bart web page

I provided this response to the Access BART Coalition to Tim Moore's reply
to me.  tim Moore shared his response with the coalition and the
organization shared my response with Tim Moore.

kelly 



Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 22:26:59 -0600 (CST)
From: Kelly Pierce <kelly@ripco.com>
To: "Denero, Marty (VTA)" <denero_M@vta.org>,
     "Waddell, Cynthia" <cynthia.waddell@ci.sj.ca.us>,
     Barbara Rhodes <brhodes@pacbell.net>, brhodes@postoffice.pacbell.net,
     JEANNANDI <JEANNANDI@aol.com>, jgammon@uclink4.berkeley.edu
Subject: bart web page 

The WAI guidelines are a good start.  However, there are some omissions
in the wai guidelines.  One of these is the use of PDF files.  Screen
readers cannot read these files with speech synthesis.  The files must be
converted into an ASCII text file with a conversion utility.  the
resulting product is inferior to that for the non-disabled.  If you want
to check it out for yourself, you can go to http://www.access.adobe.com
and type in the url of BART's strategic plan, which is on the site.  You
can also download the file and send it as a Mime attachment to
pdf2txt@sun.trace.wisc.edu.  The strategic plan is not available in html,
the universal language on the web.  The only explanation BART has for
this is that PDF files are "designed for printing."  Printing for whom?
Those who are blind and cannot read the print?  There is no explanation
why there is not an html version of the strategic plan on the site.

Yes, tickets by mail is an option.  However, it does not provide the
convenience, ease and immediacy of the web.  Tickets by mail does not
accept credit cards, unlike the online ordering facility, and one must
submit a copy of a driver's license or state id.  These are additional
burdens that are not part of the online ordering system.

Mr. Moore completely mis-states what is technically possible.  Lynx users
who are not using the Windows 95 version of the program and are running it
on a Unix shell cannot add on additional options and recompile the program
themselves.  One's Internet service provider must do this.  He repeatedly
makes the point that Lynx is an older browser.  Of course it is.  However,
when blind persons are denied access to new technology we must rely on
older technology until what is new today is made usable.  

There is no explanation of how the tickets by mail program can offer the
same ease of use as the online ordering feature.  Mr Moore does not
explain why a Lynx user cannot fill out the online order form without
providing a credit card number and sending it in and then use a dedicated
phone line or voice mailbox to receive the credit card information.  CDNow
and Amazon do it this way.  Why can't BART?

kelly

Received on Monday, 1 March 1999 23:54:59 UTC