Government regulations: Sometimes the feds get it absolutely right

I read with interest that "Some firms hope for end to Obama-backed rules" (Jan. 23, Business) regarding work required for compliance with federal regulations.

One fellow was quoted as saying he spends 10 hours a week on compliance. Although there was no explanation for what the work actually was, it really sounded like a burden for him and his company. I suddenly thought, I guess I have to do the same thing; not every week, but some weeks it is way more than 10 hours. I'm a software engineer and build user interfaces. Part of the demands of my job is to ensure that my components satisfy something called Section 508.

A little history: As most people know, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was enacted in 1990, during the first Bush administration, to better accommodate people with disabilities so that they can more fully participate in society. That's how we got all the wheelchair ramps, braille elevator buttons, big bathroom stalls, and so on.

Interestingly, before the ADA, when the IBM PC appeared in 1983, it was a godsend to the sight impaired. Some very smart engineers quickly built the first speech synthesizers allowing blind people to hear their email and other text. This was facilitated by the fact that the operating system, DOS, was inherently simple, character-oriented and operated solely by keyboard.

Unfortunately, with the advent in the 1990s of graphical interfaces (GUIs), in Windows and the Mac, disabled users were once again left in the lurch. GUIs were so visual (and operated by a mouse) they were basically impossible to comprehend by the visually impaired. It was a huge step backwards.

As a result, the ADA was amended with a set of recommendations, called Section 508, on how to make new computer systems more accessible. Unlike other parts of the ADA, Section 508 has never been universally mandated. But it does come with a bit of a carrot and stick: If you want to sell your software to the federal government, it needs to be compliant with Section 508.

Nowadays, the W3C, the world-wide standards body that governs all things Internet, takes "accessibility" very seriously, as does the European Union, which has similar requirements.

So, what's involved? Section 508 covers things like adding metadata to your HTML that allows screen readers to announce and describe the web page structure and contents (visual impairments); providing keyboard navigation for those who have trouble using the mouse (visual impairments, motor-control deficits, Parkinson's, etc.); the avoidance of color as a sole means of conveying semantic information (colorblindness), and even unexpected ones like avoiding repetitive flashing graphics that can induce epileptic seizures.

Perhaps all of this taken together, despite the noble cause, represents a "government intrusion" and burden on the private sector. But here's the deal: It results in better software — software that has a better design and usability for everyone. Why? Because it forces you as a designer to think about your users — all your users — and how they use your product in different but often overlapping ways and on different kinds of devices.

Honestly, the end result is a product that doesn't just work better for more users but looks better.

Sure, there are times when I've worked hard and I think I've finished a project and demonstrated the final result and then someone asks how well the screen reader works, and I think: criminy, forgot to test that.

You may still consider this government "overreach" or a waste of time and money on the disabled (sorry Stephen Hawking!). I can't help you there; you'll have to consult your higher power.

No doubt there are government regulations that are real head-scratchers, but some are actually quite useful for everyone.

James Allard is a software engineer in Falcon Heights.