Category: Uncategorized

MLB has been getting loads of positive commentary in the accessibility community of late. While I’m glad to see the organization step up to the plate as it were and start to take accessibility seriously, it is still far too easy to find basic accessibility issues wrong with the main MLB web site.   Take a browse to an offering to play fantasy baseball for example and count the number of instances of text such…

I’ve mentioned several times here that I’m a big fan of Lainey Feingold’s work on accessibility. The Structured Negotiations process used has proven to pay dividends time and again in moving accessibility forward.   Two recent announcements from Lainey highlight the road this work often travels.   First is an announcement that all Bank of America ATMs in the U.S. are now talking ATMs. This represents more than 18,000 ATM installations and covers more than…

It took me a bit to figure out how to subscribe to only Gameday Audio with MLB so hopefully this saves others a few minutes. Most paths seem to want you to subscribe to the streaming television option. MlB customer support wasn’t overly helpful at understanding that not everyone hovers and uses a mouse.   The short version is that if you have an existing MLB.com account, using the link of https://secure.mlb.com/campaign/login_register.jsp?voucherCode=MLBTV_VOCHR&sku=ATBATPCSUBSEA2010&c_id=mlb&keepWfParams=true&flowId=commerce.cart.noUpfrontRegisPurchase&campaignCode=MLBTV_CMPGN should take you…

So, is MLB giving people who rely on alt text to understand the intent of images a real bonus or just not paying attention to what their alt tags convey? Check out the pricing according to alt tags for MLB.TV Premium.   The price is first indicated as $119.95 per year. But then alt text for the graphic of monthly subscription pricing of $24.95 indicates the rate is an annual rate as well. So MLB,…

I have nothing but respect for the folks involved in helping to advocate that MLB.com improve accessibility of the web site. Lainey Feingold has been instrumental in moving accessibility on a number of issues to successful resolution. To learn more about the story here you can read a press release at http://lflegal.com/2010/02/mlb-press/. My comments are not meant to detract from the progress made.   Still I find it kind of ironic that when browsing to…

Yelp is one of the more popular web sites for restaurant reviews. I’ve recently started using it as one of my research tools when deciding where to dine.   I’m also a big fan of giving back to the information community on the web. My philosophy is that if you find the info on sites like Yelp of value, you should contribute by sharing your experiences.   Recently I wanted to write a review for…

I’ve blogged several times about my desire to see improved accessibility with the All Access site from CBS Sports used by the University of Wisconsin to stream audio and video for Badger athletic events. Wisconsin is just one of dozens, if not hundreds, of universities that use this service.   Earlier today, contacts at the University of Wisconsin informed me that CBS indicated the accessibility issues with the All Access site were fixed with an…

Obviously one web site does not an accessibility statement make but an experience I had this morning still to me sums up the real state of web accessibility in 2010.   I kicked off the day reading an article from SFGate, the San Francisco Chronicle’s online site claiming the web was more accessible to people with disabilities. In my opinion this is both a poor article and a very misleading headline. There’s a world of…

Queue the broken record theme and maestro, hit it!   Earlier I wrote about my hope to see improved accessibility from CBS College Sports All Access. As of that writing I was told the accessibility fixes were expected on November 30. That day came and went with no update.   I received a brief update today from the people I’ve been exchanging e-mail with at the University of Wisconsin about the accessibility issues.   What’s…

Web accessibility issues are certainly easy to find. Calling attention to each one any user encounters would quickly be overwhelming. But every once in a while you come across examples that are just so basic they need to be mentioned.   I’m sure just about everyone has heard of Morningstar, the financial research giant. The company’s star ratings pepper the financial world, with Morningstar ratings being used in any credible financial research source.   In…