The push came from one single person
Sometimes a single person sets things in motion. For us, it was a visually impaired user who wants to write with Hermes 3000. That one concrete request moved more than any abstract checklist: suddenly it wasn’t about “we should get around to it”, but “this person wants to use our tool right now – and partly can’t”.
So we got to work. And up front: we’re not done. But we’ve come a good way, and we want to be transparent – about what works, and about what doesn’t yet.
What we improved
Accessibility isn’t abstract. It’s decided in very concrete places:
- Keyboard operation: All dialogs can be operated fully by keyboard, closed with Esc, and the focus stays inside the dialog instead of disappearing behind it – returning to where you were when it closes. That sounds small, but for people who don’t use a mouse it’s the difference between “usable” and “lost”.
- Screen readers: Form fields are now linked to their labels, buttons have meaningful names, and error and status messages are announced – not just shown in colour.
- Structure and language: Headings and regions are properly marked up, and the page language is set correctly so screen readers pronounce things right.
The honest truth: accessibility is never “done”
It would be easy to tick a box here and slap “accessible” on it. But that wouldn’t be true – and honesty matters more to us than a label.
Some areas aren’t fully accessible yet, and we name them openly:
- Our writing editor is the biggest challenge. Making a rich-text editor fully usable with screen readers is technically hard – the basics work, advanced features not yet throughout.
- Some features still rely on mouse operation (such as drag-to-reorder). A keyboard alternative is in progress.
- A systematic contrast review across all views and the dark mode is still pending.
- Embedded third-party content (e.g. videos) we can’t guarantee to be accessible ourselves.
No one with an honest eye makes a complex writing app one hundred percent accessible in a single step. The right path isn’t to claim it, but to show transparently where you stand – and to keep getting better.
Where we stand – and how you can help
Hermes 3000 is today partially conformant with WCAG 2.1 AA, the international standard for accessible web applications. We’ve captured the honest details in an accessibility statement – including the open points above.
Most importantly: tell us when something is in your way. If you notice a barrier or need content in an accessible form, write to us at support@hermes3000.ai or via the feedback tool in the editor. Every piece of feedback from real users moves us forward faster than any theory.
Why this matters to us
Writing a book is one of the most empowering things a person can do. It shouldn’t be denied to anyone because a button can’t be reached or a field isn’t labelled. “Open for everyone” isn’t a marketing line for us – it’s a working instruction, and we’re happy to be held to it.