The Houston Business Journal was very kind to me and ran a byline on Accessibility in this week’s paper. The timing is perfect because today is Knowbility’s Accessibility Internet Rally Houston Rally. AIR is about teams of designers building accessible web sites for non profits for free all in one day.

It is also very cool that the chairman of the AIR rally this year is Houston’s own Richard Yoo of Rackspace. Congrats Richard!

From the article:

Don’t be a target: Web site compliance with ADA accessibility

Houston Business Journal – by Ed Schipul

Is the Internet a "public place?" And if so, are virtual
environments subject to the regulations spelled out in the Americans
with Disabilities Act?

Those may seem like rhetorical questions, but they could have enormous implications for any business with a Web site.

Just ask Target Corp. The National Federation for the Blind is
suing the retailer alleging that its Web site isn’t accessible to the
visually impaired. The lawsuit cites violations of the ADA’s
accessibility requirements and other state laws. It alleges that Target.com
"excludes the blind from full and equal participation in the growing
Internet economy that is increasingly a fundamental part of the common
market place and daily life."

(read the rest on the HBJ site here)

A big thank you from me as well to the Schipul team and the Tendenci team both participating in the rally today. Our jobs are hard enough and y’all are putting in extra time to help out non-profits. THANK YOU!

Today has been a busy day. We confirmed Sharron Rush for our September Netsquared Meetup in Houston. Sharron’s organization is knowbility and she previously published a book on accessible web design (new version coming soon, right Sharron?).

And speaking of accessibility, I also met Glenda Sims at NetSquared last week in San Jose. Glenda, the good witch (although her sense of humor regarding signs is odd for a "good" witch. hmmm.) Glenda has a great post on her blog on a list of practical resources for accessible web design. <Snip>

3) Test with toolbars - (Web Developer Extension & Web Accessibility Toolbar) turn off CSS, turn off Javascript, set to Greyscale, display structure (headings, lists…)

and number 6 is great as well

6) Run a sitewide accessibility report – LIFT or WebXM (direct link to WebXM Page test)

Read the full "Practical Accessibility" post on Brenda’s site for more practial methods for accessible web design.

Sharron, Glenda and even Houston’s own Kelsey are also active in AIRS. Making the web more accessible, one web site at a time.