markjgsmith

2023/10/03 #

• Future of Accessibility - The guys from the Shop Talk Podcast have an interesting discussion on this week's show. Dave mentions some of the accessibility projects he's been involved with, and specifically about his experience working with blind users. He describes some of the issues they face, the most frustrating of which is getting to the end of a set of steps only to be blocked by an accessibility issue. That sounds horrific, but with events in my current situation the way they are I can sympothise a lot.

  I have the feeling that accessibility is going to play a bigger role in how we design digital experiences going forward, and it won't necessarily only be for people with disabilities. With AI the possibilities for dark patterns proliferating is increased significantly, and with that there is the possibility that access to services could be restricted in some way. Maybe we need something like aria rules for all aspects of technology. #

• Give and take - I appear to have rustled some feathers with yesterday's note about, what I would characterise as my somewhat strange experiences with milk. In the bottom of the bag that I was given with my breakfast today was transparent milky looking liquid substance, dispite the breakfast not containing any milk. How odd. In the cafe I've gone for lunch, the chairs and tables were all moved around with a mega delivery of chocolate biscuit milk smoothies.

  A literal wall of the stuff, almost taking up 1/3 of the seating area. Also almost every place I have bought something today has tried to force me to buy something without waiting for me to say what I wanted. That or they have simply called me a liar just for existing and turning up at their shop. It's been one thing escallating to another. Oh yeah and a whole lota 'you learn'. I've mostly kept quite quiet today.

  In life it's often said that there should be a balance of give and take. Well here in Vietnam there are days when if you cede and give in to force once, giving what is demanded, then immediately afterwards in every location they try something similar again and again and again. That's been my experience so many times I've lost count. I guess this note will cause more of the same, I wish that it didn't.

  Rather than give and take, it's you give and then they will do take take take take take take take. And with huge righteousness. That's how it feels from my perspective. In the world of regexes it would be described as a greedy algorithm. And of course should you speak up, it's you that is to blame. Each time I was just buying something totally minimal and normal to eat.

  That's how it is sometimes, it's difficult to not get angry. And it's difficult to not let it shape your interactions because you learn to pre-empt it. You know when it's coming. I'm mostly a peaceful person, I try to be, but I also won't be trodden on without reacting. It really amounts to anger goading because guess what happens then, they break out the its-the-crazy-foreigner-it-again sad face.

  And you know sometimes it's kind of funny. I mean the wall of chocolate biscuit milk smoothies was pretty funny. But it's still difficult because it's not a thing you can laugh at, and you are never really sure if it's some kind of threat. Likely it's a bit of both.

  And of course it's probably all bizare coincidences...that happen again and again and again every single day. #

• Gut issues - I've had some gut issues all day today. Started right after breakfast. Then again after lunch. Of course when I made a visit to the bathroom, I was all blocked up. Probably just a coincidence. I'll have to give it another shot later. Bodies are very annoying sometimes, but I like mine and I hope it's alright. #

• We learn - On my way to the bathroom I passed by a place to get a bit of internet connectivity, for emails and podcasts. As I arrived there were two largish women on a very shiny red motorbike waiting. I got online and started doing internet stuff. They drove off one of them saying quite loudly 'We learn'. I realised a few minutes later that the podcast downloads were incredibly slow. The last 2-3 times I've been there I've noticed something similar.

  Onwards, on the way to the bathroom which was a few minutes away two weird incidents. First two men that only appeared to start talking as I passed them, one of them shouting very loudly and aggressively as I passed 'liar'. Then right outside the bathroom, two women stood up as I passed and walked up uncomfortably close, saying loudly in my direction 'Aaaahh gamon'. Gamon means thank you. It was weird.

  Anyhow just wanted to document it. This is the sort of thing that happens constantly. This week's example is as they say, and somewhat ironically, textbook. Remember a few days ago I mentioned water and electricity access had been severly cut back. Looks like internet connection might have been added to that list.

  To be fair, I was able to get access to electricity to charge my devices earlier, though once again had to put up with being called 'liar'. #