[...]one of our visitors recently recommended the following website[...]……

I’am dyslexic and I confirm that all that items cause difficulties for me.

I would add the spaces between letters and words too poorly differentiated as well as a text too dense (spaces between the lines) or too long.

Best regards,
Monique

If you are designing a site for the general public, you may wish to take on board less of these measures than if you were designing a site specifically for dyslexic users.

Yes, it’s a benefit if people know how to change their browser configurations — that’s why a lot of organisations point people at stuff like My Web, My Way.

However, legislation is necessary. You can only reach so many people with the carrot; the stick is necessary for those who would not otherwise comply, and allows for redress for disabled people who have been discriminated against on the grounds of their disability (and there is an awful lot more to the DDA than ‘the internet’, in fact it is mentioned very little).

I also recommend providing the option clearlt and behind a ‘trigger word’ link. On my own site I use “Change colors and fonts”. This is because it links with what the dyslexic user wants to do. In my view it’s a lot better than hiding it in an accessibility page that nobody reads. I deliberately use the American spelling of colour as it is more phonetic.

Apart from the fact I made some mistakes of course So not exactly proper. Bordering on irony there… But I hope you get my point.

Re italics, there are a great many ‘proper’ uses of English, which are adverse in their effect upon the the fluentcy, of acquisition, of text-based content. Like the sentence I just wrote. Avoiding unecessary barriers to access, including for those with cognitive differences/difficulties, is incredibly important.

If I’m confronted with a large page of text, most of which is in italics, the chances are I’ll not stop to read it without A.T. handy. I’m typical of ~10% of the population. You can signify that content is quoted by useing quotes. Styleing it in a div. Changing its colour and tone and lableing it as such. Putting it in a cite tag, etc… No need to take up a page with inaccessible text. I’m not clear on the current legal status of dyslexia in the States and Canada but in the UK its covered by the DDA, and as such making such accomodations is not just good business sense (10% is a big chunk of a market to spurn), or a moral standing, its a legal consideration to be made also. (I’m dyslexic and have worked in the field for ~10 years)

And why don’t you like Comic Sans? I don’t particularly like it on web pages, but that’s more because I don’t like the look of it. I have seen it used on pages written by dyslexics, with it being recommended as a clear font (unfortunately as this post is about 15 months old I can’t remember where). If there are accessibility — rather than personal preference — reasons for not using it, let me know and I’ll update the article.

[Edit: don't think this was the original location, but the British Dyslexia Association don't seem to have a problem with Comic Sans:

Select sans serif fonts such as Arial or Comic Sans.British Dyslexia Association

…although this is a general reference, rather than a "specifically for the web" one]