[thelist] IE click border...

jeff jeff at members.evolt.org
Mon Jun 4 13:33:25 CDT 2001


matt,

:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
: From: Matt Patterson
:
: I'm not sure I'd go quite as far as Jeff... but
: if you're going to switch the outline off then
: you *must* provide *equivalent* functionality or
: people who are tabbing through links - people
: with disabilities who need to tab through, for
: example - have no way of knowing where they are.
:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

visit the link below using ie4+.

http://members.evolt.org/jeff/code/link_accessibility_usability.cfm

start with the address in the address bar highlighted.  now, try to tab to
the various links on the page.  you'll notice that you can tab through the
first two columns of links.  when it comes to the third column however you
can't tab through the links.  in fact, pressing tab twice brings you back to
the first item in the first column.

now, reload the page and try clicking on any of the links without ever
tabbing.  you'll notice that the border is never displayed -- it's like the
browser assumes you don't need the visual cue.

reload the page once again and try tabbing once.  now, click any of the
links.  the outline remains on any link you click in the first column.  it
appears momentarily, then disappears on the middle column.  it never
displays at all on the third column.

now, my point was that the use of the onfocus event handler to trigger the
elimination of the border makes your site completely unusable to keyboard
users.  imo, this is intolerable.

:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
: Disenfranchising people because you don't
: like IE's link outline is crass.
:~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

amen brutha.

i find it to be as unprofessional as disabling the right-click menu and
popping an alert about copyright material -- as if the right-click menu is
*only* for stealing images or viewing source
(http://www.evolt.org/article/thelist/17/719/).

thanks,

.jeff

name://jeff.howden
game://web.development
http://www.evolt.org/
mailto:jeff at members.evolt.org





More information about the thelist mailing list