Hi Peter,
I think Web Eyes can be helpful software for some people, but it is not the
solution for Internet accessibility problems, as ION Systems suggested.
If they released Web Eyes as free software or shareware I should promote
the software, but their concept to let web sites pay for registration never
should work.
Web Eyes only runs for 10 minutes on web sites, that are not be registered
and I didn't find any site that was registered.
Web sites that are highly difficult to access are also difficult to access
with Web Eyes. I do not see any new technology in Web Eyes.
What if there are 100 companies offering a free plugin to make web sites
accessible and all asking web sites to register? Do you know as consumer
what plugin you must activate to access that specific web site? Do you
believe this concept should ever work?
Regards Peter Verhoeven
At 17:10 17-03-2002 -0800, you wrote:
>Well, until I read the below criticism, I had been excited about the
>touted Web Eyes solution, and even contacted the president by
>email to compliment her on the new technology.
>
>Now, I'm back where I've been for years, wondering what my best
>purchase for accessibility should be. I'll probably hear of
>another solution, think I should go for it, then have my doubts
>raised again. Meanwhile, years go by with indecision.
>
>I live in the New York City area -- not exactly the boondocks --
>and I can't find a place where I can go to try out and compare
>all these different access technologies. This makes a challenging
>process absurdly difficult. Could you imagine consumers in the
>sighted marketplace being told that there's no store where you
>can handle the merchandise?
>
>Peter Seymour
>
>
>At 11:32 AM 3/15/02 +0100, you wrote:
> >Hi,
> >
> >The message below is a reply to a message, that was posted on
>the vicug-l
> >listing. I send this reply to some other lists and the president
>of ION
> >Systems, because I do not agree with what the ION Systems, who
>made Web
> >Eyes, is telling the world.
> >
> >I tried the Web Eyes plugin on several pages and I do not hope
> >accessibility problems will be solved with this kind of
>software! This kind
> >of software is not an alternative for making web sites
>accessible. The
> >company suggests, that Web Eyes is an alternative cost effective
>solution
> >to make web sites accessible.
> >With my screen reader Supernova using braille and magnification
>I can
> >access pages, that seems to be completely inaccessible in the
>Web Eyes view?
> >Also on the suggested cnn.com I get an unregistered web site
>message and I
> >prefer the normal cnn.com to read instead of the Web Eyes view,
>because I
> >do not feel anything at all on my braille display.
> >
> >It is not only, that Web Eyes does not work at all on a lot of
>web site,
> >also the concept is objectionable. All web sites in the world
>should pay
> >$500 or more to think they make their web sites accessible,
>thinking they
> >have to do nothing more? Web Eyes does not make web sites more
>accessible.
> >With a free program like WebFormator I get better access than
>Web Eyes. Web
> >Eyes makes pages less accessible for people with a low vision.
>So my advice
> >to all companies in the world is, do not purchase this product.
>You have to
> >do much more to make you web site accessible!
> >
> >Regards Peter Verhoeven
> >Internet : http://www.magnifiers.org (The Screen Magnifiers
>Homepage)
> >
> >
> >At 07:35 11-03-2002 -0500, you wrote:
> >>We have released Web Eyes (tm). It is an IE browser plug in
>(722K) that
> >>can take any web site - whether it
> >>is tagged for accessibility usage or not - and reflow it so
>that it can
> >>be read at any font size (4 points - 144 points) as well as by
>Jaws and
> >>Window Eyes!
> >>
> >>To try it out, go to http://www.ionwebeyes.com. You can use it
>on any
> >>domain for 10 minutes regardless of if the domain has purchased
>Web Eyes
> >>
> >>or not. We sell Web Eyes to the domain owners as an annual
>license
> >>($600 - $5,500 based on the number of pages in a domain) for
>unlimited
> >>downloads and unlimited reading time on all registered domains.
>If you
> >>try to read CNN.com with Jaws - it does an intelligible job. By
> >>accessing it via Web Eyes, it is 100% logical and usable. You
>can turn
> >>graphics and columns on and off. For screen readers, use a
>single column
> >>
> >>and a small font size for maximum usability. You need IE 5.5 or
>higher.
> >>When installed, Web Eyes is under the Tools menu.
> >>
> >>My husband is in DC this week demonstrating it to several
>government
> >>agencies. I think this will ROCK the accessibility community
>since sites
> >>
> >>who "haven't had time to add the necessary tags" will now be
>usable by
> >>them as well as normal sighted users. It is a win-win-win!
> >>Accessibility community can read the information, web sites
>designers
> >>can still have a formatted site and the corporate entities
>don't have to
> >>
> >>pay to have two sites designed and maintained.
> >>
> >>--
> >>Jill Thomas
> >>President, ION Systems, Inc.
> >>[log in to unmask]
> >>636-937-9094 Fax 636-937-1828
> >>107 Mississippi Ave., Crystal City, MO 63019
> >> *****
> >>www.ionsystems.com Your Bridge To Usability
> >>www.galaxylibrary.com Where Electronic And Print Worlds
>Converge
> >> *****
> >>eMonocle (tm) an XML viewer for simultaneous use by sighted,
>low vision
> >>and, in the near future, blind readers.
> >>Web Eyes (tm) a web plug-in facilitating compliance with
>Section 508 and
> >>accessibility to any web page for low-vision users.
> >>
> >>
> >>VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
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>quotations.
> >> VICUG-L is archived on the World Wide Web at
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> >
> >
> >VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
> >To join or leave the list, send a message to
> >[log in to unmask] In the body of the message,
>simply type
> >"subscribe vicug-l" or "unsubscribe vicug-l" without the
>quotations.
> > VICUG-L is archived on the World Wide Web at
> >http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/vicug-l.html
VICUG-L is the Visually Impaired Computer User Group List.
To join or leave the list, send a message to
[log in to unmask] In the body of the message, simply type
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VICUG-L is archived on the World Wide Web at
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