The Free Standards Group to Standardize New Accessibility Software Interfaces Donated by IBM

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Friday, December 15, 2006; 04:45 AM

The Free Standards Group (FSG), the standardization and certification authority for Linux, today announced that it will be developing and maintaining software interfaces donated by IBM as an open standard, available for all to use. The standardized interfaces, IAccessible2, make it far easier for application developers to provide accessible applications to computer users with disabilities, regardless of their OS platform. IAccessible2 will become a crucial part of the FSG AccessibilityWorkgroup and is available immediately.

IAccessible2 makes it easier for assistive technologies to provide those with disabilities access to advanced features in software programs -- such as editing functions, tables, hyperlinks, charts and menus -- found in rich browser applications based on AJAX, DHTML, and WAI-ARIA, and desktop applications based on the OpenDocument Format (ODF). The interfaces will be housed within the FSG's Accessibility Workgroup, which has been standardizing interfaces to make applications on the Linux platform accessible to those with disabilities since 2004. This effort was accelerated by the need to produce accessible productivity software based on ODF to meet the needs of municipalities such as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which has mandated the use of open standards such as ODF.

The new interfaces work on Microsoft Windows and are designed to dramatically reduce the effort to support assistive technnologies, such as screen readers on other platforms, including Linux, making multi-platform enablement much easier. Assistive technologies (ATs) enable individuals who are blind or visually impaired to read online text, and provide the means for individuals who do not have the use of their arms and hands to write and correspond. ATs also enable individuals who cannot speak or hear to participate in today's teleconferences. For Windows developers, IAccessible2 may be added to their existing Microsoft Active Accessibility-enabled applications in order to support richer functionality. Another advantage of a standardized interface is that supporting AT vendors will be able to access new applications with dramatically less effort.

"The Free Standards Group and the Accessibility Workgroup is the perfect place to standardize and develop this new technology," said Richard Schwerdtfeger, Accessibility Architect and Strategist at IBM. "Their mission of improving access and choice for all computer users and developers fits perfectly with this initiative. We chose the FSG to develop and maintain this technology as an open standard because they have the greatest amount of experience maintaining open source standards, especially for those with disabilities, and have proven they can rally the industry to their projects. With the combination of Linux and Windows accessibility API open standards we see the FSG as an established hub for accessibility interoperability standards which are harmonious across the platforms. IBM is a proud member of the FSG, and we look forward to working with them on enhancing access for all computer users."

"We are extremely proud IBM has chosen the Free Standards Group, out of the many standards setting organizations available, to house and develop these donated software interfaces," said Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Free Standards Group. "This donation is extremely important to application developers and the disabled community. Our mission is to provide the greatest amount of access to all computer users: open standards like the ODF and LSB enable unfettered access to technology and data. IAccessible2 will ensure those who are disabled get access to the widest number of applications."

Freedom Scientific, GW Micro, IBM, Mozilla Foundation, Oracle, SAP and Sun Microsystems are among those first to back the technology, and will be involved in developing it as an industry standard, or use it in products with which they are associated. The technology makes browsers such as Firefox, and formats such as ODF -- used in open source productivity suites like OpenOffice.org and commercial messaging environments such as IBM Workplace -- relate more automatically and more fully to assistive technologies such as JAWS, MAGic and Windows Eyes.

More information on the FSG Accessibility Workgroup and the new interfaces can be found at http://freestandards.org/en/Accessibility.

About the Free Standards Group

The Free Standards Group is a non-profit member-supported organization dedicated to strengthening and promoting Linux as a platform for application development. Its Linux Standard Base (LSB) standardization and certification programs deliver interoperability between applications and the Linux operating system, offering a cost-effective way for application vendors to target multiple Linux distributions. For end-users, the LSB and its mark of interoperability preserves choice by allowing them to select the applications and distributions they want while avoiding vendor lock-in. Key Free Standards Group projects currently focus on application portability, printing, Linux testing, internationalization, and accessibility. Supported by leaders in the IT industry as well as the open source development community, the work of the Free Standards Group ensures Linux does not fragment. More information can be found at www.freestandards.org.