Please critique my forum system
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Hello accessibility gurus, I'm writing some forum software from scratch, and I'd like to get some feedback at this stage.
The site is forum deli
I'm especially keen for the pathway between arriving > reading an article > submitting a reply, to be as accessible as possible to all users.
With regards to screen readers, there is content that I would like to hide from visual browsers. To what extent is the display and speak css properties supported?
As per a recommendation, I'm using the -999px technique which is a hack, and I'd prefer to be totally hack free if possible.
Last edited by Origin on 07 Sep 2008 12:28 pm; edited 1 time in total
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This is exactly the vision I've been hoping for from a forum system!
One the homepage, I'd suggest removing the date from each entry to save vertical space. Instead, use a heading saying 2nd October 2008 and put all new messages from that date beneath it. Then add a heading for the next date, with all those entries below it. If there are no entries for a date, miss out that heading.
You could list the tags alongside the title of each entry, to further compact each entry. The tags could be right-aligned so they appear in line with each other, which helps sighted users skim through them. Impeccable use of list markup throughout the system, by the way!
I'm missing a breadcrumb trail above the top of main content, though. For example:
| Quote: |
| You are here: Home > CAPTCHA > Reply |
In the topic view, I think the markup can be improved. Instead of using <span> and <strong> for the authorship of each entry, you could use <h2>. This would make the markup more efficient and provide logical in-page navigation for the various "skip to heading" features in ATs and web browsers. The homepage uses <h2> for each entry title. This would make the system more consistent between views.
Instead of putting the Reply controls on a new page, you could put them at the end of each topic. A few mainstream forum systems (notably Invision) have provided this for years, calling it "Quick Reply". You could innovate by doing the same with Post in this forum. I'd like a Preview button. If scripting is enabled, this could be enhanced with a live updating preview.
| Forum Deli wrote: |
| URLs beginning with http:// are automatically linked. |
By using the Syntax of URIs, a small set of generic rules should prevent needing to hardcode every scheme and shortcut possible.
| Forum Deli wrote: |
| In future this will be a user moderated forum where “tags are territory”. Users will be able to moderate topics within the areas they contribute most. |
The pages are sent as text/html, which is the best supported format for web pages. But they erroneously start with an XML prolog and an XHTML DOCTYPE, then use XML syntax here and there. They should be written in HTML 4.01 Strict. I fell for the XHTML hype in 2005...you won't regret getting over it.
I think you should allow any harmless HTML elements to be used in messages. You should ensure valid markup always ends up in the page though, which is rather more difficult.
This system has already impressed me. Its potential is awesome.
(EDIT) Tweaked link text.
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My CV type thing and my Life of Ben (Blog). Nigel Peck's Accessify Forum Requirements.
Last edited by Ben Millard on 08 Sep 2008 04:33 am; edited 1 time in total
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Thanks! This is already much food for thought. I like your ideas about saving vertical space, and more consistent headings.
Ah, I remember why i'm using the wrong content type now. IE!
Not sure if I agree that XHTML is hype, but I can only convince myself of that. I'll read more about the issue since you brought it up.
| Quote: |
| I think this is a bad idea. The people who run the forum know why they set it up and who it is for. They are the best people to ensure the site works for the audience it was created for. |
Forum feudalism is inefficient and unscalable. I want to experiment with other methods of governance.
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