ISO ratifies web content accessibility standard

World Wide Web Consortium

W3C Web content accessibility guidelines become ISO/IEC International Standard

By ECM Plus staff

ECM Plus +++ A new ISO/IEC standard has been ratified that is set to increase accessibility for people with disabilities.

The new ISO/IEC 40500:2012, Information technology – W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, will also make the Web more usable for all.

Free DDoS survival guide on how to keep content alive

DDOS – Denial of Servicel (Photo credit: -= Treviño =-)

New guide from EFF – Keeping Your Site Alive – outlines how to keep content online in case of a Denial of Service Attack

By ECM Plus staff

ECM Plus /London/ +++ A new online guide from the Electronic Frontier Foundation outlines how website operators can fend off DDOS attacks and keep their sites alive and accessible. DDoS – Distributed Denial of Service attacks – the flooding websites with traffic in order to make them unavailable – have become an increasingly popular way to take down or block Internet content, EFF said.

British businesses hurt by poor Internet coverage – survey

Jeremy Hunt preached the ministerial code (Photo credit: Gwydion M. Williams)

Government policy under fire as new survey reveals Internet strategy should focus on coverage not speed

By ECM Plus staff

ECM Plus /London/ +++ A new report of 1,500 British small businesses reveals that 57 percent stated that the ‘poor quality of their internet access’ is now adversely affecting their ability to do business.

According to the findings, by Freelancer.co.uk, small businesses in Britain are now at odds with Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who reiterated in a speech at the Google Campus building that broadband speed is more important than coverage.

TPP will bring a ‘book famine’ for blind people

A summit with leaders of the member states of the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP). Pictured, from left, are Naoto Kan (Japan), Nguyễn Minh Triết (Vietnam), Julia Gillard (Australia), Sebastián Piñera (Chile), Lee Hsien Loong (Signapore), Barack Obama (United States), John Key (New Zealand), Hassanal Bolkiah (Brunei), Alan García (Peru), and Muhyiddin Yassin (Malaysia). Six of these leaders represent countries that are currently negotiating to join the group.

‘Copyright cartel attempts to ‘ride roughshod’ over vulnerable groups

By ECM Plus staff

ECM Plus /LONDON/ +++ The Trans-Pacific-Partnership (TPP) is a set of secretive trade negotiations whose IP clauses have much in common with the reviled ACTA and SOPA treaties, accordint to privacy advocacy group the Pirate Party UK.

Book search case threatens librarians’ access to information

Hugh D’Andrade’s design to commemorate Electronic Frontier Foundation’s 20th Birthday.

Ignoring fair use doctrine, Authors Guild suit tries to block valuable resource

By ECM Plus staff

ECM Plus /London/ +++ The Electronic Frontier Foundation has filed an amicus brief urging a federal court to find that the ‘fair use doctrine’ shelters Google’s Book Search “snippet” project from copyright infringement claims from the Authors Guild.

EFF was joined by three associations representing over 100,000 libraries, the Association of Research Libraries, the American Library Association, and the Association of College and Research Libraries.

Web accessibility course launched for Equality Act compliance

Blind people training with IT. Image: cobalt123

Web Accessibility Essentials e-learning course now available for compliance with disability laws

By PAUL QUIGLEY

ECM Plus +++ The digital world can be as difficult to navigate as the built environment for disabled people. The Equality Act 2010 means organisations are now legally obliged to ensure that all their IT channels and applications are accessible to disabled people – both internally and externally – who may use a variety of access devices and equipment. Failure to comply is also a criminal offence under the terms of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (as amended).

Quango tinkering ignores true diversity on company boards

FR

Still no room for disabled in diversity

Financial Reporting Council ignores disabled talent in favour of just women in touting ‘benefits of diversity on corporate board appointments

By ECM Plus staff

ECM Plus +++ The FRC has proclaimed changes to their ‘UK Corporate Governance Code’ and is urging companies to respond ‘rapidly’.

FRC has decide to amend Britain’s Corporate Governance Code was meant to strengthen the “principle” on boardroom diversity.

Digital doyenne Martha Lane Fox backs Technology4Good Awards

Martha supports wall of well-being in new tech awards

New national awards scheme recognising organisations and individuals who use computers and the internet to make the world a better place

BY PAUL QUIGLEY

ECM Plus +++ In a major altruistic move to recognise the challenges of people with disabilities and the liberating effects of technology and the Net, e-accessibility charity, AbilityNet is launching its new Technology4Good Awards to celebrate the innovative and diverse ways in which organisations – from charities to businesses, schools, government and private individuals – have managed to harness that power to bring positive social benefits for others.