Andrew Hick

Can the iPhone do that yet? While farting around online, I stumbled across this 2008 Time Capsule from Stephen Fry. In it, he discusses the state of mobile phones - diving into the problems with BlackBerry's and Apple's latest o...

"Can the iPhone do that yet?"

Back in 2008, Stephen Fry published a list of things that he wished the iPhone could do.
Has the future caught up?

shkspr.mobi/blog/2023/09...

Access:Given | Digital Accessibility Conference in Newcastle Upon Tyne Join us on 10th September 2025 for Access:Given, a one day digital accessibility conference in Newcastle Upon Tyne.

It's only 4 weeks until the first Access:Given, a one-day digital accessibility conference in Newcastle Upon Tyne.

We're excited to be supporting this event and its female founders.

There are only a few tickets left - you can find out more information on the website:
buff.ly/plgNx4u

We need a new term for “best practice”. It feels optional. Like “what you’ve done is fine, but here’s how others do it.”

In reality, when we say best practice, we mean “this is a definite accessibility barrier, we just can’t log it as a failure in the scope of this standard.”

#accessibility #a11y

every team should have a little bit of internet to call their own, where they can publish texts, images, ideas, experiments, etc

it doesn't sound like a lot to ask.

but in most organisations, it's very hard to make happen.

Thanks so much Adrian, all great points. I'll have another look at the wording soon and I didn't know Audio Description was in doubt. Also wondering, given the nuances of WCAG, if some sort of general caveat at the start might be useful.

Colourful stripes

Introducing WCAG for humans: the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines manually summarised on one page in 7 practical themes: AndrewHick.com/humans ♿️ Feedback welcome! Many thanks to Martin Glancy for reviewing the draft and @tempertemper.bsky.social for the initial inspiration. #accessibility #wcag

What’s one thing you wish was more widely known about digital accessibility?

I’ll go first.

I wish more developers knew how to check elements for accessible names, roles and values.

#accessibility #a11y

Infographic titled "Music Sales 1973-2022" showing total revenue by format. A circular chart displays relative sizes of revenue from CD ($367B), vinyl, cassette, paid streaming, and other formats. Below, a timeline graph illustrates revenue trends, highlighting the dominance of CDs, the decline of physical formats, and the rise of digital and streaming services. Notes on vinyl's resurgence and digital formats' current dominance are included.

Music Sales by format from 1973+
www.visualcapitalist.com/music-indust...

A thing I wrote and I want to share again:

Don’t stop being creative because of some silly narrative about being replaceable. Create because you exist, share as an act of humanity, and create because you can. Selfishly, I want to see what you make.

That will always matter. It is the best of life.

Black fluffy cat amusingly spreadeagled on its back in the middle of a bed

There's no "why" in AI. It's getting better at reading an image to predict its alt text - but can't yet know why the image is there. Is this cat here for comedy, or is the bed for sale?

Check your auto generated alt text before publishing! (That's my #AI hot take quota for this year) #accessibility

Photo of the sky above a hill in silhouette, a gradient from dark blue to light blue to white (or light grey) to pinkish-orange

Sky says trans rights

Thanks so much! I might have to trademark WunCAGround 😁

262 colour blobs in mainly concentric circles, from red at the top and clockwise in rainbow order. Greys are in the middle. Full description on AndrewHick.com/colour

Enjoy colours and accessible design? Here’s a mosaic of 262 curated colours inspired by art, nature, travel and culture. They’re in rough rainbow order, and text is black or white depending on which has the best contrast. AndrewHick.com/colour 🌈 #colour #color #noAI

If you had to change your bio to a song lyric what would it be?

I'm torn between

"I'm a humble guy with healthy desire" (pixies)

Or

"I'm not a prophet or a stone age man just a mortal with potential of a superman" (Bowie)

Let's hear yours x

Maybe "raised on a diet of broken biscuits" (Pulp) 🍪

A lot of good points. I understand IAAP are looking into recent feedback but agree that the current requirements for gaining credits seem unnecessarily strict.

The (not quite new) GOV.UK brand A little behind the scenes from a gear in the machine.

★ New blog post: The (not quite new) GOV.UK brand

The refreshed GOV.UK logo and brand design has launched today. Here's some background on it, from my perspective working on it.

https://beeps.website/blog/2025-06-25-the-not-quite-new-govuk-brand/

@gerireid.com - Shift left on accessibility
londonwebstandards.org/talks/shift-...
#a11y

Nice post from @tempertemper.bsky.social about Focus Priming - clicking a webpage to continue tabbing or reading from that point - which there was previously no word for. www.tempertemper.net/blog/focus-p... ⏭️ #accessibility #testing

Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams

Work in UK government and interested in accessibility?

The next cross-government Accessibility Quarterly meet up is on Thursday 1 May from 1pm to 3:30pm. Register in advance using your government email address events.teams.microsoft.com/event/410025...

Making things digitally accessible isn't extra work, it is just part of the work. That is all.

#Accessibility #AccessibilityRegulations #A11y

A nice, balanced guide on using technologies such as AI responsibly in the world of accessibility

I love this talk and have been sharing it wherever I can at work! The title says it all really.

Unlocking Accessibility: Key misconceptions, common issues, and tools used by Accessibility Specialists We asked accessibility specialists about what are the key misconceptions and common issues they encounter in accessibility, and what tools they use during audits.

New blog from Kelly Clarkson and Samantha Merrett asking accessibility people about the most common misconceptions, issues and tools we come across.

Quick, early checks for common issues can easily eliminate a wide range of barriers.

accessibility.blog.gov.uk/2025/02/28/u... #accessibility #a11y

Alice Wong presenting virtually at axe-con

"The question we should be asking is how non-disabled people can advocate with—not for—disabled people.” - @sfdirewolf.bsky.social #axecon

The common cormorant or shag Lays eggs inside a paper bag The reason you will see no doubt It is to keep the lightning out But what these unobservant birds Have never noticed is that herds Of wandering bears may come with buns And steal the bags to hold the crumbs. Christopher Isherwood

I can't quite put it into words, but I know EXACTLY how The Beastie Boys would have read this poem

Andrew by a lectern with his introduction slide

Andrew with slide reading "Why don't we just fix it with AI?"

Andrew waving his hand in front of a transport map of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

Loved speaking at Service Design Bristol yesterday on making services accessible. Slides are on AndrewHick.com/sdb . Nicely organised and the prototyping talk really got me thinking too. Photos: James Reece.

Thanks so much Priyanca, really enjoyed being there and great to see you!

Sending many hugs to all trans and nonbinary people across the world and especially in the US 🤗

Podcast artwork. Dark blue background. White writing says "Accessible numbers podcast. Accessibility and intersectionality with Priyanca D'Souza." There's an illustrated image of Priyanca in the bottom right corner. Priyanca has brown skin and brown eyes. She has long dark hair and is wearing a blue cardigan and green scarf.

Accessibility and intersectionality with @priyanca.bsky.social (dedicated to Vicky Teinaki).

We discuss #dyscalculia, intersectionality, and the complexities of managing multiple access needs, as well as common service barriers and tips for designers.

accessiblenumbers.com/accessibilit...