Links

Matt Mullenweg is at it again:

Members of the fledgling WordPress Sustainability Team have been left reeling after WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg abruptly dissolved the team this week—an action prominent tech journalist Kara Swisher has described as “bizarrely heinous behavior.”

(From: Mullenweg Shuts Down WordPress Sustainability Team, Igniting Backlash - The Repository)

Dude shows once again he has too much power over too large of a project. Fershad Irani wrote that he likely never cared about sustainability anyway.

In Why should there be a WordPress Sustainability Group? Chris Adams explains open source CMSes should have a sustainability group for many reasons, including reducing risk:

If you expect people to use your product or service, you might be expected to help people responsible for compliance when using it now.

Accessibe fined 1 million dollars:

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has fined accessiBe, a startup that claims to make websites more compatible with the screen readers blind people rely on to access the internet, for false advertising and compensating reviewers without disclosing that it sponsored the reviews.

In a proposed order, the FTC would require accessiBe to pay $1 million that may be used to refund the company’s customers, and prohibit accessiBe from overstating the capabilities of its tools. The order would also mandate that accessiBe “clearly and conspicuously” highlight connections to endorsers of its services.

(From: FTC orders AI accessibility startup accessiBe to pay $1M for misleading advertising | TechCrunch)

Dave:

CSS wants to be a system and it’s not an impossible task to make your own.

(From: CSS wants to be a system - daverupert.com)

Like features, tokens can create little piles of technical debt.

(From: Every token is a feature - daverupert.com)

The value of component libraries that have accessibility ‘built in’ is both immense and often overstated. Two sides of the same coin: yes they're good, but yes it's also risky to say they are some sort of one size fits all solution. They're a blessing and a curse.

Michael Matthews at A11y Quest explains:

merely using an accessible library or framework doesn’t mean your team has somehow outsourced all its accessibility responsibilities

(From: The Myth of 'Accessible Components and Done' | A11y Quest)

He goes on to say in addition to maybe benefitting from an accessible component library, you need to make informed decisions, test with users and ensure expertise within your team. Amen to that!

Today, OpenAI is announcing that its technology will be deployed directly on the battlefield.

(From: OpenAI's new defense contract completes its military pivot | MIT Technology Review)

They weren't going to, but now they are…

Big tech doesn't seem against building technology to aid deportation:

The Intercept posed the same question to each company, and requested a yes or no response: Would your company provide the Trump administration with data or other technical services to help facilitate mass deportation operations, either voluntarily, in response to a legal request, or via a paid contract?

(From: These Tech Firms Won’t Tell Us If They Will Help Trump Deport Immigrants)

Keith Cirkel:

I recently made my 100th patch to browser engines, which I consider somewhat of a milestone.

(From: 100 patches to 5 browsers in 18 months - Keith Cirkel)

Yeah, wow, that is a milestone and very impressive read. Interesting to learn more about what it involves.

culture change is creating the conditions that make it easier to choose to do the right thing, to close the gap between your enacted values and your stated values

(From: the values of work | The Roof is on Phire)

Kilian explains that you usually want to avoid autofocus:

there's a place where autofocus shines: On single-purpose pages containing forms.

(From: Starting off right: Where autofocus shines - HTMHell)