Mastodawn

Matthew Hallonbacka May 3, 2023

Hypothetical case:
- Public API, free to use.
- One client, a free mobile app, is badly written, makes a ton of requests, causes heavy load, client is eventually blocked.
- This free mobile app is popular for #accessibility reasons, the only one with good screen reader support.

The API provider did nothing wrong, but the service is no longer accessible to SR users. App dev may not know the right way to use API, was focused on #a11y.

Discrimination? It’s not always clear-cut.

Matthew Hallonbacka May 2, 2023

I spotted this in a public place. I think it is a Wi-Fi access point. If so, it looks as though some Mr. Robot-style antics may have gone on.

#InfoSec

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Matthew Hallonbacka May 1, 2023

@heydon https://mallonbacka.com/feed.xml Mostly about accessibility. I’ve only recently started it, I’m trying to get into a habit of writing a little more.

Matthew Hallonbacka Apr 30, 2023

I was just reading the news about the plans for King Charles #coronation next week.
I'm looking forward to watching the Coronation Chicken leading the King to his position.
[Picture by DALL-E 2, after some cajoling]

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Matthew Hallonbacka Apr 27, 2023

4. Laughing at things together helps normalize the things - there are popular disabled comedians.
5. Forbidding laughing at things is infantilizing.
6. If this was the IPCs whole social presence, that would be terrible.

“Ableism for views”? Absolutely not.
Positive #disabled representation? Also probably not.

I haven’t loved a lot of what the IPC has done in recent years, but their TikTok account certainly isn't the worst.

Matthew Hallonbacka Apr 27, 2023

I've been thinking about this today: https://www.npr.org/2023/04/24/1171333573/paralympics-tiktok-controversy

It's not clear-cut, IMO.

1. Exposing audiences to disabled sport (and, by extension #disability) is good. Just look at the societal impact of London 2012.
2. Jumping on the latest TikTok trend is a good way to be seen.
3. Social media is already full of non-disabled sports clips. More often, they are popular when they contain something funny or unexpected.

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Matthew Hallonbacka Apr 24, 2023

@agvbergin one more thing to watch out for: the API works locally with no internet, but I think setting up the API required using their cloud service.
Another approach might be a
simpler filter and a smart plug to just switch it on and off - that’s how I use a humidifier in the winter.

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Matthew Hallonbacka Apr 24, 2023

@agvbergin What are you interested in programming? I have an Xiaomi air purifier, which has WiFi and an HTTP API (currently using it through Home Assistant). I can switch it on and off, change mode and not much else I think. It's not perfect and the filters are not cheap, but does the job.

Matthew Hallonbacka Apr 20, 2023

New blog post: Disability representation on Desert Island Discs.

The British radio show has featured over 3000 biographical interviews over 80+ years. It's a source of extraordinary stories. I wanted to see how many of the 'castaways' were disabled, and what we can learn from them.

Today, after a little hacking around, I published a list of 39 episodes (~1.2% of all episodes) I found from 1957-2023.

#disability #accessibility #a11y #RepresentationMatters

https://mallonbacka.com/blog/2023/04/desert-island-discs/

Disabled People on Desert Island Discs

The BBC's 'Desert Island Discs' is a touchstone in British culture. How often does it center disabled voices?

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Matthew Hallonbacka Apr 19, 2023

@matuzo Color scheme override? Base color on root, overrides are attached to body[data-color-scheme="dark”] or whatever.
It's not essential to do this way, but it is certainly easier to keep track of mentally when the default is only defined on a parent element.