Re: text to speech software

At 11:25 AM 7/14/99 +0100, jonathan chetwynd wrote:
>Al Gilman wrote:
>
>"One has to distinguish objectives.
>
>The accessibility guidelines are targeted to a scenario where the objective
>is to inform, and one does not care if it is too easy to understand.  This
>is not ideal, just actual."
>
>"Inform" assumes that one is communicating, And that the knowledge is being
>transferred. This means that it is intended to be pedagogical, although you
>claim that the guidelines are not.

I know that one can call them both instruction, but there is still a
difference to be observed.

Let me try again.  Would you distinguish between subcategories of pedagogy
to impart facts or to cultivate skills?  To cultivate skills, you want to
challenge the learner some, but not more than they can ovecome.  To impart
facts, it is not so important to create challenges along the way.

You raised the "Ant and Bee stories" as an example of good pedagogical
literature.  Because they challenge the reader a little and not too much.
I am saying that for the guidelines as they stand now, that is too
sophisticated a criterion.  

The guidelines are quite simple, and aim to avoid the worst cases where
things get really difficult or impossible.  Applying a challenge that is
not too small as well as not too large is beyond the state of consensus
knowledge of the group as it published WCAG 1.0.  It is a very real
challenge for educational materials.  But that is art beyond the
contemporary state of knowledge of accessibility.

Al

>
>Perhaps you mean to say that the audience is atypical and that is precisely
>what I am objecting to.
>

Not what I meant.  I was talking about what kind of knowledge is, and is
not, contained in the guidelines.  Knowledge of how not to be too difficult
is contained in these guidelines.  Knowledge of how to be just difficult
enough is not.

>On a more positive note I have heard that the Education and Outreach Group
>are developing an alternative approach.
>

They are going to try to make the guidelines more understandable.  But not
to change what they mean.

Al

>jay@peepo.com
>
>Please send us links to your favourite websites.
>Our site www.peepo.com is a drive thru.
>When you see a link of interest, click on it.
>Move the mouse to slow down.
>It is a graphical aid to browsing the www.
>We value your comments.
>

Received on Wednesday, 14 July 1999 17:25:16 UTC