https://www.nngroup.com/articles/computer-skill-levels/ <- I think this is absolutely crucial to keep in mind with these discussions. Figuring out that you need extra accessibility tools, finding them, installing them, configuring them, and using them seems at least level 2 on the skill rubric here – so we're talking about skills that only about a quarter of adults younger than 66 have. Older adults have lower skills and tend to have higher rates of vision issues.
As a comparison, more than a third of people in LA county speak Spanish (http://www.laalmanac.com/population/po47.php). It would not be reasonable for supposedly public communications to be only available in Spanish for the #aesthetic, and to tell the 60% of the population that doesn't speak Spanish to kick rocks – and these numbers are better than the portions we're talking about.
Compare insurance designed around the idea that an expert is going to need to design an assistive technology setup: optical insurance so a professional can tell me my prescription. Or the "wheelchair" comparison: even with ramp requirements, using a wheelchair involves ongoing management by a doctor over a user's often lifelong use. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7384540/)
There isn't a professional service that exists to unbreak the display of websites that could just have been made properly contrasting in the first place, and... there shouldn't be.
That's a good point about computer skills, however I think that's the fault of the device/OS/browser vendor, and they're the ones who should fix it.
Most modern devices come with a setup process that guides users through setting up accessibility features. Extending that to installing third-party browser extensions is...complicated to say the least, but I think that's a far more effective solution to this problem than simply hoping that every website will adhere to some accessibility guidelines.
Web standards were created to be accessible basically from day 1. The user agent (web browser/client) is in control of how a website is displayed, and the user is able to change it however they want. Whether that's 10x font sizes, or increasing color contrast, it just takes a few lines of CSS (which an extension can add automatically).
> As a comparison, more than a third of people in LA county speak Spanish (http://www.laalmanac.com/population/po47.php). It would not be reasonable for supposedly public communications to be only available in Spanish for the #aesthetic, and to tell the 60% of the population that doesn't speak Spanish to kick rocks – and these numbers are better than the portions we're talking about.
I don't think that's a good example because government communications are different from private entities. Nobody has to eat at a spanish-only restaurant, and anybody can learn to speak spanish. If that restaurant doesn't speak english, then the free market will force them out of business... and if it doesn't, well, then whose to say it's not a good idea?
By contrast, a person missing both legs can't just learn to walk, so not having a wheelchair ramp is just fucked up.
> There isn't a professional service that exists to unbreak the display of websites that could just have been made properly contrasting in the first place, and... there shouldn't be.
Sure, but the likelihood of every website adopting accessibility standards is basically zero. Investing in a powerful set of accessibility tools/extensions seems much more impactful IMO than trying to coerce and/or force developers to adhere to some standards that are likely not a silver bullet anyways.
As a comparison, more than a third of people in LA county speak Spanish (http://www.laalmanac.com/population/po47.php). It would not be reasonable for supposedly public communications to be only available in Spanish for the #aesthetic, and to tell the 60% of the population that doesn't speak Spanish to kick rocks – and these numbers are better than the portions we're talking about.
Compare insurance designed around the idea that an expert is going to need to design an assistive technology setup: optical insurance so a professional can tell me my prescription. Or the "wheelchair" comparison: even with ramp requirements, using a wheelchair involves ongoing management by a doctor over a user's often lifelong use. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7384540/)
There isn't a professional service that exists to unbreak the display of websites that could just have been made properly contrasting in the first place, and... there shouldn't be.