Re: RedHat and accessibility

[Buddy Brannan <davros@ycardz.com>]

On Thu, Oct 03, 2002 at 09:30:36PM -0700, Darrell Shandrow wrote:
> Hi Buddy,
> 
> Well, since I intend no piracy, I have no trouble signing NDAs, as long as
> it means I will indeed gain the access I need. 

Doesn't make them any less evil. If you believe in the free software
concept...what is piracy? What, we're not allowed to share? (See
speeches by RMS...we could argue about this till the cows come home.)
While I will use what I have to in order to get useful work done (even
if that means using something proprietary), I will *always* use a free
alternative over a proprietary one, or even an open alternative over a
proprietary one. I will, in short, use proprietary software only when
I cannot get useful work done because a usable free alternative is not
currently available. 
 I just signed one for Sybex
> 3 days ago to get the MS Word version of their CCNA Study Guide...

EGADS! Two evil things in one go!!!! Don't they have their text in
something that's, oh, I dunno, not a proprietary standard?!
Jeez. ... The world is a-changing...and for the better, IMO...as more
free software gets into the main stream. (harrumpf) 

  I take a
> very reasonable approach; I'll do anything that is reasonable as long as the
> company in question is working with me cooperatively towards
accessibility.

Define reasonable. For that matter, define unreasonable in a similar
context. I'd say Jason's case was about as unreasonable as it
gets. Now is signing a NDA in order to get study material reasonable?
Would you have to sign such an agreement in order to get hardcopy
print? After all, you could easily enough run the thing off on a
copier and share it with your friends, couldn't you? What's the diff?
And what exactly are the restrictions? 

> But, in Jason's case, it seems RedHat was actually trying to take steps to
> actively interfere with a blind person's progress in his life as a human
> being, let alone a qualified Linux tech.  Hmmm, how to effectively teach
> RedHat a useful lesson in access that will result in positive
> change? 

Here, I think we can agree. Someone's got the wrong idea. Again...this
is a different world, and I think RH (insofar as the suits in charge
of certification, docs, training, whatever are concerned) heeds to
understand this. 

 This
> was a pretty aggregious example to me.  Even Microsoft is better than RedHat
> here!!!

...which should really tell us something, folks. 

> 
> Hmmm, one idea...  Maybe we should start with RedHat corporate management
> staff?  If we get no results, start a letter-writing campaign to all the
> authors and teams who created all the various open-source packages RedHat
> provides in order to explain how RedHat is violating open-source principles
> and acting in a detrimental manner towards a subsection of its customers and
> users?

Maybe. While I appreciate Redhat's moves in the right direction
insofar as accessibility goes, I think I'll keep using Debian. :)

-- 
Buddy Brannan, KB5ELV/3   | "And if the ground yawned,
Phone: (814) 455-7333     | I'd step to the side and say,
Email: davros@ycardz.com  | "Hey ground! I'm nobody's lunch!"
http://www.ycardz.com/    | --Eddie From Ohio