You're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off! - Léonie Watson | Frontend NE: Conference 2018
Léonie Watson (05/04/18)
https://2019.frontendne.co.uk
What do these immortal words, from Charlie Crocker (AKA Michael Caine) in The Italian Job, have to do with JavaScript? More than you might think…
It is often said that JavaScript makes things inaccessible with a screen reader. This is not true though. It is possible to do good and bad things with JavaScript (as with any other language, or even dynamite) - but it helps if you understand accessibility mechanics in the browser if you want to avoid unexpected consequences.
If you have ever used JavaScript to provide keyboard shortcuts or used the ARIA application role to enable accessible software UI interactions on the web, there is a good chance it had unintended consequences for screen reader users.
Using code examples and screen reader demos, Léonie will look at accessibility mechanics in the browser, the new Accessibility Object Model (AOM) JavaScript API, and how to use JavaScript so you only blow the bloody doors off!
She’s Communications Director and Principal Engineer at The Paciello Group (TPG), and also works with Government Digital Service (GDS) on the GOV.UK platform. As well as being a member of the W3C Advisory board and co-chair of the W3C web platform group.