I was asked today if the browser safe colors are really required any more. In my opinion, the correct answer is "It depends". As it really depends upon whether your readers are using older monitors and computers or not. If they are, then yes, it is required. If not, then no. Based on my poll in May, most people don't think they are required any more at all. What do you think? Are browser safe colors an anachronism? Or should we at the very least pay attention to what our users can view and try to accommodate that?

Now, if you want to learn more about CSS, you can get a daily tip about CSS and style sheets right in your mailbox. These tips cover everything from basic style sheets to CSS 2. And it's simple to sign up. If you're interested in learning CSS or learning more, then this newsletter is the perfect solution.

• Get a Daily CSS Tip

Okay, maybe safe is the wrong word, but at least if you use it to write a blog or post content, you are no longer giving all rights to that content over to Google in perpetuity. They have changed their terms of service and it's retroactive to anyone who's already downloaded the software. Now it says:

11.1 You retain copyright and any other rights you already hold in Content which you submit, post or display on or through, the Services

Short, and to the point.

Dean mentions the Target accessibility lawsuit:

I have a split reaction to the settlement. On the one hand, I'm not fond of lawsuits and I think this could possibly open the floodgates to drive-by litigation against website owners. On the other hand, I think it sends a wake-up call to corporate types who only care whether their website looks good to them and their cronies and wouldn't know whether a website is usable or accessible. There isn't any good reason not to build accessible websites and many good reasons besides accommodating the handicapped.

My Thoughts
If you didn't know, back in 2006, Target was sued by the National Federation of the Blind because their website is not accessible. Target argued that the Americans with Disabilities Act was only applicable to brick-and-mortar stores, not online. Eventually, the suit became a class-action suit, and last week, it was settled for $6million.

Unfortunately, like Dean, I'm concerned that this is going to make it open season on websites - especially sites that appear to have deep pockets. However, when you look at it more deeply, well, the Target site is hard to use for non-disabled people. I find it hard to use, and while I was pregnant I was using it a lot to deal with baby gifts, wishlists, etc. So, if this lawsuit makes them take another look at how their site is built and put some work into making it work for more than just their executives using Internet Explorer, that is a good thing. As Dean mentions, writing accessible websites isn't very hard.

Another thing to remember is that accessibility is not all about making sites usable by blind people. Yes, the suit was brought by the NFB, but accessibility is about making sites usable by everyone - disabled and non-disabled. So, you need to pay attention to alt text, but also to elements that affect usability by people with motor difficulties, hearing difficulties, and so on. Accessibility is very important, and fairly easy to do. You can use tools like Dreamweaver or Expression Web which have built-in accessibility options or you can write accessible HTML from scratch. Use an accessibility validator to check your work. But you'll find that once you get into the habit of writing accessible HTML, you'll see how easy it is.

Accessibility Resources

• Accessible HTML
• What do the Accessibility Guidelines Mean to Me?
• Creating Color Blind Friendly Web Pages
• Low Vision Web Page Layouts
• Validating for Accessibility
• Writing Great Alt Text
• Make Your Alternative Text Actually Readable
• How do I set up an access key on my links and form fields?
• Does the Accesskey Attribute Improve Accessibility?

Sites Discussing the Lawsuit

• About.com Forums
• SitePoint
• Web Standards Project
• CNET News
• WebAIM
• WebmasterWorld
• NorthTemple
• Opera Developer Network
• Microsoft Expression Web Forums

What do you think?
How do you think the settlement of the Target lawsuit will affect Web development? Do you write accessible HTML? Will you change your opinion on accessibility now that this lawsuit has been settled? Let us know by posting in the comments or answering the post.