Developers Working to Overcome AJAX Accessibility Issues From: eWeek - 07/11/2006 By: Darryl K. Taft Though it offers many advantages over conventional Web-application techniques, AJAX poses accessibility issues for certain users. The dynamic changes that occur in AJAX-based technologies, which enable dynamic interactions without reloading a page, can take place undetected by users with site impairments or other disabilities, though several developers are working to address those issues. MB Technologies, for instance, spent over a year modifying its Bindows application to improve its accessibility. "It was nothing short of a huge undertaking for Bindows to build an AJAX framework that enabled the construction of AJAX and Web 2.0 sites that support accessibility," said MB Technologies CEO Yoram Meriaz. One of the main challenges that MB Technologies faced was getting the platform to support multiple browsers and assistive-technology tools. Microsoft has also been working to improve accessibility in its set of tools for Web-application development, and IBM is planning to donate critical intellectual property to the open-source community to deal with AJAX accessibility issues. Through a variety of assistive technologies, IBM is working to improve the accessibility of the Dojo toolkit for both international and disabled users. With numerous lawsuits having recently appeared when users found their access to AJAX restricted, accessibility is becoming an increasingly important issue, according to Dion Almaer, co-founder of Ajaxian.com. Despite the increased attention that AJAX accessibility has been receiving lately, Almaer notes that complete accessibility is difficult to achieve. Compatibility with non-AJAX browsers and the accessibility of the AJAX interface are the two main barriers to the accessibility of AJAX applications, said Nexaweb Technologies CTO Coach Wei. Read the entire article at: http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1987300,00.asp MB Technologies http://www.mbtechnologies.com/main.htm Bindows http://www.bindows.net/ Bindows - First Framework to Support Accessibility for Ajax and Web 2.0 Applications http://www.paciellogroup.com/pressroom/bindows.html Ajaxian.com http://ajaxian.com/ AJAX Accessibility http://ajaxian.com/by/topic/accessibility/ Nexaweb http://www.nexaweb.com/ Can AJAX find harmony on agency Web sites? http://www.fcw.com/article95257-07-17-06-Print