At last!

I've been working on this for the past 6 months, and it's finally done! The Cabinet Office report "eAccessibility of public sector services in the European Union" is now finished, and was published at the end of last week on the Cabinet Office website.

The report is available in full on the website, and can also be downloaded in fully accessible PDF format.

Note: The Cabinet Office website is having a few server problems at the moment, but these are temporary, and shouldn't last much longer. If you can't get the site to load first time you try it, come back to it a while later - there's a good chance it'll be up and running again. Alternatively, and just as a temporary measure until the Cabinet Office website is stable again, you can download the PDF version of the report from the RNIB Web Access Centre.

The report is a comprehensive survey of the accessibility of public sector websites across the EU, reviewing the impact and effectiveness of the various policies and strategies in place in different countries in the EU, and proposing a set of recommendations for pushing web accessibility forward across the EU.

I've been working on this (for RNIB) as part of a project team from RNIB, AbilityNet, Dublin City University and Socitm, and the report also includes material from RNID.

Very pleased to see that it's receiving a very positive reaction!

I'm convinced that Omega 3 fish oil is having a remarkably positive effect. The mess created by my inability to deal with a particular issue took me just an hour to knock into a shape that I could finally hand over to the person I should have given it over to months ago. But even just a few weeks ago just trying to think about it would send my fear and anxiety levels sky high, making it impossible for me to deal with it. But this morning, though I had to pause a few times to take a few deep breaths, it was otherwise as straightforward as it should have been 5 months ago. Got a last few bits to discuss and sort out tomorrow, but otherwise that's a massive and long time weight lifted. Wonderful feeling!

Sodding thing - whenever there's a possibility that I might actually feel good about myself and something I've done, I always manage to screw something else up. And the bigger and better the good thing, the more serious the screw-up is. Bloody hell I'm fed up with my own stupid incompetence, and angry at having had to wait so long for the counselling that might help. I guess angry's better than crushed and worthless, which is how I'd have felt a couple of months ago, but that's not a huge comfort right now.

Well, the talk at this evening's meeting of the Cambridge Usability Group seemed to go well. At any rate, many seemed happy to stay and ask questions as long as I was willing to stay and answer them, so I guess I must have got some part of it right. :) My thanks to them for inviting me. Enjoyed the Q&A and resulting discussions myself. Only problem is that resulted in me staying longer than intended, so I'm still on my way home! Nearly there though. Will be nice to get back inside where it's warm again.

Platform 9 and 3/4 (view larger image in Flickr).

I'm probably the only person in the world who didn't know that, thanks to Harry Potter mania, there's now a sign for platform nine and three quarters at Kings Cross Station, complete with trolley half way through the magic barrier...

Usability News - Usability vs Accessibility? No contest - Cambridge, UK

Date: Monday 28th November
Time: 6.30 for 6.45
Venue: Microsoft Research, Cambridge
Cost: The event is FREE and you do not need to be a UK UPA member to attend.
Registration: Please email cambridge.usability@gmail.com to reserve a place.

"Accessibility and usability are sometimes presented as different things, even as principles which conflict with each other at times, and are often addressed separately in the design process. Many would argue, however, that they are closely linked, and that they ultimately address many of the same issues, albeit from different angles. In this presentation, Donna discusses the overlap between accessibility and usability in web design, and how these specialist areas rely on each other for maximum effectiveness."

Donna Smillie, Senior Web Accessibility Consultant at RNIB, will be the speaker at this event organised by the Cambridge Usability Group.

Technorati: Usability, Accessibility, Web accessibility, Web standards, Events

Waiting to see the doctor, I'm reading the notices on the board in the waiting room. One of them exhorts patients to switch off their mobile phones during consultations, in order not to waste the doctor's valuable time. OK, no problem with that. But a reciprocation of that courtesy would be nice.

Like a couple of months ago, I'd barely sat down and said good morning to the doctor, when into the room sailed ... I don't know, a nurse or therapist of some kind, without any pause between knocking and entering. She didn't look at me or acknowledge my presence in any way, and there was no apology for the interruption. She then proceeded to waste several minutes of *my* valuable time discussing another patient with the doctor I thought *I* was seeing. I was appalled at the lack of courtesy, and at the breach of patient confidentiality. I can only hope that *my* confidential medical details are never discussed in front of another patient that way!

Oh, and even if Southall Broadway was still closed off this morning, the new mattress arrived OK - got a notion the courier driver may have got resourceful and reversed the wrong way down from the top of the road...

Chris and I both looking forward to sleeping on a bed that doesn't suddenly jab you with the sharp end of a spring coil if you inadvertently lie on the wrong bit of the mattress!

Southall Broadway (view larger image in Flickr).

Well, the travel news on BBC Breakfast this morning indicated that the Broadway was still closed, but when I went down there just after 12.30, it was open again, and as busy as ever. I walked along to where the explosion took place, and found the two most severely damaged buildings heavily shored up and surrounded by scaffolding.

Southall Broadway - damaged buildings (view larger image in Flickr).

It's possible the one on the corner, where I think the explosion took place, may have to be demolished completely.

Got home just before 8pm to find the centre of Southall completely closed down. The Broadway was cordoned off — no traffic allowed through, and all of the shops, normally open till quite late, were shuttered and closed. Including Somerfield, which is normally open until 10pm. Very strange feeling walking home through deserted streets that early in the evening.

Got in and told Chris, and we looked on Google News to see if we could find out what was happening. And found a news item on BBC London which said that, just before 9am, there was an explosion (probably from a gas leak which was being investigated and worked on) which, apparently, pretty well demolished a restaurant on the Broadway. Bit of a shock that — I walked along the Broadway at 8.30 this morning, on my way to catch a bus to the station! Got a train about 8.45, and I don't remember hearing an explosion, so it must have been between 8.45 and 9am. Apparently there's a damaged gas main, which is why everything's still cordoned off.

We were expecting delivery of a new mattress tomorrow morning, but that might now be doubtful if the place is still closed to traffic, since we live on a one-way street which cars can only get into from the Broadway. Sigh...!

Dignity with a teddy bear? (view larger image in Flickr).

The Techshare conference last week was interesting and fun, both for the presentations and for the "off piste" conversations at coffee breaks and in the bar.

My colleague Bim, attending Techshare for the first time as one of RNIB's Web Accessibility Consultants, was determined to look elegant and businesslike. Being Bim, she succeeded very well indeed.

Her efforts, however, were, on Friday morning, just slightly undermined by her guide dog, George. He just loves walking around with one of his stuffed toys in his mouth. And on Friday morning, he decided that he simply couldn't face another day of conference stuff without his favourite teddy bear, and, unbeknown to Bim, quietly picked it up on the way out of their hotel bedroom.

The first Bim knew of it was when, walking confidently through the hotel lobby, she heard a couple of girls whispering "Ooooh that's so cute — he's got his teddy bear with him!"

It didn't need much thought to figure that they probably weren't talking about any of the male conference delegates...

Been worrying for over a week about an entry in my diary for today that just said "Presentation". Must have been in a rush when I entered it, and assumed that I'd remember what it was about, or planned to put more detail in later that day. But didn't. So I've been staring at this entry, racking my brains trying to recall who, where, what, etc, with absolutely no success. Hunted everywhere in my email and on my hard drive for some clue - nothing. Nothing in our team scheduling spreadsheet either.

Only things stopping me going into a complete panic that I was about to let a client down badly were:

1. I always put the detail into a calendar entry when it is confirmed, and
   
   
2. No-one's been chasing me for powerpoint slides or phoned to double check that I was still going to come.

So come this morning, still not having found anything to indicate what the entry referred to, I just had to cross my fingers and hope it was a "to be confirmed" entry for something that either never came to pass or I eventually declined to do.

And then around 2.30 this afternoon, I finally found an email in our team mailbox that had an invitation to give a presentation on 22 November, and recognised it, indeed, as one that I considered and then declined. Oh the relief!

Bert Love Trophy - 2005 winner (view larger image in Flickr).

I had various things planned for this afternoon. The list didn't include attending the November meeting of the West London Meccano Society (WLMS) with Chris (Meccano is one of his hobbies). Ended up doing just that, though. Chris is editor of the Society's newsletter, and photographer & chronicler of events and the models exhibited at these gatherings. But he arrived at Greenford Community Centre this afternoon only to find that he'd left the camera behind. A beseeching phone to me, and I agreed to take it up there. Well, how could I say no? Particularly since the November meeting is the one where they award the Bert Love Trophy - and if you know anything about Meccano and those who rank highly in the Meccano modelling community, you'll have an idea how important that presentation is! But it took me ages to get there (horrendously long wait for bus), so I was persuaded to stay for the rest of the meeting and come home with Chris.

Don't get me wrong - they're really nice people - they've always been very welcoming and friendly on the odd occasion when I've accompanied Chris to an exhibition or meeting. But while I find Meccano quite interesting, it's generally not interesting enough to tear me away from my computer for a whole afternoon. But this time Meccano (and the cold weather and the vagaries of the local buses) won, and I stayed on until the end of the meeting, thus getting a lift home from one of Chris's friends - many thanks Howard.

And win is also what the superb model Oshkosh lorry in this photograph did, as it is the model which won its constructor, Richard Payn, the Bert Love Trophy for this year. Congratulations Richard!

Birmingham sunrise (view larger image in Flickr).

Watch the light change as the sun comes up. Reflections in mirrored front of Hyatt building are fascinating.

Birmingham sunset (view larger image in Flickr).

Got back to my hotel room just in time to catch the most wonderful view over the city at sunset. Photo doesn't do it justice.

Ann and Bim did a brilliant job, and both are still flying high on adrenaline. :) It'll take a while for them to come down, but when they do, they're going to want to chill out on their own for a while. Really pleased for them though - they've received some excellent feedback from delegates, which is well deserved.

Met one of last year's delegates, who confirmed that we do make a difference, and people don't just go away and forget what we've said. Thank you MariaT - you made my day a really good one, and one I'll take out and look at when I feel low.

Pre-Techshare workshops today. Nearly slept in, but woke up just in time! No time to catch up with the work I'd hoped to do before heading off to the RNIB offices here in Birmingham, though.

For the first time in three years, I'm not going to have to spend the whole day talking to a roomful of people - Ann and Bim are doing the morning workshop with just a half hour intro from me, and speakers from AbilityNet and Nomensa are doing the afternoon workshops.

Nervous on behalf of Ann and Bim though - not because I don't think they'll do an excellent job, which I do, but because I know how nervous they are feeling immediately before their first major workshop on their own. I know how I felt before my first major presentation!

Check the train timetable this morning, to remind myself when my train gets into Birmingham this evening, only to find that the train I'm booked on no longer exists. Weird! I definitely remember seeing a 17:00 Virgin Trains service, Euston to Birmingham, when I checked a month ago, and that's what my ticket says. But now there's a 16:55 and a 17:10, but no 17:00.

Phone Virgin Trains Customer Services to check with them which train I should travel on since my ticket is one of those "only valid for travel on the train booked" types, but they don't know and suggest I travel on the 16:55 since that's closest to 17:00. OK... not entirely convinced, but though they're nice, I'm not going to get any further here.

Get to Euston station at half past four, and go to Virgin Trains information desk to ask their advice. They don't know either, and come out with an almost identical suggestion.

Mildly concerned to see the 16:55 listed with the info "Ticket restrictions apply to this service - please enquire". The ticket I've got is a tariff only available on some services - wonder if I'll be allowed on, or if I'm going to end up having to buy another ticket and claim back later.

Platform is announced, and I head down to the ticket check at the platform entrance. The guys checking tickets shrug when I explain, and say "There isn't a 17:00", which is something I already know. They wave me through.

Plenty of unreserved seats, so I grab one and settle in. Uneventful journey, and train arrives in Birmingham a minute early.

Kind of like the laid back approach!

Horrendous traffic in Southall for some reason (that is, worse than the usual severe congestion), so miss the train I was hoping to get. Next train cancelled. Get on next one, only to have it creep slowly along for first half of the short journey into London. Given that I live only 10 miles from central London, there are days when it really does feel like I could probably get there faster on foot!

"War turns us to stone.
In remembrance we shine
and rise to new days."

-- Semaphore message of remembrance, London, November 2005.

"Message", a semaphore message of remembrance, was transmitted along the River Thames in London today (Remembrance Sunday, 13 November 2005). The performance artwork was commissioned for the day by the National Maritime Museum, and was composed and arranged by artist Beth Derbyshire.

A few weeks ago, the BBC showed a TV programme on the possible positive impact of omega 3 fatty acids (found in largest concentrations in fish oil) on the brain. Some of the material looked at the impact on anxiety and depressive illness. The research and anecdotal evidence shown in the programme was, for me, quite compelling, and so I have started taking high dosage Omega 3 fish oil capsules. It might be my imagination I know, but increasingly, since I started taking these supplements, I've noticed a marked improvement, and the background level of anxiety and depression that I usually have to cope with seems to be diminishing. That makes dealing with things that quite legitimately cause anxiety much easier, since I'm starting from a lower level of "ambient" anxiety. What is even more compelling for me is the fact that a close friend, who has also suffered from severe anxiety and depression for many years, also started taking the same supplement at the same time, and has also been experiencing a marked improvement.

What with my discovery about the effects of caffeine, and finally getting to see a counsellor, I do begin to hope that I might at last be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel that it feels like I've been slogging through for years. Got my fingers crossed!

I recently started helping out doing bits of editing in the Wikipedia, and, in the Wikipedia article about caffeine stumbled across a link to information about the possible psychiatric effects of caffeine, which came as something of a shock. I knew about the possible physical side-effects of caffeine, such as breathlessness, palpitations, etc, having experienced them myself at times, but hadn't, until now, realised that there were documented psychiatric side-effects.

I've struggled with bouts of extreme anxiety and clinical depression for years, and have been on anti-depressant medication for much of the past 15 years, with varying success. But I'd never considered that my high intake of coffee might have been having an impact on this. But now I find that even moderate amounts of caffeine can trigger episodes of anxiety and clinical depression. And in many documented cases, simply stopping the intake of caffeine can result in a complete recovery from these conditions.

On the one hand, it's a shock, and extremely depressing in itself to think that I might have been spared years of misery if I'd only known about this. On the other hand, however, it's extremely positive to consider that, simply by cutting back on the amount of coffee I drink, or even (can I face the thought?!) cutting it out altogether, I might experience a significant reduction in the levels of anxiety I experience on a day to day basis - that would be blissful and would have such a positive impact on my life!

...nothing for ages, then they all turn up at once!

After waiting for almost 2 years to see a specialist cousellor, and several months to see a physiotherapist, I recently got an appointment to see a graduate counsellor as an interim measure, and having only had a couple of sessions with her, have suddenly received a letter saying that I've got an appointment with the specialist counsellor in mid-December. I've also now got an appointment with a physiotherapist in a couple of weeks.

At this rate, I won't have time for work, etc - I'll be spending all my time rushing from one medical appointment to another!

If you're on one of the major UK networks (e.g. Orange, Virgin, Vodafone, O2, T-Mobile) and have a WAP phone which can display colour pictures, you can donate to the Poppy Appeal and get a digital poppy to display on your phone. Cost is 1.50 GBP (tho it's not made clear how much of that is actually donated to the appeal) plus any message and data costs depending on your tariff. Just text POPPY to 85099.

For more info on the Royal British Legion and the Poppy Appeal, see http://www.britishlegion.org.uk and http://www.poppy.org.

On a London tube train at 11am, and all activity ceases for 2 mins. A public announcement invites passengers to join in observing the silence. The station where we are stopped quietens, as does the carriage I'm in, as people pause and give 2 minutes to quiet remembrance of the sacrifice made by others during the two world wars.

Except for 2 women at one end of the carriage, who continue their conversation without a pause, apparently oblivious to the looks of annoyance they are attracting from myself and others.

I just don't understand how some people are so selfish and so oblivious of the feelings of others. And I'm annoyed with myself for not going up to them afterwards and telling them how annoying and upsetting their behaviour was. Sigh...

All of the money raised through the sale of poppy badges, stickers, etc, in the UK goes to the Royal British Legion, which does much throughout the year to help and care for ex-servicemen and women and their families, and the families of servicemen and women killed in action.

Good grief! Astonished to learn from BBC Breakfast TV item the extent to which younger people in UK are becoming ignorant of what the poppy means, particularly at this time of year. One thing to know what it is and make a choice to wear one or not. Quite another not to know what it is in the first place. One person when asked, wondered if it might be a political party emblem - the Labour Party perhaps? Presumably because it's red!

And for anyone reading this who is wondering what the poppy DOES mean, it's a symbol of remembrance of all those who gave their lives in the wars of the 20th century, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Today is Remembrance Day, and since the end of the First World War, a 2 minute silence of remembrance has been observed throughout the UK at 11am on the 11th of November (the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month). That's what the poppy is all about.

Have had a few people - most recently JackP on Accessify Forum - asking about the reasoning behind the general recommendation that designers avoid the use of justified text on web pages, so I thought I'd post a few useful references here - feel free to chip in with any other useful links to info about why justified text isn't regarded as a Good Thing on the web.

There are two main reasons for justified text not working well on web pages - the way we actually read text when we're viewing it on screen, and the way browsers handle text justification.

Text is more difficult to read on screen than it is in hard print because of differences in resolution, and the fact that, even if we're not consciously aware of it, the image on screen is not totally static (the image is constantly being refreshed, many times a second). So anything which makes it more difficult to find and read words, phrases, paragraphs, etc, is generally not a good idea.

Browsers are not very good at handling justification and displaying justified text, and one is likely to be presented with text where the spaces between words varies a lot, unlike the more subtle variation in spacing that is achieved in printed text. This extreme variation in the spacing makes the text more difficult to read - instead of the eye being able to move smoothly along the line of text, it has to move in "fits and starts", searching for and jumping to the start of each word.

While someone with no sight problems or reading difficulties might find this no more than a mild aggravation, it can present real problems to anyone using screen magnification software (since the gaps between words are also magnified), and to people with conditions such as dyslexia. Some people with reading difficulties and/or some cognitive disabilities find that the "rivers" of white space which can easily occur within justified passages of text on screen form a more distinct pattern than the actual words themselves, making the text extremely difficult to read and comprehend.

Some links to articles/info about or related to this:

• An Accessibility Frontier: Cognitive disabilities and learning difficulties (Usability.com.au)
• Developing sites for users with Cognitive disabilities and learning difficulties (Juicy Studio; a simplified version of the "An Accessibility Frontier" article listed above).
• Web Accessibility for Dyslexia (University of Manchester)
• Designing web pages for dyslexic readers (Dyslexia Online Magazine for Parents)

Technorati subject tags: Accessibility, Web Accessibility, Web Standards

I live in Southall, just to the west of London. It's the centre of a large Asian-British community, and tonight, many of them are celebrating Diwali.

The many houses with candles and votive lights flickering on windowsills and around doorways are a beautiful sight.

However, in addition to these quieter, more reflective lights, thousands of pounds worth of fireworks have been going off all around the town since sunset, and it's still going strong. In previous years, the bangs and whizzes have continued into the early hours of the morning, finally petering out around 1-2am.

The noise is quite unbelievable. A constant barrage of explosions and whizzes and screeches, with no pauses or lulls.

Suggestion? Don't come to Southall on the night of the Diwali new moon if you have problems with loud noises!