The Adaptability > Accessibility Idea
There has been a lot of informal discussion recently about the idea that accessibility is only one of the reasons for adaptation of digital resources. Other reasons include making it possible to use web pages on small sceens of PDAs and phones, for example. That is, seeking to re-use resources, or publish them in a device independent way is a good reason for wanting to know about the adaptability of a resource. Can it be tanslated into a different language? Is there aleady translated material or is there a service that can be used? Another reason, similar to that known already to the accessibility community, is that some resources can be adapted using material (components) created cumulatively (just-in-time), or maybe already available but stored in a different location from the rest of the resource, or not yet thought of as being useful to this user but discoverable and interchangeable with part of the original resource, such a text with a lower-reading level for non-native speakers of the language.
There has been some resistance to the new Dublin Core element proposed in 2004 on the grounds that the name 'accessibility' is not a good name. Such reasons for (and against) include the following:
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Accessibility is a term that discriminates against people who need adaptations for personal accessibility reasons (e.g. because they are blind) compared with because they are a person using a screen-less device (phone) to access the resource or service.
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Accessibility is a good name because it draws attention to the need for accessibility and current discrimination against some people that occurs when resources and services are not accessible.
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The techniques of accessibility closely match those that are used in publishing content and services in a device independent way and adaptability is the best name for the class of characteristics of resources and services being described.
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The benefit of having all adaptability characteistics described in one place instead of having an accessibility term and then hoping for other terms when descriptions are needed for device independence seems clumsy.
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People who do not work in the field of accessibility often think it is about access to resouces and services in the library type way - can I get the resource or are there restrictions because of intellectual property rights, because it is hidden in data bases to which I don't have access, do I not have access because I have a slow connection and my device times out, etc.
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