This morning, I tried to create a Microsoft Live account for business, so that I can use it for Teams, because I have a meeting with a potential client later today. (He wants me to build an eCommerce site for him. I'm not sure of the specifics, which is why we're having a meeting.) The problem is that I can't complete the registration process on the Live site, because the anti-bot/human verification check is ableist as fook, which immediately disqualifies anyone who has difficulty with pattern recognition or impaired vision, due to the nature of it! (It asks fifteen questions that are each a grid of six small pictures, one of which has two similar objects in it. You have to choose the correct picture within fifteen seconds for each question. If you get even one of them wrong or the timer runs out while you're trying to figure out which image to choose, it takes you right back to the start and asks you to complete another fifteen. However, only when you reach the end of the batch does it evaluate your score/times, rather than as soon as you fail.)

I have spent/wasted at least an hour trying to complete it without mistakes, but have had no luck, so I'm giving up on that as too difficult.

Fortunately, I have an existing personal account that I can use, but it's by no means ideal. What the heck, Microsoft?! You've gone too far. There are better, non-discriminatory ways of doing human verification!

Thumbnail: Photo by Tara Winstead on Pexels