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There are 3 messages in this issue.

Topics in this digest:

1. Brief update
From: ruth.loebl@...
2. Maewyn Cumming is out of the office until Monday 18 May. For urgent matters please contact Suzanne Daniels, suzanne.daniels@....
From: maewyn.cumming@...
3. Ruth K Marshall/STANDARD LIFE ASSURANCE COMPANY is out of the office.
From: ruth_k_marshall@...


________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

Message: 1
Date: Tue, 11 May 2004 15:47:14 +0100
From: ruth.loebl@...
Subject: Brief update

Progress towards our objectives is slow, but there are a number of things to
report.

1. Within RNIB we have adopted a set of standards based on ISO 16071, and
have had the opportunity to try to apply them against three different
software products: one library management system and two customer
relationship management systems. This has allowed us to take a view of what
the likely access barriers may be for users of the systems, and inform the
developers and suppliers of how they might improve their products to make
them more accessible.

2. We have found that applying the ISO 16071 technical specification is not
easy. The main difficulty is ensuring that we are interpreting the
statements in the spec in the way they were intended - the language is not
easy to understand and some of the concepts are very technical. We are
working on this in two ways:
a) creating a list of questions and comments that have been sent to the ISO
committee that is working on the specification: 2 sets of questions have
been sent, and the committee has responded to one set so far, very
positively.
b) we plan to create as large a body of examples and explanations as we can,
ensuring that we fully understand what each standard really signifies (a bit
like the explanations in the IBM checklists).

3. Following the ratification of the European procurement Directives, I have
been told that the UK Office of Government Commerce (OGC) will be consulting
on how they may be incorporated into UK guidelines for government
procurement. I have not yet received notification of this consultation,
although it should be starting any time now.

I would be very interested to hear whether other organisations or
individuals are actively working towards any of the objectives of this list.
In particular, I have not been able to engage with organisations
representing other disability groups, to find out whether ISO 16071
adequately covers the IT accessibility issues that would face people with
impairments unrelated to blindness or partial sight. Please let me know if
you can help on this issue, or if you know someone with disability and IT
accessibility knowledge or expertise.

I would like to thank those people who have sent me information and messages
off-list. Although very few messages have been posted, I am grateful that
people remain subscribed, and look forward to a higher level of contribution
in the future.

All the best
---
Ruth Loebl
Senior UK ICT Development Officer

RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
58-72 John Bright Street
Birmingham
B1 1BN
Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/

Progress towards our objectives is slow, but there are a number of things to
report.

1. Within RNIB we have adopted a set of standards based on ISO 16071, and
have had the opportunity to try to apply them against three different
software products: one library management system and two customer
relationship management systems. This has allowed us to take a view of what
the likely access barriers may be for users of the systems, and inform the
developers and suppliers of how they might improve their products to make
them more accessible.

2. We have found that applying the ISO 16071 technical specification is not
easy. The main difficulty is ensuring that we are interpreting the
statements in the spec in the way they were intended - the language is not
easy to understand and some of the concepts are very technical. We are
working on this in two ways:
a) creating a list of questions and comments that have been sent to the ISO
committee that is working on the specification: 2 sets of questions have
been sent, and the committee has responded to one set so far, very
positively.
b) we plan to create as large a body of examples and explanations as we can,
ensuring that we fully understand what each standard really signifies (a bit
like the explanations in the IBM checklists).

3. Following the ratification of the European procurement Directives, I have
been told that the UK Office of Government Commerce (OGC) will be consulting
on how they may be incorporated into UK guidelines for government
procurement. I have not yet received notification of this consultation,
although it should be starting any time now.

I would be very interested to hear whether other organisations or
individuals are actively working towards any of the objectives of this list.
In particular, I have not been able to engage with organisations
representing other disability groups, to find out whether ISO 16071
adequately covers the IT accessibility issues that would face people with
impairments unrelated to blindness or partial sight. Please let me know if
you can help on this issue, or if you know someone with disability and IT
accessibility knowledge or expertise.

I would like to thank those people who have sent me information and messages
off-list. Although very few messages have been posted, I am grateful that
people remain subscribed, and look forward to a higher level of contribution
in the future.

All the best
---
Ruth Loebl
Senior UK ICT Development Officer

RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
58-72 John Bright Street
Birmingham
B1 1BN
Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/

--
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

My name is Stanley M. Debono and I am executive coordinator at the
Foundation for Information Technology (Malta), FITA in short.

FITA is a deceivingly small organisation, since its operations are
administered by just two individuals, but we have established a wide
network of contacts and partner organisations, that has enabled us to
plan and implement a number of services aimed at promoting ICT
accessibility.

We regularly organise basic to advanced ICT courses, facilitate the
acquisition of ICT products by disabled persons, provide consultancy
services aimed at using ICT in education and work environments and
also obtained a substantial degree of representation within public
policy making circles.  We are also invovled in ICT research projects
in collaboration with the University of Malta, most of which involve
software development.   More information on all this is available at
the FITA  website www.knpd.org/mittsfita

FITA, being the only organisation in Malta, who's main goal is the
promotion of ICT accessibility to disabled persons, has a major
interest in possible outcomes from this discussion and hopefully can
contribute a lot, from our experience in this field.

Regards,

Stanley
--- In IT-include@yahoogroups.com, ruth.loebl@r... wrote:
> I'm sure some of you have forgotten that you signed up to this
list, and
> cluttered email inboxes have certainly not had to contend with a
huge volume
> of traffic. Perhaps we could start some information exchange if
subscribers
> introduce themselves and contribute a brief synopsis of their
interest in
> accessible IT procurement?
>
> Within RNIB we are working on a number of fronts:
>
> - Exploring the activity taking place in Europe around a new
Directive that
> covers procurement, and specifically "environmental and social
issues" (one
> of which is accessibility). This Directive is not yet confirmed,
but if and
> when it is, the UK government then has to implement it in UK law.
>
> - The agency responsible for guidance on UK government procurement
policy is
> the Office of Government Commerce. Ideally, OGC might consult
members of
> this group to produce appropriate guidance that includes
accessibility. OGC
> have previously collaborated with DEFRA to produce guidance on
environmental
> issues, and accessibility is mentioned briefly in this document:
> http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=400
>
> - We have lost an ally in the Office of the e-Envoy with Geoff
Rymans
> departure, and further change will ensue with the recruitment to
the new
> post of "Head of e-Government", to replace the current e-Envoy. An
article
> in The Register gives more information about this, at
> http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/34518.html. We will continue
to try
> and influence Government about the importance of compliance with
> accessibility guidelines or standards in IT procurement.
>
> - Within RNIB, we need to establish our own accessible IT
procurement policy
> and procedures. We have a draft policy and procedures, we are
testing this
> out on a current procurement exercise, and examining the ISO
standard 16071
> with a view to adopting it for our compliance testing.
>
> I hope others will take a few minutes to introduce themselves, even
if their
> activity on accessible IT procurement is currently limited to
monitoring
> this list!
>
> All the best for 2004
> ---
> Ruth Loebl
> Senior UK ICT Development Officer
>
> RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
> 58-72 John Bright Street
> Birmingham
> B1 1BN
> Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
> Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
> Email: Ruth.Loebl@R...
> Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/
>
> -
> DISCLAIMER:
>
> NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments
is
> confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
> recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of
the
> content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
> sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete
it
> and any attachments from your system.
>
> RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated
by
> its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
> cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are
transmitted.
> We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.
>
> Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email
and
> any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily
represent
> those of RNIB.
>
> RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227
>
> Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

Hi folks,

I work at Easter Seals, a national organization that provides job training for adults with disabilities. We're in the planning stages of creating a program for that would expand Web-related job opportunities for people who are blind, visually impaired or have other types of disabilities. We need your help to be sure our program gets off the ground.

If you are someone who creates or manages Web sites using assistive technologies, or know someone who is, you can help us by completing our short online survey by Wednesday, April 14, 2004 and/or forwarding this email to people you know:

Our program would help make Web administration positions available to people who cannot use a mouse due to visual or motor disabilities by providing training on the accessible Web administrator tools and placing them in internships and job positions at participating nonprofits.

We need federal funding to make our program a reality. Please assist our program development and grant application process by taking our short survey. As a thank you, everyone who takes our survey will have access to our "Taxicab Pocket Guide," a guide for taxi drivers to help them provide good service to customers with disabilities. It’s great for printing and providing to taxi drivers or other transportation personnel. (The guide is available in PDF, text or MP3 audio file formats).

Take the survey now:

Your survey responses are anonymous. If you have any questions please contact Lucinda Lefferts by email (llefferts@... <mailto:llefferts@...>) or telephone: 202-347-3066.

Again, we need your responses by April 14. Thanks!

Hello,

This email message is a notification to let you know that
a file has been uploaded to the Files area of the IT-include
group.

   File        : /2004 03 08 Briefing 81a public procurement.doc
   Uploaded by : leam38 <ruth.loebl@...>
   Description : RNIB European Campaigns Briefing: Public Procurement

You can access this file at the URL

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IT-include/files/2004%2003%2008%20Briefing%2081a%2\
0public%20procurement.doc

To learn more about file sharing for your group, please visit

http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/groups/files

Regards,

leam38 <ruth.loebl@...>

I am forwarding this on behalf of RNIB's European Campaigns Unit. I hope you
find it encouraging and useful. I have been contacted off-list by a couple
of you, and am intending to respond very soon. I'm also keen to update you
on what I've been doing on government procurement, when I've got a minute or
two.
Cheers
Ruth

Subject: EU Campaigns Briefing 81a, Public Procurement

The attached European Campaigns Briefing contains information about a recent
RNIB European Campaign success in influencing European public procurement
legislation. There is a summary of the issue as well as a more detailed
analysis.

Please let me know if you wish to receive a text version of the attached
Briefing rather than the Word version.

European Campaigns Unit
Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB)
105 Judd Street
London
WC1H 9 NE
UK

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

Hi Mark,

Sorry it was my mistake, hit the send button in error!

I was putting an email together to send direct to Ruth Loebl at RNIB and
have since done this.

Should have sent an email to group to as them to ignore my mail.  Will make
sure I do if it happens again!

Kind regards, Ruth

Ruth Marshall

Group E-commerce Consultant

Group E-commerce Development

Tel: 0131 246 6376

Fax: 0131 245 1005



                               "Mark Magennis"
                               <mark.magennis@      To:  
<IT-include@yahoogroups.com>
                               ncbi.ie>             cc:   (bcc: Ruth K
Marshall/STANDARD LIFE ASSURANCE COMPANY)
                                                    bcc:  Ruth K
Marshall/STANDARD LIFE ASSURANCE COMPANY
                               12/02/2004           Subject:    RE: [IT-include]
Procurement news and a question about standards
                               14:59
                               Please respond
                               to it-include







> In answer to your questions:
>
> In order to
>
I'm sorry Ruth, I didn't catch that last bit :-)

In case you're wondering what I mean, what I received of your reply was
only
the above three words. The rest seems to have been munged on the way by
some
evil technology. Could you repost your reply in full.

Thanks,
Mark

Dr. Mark Magennis  -  EU Projects

National Council for the Blind of Ireland
Whitworth Road, Dublin 9, Republic of Ireland

mark.magennis@...   tel: +353 (0)71 914 7464




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For more information on Standard Life, visit our website
http://www.standardlife.co.uk/

The Standard Life Assurance Company, Standard Life House, 30 Lothian Road,
Edinburgh EH1 2DH, is registered in Scotland (No. SZ4) and regulated by the
Financial Services Authority. Tel: 0131 225 2552 - calls may be recorded or
monitored. This confidential e-mail is for the addressee only. If received
in error, do not retain/copy/disclose it without our consent and please
return it to us. We virus scan and monitor all e-mails but are not
responsible for any damage caused by a virus or alteration by a third party
after it is sent.

> In answer to your questions:
>
> In order to
>
I'm sorry Ruth, I didn't catch that last bit :-)

In case you're wondering what I mean, what I received of your reply was only
the above three words. The rest seems to have been munged on the way by some
evil technology. Could you repost your reply in full.

Thanks,
Mark

Dr. Mark Magennis  -  EU Projects

National Council for the Blind of Ireland
Whitworth Road, Dublin 9, Republic of Ireland

mark.magennis@...   tel: +353 (0)71 914 7464

Hi Ruth,

Thanks for your email below.  Apologies for the delay in replying.

In answer to your questions:

In order to


Ruth Marshall

Group E-commerce Consultant

Group E-commerce Development

Tel: 0131 246 6376

Fax: 0131 245 1005



                               ruth.loebl@rnib
                               .org.uk              To:  
IT-include@yahoogroups.com
                                                    cc:   (bcc: Ruth K
Marshall/STANDARD LIFE ASSURANCE COMPANY)
                               14/01/2004           bcc:  Ruth K
Marshall/STANDARD LIFE ASSURANCE COMPANY
                               15:47                Subject:    [IT-include]
Procurement news and a question about standards
                               Please respond
                               to it-include






  A couple of things to report about procurement, and a question for you at
the end:

1. I have attached a document prepared by Leen Petre, RNIB's European
Campaigns Manager, with some specific text from the draft procurement
directive on "the coordination of procedures for the award of public works
contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts". There is
a
similar draft directive on procurement procedures of entities operating in
the water, energy, transport and postal service sectors which we haven't
analysed yet. Aspects of interest to members of this list are highlighted.
It is hoped that this draft Directive will be ratified in Europe next week.

2. I attended a conference yesterday about helping SME's gain business from
public sector procurers, addressed by some serious personages such as Sir
Peter Gershon, Chief Exec of OGC, and Mark Forth, Head of Procurement for
Inland Revenue. I didn't manage to buttonhole Sir Peter, but I did corner
the Director of OGC, Martin Sykes, and batter him about what the new
clauses
in the Directive mean in reality, and how he needed to engage with
disability organisations so that OGC could provide appropriate and
effective
guidance to public sector procurers (subject to however the UK implements
the new Directive). He agreed to try and find the right person within OGC
to
talk to me.

3. Now the question: a couple of people have mentioned accessibility
standards as being important and of interest in their work. DWP and RNIB
will be reporting back on how we get on with ISO 16071, but I would be very
interested in hearing what "evidence" others need to have, in order to be
able to confidently advocate the use of a particular set of standards or
guidelines for software accessibility/usability. Do you need to prove that
compliance equals access for your client group? Should evidence be in the
form of a published research paper, or practical case studies, or something
else? Any other comments on the use of standards and guidelines for
procurement?

Best wishes
Ruth

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk





Yahoo! Groups Links

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    Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.









For more information on Standard Life, visit our website
http://www.standardlife.co.uk/

The Standard Life Assurance Company, Standard Life House, 30 Lothian Road,
Edinburgh EH1 2DH, is registered in Scotland (No. SZ4) and regulated by the
Financial Services Authority. Tel: 0131 225 2552 - calls may be recorded or
monitored. This confidential e-mail is for the addressee only. If received
in error, do not retain/copy/disclose it without our consent and please
return it to us. We virus scan and monitor all e-mails but are not
responsible for any damage caused by a virus or alteration by a third party
after it is sent.

----------------
Leen PETRE
European Campaigns Manager
Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB)

tel: 0207 391 2009
fax: 0207388 2706
e-mail: leen.petre@...

105 Judd Street
London WC1H 9NE

-------------
 

-

DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is

confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended

recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the

content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the

sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it

and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by

its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it

cannot accept any responsibility for any such which are transmitted.

We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and

any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent

those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

Hello All,

I have recently returned to Standard Life from a secondment to the RNIB's
Accessible Website Consultancy Team for a year and a half.  In my role in
Standard Life I am continuing to work on website accessibility on the
Standard Life websites.

I have joined this list to keep up to date with accessible IT procurement
so that I can arrange for measures to be put into place to ensure that our
hardware and software is accessible.

Kind regards, Ruth

Ruth Marshall

Group E-commerce Consultant

Group E-commerce Development

Tel: 0131 246 6376

Fax: 0131 245 1005




For more information on Standard Life, visit our website
http://www.standardlife.co.uk/

The Standard Life Assurance Company, Standard Life House, 30 Lothian Road,
Edinburgh EH1 2DH, is registered in Scotland (No. SZ4) and regulated by the
Financial Services Authority. Tel: 0131 225 2552 - calls may be recorded or
monitored. This confidential e-mail is for the addressee only. If received
in error, do not retain/copy/disclose it without our consent and please
return it to us. We virus scan and monitor all e-mails but are not
responsible for any damage caused by a virus or alteration by a third party
after it is sent.

A couple of things to report about procurement, and a question for you at
the end:

1. I have attached a document prepared by Leen Petre, RNIB's European
Campaigns Manager, with some specific text from the draft procurement
directive on "the coordination of procedures for the award of public works
contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts". There is a
similar draft directive on procurement procedures of entities operating in
the water, energy, transport and postal service sectors which we haven't
analysed yet. Aspects of interest to members of this list are highlighted.
It is hoped that this draft Directive will be ratified in Europe next week.

2. I attended a conference yesterday about helping SME's gain business from
public sector procurers, addressed by some serious personages such as Sir
Peter Gershon, Chief Exec of OGC, and Mark Forth, Head of Procurement for
Inland Revenue. I didn't manage to buttonhole Sir Peter, but I did corner
the Director of OGC, Martin Sykes, and batter him about what the new clauses
in the Directive mean in reality, and how he needed to engage with
disability organisations so that OGC could provide appropriate and effective
guidance to public sector procurers (subject to however the UK implements
the new Directive). He agreed to try and find the right person within OGC to
talk to me.

3. Now the question: a couple of people have mentioned accessibility
standards as being important and of interest in their work. DWP and RNIB
will be reporting back on how we get on with ISO 16071, but I would be very
interested in hearing what "evidence" others need to have, in order to be
able to confidently advocate the use of a particular set of standards or
guidelines for software accessibility/usability. Do you need to prove that
compliance equals access for your client group? Should evidence be in the
form of a published research paper, or practical case studies, or something
else? Any other comments on the use of standards and guidelines for
procurement?

Best wishes
Ruth

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

Dear Mark

Thanks for this information - I have been aware of the NDA guidelines for
some time, and they are referenced on this list's Links page at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IT-include/links. They were also one of the
principal sources for my initial work on setting up a procurement policy
within RNIB - we needed to settle on the standards that we would apply when
procuring software. I carried out an analysis and comparison of Section 508,
the IBM checklist and the NDA guidelines for software, to set out the
strengths and weaknesses of each. I will forward you the actual report
off-list, as I'm sure you'd be interested in the findings, and I'd love to
hear your comments.

Since then, however, the ISO standard 16071 has been published, and that
seems to fill the gaps I found in the analysis. It has its own failings,
however, and one is definitely the lack of application-related guidance and
examples to illustrate the standards in practical use. We have tentatively
agreed to use ISO for the next procurement exercise within RNIB (previously
the IBM checklist was used).

I totally agree with your view that rules have to be user-friendly and
different users have different requirements - programmers will want
technical examples, usability testers will want testing techniques etc.
Within RNIB we are working towards creating examples to explain the ISO
standards (we're not 100% sure we understand them all yet) but there will
most certainly be a need to create technical examples, and we're not there
yet. One thing we have been trying to fund is the development of a testing
tool - more like a guided methodology for carrying out testing, and
automating and standardising a report format. I recently met some usability
testers at IBM (who may shortly be joining the list, I hope) who have an
internal tool that I'm hoping to see in a couple of weeks. It isn't an IBM
product, and there are a number of reasons why it is unlikely to become one,
but I think there is a demand for such a tool, and hopefully we will pursue
this avenue, especially if others also want such a thing.

On a practical level, it would be interesting to know whether in your role
at NCBI you can contribute to any collaborative work with RNIB? I don't yet
have anything specifically in mind, but I'll give it some thought and
discuss it with my colleagues here.

Best wishes
Ruth

-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Magennis [mailto:mark.magennis@...]
Sent: 09 January 2004 10:39
To: IT-include@yahoogroups.com
Subject: RE: [IT-include] Invitation to subscribers to contribute a
brief synopsis


Dear all,

My name is Mark Magennis. I have just joined the list and have found it very
interesting and useful to read about the interests and activities of the
other members. I would like take a few minutes to introduce myself and tell
you what I am about. I work for the National Council for the Blind of
Ireland (NCBI) where I am building our IT accessibility expertise.
Historically, we are a little weak in this area, but we plan to do
consultancy and research with the aim of becoming something that you could
call a Centre of Excellence.

Previously, I worked for a user-centred design consultancy called Frontend,
where I was principal author of the Irish National Disability Authority's IT
accessibility guidelines (see accessIT.nda.ie). These guidelines might be
interesting for other list members. They cover four areas - web, public
access terminals, telecoms and application software. Our main aim was to
produce a usable resource for all the different types of people who would
want to use them - developers, procurers, evaluators, etc. They therefore
contain a lot of extra explanation, information and advice around the actual
guidelines themselves. For example, for each set of guidelines there is a
section describing how to use them if you are in a particular role and
having to carry out particular tasks. One of these roles is Planning and
Procurement and a typical task is to write a request for tenders that
includes accessibility requirements. We did this because it had become clear
during the audience research that the various types of users of these
guidelines wanted information presented from their own perspective. Public
sector procurement officers, for example, found that guidelines such as the
WCAG seemed geared towards techies, so they found them difficult to
understand and use. The role and task-based instructions was one way of
trying to achieve that. I would be interested to hear any comments on this
or any other aspects of our guidelines, such as the advice we provide on
user testing.

During the process of writing these guidelines, I became very interested in
the whole question of what makes guidelines successful, so that they are
mandated, applied and correctly used for their intended purpose. It is not
enough to simply have a set of rules. They need to be rules that people can
work with. For example, they need to be rules that can be specified as
project requirements and for which compliance can be measured by the
procurers and the providers. But they also need to be able to fit within
existing design and development processes and not hamper the creativity of
the designers. I have not had time since then to pursue these questions, but
considerations like these seem to be what the objectives of this list are
based on, so I am very happy to be involved.

All the best,
Mark

-
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confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
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Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
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Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

Dear all,

My name is Mark Magennis. I have just joined the list and have found it very
interesting and useful to read about the interests and activities of the
other members. I would like take a few minutes to introduce myself and tell
you what I am about. I work for the National Council for the Blind of
Ireland (NCBI) where I am building our IT accessibility expertise.
Historically, we are a little weak in this area, but we plan to do
consultancy and research with the aim of becoming something that you could
call a Centre of Excellence.

Previously, I worked for a user-centred design consultancy called Frontend,
where I was principal author of the Irish National Disability Authority's IT
accessibility guidelines (see accessIT.nda.ie). These guidelines might be
interesting for other list members. They cover four areas - web, public
access terminals, telecoms and application software. Our main aim was to
produce a usable resource for all the different types of people who would
want to use them - developers, procurers, evaluators, etc. They therefore
contain a lot of extra explanation, information and advice around the actual
guidelines themselves. For example, for each set of guidelines there is a
section describing how to use them if you are in a particular role and
having to carry out particular tasks. One of these roles is Planning and
Procurement and a typical task is to write a request for tenders that
includes accessibility requirements. We did this because it had become clear
during the audience research that the various types of users of these
guidelines wanted information presented from their own perspective. Public
sector procurement officers, for example, found that guidelines such as the
WCAG seemed geared towards techies, so they found them difficult to
understand and use. The role and task-based instructions was one way of
trying to achieve that. I would be interested to hear any comments on this
or any other aspects of our guidelines, such as the advice we provide on
user testing.

During the process of writing these guidelines, I became very interested in
the whole question of what makes guidelines successful, so that they are
mandated, applied and correctly used for their intended purpose. It is not
enough to simply have a set of rules. They need to be rules that people can
work with. For example, they need to be rules that can be specified as
project requirements and for which compliance can be measured by the
procurers and the providers. But they also need to be able to fit within
existing design and development processes and not hamper the creativity of
the designers. I have not had time since then to pursue these questions, but
considerations like these seem to be what the objectives of this list are
based on, so I am very happy to be involved.

All the best,
Mark

Hallo everyone,

I'd just like to introduce myself and Lesley Mitchell, from the Department
for Work and Pensions Accessibility Solutions Team.  The DWP is not only the
Department with responsibility for the Disability Discrimination Act, but is
also one of the largest UK Government Departments, with 140, 000 plus staff
delivering services to a huge customer base including people of working age,
pensioners and people with caring responsibilities.

We are a small team working within the Department's Digital Infrastructure
area, and our principal role is to work with IT projects throughout the
Department and its various businesses, to ensure that accessibility is built
into all DWP IT systems, applications, websites and e-learning products,
from the design stage (or at the start of the procurement process in the
case of off-the-shelf products).   We are also in the process of taking over
responsibility for managing the process by which individual members of our
staff obtain IT related accessibility solutions to help them do their jobs.

We have recently taken the decision to adopt ISO 16071 as the basis for the
Department's accessibility standards for IT systems and applications, and
are in process of introducing tailored guidance to help developers, project
managers and people responsible for project governance apply the standards.
This should be in place within the next few weeks and we have agreed to
report back to the IT-include group on the success (or otherwise!) of this
venture once the standards have been in place long enough to start having an
effect.

We are also working closely with colleagues involved in negotiating new
call-off contracts with IT suppliers, to ensure that any potential supplier
of IT solutions to the Department understands and is committed to meeting
the Department's accessibility requirements.

  And finally, we, like RNIB, are continuing to keep an eye on developments
related to the European Directive and maintaining contact with colleagues in
OGC.

Sally Wiseman
Accessibility Solutions Team
Department for Work and Pensions



  -----Original Message-----
From: ruth.loebl@... [mailto:ruth.loebl@...]
Sent: 07 January 2004 10:01
To: IT-include@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [IT-include] Invitation to subscribers to contribute a brief
synopsis



I'm sure some of you have forgotten that you signed up to this list, and
cluttered email inboxes have certainly not had to contend with a huge volume
of traffic. Perhaps we could start some information exchange if subscribers
introduce themselves and contribute a brief synopsis of their interest in
accessible IT procurement?

Within RNIB we are working on a number of fronts:

- Exploring the activity taking place in Europe around a new Directive that
covers procurement, and specifically "environmental and social issues" (one
of which is accessibility). This Directive is not yet confirmed, but if and
when it is, the UK government then has to implement it in UK law.

- The agency responsible for guidance on UK government procurement policy is
the Office of Government Commerce. Ideally, OGC might consult members of
this group to produce appropriate guidance that includes accessibility. OGC
have previously collaborated with DEFRA to produce guidance on environmental
issues, and accessibility is mentioned briefly in this document:
http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=400
<http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=400>

- We have lost an ally in the Office of the e-Envoy with Geoff Rymans
departure, and further change will ensue with the recruitment to the new
post of "Head of e-Government", to replace the current e-Envoy. An article
in The Register gives more information about this, at
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/34518.html.
<http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/34518.html.>  We will continue to
try
and influence Government about the importance of compliance with
accessibility guidelines or standards in IT procurement.

- Within RNIB, we need to establish our own accessible IT procurement policy
and procedures. We have a draft policy and procedures, we are testing this
out on a current procurement exercise, and examining the ISO standard 16071
with a view to adopting it for our compliance testing.

I hope others will take a few minutes to introduce themselves, even if their
activity on accessible IT procurement is currently limited to monitoring
this list!

All the best for 2004
---
Ruth Loebl
Senior UK ICT Development Officer

RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
58-72 John Bright Street
Birmingham
B1 1BN
Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/ <http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/>


-
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NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk <http://www.rnib.org.uk>


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is not contractual nor shall it be taken to create any legal
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author / sender has no authority or delegation to bind The
Department for Work and Pensions by this e-mail and The
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Thank you to those who have so far introduced themselves. Let me now say
that in no way do I wish to stifle any relevant discussion, but I'd like to
remind subscribers of the purpose of this list.

The main objectives of the Interest Group are as follows:
1) to establish how compliance with an accessibility framework can be
mandated within the IT procurement policies of employers and others
2) to work towards the best practical accessibility standards and/or
guidelines for IT interfaces, for application within the procurement
framework
3) to recommend testing and evaluation methods so that compliance with the
accessibility framework can be measured objectively.

There is a place for discussion of many other aspects of the lives of people
with disabilities, but not here! Please feel free to continue your
contribution, bearing in mind the guidelines above.

All the best
Ruth Loebl (list moderator)

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

----- Original Message -----

From: Terry Robinson

To: IT-include@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2004 6:39 AM

Subject: Re: [IT-Include] Invitation to subscribers to contribute a brief synopsis

Hi Colin,

I note your interest in electronic engineering. I'm an electronics graduate
myself - UMIST 1973. However, I didn't make a career of it. Things had
already got too small by the time I came on the scene. For more details of
myself, see my CV on my website.

Anyway, I wonder what pieces of equipment you've designed, or facilitated.
I've been banging on for some time about our need for an affordable,
accessible multimeter which doesn't require connecting to a PC. I wrote a
spec for such a device some time ago and could try to dig it out if you're
interested.

Cobolt Systems told me there wasn't sufficient demand - I suppose this is a
bit chicken and egg, that we don't have many electrical boffs because we
don't have the kit to do it. At the same time, of course, electronics for
the Blind is even more difficult than it was in 73.

I find a continuity tester and, in fact a multimeter quite useful around the
house for checking basic wiring jobs, Christmas lights that have packed up,
etc.

Tandy used to make one which cost about £80 but this had severe limitations.
Another, cheaper model they introduced was worse, but still better than
nothing. I think the only available models cost hundreds of pounds and
require connecting to a PC to be usable. I stand to be corrected if this is
no longer true.

So, would you, or anyone else on the list be interested in discussing this
further? I look forward to hearing from you.

Perhaps the VIRES list would be a more suitable forum for this discussion,
forgive me for trespassing.

Cheers & thanks,

Terry


************************************************************

DESCRIBE ONLINE - MAKING IT EASIER THROUGH TEXT

WEBSTART could offer an accessible Web solution to your business and leisure
requirements
For details of our services, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/services.htm

For map and station finder for National Rail and London Underground, plus
station guides, visit:

www.describe-online.com

For details of our work to date, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/portfolio.htm

For details of our proprietor, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/cv.htm

Terry Robinson B.Sc
82 Albert Rd.
Queens Park
Glasgow G42 8DR
Tel: 0141 423 2683 - Mobile: 07771 610002

---

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Terry wrote:

     I've been banging on for some time about our need for an
     affordable, accessible multimeter which doesn't require
     connecting to a PC. I wrote a spec for such a device some
     time ago and could try to dig it out if you're interested.



DaveP. How about dissembling an existing one, and using
additional electronics on the n segment display to decode
for audio or tone?
Then re-package appropriately. Asic or eprom decode,
Then either D-A if viable, or can you get simple tts in a chip
these days?

Just an idea.

regards DaveP




-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

Hi Colin,

I note your interest in electronic engineering. I'm an electronics graduate
myself - UMIST 1973. However, I didn't make a career of it. Things had
already got too small by the time I came on the scene. For more details of
myself, see my CV on my website.

Anyway, I wonder what pieces of equipment you've designed, or facilitated.
I've been banging on for some time about our need for an affordable,
accessible multimeter which doesn't require connecting to a PC. I wrote a
spec for such a device some time ago and could try to dig it out if you're
interested.

Cobolt Systems told me there wasn't sufficient demand - I suppose this is a
bit chicken and egg, that we don't have many electrical boffs because we
don't have the kit to do it. At the same time, of course, electronics for
the Blind is even more difficult than it was in 73.

I find a continuity tester and, in fact a multimeter quite useful around the
house for checking basic wiring jobs, Christmas lights that have packed up,
etc.

Tandy used to make one which cost about £80 but this had severe limitations.
Another, cheaper model they introduced was worse, but still better than
nothing. I think the only available models cost hundreds of pounds and
require connecting to a PC to be usable. I stand to be corrected if this is
no longer true.

So, would you, or anyone else on the list be interested in discussing this
further? I look forward to hearing from you.

Perhaps the VIRES list would be a more suitable forum for this discussion,
forgive me for trespassing.

Cheers & thanks,

Terry


************************************************************

DESCRIBE ONLINE - MAKING IT EASIER THROUGH TEXT

WEBSTART could offer an accessible Web solution to your business and leisure
requirements
For details of our services, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/services.htm

For map and station finder for National Rail and London Underground, plus
station guides, visit:

www.describe-online.com

For details of our work to date, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/portfolio.htm

For details of our proprietor, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/cv.htm

Terry Robinson B.Sc
82 Albert Rd.
Queens Park
Glasgow G42 8DR
Tel: 0141 423 2683 - Mobile: 07771 610002

I'm sure some of you have forgotten that you signed up to this list, and
cluttered email inboxes have certainly not had to contend with a huge volume
of traffic. Perhaps we could start some information exchange if subscribers
introduce themselves and contribute a brief synopsis of their interest in
accessible IT procurement?

Within RNIB we are working on a number of fronts:

- Exploring the activity taking place in Europe around a new Directive that
covers procurement, and specifically "environmental and social issues" (one
of which is accessibility). This Directive is not yet confirmed, but if and
when it is, the UK government then has to implement it in UK law.

- The agency responsible for guidance on UK government procurement policy is
the Office of Government Commerce. Ideally, OGC might consult members of
this group to produce appropriate guidance that includes accessibility. OGC
have previously collaborated with DEFRA to produce guidance on environmental
issues, and accessibility is mentioned briefly in this document:
http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=400

- We have lost an ally in the Office of the e-Envoy with Geoff Rymans
departure, and further change will ensue with the recruitment to the new
post of "Head of e-Government", to replace the current e-Envoy. An article
in The Register gives more information about this, at
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/34518.html. We will continue to try
and influence Government about the importance of compliance with
accessibility guidelines or standards in IT procurement.

- Within RNIB, we need to establish our own accessible IT procurement policy
and procedures. We have a draft policy and procedures, we are testing this
out on a current procurement exercise, and examining the ISO standard 16071
with a view to adopting it for our compliance testing.

I hope others will take a few minutes to introduce themselves, even if their
activity on accessible IT procurement is currently limited to monitoring
this list!

All the best for 2004
---
Ruth Loebl
Senior UK ICT Development Officer

RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
58-72 John Bright Street
Birmingham
B1 1BN
Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

---

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Visit our website at http://www.scope.org.uk

This message, and any file(s) transmitted with it are confidential and are intended only for the person(s) to whom they have been addressed by the sender. This message may contain confidential and/or privileged material. If you are not the intended recipient of this message, or if you believe it was transmitted to you in error, you are required to delete the message and any copies of it, and to notify the sender immediately. Any unauthorised disclosure, copying, distribution, or printing of this message or accompanying files, or unauthorised use of any information contained therein, by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is prohibited and may be unlawful.

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Hello all:
I joined the list with 2 hats on:
1. as the manager of an ESF funded project offering training to visually
impaired people I was involved in the setting up of an assistive technology
enable i.t suite and found this extremely problematic.  Any experience I or
others can share in making this easier in the future is very valuable.

2. As a visually impaired person and AT user myself experience tells me that
the only way to get the resources I need is to make sure I know all the
facts because I can't rely on anyone else to have them.  I therefore want to
stay informed on any developments in the sector particularly where
purchasing is concerned.

Adrian Higginbotham
Help2Access
Open Distance Learning Unit (ODL)
The University of Salford.
Telephone: 0161-2952555
Email A.Higginbotham@...
Website: http://www.help2access.org.uk/
Technology House, Lissadel Street, Salford M6 6AP.

----- Original Message -----
From: <ruth.loebl@...>
To: <IT-include@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 07, 2004 10:00 AM
Subject: [IT-include] Invitation to subscribers to contribute a brief
synopsis


> I'm sure some of you have forgotten that you signed up to this list, and
> cluttered email inboxes have certainly not had to contend with a huge
volume
> of traffic. Perhaps we could start some information exchange if
subscribers
> introduce themselves and contribute a brief synopsis of their interest in
> accessible IT procurement?
>
> Within RNIB we are working on a number of fronts:
>
> - Exploring the activity taking place in Europe around a new Directive
that
> covers procurement, and specifically "environmental and social issues"
(one
> of which is accessibility). This Directive is not yet confirmed, but if
and
> when it is, the UK government then has to implement it in UK law.
>
> - The agency responsible for guidance on UK government procurement policy
is
> the Office of Government Commerce. Ideally, OGC might consult members of
> this group to produce appropriate guidance that includes accessibility.
OGC
> have previously collaborated with DEFRA to produce guidance on
environmental
> issues, and accessibility is mentioned briefly in this document:
> http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=400
>
> - We have lost an ally in the Office of the e-Envoy with Geoff Rymans
> departure, and further change will ensue with the recruitment to the new
> post of "Head of e-Government", to replace the current e-Envoy. An article
> in The Register gives more information about this, at
> http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/34518.html. We will continue to try
> and influence Government about the importance of compliance with
> accessibility guidelines or standards in IT procurement.
>
> - Within RNIB, we need to establish our own accessible IT procurement
policy
> and procedures. We have a draft policy and procedures, we are testing this
> out on a current procurement exercise, and examining the ISO standard
16071
> with a view to adopting it for our compliance testing.
>
> I hope others will take a few minutes to introduce themselves, even if
their
> activity on accessible IT procurement is currently limited to monitoring
> this list!
>
> All the best for 2004
> ---
> Ruth Loebl
> Senior UK ICT Development Officer
>
> RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
> 58-72 John Bright Street
> Birmingham
> B1 1BN
> Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
> Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
> Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
> Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/
>
> -
> DISCLAIMER:
>
> NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
> confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
> recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
> content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
> sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
> and any attachments from your system.
>
> RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
> its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
> cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
> We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.
>
> Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
> any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
> those of RNIB.
>
> RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227
>
> Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk
>
>
>
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
> To visit your group on the web, go to:
>  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IT-include/
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
>  IT-include-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
>  http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>
>

Dear All,

I joined the group as I run a small consultancy in the
South West of England specialising in
Internet/Intranet accessibility.

Regards,

Joe Leech

p.s.  Don't let the yahoo address fool you, my contact
details are here:

-----------------------------------------

Accessibility Works

      "Designing for all"

t | 07905 334 163
f | 01225 313 373

e | joe@...

w | www.accessibilityworks.com

-----------------------------------------



--- Terry Robinson <terry@...> wrote:
> OK Ruth,
>
> I joined the list out of curiosity rather than from
> a position of influence
> regarding ICT procurement. Anyway, being blind, I
> have a clear interest in
> this topic.
>
> My main claim to fame is my website, as per the foot
> of this message.
>
> In that regard, I'll disturb the silence little
> more, as I need to get my
> head round some work. I couldn't just not respond,
> though.
>
> Cheers & happy new year to all.
>
> Terry Robinson
>
>
>
************************************************************
>
> DESCRIBE ONLINE - MAKING IT EASIER THROUGH TEXT
>
> WEBSTART could offer an accessible Web solution to
> your business and leisure
> requirements
> For details of our services, visit:
>
> www.describe-online.com/intro/services.htm
>
> For map and station finder for National Rail and
> London Underground, plus
> station guides, visit:
>
> www.describe-online.com
>
> For details of our work to date, visit:
>
> www.describe-online.com/intro/portfolio.htm
>
> For details of our proprietor, visit:
>
> www.describe-online.com/intro/cv.htm
>
> Terry Robinson B.Sc
> 82 Albert Rd.
> Queens Park
> Glasgow G42 8DR
> Tel: 0141 423 2683 - Mobile: 07771 610002
>
>
>

=====

--------------------------------------------------------------
email: me@...

aol IM and MSN Messenger mrjoeleech

check out my website:  www.mrjoe.co.uk
--------------------------------------------------------------


________________________________________________________________________
Yahoo! Messenger - Communicate instantly..."Ping"
your friends today! Download Messenger Now
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OK Ruth,

I joined the list out of curiosity rather than from a position of influence
regarding ICT procurement. Anyway, being blind, I have a clear interest in
this topic.

My main claim to fame is my website, as per the foot of this message.

In that regard, I'll disturb the silence little more, as I need to get my
head round some work. I couldn't just not respond, though.

Cheers & happy new year to all.

Terry Robinson


************************************************************

DESCRIBE ONLINE - MAKING IT EASIER THROUGH TEXT

WEBSTART could offer an accessible Web solution to your business and leisure
requirements
For details of our services, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/services.htm

For map and station finder for National Rail and London Underground, plus
station guides, visit:

www.describe-online.com

For details of our work to date, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/portfolio.htm

For details of our proprietor, visit:

www.describe-online.com/intro/cv.htm

Terry Robinson B.Sc
82 Albert Rd.
Queens Park
Glasgow G42 8DR
Tel: 0141 423 2683 - Mobile: 07771 610002

I'm sure some of you have forgotten that you signed up to this list, and
cluttered email inboxes have certainly not had to contend with a huge volume
of traffic. Perhaps we could start some information exchange if subscribers
introduce themselves and contribute a brief synopsis of their interest in
accessible IT procurement?

Within RNIB we are working on a number of fronts:

- Exploring the activity taking place in Europe around a new Directive that
covers procurement, and specifically "environmental and social issues" (one
of which is accessibility). This Directive is not yet confirmed, but if and
when it is, the UK government then has to implement it in UK law.

- The agency responsible for guidance on UK government procurement policy is
the Office of Government Commerce. Ideally, OGC might consult members of
this group to produce appropriate guidance that includes accessibility. OGC
have previously collaborated with DEFRA to produce guidance on environmental
issues, and accessibility is mentioned briefly in this document:
http://www.ogc.gov.uk/index.asp?id=400

- We have lost an ally in the Office of the e-Envoy with Geoff Rymans
departure, and further change will ensue with the recruitment to the new
post of "Head of e-Government", to replace the current e-Envoy. An article
in The Register gives more information about this, at
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/34518.html. We will continue to try
and influence Government about the importance of compliance with
accessibility guidelines or standards in IT procurement.

- Within RNIB, we need to establish our own accessible IT procurement policy
and procedures. We have a draft policy and procedures, we are testing this
out on a current procurement exercise, and examining the ISO standard 16071
with a view to adopting it for our compliance testing.

I hope others will take a few minutes to introduce themselves, even if their
activity on accessible IT procurement is currently limited to monitoring
this list!

All the best for 2004
---
Ruth Loebl
Senior UK ICT Development Officer

RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
58-72 John Bright Street
Birmingham
B1 1BN
Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
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sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

----------------
Leen PETRE
European Campaigns Manager
Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB)

tel: 0207 391 2009
fax: 0207388 2706
e-mail: leen.petre@...

105 Judd Street
London WC1H 9NE

---------------
The European Union has designated 2003 as 'European Year of People with
Disabilities'.  This is a wonderful opportunity to raise awareness about the
experiences and concerns of the 2 million blind and partially sighted people
in the UK and to support RNIB's campaigns.

To find out more about the European Year, please visit
http://www.rnib.org.uk/campaign/eydp.htm
-------------


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DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
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content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
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RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
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cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
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RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

We've been looking at the ISO 16071 standards very carefully for RNIB's
internal procurement, and are grappling with the following questions. If
anyone else is similarly engaged, I'd appreciate hearing your thoughts.

7.2.10
The source of this information is given as reference 26: EIA/EIF Resource
Guide for Accessible Design of Consumer Electronics (1996). I don't know
who/what EIA/EIF is: can you shed any light? The range of frequencies to be
avoided is much narrower than for 508, IBM and NDA guidelines and we
probably need to research this.

7.3.5
if user notification is part of an application, then all other guidelines
should apply - why does user notification gets a clause of its own?

7.4.9
Comment rather than question: it might be useful to add a recommendation to
minimise the number of modifier keys that are used in any one keystroke
unless absolutely necessary, e.g. Shift-Ctrl-Alt-T is difficult compared
with Ctrl-F2.

7.6.1
Although font size is included in this clause, there is no mention of font
shape or typeface, which can be equally important to someone with a vision
impairment. Similarly, font shape could be included in 7.12.2.

I'm not sure I understand the phrase "or provide the necessary information
to assistive technologies to accomplish this". I don't understand how
assistive technologies might utilise information about font in order to set
a minimum font size, other than, say, a specialist browser that reformats a
web page according to user-defined settings. All other magnification tools
I'm aware of work on the basis of enlarging screen contents pixel by pixel
and then interpolating in order to smooth fonts and other images. For the
standard Windows applications currently used with RNIB, the only way to
comply with this guideline is with the use of magnification software. Have I
interpreted something incorrectly, or am I just Windows-centric?

7.8.6
I don't understand how this differs from 7.8.1.

7.11.1
This doesn't seem to include information about making documentation more
accessible to anyone with a disability other than vision impairment - a
cognitive disability, for example.

7.12.1
The point that perhaps ought to be made more clearly is that not only should
a user be able to set preferences, but it should also be possible to save
and associate a set of preferences with a particular user (if this was the
intention).

7.12.2
See 7.6.1 above.

7.13.1
How does this differ from 7.2.2?

7.13.4
I can't work out what purpose this serves in increasing accessibility, or to
which disability group it might relate?

7.14.1
The focus curson absolutely needs to be indicated visually as well as
through the API (imagine word processing without a visible cursor).

7.14.2
Does this duplicate 7.2.2, or is it supposed to take account of the
instances where there is no navigable area, e.g. in a read-only database
field, or informational text in a dialog box?

Not included in clauses:

Some screen objects are fixed by the programmer, and the ISO clauses contain
no guidelines to ensure these are of a reasonable size, unless they contain
or are associated with text, or are common interface elements such as window
borders (7.12.2). A very small button with no text on it would be difficult
to target with a mouse, but doesn't seem to be prohibited as long as it is
correctly labelled, described, and accessible from the keyboard.

No mention is made of the use of decorative or branded patterned backgrounds
- it should be possible to replace these with plain backgrounds (especially
relevant to people with vision impairments).

Was it deliberate to make no mention of tasks that are "inappropriate" with
alternative input devices? An example in the other standards and guidelines
is freehand drawing, which probably doesn't need to be made accessible from
the keyboard.

---
Ruth Loebl
Senior UK ICT Development Officer

RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
58-72 John Bright Street
Birmingham
B1 1BN
Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/

Share how technology is improving more lives for people with sight problems
by visiting Techshare in Birmingham on 20-21 November 2003. For further
details www.rnib.org.uk/techshare

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

The attached European Campaigns Briefing contains information compiled by
Leen Petre, RNIB's European Campaigns Manager.

It covers our recent victory in the European Parliament on public
procurement. The European Parliament has ensured that public procurement
could have a significant impact on the purchase of design for all goods and
services and on equal treatment in employment. Our battle continues as we
now have to convince national governments (the UK being a leading opponent)
to support the European Parliament position.

The attached RNIB European Campaigns Briefing contains a summary of the
issue as well as a more detailed report. Please let me know if you wish to
receive a text version of the attached document rather than the word
version.

I have also uploaded the attached file to the IT-include website "Files"
area for future reference, at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/IT-include/files/

Best wishes
---
Ruth Loebl
Senior UK ICT Development Officer

RNIB Technology in Learning and Employment
58-72 John Bright Street
Birmingham
B1 1BN
Tel: +44 (0)121-665 4231
Fax: +44 (0)121-665 4201
Email: Ruth.Loebl@...
Web: http://www.rnib.org.uk/technology/

Share how technology is improving more lives for people with sight problems
by visiting Techshare in Birmingham on 20-21 November 2003. For further
details www.rnib.org.uk/techshare

-
DISCLAIMER:

NOTICE: The information contained in this email and any attachments is
confidential and may be privileged. If you are not the intended
recipient you should not use, disclose, distribute or copy any of the
content of it or of any attachment; you are requested to notify the
sender immediately of your receipt of the email and then to delete it
and any attachments from your system.

RNIB endeavours to ensure that emails and any attachments generated by
its staff are free from viruses or other contaminants. However, it
cannot accept any responsibility for any  such which are transmitted.
We therefore recommend you scan all attachments.

Please note that the statements and views expressed in this email and
any attachments are those of the author and do not necessarily represent
those of RNIB.

RNIB Registered Charity Number: 226227

Website: http://www.rnib.org.uk

Hi Y'all,
My name is Jenny van Tinteren, and I am currently at the University of
Minnesota, researching the impact of (among other things) Section 508
of the Rehabilitation Act. My aim is to draw useful lessons which can
be used back in the UK in my home government deartment (the Department
for Work and Pensions). These impacts may be on the way purchasers and
providers of Federal Govt IT do business, the way procurements are
handled and on the continuing relationship between them; and there
will be follow on impacts on the degree of accessibility of the IT,
and on employment opportunities and accessible services for disabled
people.

First of all, I'd like to ask if anyone in this group (which I am
proud to have been invited to join!) has ideas which would be useful
to me, especially about people I could contact to discuss the research
or good avenues to follow up. I am able to travel (in fact I'd love
to!).

Secondly, I'd like to chip in with a bit of news I have picked up from
Ken Salaets, Director of Government Relations at the Information
Technology Industry Council (ITIC) based in Washington DC. Ken is a
champion of accessibility in ITIC's work, and has given me a lot of
useful background on it. The link for the relevant page on ITIC's
website is http://www.itic.org/reports/508/Sec508.html

The ITIC acts as an interface between the IT industry and Federal govt
on a whole range of issues, including accessibility, and as the link
shows they have developed a template which IT companies can use and
post on their own websites once completed. This tool enables
purchasers to see the accessibility specifications of products and can
also form the basis for procurements, negotiations and contracts. This
is already being considered back in the UK as a potentially useful
model. Ken's view is that this approach leads to a more constructive
relationship between purchasers and providers because accessibility
becomes a positive marketing feature.

The ITIC is very interested in promoting the ISO standards, because
the IT companies it represents are global (US Federal Govt contracts
represent just 3% of their total business) so of course international
standards make their life easier! Ken tells me that Japan is currently
proposing some updates to the ISO standard on accessibility, and more
details will be available shortly - I suggest this newsgroup will wish
to keep up with such developments, and if I get any more information I
will contribute it.

Best wishes from Jenny
tel (001) 612 340 9075