6 ms·

This problem is so much bigger than low-contrast pages. Almost all technology of any kind selects in favor of aesthetics over equal access. I have moderate am

by jnovek 4y ago

This problem is so much bigger than low-contrast pages. Almost all technology of any kind selects in favor of aesthetics over equal access. I have moderate amblyopia and severe astigmatism. For a frame of reference, I only barely pass the driver’s license vision test when I renew my license (don’t worry I don’t actually drive). My vision has good days and bad days. My ophthalmologist thinks that I frequently have eye strain from looking at screens which further (temporarily) degrades my vision. Examples that I’ve run into _in the last 24 hours_. - Why can’t I choose the colors of web sites and applications? - Why can’t I choose (and override) the default typefaces on mobile browsers? - Why can’t I change the default system font for my iPhone or my Mac? - Why can’t I change the font size in modern video games? - Why do most desktop applications fall of the edge of the screen below 1080p? I rely on hacky tools to get by — e.g. momentarily dropping HIDPI or jail breaking devices. No one would want to use technology the way I have to. It sucks and it’s constantly getting worse.

Markoff 4y ago
Unrelated, but as European why do you need driver's license, if you don't drive, isn't there some equivalent to ID card in US not requiring any test?
- the_only_law 4y ago
  > isn't there some equivalent to ID card in US not requiring any test? Most states have something like this. Typically you fill out some forms and pay a fee to get a “State ID”. Just be prepared for people to give you shit about it occasionally when ID’d. If you’ve already gotten your drivers license in the past though, I don’t see any good reasons to get a new ID vs just renewing the driver license.
- jnovek 4y ago
  When I was a teenager my vision was better. It has degraded as I’ve aged. I do still technically pass the vision test, but I don’t think it tests for impairment from astigmatism very well. It’s not rational, but I think a big part of keeping my license is anxiety. It’s really challenging to get around in America without driving. Knowing that my license is still valid makes me feel less trapped.
  - samatman 4y ago
    There's absolutely no reason you should forgo the optionality inherent in a driver's license so long as you continue to pass the test. People need a ride to the hospital all the time, if the state says your vision is up to the task of doing it, why not be available for emergencies? There's no downside.
- jffry 4y ago
  Many states will issue "non-driver ID cards" (examples below), which are typically cheaper than a drivers license, but which still involve the same level of proving who you are before you can get one (involving showing passport/birth certificate/bills/whatever) Because these are relatively uncommon, they will lead to extra scrutiny and hassle in many situations (buying alcohol, showing ID at airport security, etc). The US does not have federal level ID cards, although the federal government has used funding for state programs as a cudgel to make states comply with standards for how they verify who you are before issuing you an ID ("Real ID"). Examples of non-driver IDs: - New York: https://dmv.ny.gov/non-driver-id-card https://dmv.ny.gov/non-driver-id-card - Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-a-massachusetts-identification-card-mass-id https://www.mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-a-massachusetts-identi... - District of Columbia: https://dmv.dc.gov/service/non-driver-identification-cards https://dmv.dc.gov/service/non-driver-identification-cards
  - Markoff 4y ago
    Isn't passport (sort of) federal level ID card? Thanks for examples.
    - flyingfences 4y ago
      A passport works, but it a) doesn't list a home address, which is sometimes necessary and b) is too bulky to conveniently carry around.
      - jffry 4y ago
        When you renew your passport, you can also get a passport card for an extra $30 or something. They're only good for land/sea crossings (no flights) from US to Canada, Mexico, but you can put it in your wallet. The downside is again that it's non-standard form of ID, but it is a photo ID and may be useful
      - justsomehnguy 4y ago
        Depends on the size of you pockets
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
danuker 4y ago
> - Why can’t I choose the colors of web sites and applications? For what it's worth, Firefox lets you edit them: http://kb.mozillazine.org/index.php?title=UserContent.css&printable=yes http://kb.mozillazine.org/index.php?title=UserContent.css&pr... Not terribly easily, but you can do it for any site. For example I fixed a GitHub bug for myself: https://github.com/github/feedback/discussions/8098#discussioncomment-2275499 https://github.com/github/feedback/discussions/8098#discussi... There is a world of styles out there: https://userstyles.world/ https://userstyles.world/
- jnovek 4y ago
  Have you seen the Stylus extension? I have several default styles configured in Stylus. This improves things on the desktop quite a bit. I wish it existed on mobile.
  - aceazzameen 4y ago
    I used to use Stylus several years ago. Didn't it sell out to another company and start tracking and selling user's data? Or am I thinking of another similar add-on?
    - jakopo87 4y ago
      That was Stylish. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stylish https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stylish
      - aceazzameen 4y ago
        Right! Thank you for the clarification.
  - DvdGiessen 4y ago
    Actually, you can use it on Android, but it does require using Firefox Nightly[1]. That does come with downsides such as Nightly being less stable and installing extensions requiring some extra setup, so it isn't the best choice for everyone. But I myself am using Stylus (which works perfectly fine) and some other not officially supported WebExtensions on mobile this way and can recommend it if you don't mind the downsides. [1]: https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2020/09/29/expanded-extension-support-in-firefox-for-android-nightly/ https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2020/09/29/expanded-extensio...
account42 4y ago
> Almost all technology of any kind selects in favor of aesthetics over equal access. I don't think accessibility should mean that you have to forgoe aesthetics or compactness for those users that don't need the contrast or extra space or whatever so these don't need to be opposed. Instead, provide options for users that do need them and/or integrate with OS or third-party accessibility tools where possible. > Why can’t I choose the colors of web sites and applications? I can choose my applications colors under KDE and pretty much everything "native" (Qt and GTK <= 3 apps) will respect those settings. This seems more of a problem in the proprietary ecosystem where each company wants to insist on their own branding. For websites there are prefers-contrast [0] and prefers-color-scheme [1] media queries that in theory provide some user configurability but they are a) barely exposed to users b) not implemented by most websites and c) very limited. It would be nice if there was a standard way for CSS to refer to system fonts and colors - then again that would also be yet another privacy leak that WILL be used for tracking :| > Why can’t I change the default system font for my iPhone or my Mac? You can in other operating systems. Apple has always been about aesthetics first so this this shouldn't really be suprising - not that that excuses Apple from not providing these configuration options. > Why can’t I change the font size in modern video games? This has actually become more common for CRPGs now. I guess most less text-heavy games still don't bother. OTOH most new-ish games scale text with the screen resolution. Older games might have fixed absolute font sizes but if they are old enough they also have a fixed (or limited set of) supported resolutions and you need to scale up the whole thing anyway. > Why do most desktop applications fall of the edge of the screen below 1080p? Windows is really bad about having fixed-size dialogs everywhere. This is another of those things I like about Qt-based applications - they have always had flexible layouts unless the developer deliberately breaks that. [0] https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/prefers-contrast https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/pref... [1] https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/prefers-color-scheme https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/pref...

by jnovek 4y ago

Markoff 4y ago

Unrelated, but as European why do you need driver's license, if you don't drive, isn't there some equivalent to ID card in US not requiring any test?

the_only_law 4y ago
> isn't there some equivalent to ID card in US not requiring any test? Most states have something like this. Typically you fill out some forms and pay a fee to get a “State ID”. Just be prepared for people to give you shit about it occasionally when ID’d. If you’ve already gotten your drivers license in the past though, I don’t see any good reasons to get a new ID vs just renewing the driver license.
jnovek 4y ago
When I was a teenager my vision was better. It has degraded as I’ve aged. I do still technically pass the vision test, but I don’t think it tests for impairment from astigmatism very well. It’s not rational, but I think a big part of keeping my license is anxiety. It’s really challenging to get around in America without driving. Knowing that my license is still valid makes me feel less trapped.
- samatman 4y ago
  There's absolutely no reason you should forgo the optionality inherent in a driver's license so long as you continue to pass the test. People need a ride to the hospital all the time, if the state says your vision is up to the task of doing it, why not be available for emergencies? There's no downside.
jffry 4y ago
Many states will issue "non-driver ID cards" (examples below), which are typically cheaper than a drivers license, but which still involve the same level of proving who you are before you can get one (involving showing passport/birth certificate/bills/whatever) Because these are relatively uncommon, they will lead to extra scrutiny and hassle in many situations (buying alcohol, showing ID at airport security, etc). The US does not have federal level ID cards, although the federal government has used funding for state programs as a cudgel to make states comply with standards for how they verify who you are before issuing you an ID ("Real ID"). Examples of non-driver IDs: - New York: https://dmv.ny.gov/non-driver-id-card https://dmv.ny.gov/non-driver-id-card - Massachusetts: https://www.mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-a-massachusetts-identification-card-mass-id https://www.mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-a-massachusetts-identi... - District of Columbia: https://dmv.dc.gov/service/non-driver-identification-cards https://dmv.dc.gov/service/non-driver-identification-cards
- Markoff 4y ago
  Isn't passport (sort of) federal level ID card? Thanks for examples.
  - flyingfences 4y ago
    A passport works, but it a) doesn't list a home address, which is sometimes necessary and b) is too bulky to conveniently carry around.
    - jffry 4y ago
      When you renew your passport, you can also get a passport card for an extra $30 or something. They're only good for land/sea crossings (no flights) from US to Canada, Mexico, but you can put it in your wallet. The downside is again that it's non-standard form of ID, but it is a photo ID and may be useful
    - justsomehnguy 4y ago
      Depends on the size of you pockets
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

danuker 4y ago

> - Why can’t I choose the colors of web sites and applications? For what it's worth, Firefox lets you edit them: http://kb.mozillazine.org/index.php?title=UserContent.css&printable=yes http://kb.mozillazine.org/index.php?title=UserContent.css&pr... Not terribly easily, but you can do it for any site. For example I fixed a GitHub bug for myself: https://github.com/github/feedback/discussions/8098#discussioncomment-2275499 https://github.com/github/feedback/discussions/8098#discussi... There is a world of styles out there: https://userstyles.world/ https://userstyles.world/

jnovek 4y ago
Have you seen the Stylus extension? I have several default styles configured in Stylus. This improves things on the desktop quite a bit. I wish it existed on mobile.
- aceazzameen 4y ago
  I used to use Stylus several years ago. Didn't it sell out to another company and start tracking and selling user's data? Or am I thinking of another similar add-on?
  - jakopo87 4y ago
    That was Stylish. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stylish https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stylish
    - aceazzameen 4y ago
      Right! Thank you for the clarification.
- DvdGiessen 4y ago
  Actually, you can use it on Android, but it does require using Firefox Nightly[1]. That does come with downsides such as Nightly being less stable and installing extensions requiring some extra setup, so it isn't the best choice for everyone. But I myself am using Stylus (which works perfectly fine) and some other not officially supported WebExtensions on mobile this way and can recommend it if you don't mind the downsides. [1]: https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2020/09/29/expanded-extension-support-in-firefox-for-android-nightly/ https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2020/09/29/expanded-extensio...

account42 4y ago

> Almost all technology of any kind selects in favor of aesthetics over equal access. I don't think accessibility should mean that you have to forgoe aesthetics or compactness for those users that don't need the contrast or extra space or whatever so these don't need to be opposed. Instead, provide options for users that do need them and/or integrate with OS or third-party accessibility tools where possible. > Why can’t I choose the colors of web sites and applications? I can choose my applications colors under KDE and pretty much everything "native" (Qt and GTK <= 3 apps) will respect those settings. This seems more of a problem in the proprietary ecosystem where each company wants to insist on their own branding. For websites there are prefers-contrast [0] and prefers-color-scheme [1] media queries that in theory provide some user configurability but they are a) barely exposed to users b) not implemented by most websites and c) very limited. It would be nice if there was a standard way for CSS to refer to system fonts and colors - then again that would also be yet another privacy leak that WILL be used for tracking :| > Why can’t I change the default system font for my iPhone or my Mac? You can in other operating systems. Apple has always been about aesthetics first so this this shouldn't really be suprising - not that that excuses Apple from not providing these configuration options. > Why can’t I change the font size in modern video games? This has actually become more common for CRPGs now. I guess most less text-heavy games still don't bother. OTOH most new-ish games scale text with the screen resolution. Older games might have fixed absolute font sizes but if they are old enough they also have a fixed (or limited set of) supported resolutions and you need to scale up the whole thing anyway. > Why do most desktop applications fall of the edge of the screen below 1080p? Windows is really bad about having fixed-size dialogs everywhere. This is another of those things I like about Qt-based applications - they have always had flexible layouts unless the developer deliberately breaks that. [0] https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/prefers-contrast https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/pref... [1] https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/prefers-color-scheme https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/@media/pref...