Interliant Builds Web Site for the Blind From: Computer Reseller New - February 12, 2001 ASP Interliant has worked with the American Federation for the Blind (AFB) to create a feature-rich Web site intended to make e-commerce accessible to the blind and visually impaired community. The site uses technology that can "read" graphics, among other things. AFB President Carl Augusto wanted a site that was graphically appealing to those with sight but also highly accessible to the visually impaired. Augusto says the site should create a community for the blind, their care givers, and service providers and should also offer products for purchase. Interliant attached links to the site's graphics so that a screen reader can read the graphics as though they were text. The site also has a color-change option for people with low vision, which Augusto says is important and a good example of how small changes can make any site more accessible to those with disabilities. Screen readers can translate online text into Braille or a synthetic voice but cannot handle the graphics that e-commerce sites frequently use to sell products or link to other applications. Interliant CEO Herb Hribar says that the AFB site is a prototype for public-service agencies, nonprofit organizations, and commercial sites. Augusto says that the AFB site could become a host site for agencies and schools that cannot afford their own sites. http://www.corporate-ir.net/ireye/ir_site.zhtml?ticker=INIT&script=410&layout=9&item_id=144753