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The goal isn't to help the readers though, it's to convince web developers to fix their websites. It seems like that battle is already lost, this isn't some de

The goal isn't to help the readers though, it's to convince web developers to fix their websites. It seems like that battle is already lost, this isn't some default setting that they are just accepting, web developers are doing it because they think they have a good reason, some random blog post isn't going to change their minds.

jeroenhd 4y ago
I'm willing to bet that most developers just copy/pasted the line of code that disables zoom from a framework or tool. The goal of most people who add these lines is to make the page fill the screen right on mobile devices. I'm sure some are user-hostile enough to disable zoom, but most probably don't have strong feelings one way or the other. Bringing this to developers' attention might very well be enough to get tons of people to remove the zoom block from their websites.
jnovek 4y ago
For those of us with disabilities, this is every situation of our lives all the time. The disadvantage of being disabled doesn’t come from the way that disability limits us as much as it comes from the countless ways it makes all the normal things people do slightly harder. Advocates fight to change these things not because it’s easy to do but because eliminating at least some of the hurdles in life makes our overall experience a little easier.
- hedora 4y ago
  Being left handed is a mild version of this. I think it cultivates a healthy mindset though: At an early age, you learn that all assymetric tools were designed by idiots, so by kindergarten, you're already questioning everything. I suspect this is why lefties are drastically overrepresented in leadership positions, NASA, etc.
  - Reason077 4y ago
    Apparently a Harvard study found that on average, lefties earn less, die younger, and are more prone to alcoholism! Source: https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2015/beyond-bls/left-versus-right-the-impact-of-handedness-on-future-earnings.htm https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2015/beyond-bls/left-versus-rig... According to the research, “lefties are generally born with a different brain structure that negatively affects their social and cognitive abilities.”
    - jnovek 4y ago
      One could say that being left-handed a disability that requires a low level of support. I really like this line of thinking because I think abled people are often overwhelmed by the prospect of disability. I bet left-handedness is the sort of impairment that people can get their head around as a starting point. I’ve tried using my vision impairment (which requires a low to moderate level of support) to describe the same thing, but peoples’ eyes tend to glaze over as soon as I say “amblyopia”. :-P
  - account42 4y ago
    > At an early age, you learn that all assymetric tools were designed by idiots Then you have learned the wrong lession. Assymetric tools might not be inclusive, but they are generally designed that way because it brings some kind of advantage.
    - hedora 4y ago
      Try explaining that to a five-year-old whose faith in humanity hasn't yet been crushed by an endless stream of corporate design-by-committee compromises.

jeroenhd 4y ago

I'm willing to bet that most developers just copy/pasted the line of code that disables zoom from a framework or tool. The goal of most people who add these lines is to make the page fill the screen right on mobile devices. I'm sure some are user-hostile enough to disable zoom, but most probably don't have strong feelings one way or the other. Bringing this to developers' attention might very well be enough to get tons of people to remove the zoom block from their websites.

jnovek 4y ago

For those of us with disabilities, this is every situation of our lives all the time. The disadvantage of being disabled doesn’t come from the way that disability limits us as much as it comes from the countless ways it makes all the normal things people do slightly harder. Advocates fight to change these things not because it’s easy to do but because eliminating at least some of the hurdles in life makes our overall experience a little easier.

hedora 4y ago
Being left handed is a mild version of this. I think it cultivates a healthy mindset though: At an early age, you learn that all assymetric tools were designed by idiots, so by kindergarten, you're already questioning everything. I suspect this is why lefties are drastically overrepresented in leadership positions, NASA, etc.
- Reason077 4y ago
  Apparently a Harvard study found that on average, lefties earn less, die younger, and are more prone to alcoholism! Source: https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2015/beyond-bls/left-versus-right-the-impact-of-handedness-on-future-earnings.htm https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2015/beyond-bls/left-versus-rig... According to the research, “lefties are generally born with a different brain structure that negatively affects their social and cognitive abilities.”
  - jnovek 4y ago
    One could say that being left-handed a disability that requires a low level of support. I really like this line of thinking because I think abled people are often overwhelmed by the prospect of disability. I bet left-handedness is the sort of impairment that people can get their head around as a starting point. I’ve tried using my vision impairment (which requires a low to moderate level of support) to describe the same thing, but peoples’ eyes tend to glaze over as soon as I say “amblyopia”. :-P
- account42 4y ago
  > At an early age, you learn that all assymetric tools were designed by idiots Then you have learned the wrong lession. Assymetric tools might not be inclusive, but they are generally designed that way because it brings some kind of advantage.
  - hedora 4y ago
    Try explaining that to a five-year-old whose faith in humanity hasn't yet been crushed by an endless stream of corporate design-by-committee compromises.