Read Speaker

A server-based product that reads the text on a website and requires no plugin. It also reads Word, RTF and PDF documents. You can try the service out by clicking on the ‘SayIt’ botton on the ReadSpeaker site. From their website:

The Mission of ReadSpeaker is to make the “miracle of the Internet” accessible for dyslexics, people with learning disabilities, low literacy level, people with English as a second language, elderly with impaired vision and others that like to listen as well as read.

I’m not quite sold on their claim that “ReadSpeaker will make your website accessible for more people than any other accessibility measurement that you put in place,” but I don’t suppose it could hurt. Fortunately they do recommend that you follow the W3C/WAI guidelines as well. I couldn’t find any pricing information, but you can contact them for a free trial and price quote

ReadSpeaker

Disability, Accessibility and Alternative Format Symbols

I’ve recently been looking for a standard set of icons to represent materials available in alternate formats. I didn’t find much, here are a couple that I came across:

• Sense, a UK Deafblind Charity has a set of symbols that they use on their site.
• The Graphics Artists Guild has created a set of twelve disability access symbols that are available to anyone to indicate the availability of accessible services. The symbols are available for download in TIFF format. If you do a search for “disability access symbols”, you’ll primarily get a bunch of lists of these icons.

Assuming that there must be more than these two resources, I started exploring disability iconography in general. A while back, Scott from Rolling Rains was was asked, “Is there an international standard that is used in the iconography depicting people with disabilities?” Scott replied:

Unfortunately, the answer is, ‘No.’

It may be arguable that the standard person in the wheelchair symbol is international in scope, but even if it is there are many good arguments that it is not a good representation of disabilities in general.

The need for better accessibility symbols is definitively laid out in a Symbolizing Accessibility article from Joe Clark wherein he critiques some of the current symbols and provides some suggestions on what is needed. In addition, Joe worked with Melanie Goux to develop an improved symbol for audio description and wrote about the process.

Is there anything better out there… anywhere? If so, please leave a note in the comments. If not, are there any ambitious graphic designers out there?

Further Reading:

• Thoughts on the International Access Symbol “Yeah, even though I’m a chair user, I have a problem with the access symbol. It disenfranchises many of my friends who live with disabilities but who do not use chairs.”
• Discussion of the Wheelchair symbol from the Accessify forums “I’d be interested to know what other’s feelings are on this and open to suggestions of an alternative symbol that would deliver the same message?” (regarding the wheelchair icon)

For more information on alternate formats, see
User-Friendly Materials and Alternate Formats from the National Center for the Dissemination of Disability Research.