Archive: 8 February – 14 February 2010
-
Friday 12 February 2010
-
When The Guardian first made crosswords available interactively on its website, it led the way. Noll Scott, with some assistance from Nic Ford, not only created something ahead of its time, but also set the agenda for accessibility with a version suitable for the blind and partially-sighted.
However, it was back in 1999 that crosswords first appeared on guardian.co.uk and more than a decade on they're distinctly showing their age. In the days when Netscape Navigator 4.5 was one of the most popular web browsers and Internet Explorer 5 had been recently released, using a Java applet was the most effective choice for making an interactive crossword that everyone could use. Browsers have improved sufficiently since that there's now no need to resort to plugins, reducing the barrier for new users and allowing screen readers and mobile browsers to attempt to interpret the crossword.