Accessible Mobile Apps (Bi)Weekly - Issue #41
Hello everyone,
This was a busy past two weeks with Google I/O and lots of announcements on Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). Did you do something special to celebrate GAAD? Let me know what you did if you'd like it featured in a future edition of this newsletter.
As always, don't hesitate to reach out with any suggestions for the next issue via email (hello@accessiblemobileapps.com) or Twitter (or Mastodon).
- Robin
Mobile Screen Reader Cheat Sheets
"Screen readers are complicated and how they are used even more so. [...] It’s my hope that developers get better at using assistive technologies, as it empowers us to create better apps. I hope this is not overwhelming, but just enough to get you started and excited." - qbalsdon.github.io
Accessibility Testing Checklists for iOS and Android "La va11ydette d'Orange"
Orange recently released WCAG 2.1 checklists for accessibility testing on iOS and Android. (Thanks, JJ for sharing this in our Slack group!)
Native versus cross-platform APIs for accessible apps
"Which platform/framework is the best to create an accessible app? In my talk at Appdevcon today, I compared the #accessibility API's of #Android, #iOS, #Flutter, #ReactNative and #Xamarin." - linkedin.com
What Accessibility means at Hootsuite
"In recognition of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) it’s worth taking some time to reflect on the work that our Development, Design, and Product teams have been shipping over the past few months. Since mid-February 2023, we’ve had a renewed focus on improving the accessibility of Hootsuite and the Hootsuite mobile app." - medium.com
New accessibility tech on GAAD 2023: Apple, Google, Microsoft and more
Android
What's New in Android Accessibility (Google I/O 2023)
"Providing accessible apps ensures equal access to roughly one billion people in the world with disabilities. It also benefits people without disabilities by allowing them to customize their experiences. In this session, learn about the new accessibility features and settings coming to Android, along with updates in the developer space to help you build apps for everyone." - io.google
Android Ally by Quintin Balsdon
Android View Accessibility Techniques
"For Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) 2023, I am pleased to announce the open source availability of sample source code and documentation covering 30 Android View accessibility technique topics. These topics range from the simple -- contentDescriptions for images and minimum touch target size -- to the complex -- accordion control accessibility, custom accessibility actions, and automated accessibility testing. This is the project I was looking for when I first started in Android accessibility, and I hope it helps other developers learn these crucial practices." - github.com
(Thanks, Robert, for sharing this in our Slack group!)
Making beautiful products more accessible with Material research
Accessibility in Jetpack Compose
"In this codelab you will learn how to use Jetpack Compose to improve your app's accessibility. We will walk through several common use cases and improve a sample app step by step. We will cover touch target sizes, content descriptions, click labels, and more." - developer.android.com
Google IO 2023 & Accessibility! New products, updates, & AI from a blind & low vision perspective
iOS
Apple introduces new features for cognitive accessibility, along with Live Speech, Personal Voice, and Point and Speak in Magnifier
"New software features for cognitive, speech, and vision accessibility are coming later this year" - apple.com
Join the Accessible Mobile Apps Slack Group
Use this link to join our Slack workspace for mobile accessibility. Ask technical questions, share resources, get advice from other developers, and most importantly connect with developers who share your passion for a11y.
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