[thelist] Jakob Nielsen [was Anti-aliasing]

[Matt]

Bill Haenel wrote:

> So that makes it OK to use Flash? By this logic I could conceivably use
> Flash to build the entirety of my site, IF my objective was to create an
> experience for those who can use Flash and who don't mind attempting to
> become familiar with a new navigational concept. So what about
> accessibility? Oh, yeah...

Yes, it does make it ok. We need to get over this idea that anything on the
web is automatically required to be 100% accessible to all users no matter
what the subject matter is and no matter whom the target user. The web, like
Life, has many niches and groups which don't always mesh. There's nothing
inherently wrong with a flash site which is only accessible to a limited and
particularly patient or saavy group of users. It becomes a problem when a
highly conceptual flash interface is used for, say, a banking site, which by
its very nature is meant to be accessible to all users at all times. But if
its used for the website of a teen-oriented pop band, or an experimental "web
art" site, then theres no reason why not.

When you go to a night club with dim lighting, narrow passages, barely marked
doors, and blasting music, do you look around and say "well this is all well
and good for the kids, but my grandmother could never find her way around this
place!" Of course not. If Kmart on the other hand started to design their
stores in such a manner, there'd be some pretty serious problems for the
average Kmart user. There's nothing wrong with excluding users, you just have
to know who you're excluding and why.