the opportunity to attend Derek's workshop. It exposed me to a whole new world I was too ignorant to realise existed. It really challenges me to think of all the small things we take for granted that would make a huge difference to someone else.

I hope you all join me on the journey to making the web more accessible for everyone.

Image: Ross McElwain of Equinox IT demonstrating the accessibility straw test.