Accessible ICT in the culture sectorAndreas CederbomAndreas.cederbom@funka.comTwitter: @cederbomarn

Accessible ICT in the culture sectorAndreas CederbomAndreas.cederbom@funka.comTwitter: @cederbomarn

Many have wondered about it, but few have given a meaningful answer. Many have explored the topic; few have given a satisfactory answer. What is the meaning of life? And is it the same meaning for everyone? It is possible to spin out on this subject indefinitely, or keep it short. The answer came, not surprisingly, from a very famous writer. For some readers it may seem that there is something cryptic about this, 42 is not what you immediately think of when talking about the meaning of life, but it seems Douglas Adams has come closer than anyone else. Although we found the answer in the book, the answer may not be the most interesting fact, but the question itself. What is the question? It depends on who makes it? And when? Or is there an eternal truth? Why are we here? Or, which is the golden middle age? There are many potential issues, but only one true answer, at least if you believe the book. Now it is of course a trilogy, not one book, but five. Yes, it is thus the world's longest trilogy. Now of course this is not primarily meant to be the seminar that solves your life musings, but a little bit of progress, we hope well be able to get through to find out where the information society is heading. I am absolutely convinced that Douglas Adams would have done a better job than I to answer that question, and he has perhaps achieved this in his description of the guide that provides all the answers in the book. A good basic advice is not to panic. Many people do anyway, especially with a new anti-discrimination legislation around the corner, but by being proactive and quality-conscious this should not pose any problems. That you are here today is of course a sign that you are proactive and then odds are that you actually do not need to get too stressed, but it’s always a good idea to keep an eye on what happens. 

ICT was invented in the nick of time

What IT does to culture?

• A tool rather than a threat• More limitations in the

culture sector• ICT makes it adaptable

again

Document

Something is happening

In 2017 all books ever published in Norway will be digitalized…

…and will fit on a single memory stick

…and on the web…

What is the situation today?• PDF, PDF, PDF, PDF…• 95 % not accessible• Poor control• Poor quality• There are demands on

accessibility…• …but who cares?• Difficult to use

What’s so difficult?

It’s too easy to make mistakes

It’s too likely to cause problems

It takes a bit more time and knowledge

The result often goes unnoticed

There are alternatives

Odf

Daisy

DjVu

.aeh

.irl

.cbr

.chm

.pdb .li

t.azw

.prc

.mobi

.pkg

.opf

Epub

Epub 3.0• Several projects are moving

towards EPUB• iBook• Html• A problem finding good readers

(Kindle doesn’t support)

International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF)

Epub 3.0• HTML 5 audio and video element• Media Overlay Documents• CSS• CSS Speech• Pronunciation support• Adaptable content

International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF)

Pros

Adaptable

Accessible

Harder to do really bad

More natural integration of text, image, sound and video

Cons

Disparate support so far

Few and lacking players

Not an option for archiving

New to the users

Dynamic content

…or better jet… just HTML

Alternatives and support

What do the user want?• One solution does not fit

all• Touch and feel• Explore• Hear• See• Preparation and security

Examples

Braille

Large font

Audio

Video

3D-printouts

The website

Apps

Different situations• Alternatives• Complement• Compensation• Help

Website and apps

The website?• Provide information• Prepare the visitor• Attract the visitor• Must be accessible• Should follow WCAG 2.0• Clean and clear

Apps?• Everyone’s carrying

around assistive technology these days…

• Apps to provide information

• Apps to compensate

Cinema in Sweden

• Audio description and talking subtitles

• In your cell phone• Many different solutions• One film, different experiences

So, what to do?• Your digital content must be accessible• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0• User tests• Apps to help users• Be proactive• Don’t see ICT as a threat

Accessibility is not an activity, it´s a quality aspect in all parts of your organisation

There is no such thing as an average user