forum feature request

I think it should be borne in mind that some people might format their posts unusually because they need to (by all of us, the NAS included, that is - I'm not criticising the OPs request, which is perfectly reasonable, IMHO). For example, some dyslexic people find certain colour combinations or fonts make reading and writing much easier (even the much-derided Comic Sans font has been shown to be beneficial for some dyslexic people) - just as some of us might find their choices make the site more difficult for us to use. I personally find the shocking magenta colour scheme incredibly distracting due to my synaesthesia, and usually turn down the saturation on my monitor if I'm here for any length of time. Such conditions are more prevalent amongst autistic people, and to those who experience them, unusual styling is not merely "visual noise" or an annoying way to try to attract attention to their posts.

I would prefer that the forum as a whole had a simple and prominent menu for selection of colour combinations, font, and font size/style - as the sites of many other disability-related organisations do (e.g. here at the Disability News Service). The built-in accessibility features of our gadget's operating systems can help, but often don't play nicely with sites that we'd like to use. The NAS really should be trying to set a good example for this kind of accessibility, IMHO, and it should have been made a higher priority when the site was redesigned a while back, rather than concentrating on superficial "rebranding", as seems to have been the case. As a site intended to be used by autistic people, it shouldn't be too much to ask that the site can be adapted to our sensory traits, and it could be made a shining example of best-practice for others to follow.

PS) I haven't answered the poll, as I believe there should be a 3rd option - formatting should be displayed according to the preferences of each forum member.

I think it should be borne in mind that some people might format their posts unusually because they need to (by all of us, the NAS included, that is - I'm not criticising the OPs request, which is perfectly reasonable, IMHO). For example, some dyslexic people find certain colour combinations or fonts make reading and writing much easier (even the much-derided Comic Sans font has been shown to be beneficial for some dyslexic people) - just as some of us might find their choices make the site more difficult for us to use. I personally find the shocking magenta colour scheme incredibly distracting due to my synaesthesia, and usually turn down the saturation on my monitor if I'm here for any length of time. Such conditions are more prevalent amongst autistic people, and to those who experience them, unusual styling is not merely "visual noise" or an annoying way to try to attract attention to their posts.

I would prefer that the forum as a whole had a simple and prominent menu for selection of colour combinations, font, and font size/style - as the sites of many other disability-related organisations do (e.g. here at the Disability News Service). The built-in accessibility features of our gadget's operating systems can help, but often don't play nicely with sites that we'd like to use. The NAS really should be trying to set a good example for this kind of accessibility, IMHO, and it should have been made a higher priority when the site was redesigned a while back, rather than concentrating on superficial "rebranding", as seems to have been the case. As a site intended to be used by autistic people, it shouldn't be too much to ask that the site can be adapted to our sensory traits, and it could be made a shining example of best-practice for others to follow.

PS) I haven't answered the poll, as I believe there should be a 3rd option - formatting should be displayed according to the preferences of each forum member.