Personally I think alt-text is valuable for everyone, not for just people with visual impairments.
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@Yehuda
Mastodon is a bad exemple of alt text : it mixes description, legend and alternative text.
Alternative text must be used -as it has been designed for- as an alternative for people who need it, not like a creative extra text field for jokes or exclusives informations. The role of alt text is precisely to reduce the understanding gap between peoples, not to expand it.
1/2@Yehuda
With Mastodon, if you want all people have an information, write it in the message, please.
If you want to do two-step jokes, use CW or reply to your own message.
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@Yehuda more promising than my old poll results.
This was from years ago though. And tiny but close (to me) sample size. Hopefully folk’s stance has improved since.
Colin (@colinstu@birdbutt.com)
Attached: 1 image A little saddened by the poll results. Alt text isn't only for those with vision problems! I sometimes provide more info or context to stuff in the pic, as it's kinda awkward to try to describe 4 pics in the main body of post. Also if I am describing what is seen, I try to do so in a way that would make sense if one couldn't see, so maybe it’s a lil awkward to read sometimes. But anyway, try reading folks’ alt text / desc more! Uncover a whole new world.
Birdbutt (birdbutt.com)
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The primary impact of an image is visual. It delivers and unpacks in an instant a universe of cultural connotations, a fist of meaning. So much so that all I can describe in alt-text is my impression of the image. I try to describe it as neutrally as possible but it's only ever going be a subjective impression with the details foregrounded that are most important to me. Being autistic doesn't help, because I'm faced with a plethora of competing choices.
So I rarely look at alt-text.
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@Yehuda I ticked "not impaired and often read", although I don't know that I'd say I often read it - more that I read it when it helps - if there's a joke I'm not getting, or something I fell I'm not spotting. So even if I don't often read it deliberately, when I do, it's massively helpful.
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@Yehuda alt-text is important and can be brilliant. Some, often auto-generated, is incorrect though.
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@Yehuda Surprising results up to now (more than 3:1 in favor of reading alt text for seeing people, closer to 1:1 for visually impaired people)
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@Yehuda Extremely often there are additional message there. Or explanations. Like, it says this is a photo of pop group xyz who I've never heard of. Or explains a pun. Often people add an extra joke.
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@bigtuffal @Yehuda same here. Plus it's an act of mindfulness for me not to spam socials with images but instead try to communicate why this is worth looking at
Just so. Which part of this picture do I want the onlooker to focus on.
Plus some alt text is hilarious. Not mine
but I do like hunting for Easter eggs -
@Yehuda I'm borderline visually impaired insofar as I'm old and often looking at tiny images on my phone screen, so I read alt text to find out what I'm looking at. It's especially helpful if the image has text (cartoons etc).
When I write alt text I mostly aim for context rather than literal visual description of everything in the picture.
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Sometimes it is easier to read the transcription in the alt-text than the text in the image. Also I can copy the alt-text in a foreign language and get a machine translation.
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@Yehuda mostly i use it when a) I don’t get the joke and hope there’s an explanation, b) I don’t get the text because it’s in a different language but alt text can be translated.
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Just so. Which part of this picture do I want the onlooker to focus on.
Plus some alt text is hilarious. Not mine
but I do like hunting for Easter eggs@Helenisenough @bigtuffal @Yehuda i will at times be the easter Bunny
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@equalitysiren @Yehuda Yeah, I'm now wondering that too.
@Cassandra @equalitysiren @Yehuda Yes, screen readers actually do read the poll choices.
Additionally for screen reader users saying I'm a screen reader user And I skip reading alt text is very rare if not inpossible as screen readers are setup to present the images with alt text and skip images without it by default.
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E em0nm4stodon@infosec.exchange shared this topic
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@Yehuda I use Mosjhidon, and images don't load by default, I only see alt text. If a post has an image with no alt text, the post is hidden.
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@Yehuda
Mastodon is a bad exemple of alt text : it mixes description, legend and alternative text.
Alternative text must be used -as it has been designed for- as an alternative for people who need it, not like a creative extra text field for jokes or exclusives informations. The role of alt text is precisely to reduce the understanding gap between peoples, not to expand it.
1/2 -
@Yehuda I'm torn on this issue. Accessibility is important, but companies that use our content to train their algorithms can go to hell on the express way. If this poll ends with only 2% of users in need of alt text, it might change my behavior.
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@Yehuda I read ALT text for several reasons:
-Gives me the context of memes and other pics I don't understand just by looking at them.
-A certain image won't load (app issues, server issues, connection issues).
-I'm curious to see how other people describe images. I genuinely enjoy it sometimes as someone interested in writing, and it gives me ideas for my own ALT descriptions. -
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@Cassandra @equalitysiren @Yehuda Yes, screen readers actually do read the poll choices.
Additionally for screen reader users saying I'm a screen reader user And I skip reading alt text is very rare if not inpossible as screen readers are setup to present the images with alt text and skip images without it by default.
@pvagner Thank you!
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@Yehuda Sometimes. Maybe not often.
I agree that it is really important for everyone.
