[wp-accessibility] Accessibility query

[Bob Easton]

  Commenting on Rich Pedley's query about whether to make the forms for 
the administrative interface accessible...

I am not an active WP developer, but as an Accessibility Consultant with 
over a dozen years experience with web accessibility,

I write to encourage the work that Rich proposes. Forms are the toughest 
aspect of web accessibility. They are very difficult for many kinds of 
disabilities, and almost impossible for the visually impaired unless the 
form is erm.... well formed. Those fieldset and legend elements serve a 
critically important purpose for many users. Forms are also difficult 
for developers and designers. Developers end up with a heck of a lot 
more little details to attend to. Designers sometimes dislike the 
appearance of correctly structured forms. CSS has helped resolve this to 
some extent, but some designers still resist structural forms elements.

So, forms end up being a triple problem, for the users, for the 
developers, and for the designers. It takes a concerted effort to make 
them work well, look delightful, and be fully accessible.

Yes, it's a substantial challenge. The whole admin interface is one 
large set of forms.  On the other hand, having this interface be fully 
accessible could be a key differentiator for WordPress. No other 
blogging platform comes remotely close to being accessible and a fully 
accessible WP would both serve a wider audience and have strong boasting 
rights.

-- 
Bob Easton
http://access-matters.com