Post-Acquisition Management and the Issue of Inaccessibility

Abstract

Though advocates are calling for publishers to develop born-accessible e-books to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Digital Accessible Information System (DAISY) standards and the EPUB 3.0 measures now backed by the Society for Disability Studies, the realistic timespan for this achievement to become standard practice is far from ideal. To equitably serve users with disabilities, stronger technology and a mindset toward accessibility must become the standard in electronic collections. Librarians are expected to have a strong working knowledge of the library's collections but receive little training in best practices for assisting patrons with disabilities. We cannot wait for the e-book landscape to change on its own. Instead, we must recognize how to develop usable collections for all and how to respond to those whose access has been limited. This research is the product of both current research and earlier findings of the user experience research team from the Mellonfunded Charlotte Initiative project. This paper focuses on the accessible e-book landscape and provides librarians with tools to better assist users working independently in discovery systems as they interact with the library's current acquisitions. Additionally, librarians will acquire techniques for responding to those who cannot use the texts they wish and understand how such a mindset can help us develop stronger collections of use to all.