Remembering Henry: A sweet, kind man

This is how I would describe the late Henry Young and he was so much more.

Henry was the dad of my sister-in-law Gayle, and I met and got to know him when Gayle married my brother Jeffrey.  Henry was always so good to me.  Very respectful, a true gentleman, and I shall never forget what he said to me when he heard that I had successfully sued the Canadian Government over their inaccessible websites.

This is what he said to me, “So, you beat city hall, eh!” I knew that he was genuinely proud of me and a good supporter.

What I shall always remember him for is that he was never one to be uncomfortable around me as a vision-impaired person. He was always willing to help me at social gatherings and he never left me out of the conversation.

Rest in Peace now, Henry! Until we meet again!

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advisor, wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit  http://www.donnajodhan.com

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids, with their wide eyed smiles and infectious laughter, is secured forever.

And now my weekly podcast!

From recipes to apps, and 5 minute mysteries to tips for entrepreneurs and scam alerts! www.donnajodhan.com/takeanother5.html

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A refreshing evening: Meeting Wendy Robins

She was probably one of the most pleasant persons for me to have met in a long time.  She was refreshing, open, and so very friendly.

Wendy is going to be working with me to produce an article that will give an in-depth history of my successful legal challenge against the Canadian Government over their inaccessible websites.  At this dinner meeting, Wendy worked with me and my friend Gabriella to lay down the foundations for the article.

Wendy did not seem to be uncomfortable in any way to be in the presence of someone who is vision impaired.  She was totally at ease and even went the extra mile to render assistance even before I thought to ask.

The world needs more folks like Wendy to help create a friendlier environment for blind and vision-impaired persons.

I’m Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advisor wishing you a terrific day.

If you would like to learn more about me as an author then I invite you now to visit
www.donnajodhan.com.

There you will not only learn about me as an author but you will also gain insights into my campaign against bullying and why I strongly believe that you need to consider joining me in order to insure that the future of our kids with their wide-eyed smiles and infectious laughter is secured forever.

And now my weekly podcast!
From recipes to apps, and 5 minute mysteries to tips for entrepreneurs and scam alerts!
www.donnajodhan.com/takeanother5.html.

Subscribe to my monthly newsletter!
'Let's Talk Tips' is my monthly resource for the most current and reliable informational tips available in the areas of Technology, Nutrition, Media, Business, and Advocacy.
http://bit.ly/ADJSubscribe

Follow me on Twitter @accessibleworld and at author_jodhan
And like me on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/donnajodhan and www.facebook.com/authordonnajodhan

Websites still inaccessible

In my personal opinion, I don't think that we will ever have the luxury of saying that all websites are accessible. No, not possible given the continuing evolution of technology.

The truth is that today a website may be accessible but tomorrow it becomes somewhat inaccessible due to a change as a result of software updates.

This cannot be helped so what do we do? Well, the best that we could possibly hope for is to do our best to ensure that when software updates take place, accessibility requirements are included before the updates are implemented.

Impossible, you may be asking? No! We just need to become more conscious of what needs to be remembered and included.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan, your friendly accessibility advocate, wishing you a terrific day.

Follow me on twitter @accessibleworld and @author_jodhan
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This is a personal message from author Donna Jodhan
"Each time we raise our voice at someone else we are engaging in bullying! Each time we raise our hands to slap or punch someone else we are also engaging in bullying and each time we engage in actions to either manipulate or force someone else to do what we want we are also engaging in bullying!

There is no room in this world for bullying and each day we fail to take action against bullying it is another day that we allow others to bully us and our kids. Our heroes and role models are the ones who have made us proud; those brave young men and women who gave their lives for us in past wars and those who continue to do so. They are not the ones who choose to be racists and those who believe that their bad behaviour in public is acceptable.

I write and record audio mysteries that are being used at such events as murder mystery evenings as well as at public awareness and team building events. I promote understanding, tolerance, and problem solving and my audio mysteries continue to be broadcasted around the world and you can listen to them anywhere! On the plane or train! In the car or right there in your home! On your i device or computer!

Please join my campaign against bullying (CAB) by supporting my efforts to keep on writing and recording!
If you truly care then you will certainly dare!"

Explaining it to the Sighted World

It is never a wise assumption when it comes to assuming that the sighted world will understand when we tell them that we are unable to access websites because they are inaccessible.  We need to be more explicit in order to get them to understand and that's just fine with me.  I'd like to take a few moments to paint the picture for a sighted person.

 

When a sighted person visits a website, they can use their eyes to choose which link they wish to click on in order to get where they are going.  In most instances, these links are represented by images, icons, and pictures.  They use a mouse to click on their desired choice.

 

When a blind person visits a website, they use a screen reader that enables them to find the links and content that they are looking for but when the links and/or content is depicted in the form of images, icons, or pictures, the screen reader is unable to decipher what it is.  A screen reader is software that speaks what is on a screen; it is unable to speak or describe something that does not have text to describe it.

 

In other words, think of it like this:

If you place a picture in front of a blind person, they will not know what it is unless you tell them what it is.  In like manner, if there is no text to describe what the picture, image, or icon is on a website, then the screen reader will not be able to tell the blind person what it is and what it means. 

 

The technology does not exist whereby there is software that can accurately describe the meaning of images, icons, or pictures.  A screen reader will only speak what it is able to decipher and this does not include images, icons, and pictures.

 

It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words; but no two persons can ever describe a picture in the same way.  If textual descriptions are used to describe icons, images, and pictures, it would make life so much easier for a magnitude of

persons that include:  The Blind and vision impaired, those who are unable to read print, those with learning disabilities, and those whose first language is not English. 

 

It is relatively easy and cost effective to provide textual descriptions to icons, images, and pictures.  Blind persons cannot use a mouse to click on images, icons, and pictures, because they are unable to see where to point and click.  It is a lot cheaper to provide textual descriptions than it is to carry out time consuming research to find ways to make it possible for a screen reader to read pictures, images, and icons.

 

In like manner, it is relatively easy to design a form that can be accessed by a blind person online.  If however the form needs to be downloaded and printed in order to be completed, then a blind person will have to ask for sighted assistance to do so.  They will not be able to complete and sign a printed form because they are unable to see to read and sign.

 

These are just a few explanations that are most common to help the sighted world understand more clearly.

 

If you would like to learn more about how blind persons access the Internet, then visit www.w3c.org.

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and asking you to go out there and spread the message to others about how blind persons go about accessing the Internet.

Close Captioning is not for Me

I decided to write about this after a recent incident where I was told by a webmaster that they had provided sufficient close captioning so that a blind person could access their website easily.  This may sound like a very feasible solution but in actuality it is not.  Far from it, I humbly submit that this particular web master was way off the mark.

 

If I had wanted to be a bit condescending then I could have said to this particular webmaster that blind persons can hear so they do not need close captioning in order to help them keep up with audio portions of programs.  Believe it or not, there are many persons out there who for some unexplained reason believe that blind persons are also hard of hearing.

 

To clarify and to put things into perspective:  Close captioning is used in order to facilitate the needs of those who are hard of hearing.  Close captioning is the text that appears on screen to help those with hearing problems to keep up with the audio portion of a movie or program.  Blind persons need audio description in order to keep up with the visual portion of a movie or program.

 

The use of audio description and close captioning is becoming more common these days as movie and TV producers strive to make their films more accessible to the blind and hearing impaired.  If you would like to learn more then why not visit www.wgbh.org.  You are guaranteed to learn many new things.

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and asking you to go out there and help educate the rest of the world about the difference between close captioning and audio description.

Pushing Beyond the Blue Horizon

For me, it has always been a matter of pushing the envelope that little much further or maybe I should say that it is pushing beyond the blue horizon.  I don't think that if I were sighted I would be any different.  To me, it's a matter of doing things that would encourage others like me to get up and reach for the stars.  I feel that it is my obligation to help other blind persons to maximize their potential; to reach for the sky, to enjoy as much as they can in a world where most sighted people still have difficulty understanding and believing that blind persons can do certain things despite their lack of sight. 

 

I have learned to ice skate and it has become one of my passions.  I have learned to ski and I intend to enjoy it as much as I can.  I enjoy the outdoors, and I also push the envelope when it comes to challenging my government to make their websites accessible to all blind persons.  This is why I am presently suing the Canadian Government over inaccessible websites and unequal access to governmental information. 

 

Sometimes, I do things that take me out of my comfort's zone but you know what?  My objective is always to do something that has the potential to make things better for Blind Canadians first and foremost and then other blind persons elsewhere.  Whatever I do, I always do my best to ensure that it is done professionally, and in a manner that will help the mainstream world to become believers and followers.  

 

I'm Donna J. Jodhan your friendly accessibility advocate wishing you a terrific day and encouraging you to go out there and become believers and followers.  To learn more about me, visit www.sterlingcreations.ca.