RE: www accessibility: BETT website drops 'alt tags'

Thank you for taking the time to offer your comments and feedback on the
BETT website.  We are constantly striving to update and improve our website
and I welcome your comments on accessibility for those with learning
difficulties or special needs.  As an exhibition which caters for this very
important branch of education, to have a website which doesn't is simply not
acceptable.  I will forward your comments to our web developers and will
make every effort to ensure that appropriate actions are undertaken for the
BETT 2001 website.  

If you have any further comments you wish to make which will enable us  to
offer an improved service, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Kind regards

Andy Wilkinson
Tel: 0171 874 0465   


		-----Original Message-----
		From:	Jonathan Chetwynd [mailto:jay@peepo.com]
		Sent:	11 January 2000 12:10
		To:	andy.wilkinson@ebc.emap.com;
brionym@trenton.emap.co.uk; online@tes.co.uk; julie howell;
w3c-wai-ig@w3.org
		Subject:	www accessibility: BETT website drops 'alt
tags'

		I shall be bringing a group of adults with learning
difficulties to the BETT
		show at Olympia.

		We tried to visit the BETT website and were upset to find it
made little
		attempt to meet guidelines on accessibility.
http://www.cast.org/bobby/  and
		http://validator.w3.org/ are two means of checking.
		The BETT homepage http://www.education-net.co.uk/ fails both
miserably.

		This is a pity, it lets us down, making us appear uncaring
abroad, and
		dis-ables almost everyone with special needs world-wide.
		It is also very easy to write code that is accessible. For
instance:
		Alt tags are a simple but essential text alternative to
graphics.
		They allow text readers to interpret for those who are blind
or cannot read.
		They also provide text for people using browsers without
graphics, either by
		desire or need.

		Jonathan Chetwynd
		SLD teacher / www accessibility consultant
		Education and Outreach Working Group member
		Web Accessibility Initiative
		W3C

		c/o SignBrowser
		29 Crimsworth Road
		SW8 4RJ

		jay@peepo.com

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Received on Monday, 17 January 2000 08:19:17 UTC