I recently found out about some website owners being sued for not being compliant.

I've researched this and it seems web designers have to make websites so visually disabled and hearing disabled have access and can use ALL websites. They want certain color schemes, text size and link background colors. They want keyboard links with background colors so the disabled can find those links.

I take exception to some of these things because it sounds like the 20% or so of the disabled people want ALL websites to change their branding. I guess I could talk my clients into that if all the big names on the Internet change theirs. You know, Coca Cola, Pepsi, Google, Microsoft etc..

I would just like to hear others opinions on this and if you are already building websites to these standards.

Thanks for any replies,
Ernie

In a Windows environment you can change text size and colour scheme to fit the needs of hearing and visually impaired persons, and if needed, it is in many cases possible to have the text read aloud to you. I see that official websites, goverrnment, police or any authority are telling visitors to their sites how to switch these things on, at least in my country. If I were to build such a website, I would of course do my best to abide with this.

But on the other hand, to demand that ALL websites have to be adapted for sight and hearing loss, I think that would be impossible. Just think about graphic artists. How could the paintings / photos / 3-dimensional artwork be displayed on a website if they cannot be seen? Or musical artists, how to give samples of their music? Just by displaying the sheet music?

I'm all for making things easy for as many people as possible, but at some stage it won't do with the technology we have at hand. What about people who are deaf-blind? If another Helen Keller came along, what internet experience could we offer her?

In the US

Yes, that will be the same as we have.

It's not a bad idea, especially if you know you could be having a certain type of disability visiting your site.

Thanks for the replies Inger and Eric.