Coding for intranets (was RE: [thelist] Color Chooser Review -- c orrection)

[Chris Marsh]

> >Are there cases where the rules can legitimately be ignored?
>
> Well, one of the factors with coding for, or not coding for,
> blind users is that it can have legal repercussions. On my
> University site I cannot create inaccessible content, period.

I would have thought that one of the issues that nobody seems to think
of is the initial product design specifications. If you are producing an
intranet application with sufficiently complex front end, is
browser-based the way to go? Whether or not the initial spec is "one
browser only", marketing/hr expectations are bound to be "well it can't
be *that* difficult to make it cross compatible at a later date". Plus,
what if security flaws become apparent in the actual browser that affect
it's viability as a thin client? DHTML is "cool", and one can give
oneself a pat on the back for replicating Windows application-like
interfaces, but does anyone ever actually analyse the cost of producing
a DHTML thin client versus a rich client interface? No matter what the
opinions of various developers on what is or is not intuitive to the
user, the bottom line is that to Joe User applications that follow
Microsoft GUI conventions are "intuitive". Therefore one should follow
those conventions as much as possible when developing for the ignorant
masses. If this means having a pointer cursor and marching ants around a
radio button label, then so be it. If not, you're on your own when
criticisms start pouring I from the users. And if there's one thing I've
learnt about users, they love to pick up on perceived faults in
applications intranet and otherwise, mostly to show that "those geeks
aren't as smart as they think they are".

*sigh* Maybe I'm just obsessed. I'm pulling an all nighter to get my
@*&%ing .NET prototype ready for a meeting tomorrow; sorry, later on
this; morning :) I've got one cup's worth of coffee left, and I'm saving
it for about 6am in a couple of hours, so I'm not as lucid as I should
be...

Regards

Chris Marsh

PS I'm taking the afternoon off tomorrow. Not that any of you lot care,
but I will y'know. I might sleep, I might eat. But I DEFINITELY won't be
doing this :)