I love to work as developer laravel and web accesibility for deaf.
Namur, Belgium
Joined January 2021
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My Accessibility Experience on X (Twitter) as a Deaf Person
Today, I joined a live audio Space on X (formerly Twitter) to see how accessible it was for me as a Deaf person.
I enabled automatic live captions and noticed some positive features, as well as several areas that need improvement.
What worked well
I was able to read captions while people were speaking.
I could scroll up to review previous captions. This helped me catch information I had missed.
What needs improvement
1. Caption delays
The captions appeared more than 3 seconds after people spoke. This made it difficult to follow the conversation in real time.
2. Identifying speakers
The captions appeared in white text, making it difficult to distinguish who was speaking.
It would be helpful to display each speaker's name with a different color, along with a clear text label to identify them.
3. Participant labels
When I joined the Space, I was labeled as a "Listener."
As a Deaf person, I believe a more inclusive label, such as "Participant," would be better.
Not everyone who joins an audio Space can hear. There should be no need to disclose someone's hearing status.
4. Accessibility for blind users
I also noticed potential accessibility challenges for blind people who use screen readers.
It is important to ensure that participant names, roles, and buttons are properly accessible through screen readers such as VoiceOver and TalkBack.
This would need to be verified through actual accessibility testing.
5. Emojis and emotional expressions
Emojis and emotional expressions may cause confusion if they do not have clear descriptions or are not interpreted correctly by screen readers.
Their accessibility should also be improved.
Conclusion
My experience was partly positive.
Automatic captions allowed me to access some of the conversation, but accessibility barriers still exist.
Accessibility is not just about providing captions. It is about ensuring that everyone can understand, participate, and communicate on equal terms.
This is my personal experience as a Deaf person. I hope X continues improving the accessibility of its live Spaces for everyone.
#Accessibility #DeafAccessibility #DigitalAccessibility #InclusiveDesign #LiveCaptions #A11y
🤖 Made with AI
ALT Black background with the red Laravel logo in the upper-left corner. Large, bold text in red, white, and gray reads: “Laravel looks easy when experience does the hard work.”
I just published Accessibility for Deaf People in the Age of AI medium.com/@leonellopez/acce…
AI should speak our language.
ALT Dark navy graphic with white and yellow text. Title: “AI should speak our language.” Below: “Most Deaf people still lack access to information about AI tools like Claude, ChatGPT and Gemini.” A highlighted box shows “90%” with the text: “In my test, AI understood almost 90% of what I wrote using sign language grammar.” On the right, four numbered points: 01 Sign language first: explainer videos led by Deaf experts, with visual support and captions. 02 Voice isn’t for everyone: many Deaf people can’t speak, so we type everything by hand. 03 Sign language isn’t universal: each country has its own language, culture and grammar; AI companies must work with Deaf organizations. 04 Clarity is accessibility: clear questions and simple choices. Footer: “It’s our time to teach AI our language.”
I just earned a Certificate on @edXOnline! Check it out: courses.edx.org/certificates…
An Idea to Make Online Forms More Accessible for Deaf People
As a Deaf person and web developer, I want to share an idea based on my personal experience.
Some Deaf people face challenges understanding written questions, especially when forms contain complex words or long sentences.
For some Deaf people, sign language is their first language, while written language is their second language.
💡 My proposal: Include sign language videos in online forms.
✅ Use short, clear questions.
✅ Provide an optional sign language video explaining each question.
✅ Allow simple answers, such as Yes or No.
✅ Keep written text alongside the videos so users can choose how they prefer to access information.
Based on my experience, I believe this approach could improve understanding, reduce errors, and help Deaf people complete online forms independently.
How does this relate to WCAG?
This idea supports WCAG Principle 3: Understandable.
Although WCAG does not require sign language videos for every form question, I believe this is a valuable inclusive design practice.
As a web developer, I also see opportunities to implement this approach using technologies such as Laravel and Livewire.
Digital accessibility is not just about screen readers, keyboard navigation, or color contrast. It is also about understanding information.
Sign language deserves an important place in inclusive digital design.
What do you think? Have you seen websites that already include sign language videos in their forms?
#WebAccessibility #WCAG #DeafCommunity #SignLanguage #InclusiveDesign #Laravel #Livewire #A11y
Leonel López retweeted
Update PHP now!
stitcher.io/blog/update-now
Laravel developers: Accessibility starts with the basics.
Use clear, descriptive page titles. Put the page topic first and your website name last.
This helps screen reader users navigate and improves SEO.
Small changes make a big difference.
#Laravel #WebAccessibility #A11y
Tip: designing and developing with accessibility in mind makes digital products useful for everyone, including people with disabilities.
Disability often arises from a mismatch between people and design.
Websites without captions, sign language access, screen reader support, or keyboard navigation create barriers.
As developers, we must remove these barriers.
Accessibility is a right, not a luxury.
#WebAccessibility
🤟 8 Deaf developers want to attend #LaraconIndia!
Deaf Technology Community is seeking sponsors for Indian Sign Language (ISL) interpreters.
💰 Goal: $1,350–$1,550
💙 Help make tech events accessible to Deaf developers!
Please share or DM us! @codigo_leo and @AlokB18
#Laravel #Accessibility
Leonel López retweeted
So privileged to be the first guest on @shrutibalasa's new podcast!
Thanks for being such a wonderful host, Shruti 🙏🏼 you make it very easy
Excited to see all the other amazing folks she's got lined up
First episode of the Thirus Podcast is out this Wednesday 🎙️
I had so much fun talking to Simon Hamp, co-creator of NativePHP, about building something everyone said PHP couldn't do.
Wednesday, 7pm IST (1:30pm GMT)
Subscribe to get notified - youtube.com/Thirus
This month: WP Accessibility Day, a free, global, 24-hour event on web accessibility best practices.
A favorite memory: giving my talk "Web Accessibility for Deaf People" to 100+ people, far more than I expected.
sanjose.wordcamp.org/2019/se…
#WPAccessibilityDay #a11y #Deaf
💻 20+ years as a Web Developer, and I’m still learning.
As a Deaf developer, AI has become more than a coding tool for me—it’s also an accessibility tool. 🤟
ChatGPT, Claude, GitHub Copilot and other AI tools help me research, communicate, plan, review code and move faster.
AI doesn’t replace my 20+ years of experience. It helps me use that experience more effectively.
My evolution:
Web Developer → AI-assisted Developer → Accessibility-focused Developer 🚀
I’ll keep coding, learning and building technology that is more accessible for everyone.
#WebDevelopment #AI #Accessibility #DeafDeveloper #DeafTech
Sign language is not universal — each country has its own sign language!
For the International Day of Deaf People, I developed “Pays du Monde” for CFLS using Laravel & Livewire, with videos and logistical support from my colleagues.
🤟 Explore 235 countries:
paysdumonde.cfls.be/
CFLS:
cfls.be/
#Laravel #Livewire #SignLanguage #DeafCommunity
Are you a Deaf developer, programmer, or student? 💻🤟
My friend @AlokB18 , a Deaf developer from India, created a form to connect Deaf people interested in joining Laracon India 🇮🇳
India and other countries are welcome!
🔗 docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F…
Please share! 🙏
#DeafTech #LaraconIndia #Laravel
I don’t regret subscribing to @laracasts I’m still learning so much about Laravel, and there are many other interesting courses as well. It also offers multiple language options.
