Does Your Site Require the Use of a Mouse?

Some of us are old enough to remember the days when our main interaction with the PC was through the keyboard. We were excited when keyboard shortcuts speeded up the process. Now the mouse, or its equivalent, is the tool for communication. "Click" and "drag" are the common techniques for moving the cursor or information.

For some individuals the mouse is not a friendly piece of hardware. I can still remember a friend and I laughing at my ineptness as I tried to get the cursor to obey me when it first came out! Lack of normal coordination is not a laughing matter for many people. I finally mastered the tool, but I do not have the physical challenges that many experience.

As you develop your site, consider what you can do to provide alternatives to the "clicking." Image maps may require people to click in a precise area. Think about those who have coordination or vision problems. Provide an additional option for selecting the information. Use the tabindex tag. It can even facilitate movement through a form that requires a lot of typing by those who are just fast typists! :-)


copyright © 2004 K.E. Lubrecht
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