Website and Blog of Moritz Glantz, UX Engineer and Accessibility Specialist from Karlsruhe, Germany.
Have you ever wanted a simple way to request a bank transfer without making somebody copy a long IBAN? I wanted to celebrate digital independence with an app that makes using a regular bank account feel a little more like PayPal. # How does it work? Girocodr creates EPC-compatible payment QR codes, also known as GiroCodes. Add your receiving account once and save it Enter an amount and reference…
Hat das Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz eigentlich überhaupt nichts gebracht? Diese Frage muss ich mir aus professionellen Gründen derzeit stellen. Ich habe letztes Jahr viele Accessibility-Audits gemacht. Viele Issues gemeldet. Viele davon mit höchster Priorität. Heute schaute ich mir aus Neugierde einige der Produkte nochmal an um zu sehen was daraus geworden ist. Wurden die gemeldeten Probleme…
I wanted a simple way to watch PeerTube on Apple TV. So I started building Streamicorn : a small PeerTube Apple TV app for browsing, searching and watching videos from selected PeerTube instances. The idea is simple: bring PeerTube to the big screen . Streamicorn focuses on a calm, TV-friendly interface that works well with the Apple TV remote. The first version includes: watching videos from…
I went to a conference and wanted to make some stickers, but only a small number. Ordering a professional batch felt unnecessary, so I printed and cut them at home. Turns out you can print high quality stickers with normal hardware. # What I used Printer A normal inkjet printer. In my case, an HP Envy 4520 . Sticker paper This white sticker paper . Sticker sheet layout My Sticker Sheet Tool to…
If you work with or test Web Components you already know the pain of inspecting them. You select a custom element in Chrome DevTools, right click, hit copy outerHTML, and you are left with an unhelpful string of empty tags. DevTools strictly separates the Light DOM from the Shadow DOM. If you want the actual Composed Tree (a single, flattened HTML string representing exactly what the browser…
Do you remember that HTML memory test on CodePen ? I thought it was time to give it some more challenging modes. So I built my own version. The idea is still simple: type as many HTML elements as you can remember . But this one adds a few more challenging modes: a timer for normal runs countdown rounds with different time limits you can also add all the weird obsolete and deprecated elements…
The Roborock Saros 10R has its own built-in voice assistant. You say “Hello Rocky” or “Hey Rocky”, then a command, and if all goes well, the robot does the thing. These commands work without a network or app connection. This is especially useful if you run the vacuum without a network connection, the way nerds like it. What I was missing was a simple list outside of the app. So here it is. #…
'tis the season for “end of the year”-posts. Let’s go! # In 2025, I… …started a new job. I am now working full time in digital accessibility. …settled my first legal dispute. …sold some tech themed shirts in my American shop and international shop and it made me happy, that some people resonate with my humor. …moved to a new apartment. …traveled to Japan for a few weeks. …went bodyboarding in…
At the 39th Chaos Communication Congress (39C3), Marc-Uwe Kling introduced the idea of a Digital Independence Day and it deeply resonated with me. We already saw examples of misuse of power when U.S. sanctions abruptly cut ICC officials off from everyday essentials : email, bank accounts, credit cards, and even services like Alexa and e-books. ( Marc-Uwe Kling is a popular German author and the…
Do you know someone who answers “Do you play an instrument?” with: “Yes, the triangle.” Thirteen years ago that joke annoyed me enough that I planned to build a website about the triangle — an instrument that cuts through every mix and is a lot less trivial than its reputation. Today it goes live. # The Mighty Triangle It’s a small, focused site with everything I wanted back then: The science :…
When I started using an iPhone around 2020, I migrated ten years of Android WhatsApp chats via a shady app from the internet™️ to the new iPhone. This was not an official way (since that did not exist back then). It involved iTunes backups that get manipulated and being put on the phone again. The world was good! But some time after, disaster struck! ⚡️ # The Disaster After some time, I noticed…
I wasn’t satisfied with any of the metronome apps out there. So, of course, I ended up coding one myself. I wanted a clean metronome with no fuzz, no ads, and nothing beyond the core functionality. Just a good design that feels right. To me. There’s a special kind of satisfaction in writing code instead of actually practicing the guitar. # Features You can set the tempo , choose beats per measure…
I ran into this again today: macOS kept auto-joining an old Wi-Fi network, and every attempt to “Forget” it in System Settings → Wi-Fi demanded an admin password. Turns out for every annoying problem, there’s a strange and unintuitive solution. # The fix Forget the Settings app. Open Passwords (Spotlight → “Passwords” → enter your user password). Filter for Wi-Fi Search for the network name…
Mastodon’s filters are powerful, but also a little invisible. Once you set them up, you rarely notice how much they actually hide from your timeline. I wanted to know. Mastodon Hidden Posts Stats is a small web app that connects to your Mastodon account and shows how many of your recent posts are filtered, and by which keywords and it also gives you some stats. Everything runs locally in your…
Some websites don’t show any visual indicator when elements receive focus – making accessibility testing frustrating or impossible without DevTools gymnastics. I often run into this when testing keyboard navigation, and I wanted something quicker. Introducing “Force Focus”: force show keyboard focus for accessibility testing of websites with some oomph! 👊🔲 Force Focus is a little bookmarklet I…
Even though I work with HTML all the time, I keep coming across elements or details I’ve either forgotten or never fully noticed. Learning in small doses works well for me – so I built a little bot. Daily HTML is a Mastodon bot that posts one random HTML element per day with a short explanation and a link to the spec. That’s it. If you’d like to follow along and refresh your HTML knowledge one tag…
Bei externen deutschen QWERTZ-Tastaturen (z. B. Keychron K1 Max) kann es unter macOS passieren, dass die Tasten < ( kleiner als ), > ( größer als ) und ^° ( Zirkumflex und Gradzeichen ) vertauscht werden. Ursache: macOS erkennt den falschen Tastaturtyp (z. B. 43 statt 41 ). Dadurch wird die Tastaturbelegung falsch zugeordnet und bestimmte Tasten erscheinen vertauscht . In meinem Fall wird das…
When working on accessible websites, I often found myself manually testing different combinations of link attributes – aria-label , title , pseudo-elements, and images with or without alt text. That got a bit tedious. So I built a small tool to make that process easier. The Accessibility Link Configurator / Tester lets you toggle common link features on and off and instantly preview how they…
'tis the season for “end of the year”-posts. Let’s go! # In 2024, I… …launched this blog and released 26 posts (including this one) …traveled to Singapore, New Zealand, Australia, Tokyo, Fuerteventura, the Baltic Sea, Hamburg, Berlin and Munich … changed my surname …streamed 99 hours with WWSIV …released 7 podcast episodes with WWSIV …started freelancing more as an Accessibility Consultant…
English version below Mein Name hat sich von Moritz Gießmann in Moritz Glantz geändert. Ich habe nicht geheiratet. Diese Seite, dieses Blog und alles was dazu gehört werden ab sofort von moritzgiessmann.de auf moritzglantz.de umgeleitet. Ebenso alle E-Mail-Adressen die diese Domain enthalten. Alle möglichen Online-Accounts werden in Zukunft auch geändert. # Hast du dir das gut überlegt? Ja. Viele…
I searched for accessible WordPress themes for an upcoming project, but the Google results were disappointing. Instead of relevant options, I found blog articles from snake oil accessibility overlay providers and other obscure, outdated lists. It turns out WordPress has its own method for tagging “accessible” themes. In the official WordPress theme repository, you can specify the features you want…
I just came across this nice website. It is a little treasure hunt game which you can only solve using a screen reader. If you’ve been waiting for a sign on when to use a screen reader for the first time, this is it: 🪧✨! Though there may be other ways to solve it, just try it with a screen reader. You won’t be disappointed. I promise! Non visual website challenge # Some info about screen readers:…
Tired of inconsistent browser title bar colors? The Appbar Color Wizard automatically checks and adds the <meta name='theme-color'> tag to any website, ensuring a seamless and uniform look. Perfect for enhancing your browsing experience! The Theme Color Checker is a simple Chrome extension that ensures every website you visit has a title bar in the right color. If a site doesn't have this it set,…
People often overlook adding alternative texts to images, and that's problematic. This article explores why this happens, how to identify if you have this issue, and provides possible solutions. # Why alt texts Alternative texts are key for accessibility , as they describe visual content for visually impaired users and promote inclusivity across digital platforms. Alt texts are also useful when…
Hi there! I just wanted to share my Accessibility Cheat Sheet with you. Whether you're a web developer , UX designer , or simply passionate about creating inclusive digital experiences , this guide might help you building more accessible websites. When I created the cheat sheet, I wanted to provide easy-to-follow tips and best practices for improving web accessibility , while keeping the entry…
I wanted to write a compelling introduction to this post, but the truth is: I want to write down the steps for myself for future reference. If you’re interested in setting up XAMPP on macOS so that you can serve files from your user folder, follow along. Disclaimer : I am only using XAMPP for local testing, so this guide might have some bad security advice in it. If you read this and have security…
How do you get your news online? You probably use news sites or social media with algorithms that promise personalized news. However, these algorithms often prioritize sensational or extreme content. What if you could follow all your interests in one place without algorithms deciding for you? You can . # ✨ Welcome to RSS feeds! ✨ # What is RSS? RSS stands for "Really Simple Syndication." It’s a…
Create useful and minimal page/view transitions on your site with just two lines of CSS. Enhance the user experience by making page navigation feel more fluid and intuitive. Let’s go! # History When I first saw Jake Archibald ’s demo of native view transitions I immediately felt like this was gonna change the web for good . Not only are view transitions a way to improve user experience. By…
Are you also annoyed by the “smart” emoji suggestions when opening the emoji picker in MacOS Sonoma? Here’s how to fix that. # What happens? Say you’re writing a text or a text message and you open the MacOS emoji picker by pressing CTRL + CMD + Space to add an emoji. If the last word you wrote before opening the picker was something like “sleep”, “peach” or “penis” “eggplant” , chances are that…
I thought about writing a post about the absurdity of LinkedIn posts, but diving deep into this special hell would give it way more attention than it deserves. But I could share my approach to leaving it behind without abandoning all the useful connections I have there. ⚠️ Update 03.05.2024: Unfortunately LinkedIn apparently has an algorithm to avoid empty timelines, by filling it with trash once…
During the next week I’m gonna go on the biggest journey I’ve ever been on. I’m gonna board an airplane for the first time in 5 years. I’m gonna see the other side of the world (Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and Japan) and I’m excited beyond measure! # Why this post? I am writing this post because I wanted to let you know that there will almost certainly be no new content here or anywhere else…
When Brad Frost released his article “ a global design system ” a few weeks ago, it reignited a thought I’ve been having for a long time. Building design systems has somehow become similar to building websites before the era of design systems: Reinventing the wheel over and over again. But does it have to be that way, or are we ready for the next step of web design evolution? What finally drove me…
Dieser Leitfaden wurde erstellt, um es Redakteur*innen leichter zu machen barrierefreie Inhalte zu erstellen. Er enthält die wichtigsten Regeln in möglichst kurzer Form. Er bildet nicht alle potentiell gültigen Regeln ab. Das komplette zugrundeliegende Regelwerk sind die Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) (Englisch). # Allgemein Generell : Wenn es keinen wichtigen Grund gibt, sollte nicht…
Don’t you love it when every Git project you start on your Mac needs a .gitignore file before anything else, because the .DS_Store files are spawning and haunting your machine like a wandering ghost from the past? 👻 # The solution: Global .gitignore You can configure Git to globally ignore certain files across all repositories on your system . To do this, you can set up a global .gitignore file .…
“YewTube Redirect”, a browser add-on that simplifies the process of redirecting YouTube links to the privacy-focused and ad-free YewTube platform. Say goodbye to ads and tracking while enjoying your favorite content hassle-free! # Another day, another [plugin|add-on|extension]! Yesterday, I learned about YewTu.be , an alternative, privacy-focused, and ad-free front end for YouTube. It basically…
Wie beständig ist unser Glaube an geordnete Strukturen? Ein Blick auf das Streben nach Ordnung und die Herausforderungen, wenn Realität nicht in vorgefertigte Kästchen passt und warum die zärtliche Umarmung des Chaos vielleicht einfach ok ist. Mein Leben hat eine sich wiederholende Konstante: Der Glaube an allgemeingültige, wohlgeformte Systeme und deren Ordnung und Beständigkeit. Seien es…
I made a firefox plugin, that ensures that when you click on links, they open in the same browser tab instead of creating new tabs, therefore removing target="_blank" from websites. There are no Chrome or Safari versions of this yet. Let me know if there is the need. This is a first draft. It removes target="_blank" on page load as well as dynamic rendered content. Let me know what you think:…
Last night, I thought I might challenge ChatGPT to create something complex. A game. A game everybody knows. Tetris, but as a website using checkboxes to form the grid and the blocks of the game. I am not sure if checkbox Tetris is a new idea. I think I might have seen something like it before, but I am not sure. # Stranger in a strange land To be honest, there were some strange moments while…
I really really loved Lea Verou’s color contrast checker! I linked it in lots of my talks, I listed it as useful resource in lots of places and recommended it every time someone asked me about useful accessibility tools. It is great if you want to check the contrast of background and text color against the WCAG color contrast requirements . Just put in two colors and see the result. You can even…
Is the using AI a good idea when it comes to building accessible experiences on the web? Can tools like ChatGPT or Vision help us to build better websites and apps, or can they be considered harmful? What about this image? Would you consider this AI-generated alt text good? Suitable? Appropriate? Or maybe inappropriate, bad or even harmful? This alternative text was created in seconds using the…
Are you experiencing issues with the backlight of your Samsung Smart TV turning off when the screen goes black, such as during the credits of a movie? If this annoyance resonates with you, as it does with me, I might have a solution. Gimme the solution already ! # Problem I have an almost ten year old Samsung Smart TV (JU6550). Despite its age, it still works well, and unlike many Samsung TVs…
When I started using VSCode as my main editor back in 2018 I was searching for a theme to fit my needs: high contrast, dark and not boring. The I stumbled upon the VSCode Cyberpunk theme and started using it as a joke. Half a year later I was still using it as my main theme and the fun became serious (or as we say in German: „ Aus Spaß wurde Ernst. “). After lot’s of head shaking from colleagues I…
I was in need of an automatic CLI-deployment for my 11ty blog right here and I solved it using rsync . # Rsync? Rsync (Remote Sync) is a command-line utility for file synchronization and data transfer between local and remote systems. rsync is often used for backups, so it can for example just upload the files that have changed or delete files that are no longer existent. # Prerequisites Your…
Almost 10 years after I wrote the last blog post on my old blog, I decided to start something new, simple and text-based. What you see right now is the first version of my new blog. It is still a little rough around the edges, but it is here, it is online and it is 🦄! # 🙋 Introduction Since this is the first post on a new blog, you might want to know a thing about me: My name is Moritz Glantz…