#web accessibility compliance

[spice-ghouls]

Cannot help but roll my eyes when I read posts bemoaning how boring the colors on the web have gotten v.s. the early web when things were regularly all bright and neon.

[adasitecompliance]

Accessibility Benefits For Businesses

ADA Site Compliance shows the benefits of accessibility for businesses!

[jcmarchi]

10 Best Text to Speech Plugins for WordPress (November 2024)

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/10-best-text-to-speech-plugins-for-wordpress-november-2024/

10 Best Text to Speech Plugins for WordPress (November 2024)

Making your WordPress website accessible to all users is a necessity. Text-to-speech (TTS) functionality is a crucial feature, serving not only visitors with visual impairments but also those who prefer consuming content through audio. As mobile devices continue to dominate web traffic and multitasking becomes the norm, incorporating high-quality text-to-speech capabilities can significantly enhance user engagement and expand your content’s reach.

This guide explores the top text-to-speech plugins for WordPress, carefully selected based on their performance, feature sets, and user experience. Whether you’re running a news site, educational platform, or corporate blog, these tools will help you transform your written content into clear, natural-sounding speech, making your website more accessible and user-friendly for everyone.

At Unite AI, we don’t just write about AI-powered tools – we also use them. GSpeech is our go-to text-to-speech solution across all our articles, and for good reason. This sophisticated platform uses advanced AI and ML to transform written content into natural-sounding speech, setting a new standard for audio content delivery on WordPress sites.

What sets GSpeech apart is its exceptional multilingual capabilities. It supports over 230 voices across 76 languages, meaning it can serve diverse global readership with authentic, localized audio experiences. The platform’s AI-driven speech synthesis produces natural intonation and rhythm. Its real-time translation feature, which can convert audio content into 67 different languages on the fly, is particularly valuable for maintaining international reach.

The platform’s flexibility extends to its implementation options, offering multiple player types that can be seamlessly integrated into any WordPress design. Whether you prefer a full-page player for immersive experiences or a subtle button player for minimalist layouts, GSpeech adapts to your specific needs while maintaining consistent audio quality and performance.

Key Features:

Advanced AI-powered voice synthesis with natural intonation and rhythm

Comprehensive language support with 230+ voices across 76 languages

Customizable voice tuning with adjustable pitch and speaking rates

Real-time translation capabilities for 67 languages

Multiple player options including Full Page, Button, Circle, and Read Highlighted Text players

Visit GSpeech →

Play.ht boasts one of the most extensive voice libraries in the market with over 800 AI-generated voices spanning 142 languages. This impressive range of voices, complete with various accents and speech styles, makes it an ideal choice for publishers seeking to create authentic, localized audio experiences for their global audience.

What sets Play.ht apart is its sophisticated approach to pronunciation accuracy. The platform includes a dedicated pronunciation editor that allows content creators to fine-tune how specific terms, technical jargon, and proper names are articulated. This level of control is particularly valuable for specialized content domains where precise pronunciation is crucial for credibility and comprehension. The system’s ability to learn and remember these customizations ensures consistency across all your audio content.

The platform’s commitment to user engagement is evident in its flexible player implementation options. Whether you prefer an embedded player within your posts, a discrete listen button, or a floating player that follows readers as they scroll, Play.ht provides the tools to create an audio experience that complements your website’s design philosophy. Combined with its comprehensive analytics dashboard, which tracks metrics like listens, downloads, and shares, Play.ht enables publishers to make data-driven decisions about their audio content strategy.

Key Features:

Industry-leading library of 800+ AI voices across 142 languages

Advanced pronunciation editor for precise articulation control

Multiple audio player styles with customizable positioning

Comprehensive analytics and engagement tracking

Integrated podcast feed generation and distribution

Visit Play.ht →

BeyondWords stands out by offering a WordPress plugin that transforms your content into audio format the moment you hit publish. This enterprise-grade solution has helped digital publishers approach audio content creation, making it possible to maintain a consistent audio presence without additional production overhead.

The platform’s impressive library of over 550 AI voices across 140 language locales showcases its commitment to quality and diversity. By leveraging neural voices from industry leaders like Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft Azure, BeyondWords ensures professional-grade audio output that maintains consistency across your entire content library. What’s particularly noteworthy is its sophisticated natural language processing capabilities, which handle complex elements like proper names, numbers, and dates with remarkable accuracy – a crucial feature for news and technical content.

Key Features:

Automated audio generation for new posts and pages

Access to 550+ AI voices from leading providers

Advanced NLP for accurate pronunciation handling

Built-in podcast distribution system

Comprehensive analytics and monetization tools

Visit BeyondWords →

Trinity Audio takes a streamlined approach to WordPress text-to-speech implementation, focusing on delivering a frictionless experience for both site administrators and end users. What distinguishes this plugin is its emphasis on user experience through features like the innovative Floating Action Button (FAB), which allows listeners to control audio playback while naturally scrolling through content.

The platform’s strength lies in its granular configuration options at the post level. While Trinity Audio offers site-wide automation capabilities, it also provides content creators with the flexibility to customize audio settings for individual posts. This includes the ability to skip specific HTML tags and control how shortcodes are handled during audio conversion, ensuring that the audio output maintains the intended context and flow of your content.

Implementation is straightforward, with Trinity Audio striking an ideal balance between automated functionality and manual control. The plugin’s intuitive settings interface allows publishers to quickly configure default voice preferences and player themes while retaining the ability to override these settings on a per-post basis. This flexibility makes it particularly valuable for sites that publish diverse content types requiring different audio presentation styles.

Key Features:

Intuitive Floating Action Button for seamless user control

Post-level customization of audio settings

Selective HTML tag and shortcode handling

Multiple player themes and positioning options

Automated content conversion with manual override capabilities

Visit Trinity Audio →

This TTS WordPress plugin from AtlasAiDev takes a fundamentally different approach to text-to-speech functionality by leveraging your browser’s native speech synthesis API, making it one of the most lightweight and universally compatible options available for WordPress. While other plugins might rely on external services or API calls, Text To Speech TTS Accessibility’s browser-based approach ensures consistent performance across devices while eliminating potential service disruptions or API limitations.

What makes this plugin particularly valuable for comprehensive WordPress installations is its native support for custom post types. This means you can maintain audio consistency across your entire website, regardless of content structure – whether it’s standard blog posts, custom product pages, or specialized content types unique to your site. This universal compatibility makes it an excellent choice for complex WordPress implementations that go beyond traditional blogging.

The plugin’s straightforward implementation doesn’t come at the cost of customization options. Site administrators can fine-tune the audio player’s appearance and behavior to match their website’s design language, while still maintaining the simplicity that makes it accessible to users of all technical levels. With support for 51 languages, it provides robust multilingual capabilities without the complexity often associated with more elaborate text-to-speech solutions.

Key Features:

Browser-based speech synthesis for universal compatibility

Native support for all custom post types

Extensive customization options for player appearance

Support for 51 languages

Simple shortcode integration for targeted implementation

Visit TTS Accessibilty →

Narrator stands out in the WordPress text-to-speech landscape through its intelligent approach to audio synthesis and resource management. Unlike plugins that regenerate audio content with every page load or update, SiteNarrator employs a sophisticated selective synthesis system that only processes new or modified content, significantly reducing server load and processing time.

The platform leverages premium voice technologies from industry leaders Google Wavenet and Amazon Polly, ensuring professional-grade audio quality while maintaining efficient resource utilization. What sets it apart is its innovative approach to content updates – when an article is modified, the system intelligently identifies and reprocesses only the changed paragraphs, preserving existing audio for unmodified sections. This granular approach to content management makes it particularly appealing for high-traffic sites where resource optimization is crucial.

For publishers focused on ROI and engagement metrics, SiteNarrator provides comprehensive analytics through its customer dashboard. The platform offers detailed insights into daily usage patterns and associated costs, allowing site administrators to make data-driven decisions about their audio content strategy. This transparent approach to usage tracking and cost management helps organizations maintain control over their text-to-speech implementation while maximizing value.

Key Features:

Selective synthesis technology for optimal resource usage

Premium voices from Google Wavenet and Amazon Polly

Intelligent partial content reprocessing

Comprehensive usage analytics and cost tracking

User-friendly expandable audio player interface

Visit SiteNarrator →

For WordPress site owners seeking a straightforward yet powerful text-to-speech solution, ResponsiveVoice offers a simple approach through its intuitive shortcode system. While other plugins might focus on automation and complex features, ResponsiveVoice’s strength lies in its flexibility and ease of implementation, making it an excellent choice for developers and content creators who want granular control over their audio content.

The platform’s commitment to accessibility compliance sets it apart, with full alignment to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 standards. With support for 51 languages through 168 voices, ResponsiveVoice provides comprehensive coverage for international audiences while maintaining a focus on quality and natural speech patterns. The plugin’s architectural approach allows for remarkably specific customization – content creators can control not just which content is read aloud, but also fine-tune parameters like pitch, volume, and reading rate for each instance of audio content.

What makes ResponsiveVoice particularly valuable is its selective text reading capability. Unlike plugins that typically convert entire articles, ResponsiveVoice allows you to designate specific sections of content for audio conversion using simple shortcode tags. This granular control makes it ideal for highlighting key passages, creating interactive educational content, or emphasizing important announcements within longer articles.

Key Features:

Simple shortcode implementation for quick integration

WCAG 2.0 compliant accessibility features

Support for 168 voices across 51 languages

Granular control over voice parameters and text selection

Flexible button placement and customization options

Visit ResponsiveVoice →

_*]:min-w-0″ readability=”89.748945477269″>

WebsiteVoice places a strong emphasis on content distribution and user control. Through its innovative Universal Voice Technology (UVT), the plugin offers listeners unprecedented control over their audio experience, with the ability to adjust reading speeds from 80% to 170% of normal pace – a feature particularly valuable for educational content or technical documentation.

The platform’s approach to content accessibility extends beyond mere listening options. By incorporating MP3 download functionality, WebsiteVoice enables users to consume content offline, making it particularly valuable for audiences with limited internet connectivity or those who prefer to build personal audio libraries. This offline accessibility is complemented by integrated social sharing features that allow listeners to easily distribute audio content across various social media platforms, effectively turning your written content into shareable audio experiences.

Supporting 38 languages, WebsiteVoice delivers a robust multilingual solution while maintaining focus on audio quality and user experience. The plugin’s customizable audio player can be tailored to match your website’s aesthetic, with adjustable colors, styles, and sizes ensuring seamless integration with your existing design.

Key Features:

UVT Technology for precise speed control (80-170%)

MP3 download capability for offline listening

Integrated social media sharing tools

Support for 38 languages with high-quality voices

Fully customizable player appearance

Visit WebsiteVoice →

Real Voice emerges as an enterprise-grade solution in the WordPress text-to-speech landscape, distinguishing itself through its unique multi-service architecture that supports integration with multiple text-to-speech engines. This flexibility allows organizations to leverage their existing partnerships with providers like Google Text-to-Speech AI, Azure Text-to-Speech, and in the Pro version, Amazon Polly and ElevenLabs, making it an ideal choice for businesses with specific voice quality or vendor requirements.

What sets Real Voice apart technically is its support for Speech Synthesis Markup Language (SSML), providing developers and content creators with granular control over speech output. This advanced capability allows for precise tuning of pronunciation, emphasis, and pacing, ensuring that even complex content is delivered with appropriate nuance and clarity. The plugin’s sophisticated monitoring system adds another layer of enterprise functionality, with a dedicated “Audio File” column in the posts menu that tracks the synchronization status between written and audio content.

The platform’s approach to content management combines automation with manual control, offering both automatic audio generation and a dedicated post sidebar for manual audio management. This hybrid approach, coupled with comprehensive analytics in the Pro version, provides organizations with the tools they need to maintain quality control while scaling their audio content production. The customizable HTML audio player can be positioned precisely using shortcodes, offering flexibility in how audio content is presented across different page layouts and content types.

Key Features:

Multi-service integration with major TTS providers

Advanced SSML support for precise speech control

Comprehensive audio file status monitoring

Hybrid automatic/manual audio generation

Enterprise-grade analytics and tracking capabilities

Visit Real Voice →

For WordPress site owners seeking a lightweight, targeted approach to text-to-speech functionality, Say It! offers a simple solution that leverages HTML5 Speech Synthesis technology. Unlike more complex plugins that convert entire articles automatically, Say It! empowers content creators to precisely control which sections of their content receive audio treatment through intuitive shortcode implementation.

The plugin’s use of native HTML5 Speech Synthesis represents a significant advantage in terms of performance and reliability. By eliminating dependency on external services for basic functionality, Say It! ensures consistent performance while minimizing potential points of failure. However, the plugin doesn’t sacrifice flexibility – for those requiring premium voice quality, it maintains compatibility with industry-leading services like Google Cloud Text-to-Speech and Amazon Polly.

What makes Say It! particularly valuable is its minimalist yet effective approach to content enhancement. Content creators can easily designate specific sections for audio conversion while maintaining granular control over speech parameters such as language, speed, and presentation mode. This selective approach not only optimizes resource usage but also allows for strategic implementation of audio features where they add the most value to the user experience.

Key Features:

Selective content conversion via simple shortcodes

Native HTML5 Speech Synthesis implementation

Optional integration with premium voice services

Customizable speech parameters

Resource-efficient targeted audio conversion

Visit Say It! →

Why Use a Text-to-Speech WordPress Plugin?

The integration of text-to-speech functionality on WordPress sites has evolved from a luxury feature to a crucial component of modern web presence. Here’s why implementing a TTS plugin should be your next priority:

Enhanced Accessibility

Makes content available to visually impaired users

Supports users with reading difficulties

Complies with web accessibility guidelines

Creates a more inclusive user experience

Expanded Content Reach

Caters to busy professionals who prefer listening while multitasking

Reaches audiences who consume content during commutes

Supports different learning styles

Enables content consumption in hands-free scenarios

Business Benefits

Increases user engagement and time on site

Reduces bounce rates through enhanced user experience

Creates new monetization opportunities through audio ads

Improves SEO through better engagement metrics

Future-proofs content for voice-first devices

With numerous options available – from lightweight solutions like Say It! to comprehensive platforms like GSpeech – there’s a text-to-speech plugin to match every WordPress site’s needs. By embracing this technology, you’re not just enhancing your website’s functionality; you’re investing in the future of content consumption and user engagement.

[theseoblogspace]

Improving Website Accessibility for Small Businesses

Did you know that about 16% of people worldwide have a permanent disability1? This fact shows how crucial it is for small businesses to make their websites accessible to everyone. In fact, 70% of shoppers want brands to take action on social issues, including making websites easy for people with disabilities1. More than 90% of people don’t complain about website issues, but 69% with disabilities…

[aeldata-usa]

Guide to Creating ADA-Compliant Accessible Videos

Get essential tips in our guide to creating ADA-compliant videos, ensuring accessibility for all viewers and enhancing user engagement.

[akwyz]

Digital inaccessibility: Blind and low-vision people have powerful technology but still face barriers to the digital world.

Despite advances in assistive tech, the visually impaired face digital hurdles. Inaccessible websites & software limit job opportunities. Let's advocate for a fully accessible digital world. 🌍💼👁️ #DigitalInclusion #Accessibility #TechForAll #axschat

Screen reader software converts text to audio for people who are blind. Access Matters/Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA Michele McDonnall, Mississippi State University Imagine that you have low vision and you’re completing an online job application using screen reader software. You get through half the form and then come to a question with drop-down options the screen reader cannot access because the…

[shawnjordison]

How to Make PDFs Accessible | Episode 10: Clovis Community College

Explore essential techniques for PDF Accessibility! (Blog Series Episode 10) #DocumentAccessibility, #InclusiveDesign, #PDFAccessibility, #WebAccessibility, #DigitalInclusion, #AccessibleContent, #WCAG, #AssistiveTech, #AdobeAcrobat, #ScreenReaders

Welcome to episode 10 on community college PDF accessibility. Today, we focus on two documents from Clovis Community College. The first was already accessible, while the second required complex fixes. Video Guide In case you missed them, here are Episode 1, Episode 2,  Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6, Episode 7, Episode 8 and Episode 9 in our PDF Accessibility Community College…

[reversedout-blog]

Does My Website Need To Be ADA-Compliant?

Does my website need to be ADA-compliant? Suppose you own a business or organization with a website and people visit your site in order to obtain information about or purchase your products or services. In that case, your site needs to comply with ADA regulations. Websites should be accessible to all individuals regardless of their ability or disability. The ADA is the principal civil rights statute for people with disabilities. Under Title III of the ADA, businesses and nonprofit service providers must make reasonable modifications in policies and procedures to permit access for all people, including those with disabilities.

In this guide, learn if your website needs to be ADA-compliant and what the ADA requires of your business.

Yes, it does.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It applies to all places of public accommodation, including websites that are part of those businesses.

Websites should be accessible to all individuals regardless of their ability or disability.

In the United States, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law in 1990, which requires all businesses and organizations to provide equal access to their goods and services. Websites should be no exception!

The ADA covers a wide range of conditions that may affect one’s ability to interact with others in various ways. These include: blindness/visual impairment; deafness/hard-of-hearing; autism spectrum disorder; cerebral palsy; diabetes; epilepsy or other seizure disorders; intellectual disability; learning disabilities and/or ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder); muscular dystrophy; multiple sclerosis or other degenerative brain diseases similar in nature; stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI)/post-concussive syndrome.

The ADA is the principal civil rights statute for people with disabilities.

The ADA also prohibits discrimination based on disability in all programs, activities, and services offered by public entities. It applies to each of us – doctors, nurses, hospitals; restaurants and hotels; landlords who rent apartments or houses; theaters – any place we go to purchase something or do business.

However, what amounts to “reasonable” will vary from case to case. The law provides several factors for determining whether an accommodation is reasonable: best practices in the industry at issue; other relevant federal laws and regulations that require compliance with standards similar to or more stringent than those required by Title III (for example: Section 508); the resources available at that particular site; whether there are alternative ways of meeting both legitimate concerns raised by the organization as well as its legal obligations under Title III; what types of accommodations other customers without disabilities typically receive at that location or venue; how often customers without disabilities experience difficulties accessing such facilities due to structural barriers; whether making a change would be impracticable because it would produce significant economic hardship on small business owners who operate limited-service restaurants or retail stores catering primarily toward one sex or gender-based upon stereotypes about manners associated with certain genders (which might warrant a finding that allowing individuals into these locations would fundamentally alter their operations).

Legal action has already been taken against businesses where it was determined that their website was not compliant with ADA rules.

ADA compliance is not a suggestion, it’s a requirement. If you run any sort of business that has a physical presence, and if more than one person is present at that business, then ADA compliance applies to you.

This includes everything from the most basic retail store to your own website and digital presence. If you offer goods or services online (even if they’re free), then ADA compliance applies to your website as well.

The government has also made clear that they’re not just interested in large businesses when it comes to ADA rules—they want every business owner and operator on board. The law states: “The Americans with Disabilities Act requires all public entities…to ensure effective communication with individuals with disabilities.”

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 became effective on June 5, 2018. WCAG 2.1 builds upon WCAG 2.0 to ensure compliance with ADA regulations and laws by providing website owners with guidelines for ensuring that the content on their websites is accessible to all users, including those who have physical or mental disabilities. These include visual impairments (low vision, color blindness), hearing loss, physical limitations (mobility impairments), and cognitive limitations (dyslexia and language disorders).

The updated guidelines can be applied immediately when making changes to existing websites or content or planning new ones, even if a site hasn’t been built yet.

Conclusion

Keeping up with the latest web accessibility guidelines is important, but it’s not always easy. If you’re looking for ways to improve your website’s compliance with ADA standards or just want to ensure that it complies with other legal obligations, contact the experts at Reversed Out Creative today!

Contact Us

At Reversed Out Creative, we understand the challenges and opportunities presented by AI disruption. Our team of experts specializes in web design, SEO, graphic design, and digital marketing services. Reach out to us through our contact form to learn more about navigating the evolving job market and embracing the potential of AI. Together, let’s shape a future that combines human ingenuity with the power of AI.

Original content source: https://reversedout.com/does-my-website-need-to-be-ada-compliant/

[seohabibi]

Unlock the full potential of your online presence with "Inclusive SEO Best Practices: Ensuring Web Accessibility for People with Disabilities." Learn how to create a digital space that welcomes everyone by implementing accessibility measures. This comprehensive guide covers strategies to enhance your website's usability, cater to diverse user needs, and boost overall inclusivity. Elevate your SEO game while making a positive impact on users of all abilities.

[adasitecompliance]

Accessible Website Design

Top Seventeen Web Accessibility Myths Debunked: Separating Fact from Fiction

Accessibility is no longer a ‘luxury’.

Incorporating accessibility into a website today comes part and parcel with web development. With the internet harboring users with and without disabilities who use it for information, bookings, enrollments, purchases, and even jobs, websites need to be compliant.

Unfortunately, many aren’t because some misconceptions and myths cause confusion and hesitance to hinder progress. So here’s an attempt at separating fact from fiction by debunking the top 17 common web accessibility myths.

Remember, web accessibility is no longer just a legal requirement; it’s part of digital inclusivity. It increases your reach and demonstrates your commitment to serving everyone in your community.

If achieving compliance seems overwhelming, we at ADA Site Compliance can simplify things for you. Our team of accessibility experts can help you meet these requirements while you focus on your core business.

Top 17 Web Accessibility Myths Debunked

Let’s now examine these widely misinterpreted web content accessibility principles and guidelines. At the end of the article, you will realize that all those misconceptions you had about web compliance are just myths.

Myth #1- Web Accessibility is Only for Blind People and Users with Visual Impairments

False.

Other people with varied disabilities, such as deafness, limited motor skills, and cognitive limitations, also visit websites for various reasons. An accessible website gives them access to the information they seek, ensuring your website reaches more people.

Myth #2- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Compliance Ensures Digital Accessibility

False.

Yes, the WCAG provides a framework to enhance digital accessibility. However, compliance alone is not enough for a completely accessible website. Website owners and developers must understand and implement the WCAG principles, as factors like cumbersome user interfaces, poor content, and insufficient testing can lead to incompliant websites.

Myth #3- Accessibility is Only About Making Websites Accessible

False.

Accessibility applies to other digital assets, including mobile applications, PDFs, and other digital documents. Organizations must thus ensure accessibility across all digital platforms for inclusive digital experiences.

Myth #4- Accessibility is Only Relevant for Disabled People

False.

It is not just people with disabilities that benefit from website accessibility. Digital compliance features benefits extend to broader groups, including:

Older adults facing sensory or cognitive challenges as they age

Individuals with temporary disabilities due to injury, illness, or surgery

People experiencing situational limitations, like background noise

Non-native speakers struggling with language barriers hindering understanding and engagement

Myth #5- Accessibility Means Redesigning a Less Visually Appealing Website

False.

Many businesses believe digital accessibility requires a complete website overhaul or poor visual appeal, which is far from the truth. Minor adjustments can significantly create an accessible digital experience without significant redesign efforts.

Myth #6- Digital Accessibility is Only a Concern for Large Corporations

False.

Size is not a criterion for digital accessibility; failure to meet the many digital accessibility laws can lead to legal repercussions and damage a company’s reputation.

Small businesses may face resource constraints, but the numerous tools and online resources can help them understand and ensure web compliance. Embedding accessibility practices from the start ensures web compliance for companies of all sizes.

Myth #7- Accessibility Limits Websites to Text-Only Content

False.

The myth that accessible websites must be plain, text-heavy, and free of multimedia elements stems from earlier text-based web pages. However, modern standards allow visually engaging, multimedia-rich websites that meet diverse accessibility needs.

Strategies like adding alt text for images and captions and transcripts to videos ensure compatibility with assistive technologies. It not only supports users with disabilities but also enhances everyone’s user experience.

Myth #8- All It Takes Is A Quick Technical Fix For an Accessible Website

False.

Web compliance is more than a simple technological adjustment. True accessibility is not just a developer’s responsibility but the joint effort of various teams, including design, testing, and content creation. Relying solely on automated tools or accessibility overlays does not ensure comprehensive accessibility.

Myth #9- Accessibility Can Be Addressed Last-Minute with Simple Fixes

False.

While adding elements like alt text at the last minute may seem convenient, genuine accessibility requires careful planning and integration. Last-minute changes usually require significant counterproductive restructuring, which may harm the user experience, especially for those requiring accessible design.

Besides, including alt text in sites is only one piece of the accessibility puzzle. A truly compliant website involves various other steps, including:

Semantic HTML tags to structure content and enhance readability and interaction.

Keyboard Navigation of the website.

Color Contrast to make text and images readable.

Focus Management highlights elements currently in use for better navigation and clarity.

Using Selective ARIA when necessary to support assistive technologies, as overuse can create confusion.

An accessible design demands proactive attention to these elements throughout development rather than depending on quick fixes at the end.

Myth #10- Accessibility is Expensive and Time-Consuming

False.

Integrating accessibility into an existing website can seem complex, require multiple resources, and be time-consuming. However, prioritizing accessibility from the start can significantly reduce most associated challenges.

In fact, with the right planning and skilled development teams, accessibility can be achieved with minimal additional time and resources as an integral part of the development process.

AI-powered accessibility tools also make digital accessibility more affordable and accessible for all website owners to use and ensure websites are accessible for individuals with disabilities. They help achieve substantial accessibility improvements in just a few hours by automating the detection and correction of many common accessibility issues.

Myth #11- Achieving Web Accessibility Is Overly Complicated

False.

Web accessibility standards can seem complex, but their implementation is not complicated. Multiple tools and resources are available to help developers and website owners ensure digital accessibility.

It is better to start with basic principles, such as providing alternative text for images and ensuring keyboard navigation, and then later delve deeper into more advanced techniques.

Besides, remember that automated accessibility testing alone cannot guarantee complete digital accessibility. Automated tools can help identify issues such as color contrast and structural errors.

However, they cannot fully address complex challenges like unclear language and intricate site designs. Human review by accessibility experts is crucial in ensuring website compliance.

Myth #12- Accessibility is Just a “Nice-to-Have” Feature

False.

Ensuring website compliance is not an option; it is a strategic move with significant potential to impact your business success. An accessible website can do a lot for your business, such as attracting a larger audience, driving higher revenue, enhancing brand reputation, and mitigating legal risks.

Besides, with legal scrutiny, accessibility can no longer be an option. A website owner does not want a lawsuit, considering the financial and reputational risks of overlooking accessibility efforts.

Myth #13- Accessibility is All About Avoiding Legal Trouble

False.

Contrary to popular belief, accessibility is not only about meeting legal requirements to avoid lawsuits. Legal compliance is essential, but its benefits extend far beyond this. For example, implementing accessible design dramatically enhances user experience and boosts your brand’s reputation.

Besides, accessible content opens your entire website or application to a broader audience, ultimately increasing user satisfaction and building loyalty.

Myth #14- Digital Accessibility is Optional

False.

Accessibility is more than an option; it is a requirement in many countries, enforced through laws and regulations. It may not be the top priority for all website owners, but digital compliance is essential for ethical reasons and for creating an inclusive experience for everyone.

Following accessibility standards helps meet legal obligations and ensures your website reaches a broader audience, including individuals with disabilities.

Myth #15- It’s Better To Have Separate Websites for Disabled Users

False.

It was previously thought that having a separate website for users with disabilities ensured accessibility for disabled people. However, this strategy is ineffective and biased, as managing multiple websites is expensive and work-intensive and can lead to content and performance discrepancies.

It is, instead, better to design and develop a website that is inherently accessible to everybody from the beginning.

Myth #16- Accessibility is a One-Time Fix

False.

Many people think digital accessibility is a one-time fix, with nothing else to do once experts ensure compliance. This misconception has led to poorly designed products that users cannot effectively access.

On the contrary, web compliance requires constant commitment and oversight, with continual integration of accessibility features from the initial design through ongoing maintenance. Website owners and developers must regularly review and update the website to meet evolving accessibility standards and user needs.

Myth #17- Only Disabled Individuals Can Test To Ensure Accessibility

No, this is false.

Disabled individuals who frequently rely on assistive technology are effective accessibility testers. However, they are not the only people equipped to evaluate accessibility. All that is needed are the proper training and accessibility testing tools to become adept at identifying and addressing accessibility issues.

Closing thoughts

Dispelling these seventeen myths should inspire a more inclusive web design and development mindset. Remember, accessibility is a legal requirement and moral commitment to making the digital world available to everyone, regardless of individual abilities.

By prioritizing accessibility in our choices, we can create a more equitable, user-friendly online experience for all. It also increases your reach and demonstrates your commitment to serving everyone in your community.

Do not worry if achieving compliance seems overwhelming. We at ADA Site Compliance can simplify things for you. We have a team of accessibility experts who can help you meet these requirements while you focus on your core business!

[sesamestreetkid]

index (I hope to follow this tag system lol)

#blinkies #stamps #gifs #favicons

edit: thx for the love on this post. im going to try and continually update this!

⇩ ⠀websites that are FULL of other web graphics below ⇩ ⇩ (+ some html tools!) ⇩

Graphics: blinkie maker : make your own blinkies! DOLLZ REVIVAL : a revival of pixel dolls where you can create and share your own. very cute! GlowTxt : create glowing transparent text gifs that say whatever u want HOARDER'S PILE : contains blinkies, buttons, stamps, and teddies plasticdino.neocities.org : blinkies Glitter Graphics : contains gifs, blinkies, dividers, and just sooo many web graphics Cute Kawaii Resources : contains gifs, blinkies, stamps, favicons, dividers, buttons, fonts, literally everything you need. its an insane resource Adrian's blinkie collection : collection of blinkies, stamps, and buttons ☆ (supplies.ju.mp) : blinkies, stamps, buttons, & favicons twigbranch.carrd.co : blinkies lallys.carrd.co : blinkies, stamps, dividers, and other resources Bugleeblinkie.carrd.co : blinkies, and 3 very special gifs at the end ;) unshinesblinkies.carrd.co : blinkies The 88x31 GIF Collection : buttons. there are 5 parts! huge collection! Bonnibel's Graphic Collection : blinkies WELCOME TO GIFCITY : blinkies, dividers, favicons, stamps cass-tastrophe.carrd.co : blinkies, stamps kotatsuOS : blinkies Cute web graphics : blinkies, stamps, dividers, and a LOT of other graphics, all very cute

HTMLS/neocities Stuff: MDN (mozilla.org) : if you're just starting out like me this is super helpful HTML Tutorial (w3schools.com): same here! (offers other programming languages as well!) Accessibility Checker(Free Scan) : a site you can use to check accessibility/ADA compliance when making your website! it will point out what needs to be changed. it is free, but they also offer paid services if you need more help imagecolorpicker.com : hex code picker. i use this one because you can upload an image, paste clipboard, OR type in the website and it'll grab a screenshot for you! something simple that was made really well. cssgradient.io : helps you make css gradients for backgrounds or whatever else you need them for smartgb.com : a free guestbook service FC2 Counter! : free "site visits" and "online now" counters. fully customizable Unclosed Tag Checker by Alicia Ramirez : does as it says, checks for unclosed tags (although I recommend using a program that does this as you write anyways. I use Visual Studio Code. Status Cafe : an updateable and embeddable status that you can stick anywhere on your site! it is mostly customizable with CSS but I have noticed a few small quirks with it

e10's web (neocities.org) <- shameless site plug. show it some love :P

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Pinkslump linkdump

Picks and Shovels is a new, standalone technothriller starring Marty Hench, my two-fisted, hard-fighting, tech-scam-busting forensic accountant. You can pre-order it on my latest Kickstarter, which features a brilliant audiobook read by Wil Wheaton.

We're less than a month into 2025 and I'm already overwhelmed by my backlog of links! Herewith, then, is my 25th linkdump post, a grab-bag of artful transitions between miscellaneous subjects. Here's the previous 24:

https://pluralistic.net/tag/linkdump/

Last week's big tech event was the Supreme Court giving the go-ahead for Congress to ban Tiktok, because somehow the First Amendment allows the US government to shut down a speech forum if they don't like the content of its messages. From now on, only Mark Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai and Elon Musk and Tim Cook and the faceless mere centimillionaires running companies like Match.com will be able to directly harvest Americans' most private, sensitive kompromat. The People's Liberation Army will have to build their dossiers on Americans' lives the old fashioned way: by paying unregulated data-brokers who will sell any fact about you to anyone and who know everything about everyone.

After all, the reason the American market matters so much to Tiktok is that America is the only rich, populous country in the world without a federal privacy law. That's why an American is the most valuable user an ad-tech company can acquire. Keep your wealthy Norwegians: sure, they're saturated in oil money and thus fat prizes for ad-targeting, but they're also protected by the GDPR.

If you're an American (or anyone else, for that matter) who wants to use Tiktok without being spied on, Privacysafe has you covered: their Sticktock tool is a private, alternative, web-based front-end for Tiktok, with optional Tor VPN tunnelling:

https://sticktock.com/

As Privacysafe's Sean O'Brien explains, Sticktock is an free/open utility that's dead easy to use. Just change the URL of any Tiktok video from tiktok.com/whatever to sticktock.com/whatever, and you're have a private viewing experience that easily penetrates the Great Firewall of America:

https://bitsontape.com/p/sticktock-share-tiktok-videos

O'Brien – founder of the Yale Privacy Lab – writes that Privacysafe built this because they wanted to help Americans continue to access the great volume of speech on Tiktok, and because they knew that Americans would be using ad-supported, spyware-riddled VPNs to evade the Great Firewall.

Sticktock is a great hack, but it only defends your privacy while you're using Tiktok. For other social media, you'll need to try something else. For example, Mark Zuckerberg is the last person you want to entrust with your data, and always has been. Never forget that as soon as Zuckerberg's Harvard-based nonconsensual fuckability-rating service TheFacebook was up and running, he started offering copies of all his users' data as a flex to his buds:

Yeah so if you ever need info about anyone at Harvard Just ask I have over 4,000 emails, pictures, addresses, SNS

What? How'd you manage that one?

People just submitted it. I don't know why. They "trust me" Dumb fucks

Don't be a dumb fuck! Lots of people can't manage to leave Meta platforms because they love the people there more than they hate Mark Zuckerberg, and Zuck knows it, which is why he keeps turning the screws on his users. That doesn't mean there's nothing you can do. Over the years, various law enforcement and regulatory agencies have forced Meta to add privacy controls to its services, and though the company has implemented these as a baroque maze of twisty little malicious compliance passages, all alike, it is possible to lock down your data if you try hard enough. My EFF colleague Lena Cohen has a walkthrough of Meta's privacy settings, AKA the world's worst dungeon crawler, which will see you through safely:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/01/mad-meta-dont-let-them-collect-and-monetize-your-personal-data

If this kind of thing interests you, you can spend a whole weekend learning about it, chilling and partying with some of the most fun-loving, fascinating weirdos in hackerdom this summer. 2600 magazine's semi-annual Hackers on Planet Earth (HOPE) con – now in its 31st year! – has gone annual, and they're pre-selling tickets at a freakishly low earlybird rate:

https://store.2600.com/products/tickets-to-hope_16

I keynoted HOPE last year and it was every bit as much fun as I remembered. Sure, DEF CON is amazing, but you can't really call a 40,000-person gathering in the Las Vegas Convention Center "intimate." HOPE is a homebrew, homely, cheap, cheerful and delightfully anarchic hacker con with deep history and great people.

Speaking of weird ancient history, my pal Ada Palmer – sf writer, librettist, singer, and Renaissance historian – blew my mind this week with her article on the tower-cities of medieval proto-Italy during the Guelph-Ghibelline wars (1125-1392):

https://www.exurbe.com/the-lost-towers-of-the-guelph-ghibelline-wars/

Once upon a time, Italian city-states were forested with tall towers, like miniature Manhattans. Rich families built these stone towers as a show of wealth and a source of power, since the stone towers were taller than nearby homes and far less flammable, so the plutes of the day could drop flaming garbage on their neighbors, burn them out, and emerge triumphant. This ended with cities like Florence banning towers above a certain height, forcing their warring oligarchs to decapitate their fortresses down to compliance levels.

The images need to be seen to be believed. Ada's got a new book about this, Inventing the Renaissance, "which shows how the supposed difference between a bad 'Dark Ages' and a Renaissance 'golden age' is 100% propaganda, but fascinating propaganda with a deep history":

https://www.adapalmer.com/publication/inventing-the-renaissance/

Palmer is one of the most fascinating writers, thinkers, performers, and speakers I know. This is the book for every history nerd in your life, and also a magic artifact with the power to transform normies into history nerds.

Speaking of scholars finding nontraditional ways to do technical communication to the general public: this week, 404 Media's Emmanuel Maiberg reported on Zara Dar, an OnlyFans model who's racked up millions of Pornhub views for videos that consist of detailed, accessible, fully clothed explanations of machine learning:

https://www.404media.co/why-this-onlyfans-model-posts-machine-learning-explainers-to-pornhub/

Dar's videos cover a variety of poorly understood, highly salient mathematical subjects, like this introduction to probability theory:

https://www.pornhub.com/view_video.php?viewkey=65cfae54411b9

Dar's got a pretty straightforward reason for posting her explainers to Pornhub – it pays about 300% more than Youtube does for the same amount of viewership ($1,000 per million views vs. Youtube's $340 per million). But it comes at a cost. Other platforms like Linkedin have banned her for discussing the economics of posting videos to Pornhub, without explanation or appeal.

The reason Dar's in the news now is that the Supremes didn't merely ban Tiktok this week, they also heard arguments about the red state "age verification" laws, in which Alito asked if looking at Pornhub was analogous to reading Playboy, which was famous for interleaving softcore pornography with hefty, serious reporting and editorials. Can you really look at Pornhub "just for the articles?" Seems like the answer is a resounding yes.

These "age verification" laws are jaw-droppingly reckless. Red state lawmakers – and ALEC, the dark money org that wrote the model legislation they're pushing – envision a system where each person who looks at porn is affirmatively identified as a named adult, and where that identity information is indefinitely retained. The most common way of gating services to adults is to demand a credit-card, which means that these weirdos want to create highly leakable databases of every one of their constituents' sexual kinks, which can be sorted by net worth by would-be blackmailers. Remember, any data you collect will probably leak, and any data you retain will almost certainly leak. Good times ahead.

Of course, it wasn't all gruesome policy malpratice this week. In the final days of the Biden admin, antitrust enforcers from multiple agencies launched a flurry of investigations, cases, judgments, fines and sanctions against companies that prey on the American public. The FTC went after John Deere for its repair monopoly:

https://www.404media.co/ftc-sues-john-deere-over-its-repair-monopoly/

And the FTC sued to end a system of secret noncompetes, where employers illegally collude not to hire each others' workers, something the workers are never told:

https://prospect.org/labor/2025-01-17-building-service-workers-ftc-stops-secret-no-hire-agreements/

That's just for starters. Matt Stoller rounds up the "full Tony Montana" of last-week enforcement actions undertaken by Biden's best appointees, an all-out assault on pharmacy benefit managers (most notably Unitedhealth), junk-fee-charging corporate landlords, Capitol One, Cash App, rent-rigging landlords, Southwest Airlines, anesthesia monopolists, Experian and Equifax, private equity plunderers, lootbox-peddling video game companies, AI companies, Honda finance, politically motivatedd debanking, Google, Elon Musk, Microsoft, Hino Motors, and more:

https://www.thebignewsletter.com/p/out-with-a-bang-enforcers-go-after

This is all amazing, but also frustrating, as it exemplifies what David Dayen rightly calls the "essential incoherence" of Bidenism, a political philosophy that sought "balance" between different Democratic Party factions by delegating enormous power to people with opposing goals, then unleashing them to work at cross-purposes:

https://prospect.org/politics/2025-01-17-essential-incoherence-end-of-biden-presidency/

What to make of a president whose final address warned the American public of an out-of-control oligarchy, but whose final executive order was a giant giveaway to the biggest AI companies – and their oligarch owners?

And what to make of a president who oversaw a genocide in Gaza, fronting for an Israeli regime that made a fool of him at every turn, laughed at his "red lines," and demanded (and received) fresh shipments of arms even as they campaigned for Trump?

This had nothing to do with sound electoral politics. The vast majority of Americans supported a cease-fire in Gaza, and have done virtually since the beginning of the bombings. Harris – who reportedly agreed not to criticize Biden's record as a condition of Biden stepping aside – made it clear that she would ignore voters' horror at the mass killing. Voters responded by staying home in droves: 19 million 2020 Biden voters simply refused to cast a ballot in 2024:

https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/kamala-harris-gaza-israel-biden-election-poll

A Yougov poll showed that 29% of the "non-voters" who turned out for Biden in 2020 refused to vote at all in 2024 because of Biden's support for genocide in Gaza. Polling during the campaign made it clear that Harris would improve her electoral chances by promising a cease-fire, but that was a bridge too far, even during an election "where democracy was on the ballot."

America is famously a country where legislators and leaders ignore the policy preferences of voters and give elites everything they want. In that world, not voting – even when "democracy is on the ballot" – makes a lot of sense:

https://www.vox.com/2014/4/18/5624310/martin-gilens-testing-theories-of-american-politics-explained

But Biden did do some popular things that elites hated – fighting corporate power, price-fixing, rent-gouging, and other forms of predatory business conduct. The "compromise" the Biden administration made with its elite backers was to call as little attention as possible to all this stuff. The Biden admin did more on antitrust in four years than all the preceding administrations of the previous forty years, combined. Just last week, the Biden admin did more on antitrust than any presidential administration did in a four-year term. And yet, they barely whispered about it.

This is a great example of what Anat Shenker-Osorio calls "Pizzaburger politics." Imagine half your family wants pizza for dinner and the other half wants burgers, so you make a disgusting pizzaburger that makes them all equally miserable and claim that everyone being mad at you is proof that you've been "fair":

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/29/sub-bushel-comms-strategy/#nothing-would-fundamentally-change

Handing billionaires a bunch of voter-enraging gimmes and sucking up to ghouls like Liz Cheney didn't buy the loyalty of America's tower-owning, neighbor-incinerating princelings. They gave millions to Trump, whom they knew would hand them billions in tax breaks and a license to loot the country. Worse, this pizzaburger strategy caused voters to stay home by the millions, convinced that they couldn't trust Biden or Harris.

We're heading into another four years of planet-incinerating, human-rights-destroying, immigrant-pogroming, mass-imprisoning misery. The incoming dictator has promised to throw all kinds of people in prison, so maybe we should learn a little about how America's prolific, crowded, nightmare penitentiaries actually function.

David Skarbek is a political scientist who studies prison gangs. In a fascinating interview with Asterisk, he describes the forces that led to the rise of race-segregated prison gangs, from virtually nonexistent for 100 years to ubiquitous:

https://asteriskmag.com/issues/08/why-we-have-prison-gangs

It boils down to this: in small prisons, it's possible to enforce a social code among prisoners that maintains order. Each prisoner can keep track of the trustworthiness of others and of the safety risks they pose. But once we started building larger prisons, this system broke down, requiring hierarchical, authoritarian structures – gangs – to keep people in line. Gangs are brutal, but they also keep the peace, regulating financial disputes, contraband trade, and the use of violence.

Skarbek thinks that building more, smaller prisons would eliminate gangs – as would increasing the number of guards, which would give the institution the capacity to step in and fill the regulatory void filled by gangs. He's not saying prison gangs are good, but he's explaining why they emerged and why they have remained.

There is no pleasure quite like reading the work of top-flight scholars explaining their areas of research. That's why I subscribe to the RSS feed for Matthew Green's blog about cryptography. Green is a great explainer who works in fascinating areas.

In his latest post, Green talks about the way that AI interacts with end-to-end encryption. After decades of rising catastrophes, mobile device makers and cloud providers finally standardized on end-to-end encrypted cloud storage, meaning that your data in the cloud is so scrambled that the cloud provider can't even guess about what it is (which means that if the cloud gets breached, none of that data can be read by hackers or sold on the darknet):

https://blog.cryptographyengineering.com/2025/01/17/lets-talk-about-ai-and-end-to-end-encryption/

This works great for cloud storage, but it poses a serious impediment to cloud computing. You can't offload computationally intensive tasks onto someone else's giant data-center if you scramble your data so thoroughly that it can't be read or understood by the computers there. This is especially salient when we're talking about "AI," which involves a lot of data-processing that exceeds the capacity of your phone or laptop.

This presents a serious privacy risk, because it implies that AI companies are going to abandon the idea of end-to-end cloud encryption. They'll need the capacity to decrypt (and possibly retain) all the data you ask their "AI" services to munge in some way. Green uses this conundrum to discuss Apple's solution to this: a "trusted computing" server environment.

I've been fascinated (and horrified) by Trusted Computing ever since a group of Microsoft engineers came by EFF in 2002 to explain their plans for something called "Next Generation Secure Computing Base" (AKA "Palladium") to us:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/12/05/trusting-trust/#thompsons-devil

The idea was to put a second, secure computer into every device. This "trusted platform module" (or, sometimes, "technical protection measure") would be tamper-evident and tamper-resistant, contain some factory-installed, non-modifiable cryptographic signing keys, and run an extremely limited set of programs. It would observe and record the code your computer ran, from the bootloader to the OS and on up.

Other computers elsewhere in the world could "challenge" your computer to prove that it was running an OS and programs that would behave in certain way (for example, that it would block screenshots of confidential messages). This challenge would include a long random number. Your computer's TPM would combine that number with hashes of all the other elements of your computer's operating environment – it's bootloader, OS, etc – and cryptographically sign that using its signing keys. This is then sent back to the other computer as a "remote attestation" about how your computer is configured.

Notably, it's an attestation that is outside of your own control – you can't override it or falsify it. That TPM in your computer isn't loyal to you, it doesn't take orders from you. It's a snitch that tells other people truthful things about your computer, including things you'd rather it not disclose.

Over the years, variations on this idea and its applications have popped up. TPMs aren't necessarily a second chip anymore – these days, they're more likely to be a "secure enclave" – a rectangle of logic gates on your computer's CPU that is designated as "secure" and subject to more strict testing and scrutiny than the rest of the chip. These secure enclaves are used to prevent you from installing a third-party app store on your games console or phone, and to prevent your car from being serviced by an independent mechanic.

But despite all these anti-user applications, Trusted Computing remains a fascinating subject. For example, you could use Trusted Computing to ask a remote technician to assess whether your phone had been infected with spyware, and the spyware (theoretically) couldn't hide from that helper.

This is how Apple proposes to solve the privacy/AI conundrum. Its remote AI servers are outfitted with their own TPMs, and before your phone sends them your data to be AIed, it can challenge the server to send it an attestation that proves that it is running software that will not leak or retain that data, or use it in any way other than for the task you're asking it to perform.

Apple calls this "Private Cloud Compute" and if it comes into widespread use, it'll be the first time in a quarter century that there is a major pro-user application for Trusted Computing, something the industry has touted as on the horizon since the first days of the second Gulf War.

That said, Green writes that he's "not thrilled" with Apple's privacy solution:

it still centralizes a huge amount of valuable data, and its security relies on Apple getting a bunch of complicated software and hardware security features right, rather than the mathematics of an encryption algorithm.

Nevertheless, this is way better than the approach of Apple's competitors, like Openai/Microsoft, who are just YOLOing it. Green points out that even if this works, it's only one of the many privacy issues raised by AI, notably the use of private information in AI training, which this does nothing for. He also worries that techniques like this will cause lawmakers to insist that "client-side scanning" (where your device runs a program that scans it constantly for illegal content and uploads anything suspicious to the police) can be done in a "privacy-preserving" way. It's not true, but it's easy to see how bad-faith would-be spies could spin, "There is a way to do some AI stuff in a more-private way" to "there are no privacy risks with this other AI stuff."

It's a gnarly issue, and like I say, it's one you can easily spend decades chewing on (or at least, one that I have spent decades chewing on). It's interesting how many of the fundamental tech policy questions have been with us since the start of the internet age. This week, I happened on a viral 1994 post explaining the difference between "the internet" and the promised "information superhighway":

https://www.wired.com/1994/11/q-what-is-the-information-superhighway/

It's not entirely prophetic, but it sure lands some blows that still sting, 30 years later:

It's just like the Internet, except:

* It's a lot more expensive. * You can't post, and there's no killfile. * There's no alt.sex or alt.drugs. * The new rec.humor.funny has a laugh track. * There's a commercial break every 10 minutes. * Everything is formatted to 40 columns for TVs. * The free software costs you US$2 per Mbyte to ftp, more for long distance. * There's a commercial break every 10 minutes.

It's just like cable TV, except:

* It's a lot more expensive. * The picture isn't as good. * There are 500 channels of pay-per-view and home shopping. * You can watch any episode of Gilligan's Island or any Al Gore speech for only $2. * There are no public-access channels. * There's a commercial break every 10 minutes.

It's just like renting videos, except:

* It's a lot more expensive. * There's only 1 percent of the selection. * There's no porn. * There's no pause, fast-forward, or rewind, and it costs you another $3.95 if you want to watch something twice. * There's a commercial break every 10 minutes.

It's just like the telephone, except:

* It's a lot more expensive. * There's no one to talk to. * Every number is a toll call. * There's a commercial break every 10 minutes.

(Image: Jen, CC BY 2.0, cropped)

Check out my Kickstarter to pre-order copies of my next novel, Picks and Shovels!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2025/01/18/ragbag/#reading-pornhub-for-the-articles