Ethereal-dev: Re: [Ethereal-dev] Ethereal and accessibility?

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From: Ulf Lamping <ulf.lamping@xxxxxx>
Date: Wed, 26 Oct 2005 21:43:37 +0200
Sina Bahram wrote:

Hi Mark,

Thanks so much for your message.

The finding of such hooks is up to the assistive technology and isn't a
problem, I would think.

However, the problem is that none of the file menus, buttons, or other
controls in Ethereal read correctly. It's not like the technology totally
doesn't see them, because I can do such things as use a cursor mode to see
certain text in windows like "filter" and detect controls like combo boxes,
check boxes, and the like. However, interaction with such controls is close
to 0, I'm afraid to report.

I will, apologetically, admit my familiar with the programming side of
accessibility is a great deal stronger on windows than it is on *nix, but it
be possible to find out if there is anything that ethereal can do with
respect to labeling buttons, making controls available, and so forth?

By the way ... If anyone can get gnopernicus working on gnome, you can hear
what I'm hearing, or lack there of.

Take care,
Sina

Hi Sina!

Just my personal point of view...

While the number of occasional developers of specific dissector writers is quite large (>500), the number of developers who are working on the Ethereal core technologies is really small (only a few and doing it in their spare time, like me).

There are still a lot of bugs in the code that will annoy every user (see bugzilla) and the number of items in the wishlist is nearly endless.

I would guess that I could spend the rest of my life implementing all the things I personally want to have. I can only speak for myself, but this is a question of prioritizing the work to be done, and as you might guess (call me egoistic) I tend to work on the things that I personally need.

Conclusion: Unless someone finds the time to implement accessibility (even in a platform specific way that don't interfere with platforms might be ok), you're just out of luck ...

Regards, ULFL