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Discussion on: I am a web developer, hard of hearing, and an a11y advocate, Ask Me Anything!

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grodier profile image
George Rodier

Hi Ashlee! Hope you’re having a great Friday!

Now for my question: as someone who is hard of hearing, what is the number one accessibility issue that you personally encounter when interacting with the web? How can that user experience be improved?

Thanks!

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ashleemboyer profile image
Ashlee (she/her)

Hey George :) I am having a good Friday! Thanks for your comment. I think my answer falls somewhere between two things:

  • poor audio quality
  • lack of closed captions

The latter is probably higher on my list than the former, though, because most audio quality is really bad.

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grodier profile image
George Rodier

That’s great to know and keep in mind. Thanks for the response!

I’m always trying to keep a11y at the forefront of my mind and I think the best way to do that is just be informed of issues people are encountering.

It’s interesing the comment about audio quality, becauss it’s something I personally haven’t noticed. If most of the quality is poor, how would you compare it to a different medium that has better sound quality?

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ashleemboyer profile image
Ashlee (she/her)

Yeah, I think one of the biggest barriers to a11y is the lack of information. Too many devs think it's super hard to make sites accessible, but it's really not; especially if you incorporate it into your early designs and code.

What I often find is that people sound like they're talking into a bucket, don't speak into the mic itself or go in and out from it, or they just don't speak very clearly. It can be a time-consuming thing to go back over audio and re-record bad pieces, so I sort of get it. But what people should try to do is practice becoming better speakers and also invest in better equipment if possible.