Recommended reading: When accessibility is not your problem

Accessibility expert Joe Clark writes about specific instances when web authors should not worry about web accessibility.

The philosophy that Clark is asking us to adopt is a simple one. From this article:

It’s not even that new, but what certainly is new is the fact that I’m calling for everyone to take a pledge of some kind. The philosophy is really simple: If a browser or adaptive technology can or should handle an accessibility issue, I won’t.

Clark is departing significantly from accepted standardista orthodoxy here (or perhaps he’s departing from the most vocal of the bunch). But the overall point he makes is an excellent one: Web developers have no control over how the client ultimately renders the page and we shouldn’t. That’s the job of the browser and the user.