#alt text has transcript for people with screen readers

[mallywarez]

A STORY BEGINS!

[FIRST - YOU ARE HERE!] | [NEXT] ->

Updates will be posted at least every week! If I forget to post it's because I'm busy.

Hi, I haven't made a webcomic in a long time! I figure this is the best way to slow down my pace of art here. This is going to be a Halloween Special of sorts! :]

[anistarrose]

You added an "image description" to my post - now what? (FAQ)

[Plain text: "You added an 'image description' to my post - now what? (FAQ)". End PT.]

While I'm literally always willing to answer (good faith) questions about image descriptions, alt text, and online accessibility writ large, I also know lots of people have social anxiety about sending DMs, doing IDs "wrong," or just not knowing what IDs are for in the first place. Hence, this FAQ.

If I added an ID to your post and/or asked you to do so, and you're confused about any aspect of that, this is where to start. You can absolutely still reach out to me, I just thought I should consolidate as many answers as possible.

"What is an ID and why does it matter?"

IDs are a description of the content of an image, and can range from a transcript of a screenshot of text, to a description of a detailed piece of art. They should be in plain text, and placed on the line immediately following the image (unless it's alt text, more on those pros and cons later).

IDs are primarily for blind and low vision people who use screen readers to navigate the internet — but help others too, including lots of neurodivergent people. Check out this post (link) and the notes for more examples (dyslexics, migraine sufferers, people who can't interpret expressions, people with slow internet...)

IDs are important because without them, the Internet really sucks for people who need them. You probably don't realize how many undescribed images circulate on tumblr every day, with no way for a lot of disabled people to engage with those posts.

A blind person talks in more detail about all of this here (link).

"I reblogged your ID, is that enough?"

It's not that I don't appreciate it, but editing it into the root post and then reblogging that is much more impactful, for a variety of reasons. It means people who need IDs don't have to dig through the notes for them, it means that Tumblr can't glitch by failing to load the notes and make the ID functionally disappear, and it means all people who find the post in the tags or on your blog will be sharing the accessible version.

To explain visually, the best thing to do is something like this:

[ID: two mock-up Tumblr posts to illustrate adding an ID from the notes to the root post. A blog named "your-blog" posts an image of text reading "something cool you posted" with the caption "check out this cool image I made!" In the notes, the blog "image-describer" reblogs with an ID, which is highlighted. This version of the post is labeled: "original post, reblogged via ID writer."

The second version of the post is from "your-blog" again, where they've added the ID directly under the image, with the same caption below the ID. This version is labeled "updated root post, with ID copy-pasted. End ID.]

"My caption/commentary first, or ID first?"

Include the ID right under the image, followed by your caption or commentary. Unless you're putting your commentary before the image itself, a sighted person will see "image, commentary" in that order, so to ensure the post flows the same way, use the order "image, ID, commentary."

Commentary frequently assumes that the reader has seen the image, after all! A person might not even realize the image is described if the ID is buried too deep, because they might lose patience and skip the post. Or, to explain visually:

[ID: two mock-up example posts with an ID, one formatted well and one poorly. They both start with an image, which is just the text "screenshot of a tweet or something." The first post includes the ID immediately under the image. Below, it continues: "commentary blah blah blah get a load of this guy can you believe it." The post is labeled "Like this!" in green with a check mark.

The second post includes the commentary first, then the ID after the commentary. It's labeled: "Reads awkwardly, deprives screen reader users of immediate context" in red with an X. End ID.]

"I want to make a change to the ID, is that okay?"

Yep! If you want me to change it on my blog too (whether it's characters' pronouns, some typo, etc), just message me.

"What if someone else adds an ID to my post? Would they also be okay with me editing it into the original post like you are?"

Almost certainly! I can't speak for everyone, but I've literally never met an ID writer who wouldn't be okay with it — because we all have the shared goal of maximizing accessibility. If you're unsure or nervous, you can always include credit, but most people are even fine with going uncredited.

"I put your ID in the alt text, is that enough?"

I will never tell you not to use alt text when the alternative is an undescribed post, but I really strongly suggest putting it in both the alt text and the post. Some people who use screen readers prefer the flow of alt text, for good reason — but it's also poorly implemented on Tumblr, and it can glitch and disappear on reblogs, in drafts, or just apropos of nothing.

Moreover, when a low-vision person or anyone else wants to read the alt text directly, Tumblr's display options aren't great. (Unless you use XKit Rewritten's AccessKit, which I will always plug, but that's not an option for mobile users.) Long alt text often extends off the page and gets cut off. Tumblr used to use a terrible eye-straining purple background for it, and could always do that again with no warning. It's just not ideal.

Here's a visually impaired person talking more about the pros and cons (link).

It seems we're in need of a compromise, so what can you do? One option is to include the same alt text as image description (placing the ID directly under the image as always, because remember, flow for screen readers is important). I like to lead with "ID from alt," in order to clarify to screen reader users that they can skip the ID, and help differentiate it from the other option I'm about to describe. This should be self-explanatory, but here's an example of a post I did in this style (link).

Option two is to include a short description in the alt text, and a more detailed explanation in-post. This can let screen reader users instantly know that the post is described, and decide whether they're interested enough in it to stick with it, but it maintains an in-post description for others to benefit from too.

Example of me doing this in a post about IDs (link)

Example of my mutual describing art like this (link)

Also, it's the style I follow throughout this exact post! Take a look!

As usual, the ID is directly below the image in all these cases. This means screen readers move immediately from the alt text to the full description, and the post flows the same way it would for a sighted person.

If you're here because I wrote an ID for you, it might be easier for you to put it in the alt text and the post body identically, and that's perfectly fine! But if you're confident writing one short sentence for the alt text and including my ID in the body, you can always go for that too!

"Do I need to keep the brackets or the words 'image description/ID' in the alt text?"

Nope, no need. Brackets are purely for the visual distinction, and most screen readers preface alt text with something like "Image" that fulfills the same purpose as the "ID" label. It's not the end of the world if they're there, but it's redundant, so feel free to remove them.

"Can I put the ID under a read more? Or in small text?"

Please don't. Read mores are glitchy, and oftentimes have to be opened in a new tab. Accessibility that requires jumping through extra hoops isn't accessibility. And worse, if you change your URL or get deactivated, that read more link is usually just gone for good, and the post is undescribed again.

Meanwhile, small text, italics, colored text, and so on aren't good for low vision people or others who read the IDs directly — such as with increased font size — for whatever reason. If you want the ID to stand out visually even more than with brackets, an indent is fine as far as I know. And remember, IDs always go immediately below the image!

"Why do you sometimes copy italics and stuff as plain text? Is that a screen reader thing too?"

Same reason IDs shouldn't be in small text, italics, etc — because of sight readers with low vision. Font in weird styles, or in a fixed size regardless of device settings (to my knowledge, this includes headings) isn't very accessible, so I try to provide an accessible transcript.

Colored text is sometimes even inaccessible to sighted people using certain Tumblr themes! If Tumblr gave individual users the option to disable small text and colors on their dash, then I'd tell you to use them to your heart's content, but as it stands, they're not very accessible.

"Okay, I want to make my blog more accessible, but I don't feel capable of writing IDs on my own. How can I get help?"

Good news, this is my absolute favorite question! I strongly recommend the People's Accessibility Discord (invite link here, please let me know if it breaks).

It was created for this exact purpose of crowdsourcing IDs (and answering questions about them). I talk about it more in this post (link), where I also describe an alternative if you're like me and have massive social anxieties about Discord servers.

TL;DR: ask in the post if someone can add an image description, and edit it in once someone does! If you've read this far in the post, you're clearly an expert on how to do that.

In that post, I also recommend OnlineOCR (link) and Google Lens to extract text from images and save you typing if it's just a twitter thread or something. I would always spot check the text, adjust formatting, and remove superfluous characters, but it usually saves you lots of time when you might not normally have the energy to describe something.

Lastly, a lot of description blogs take requests! I don't unless I specify otherwise, because I easily run out of spoons, but @accessible-art is a great example of a blog that does this for non-fandom art, and there are lots of fandom blogs out there that do similar.

"I want to learn how to write image descriptions for my posts! Do you have any resources?"

This is my image description masterpost (link). I get a little scared about linking it because it's long, and a lot of the linked posts are long, and I don't want to overwhelm people — so please, start with the first few links to get the broad strokes, and then feel free to treat the rest like a index. That is, peruse it if you're looking for answers or advice on a specific topic!

While learning, keep in mind that different ID users want different things out of IDs, and that's okay. Some people, including many blind people, care quite a bit about color, but others don't, and that doesn't mean either is wrong about the types of IDs they prefer versus ones they find unnecessary.

Blind people have a massive range of lived experiences, and all the other people who benefit from IDs broaden that range even more. Generally, no one involved wants huge walls of text, but some people prefer super-minimal IDs, while others prefer a nice handful of (relevant) details. It's stuff like the difference between "Two characters hugging in a cozy-looking house," versus "Two characters hugging with their eyes closed, both smiling. Their house looks cozy and cluttered, with warm lighting."

Neither of those is objectively wrong, and there will be people who prefer either. Nor is it wrong for you, the ID writer, to make a subjective judgement, such as on the "cozy" mood. You don't want to misrepresent things, but subjectivity is usually unavoidable on some level, and therefore fine. Likewise, you don't want to let the ID get so long it's a slog to get through (here's an example of what NOT to do), but if you're describing a complicated image like some art might be, it's okay to add some details. Just start with the important stuff and general idea first.

The purpose of an image also matters. With memes, shorter is almost always better, and excessive detail is annoying (post with examples). You don't need in-depth detail to appreciate most quick jokes. But on the other hand, art is often shared for the purpose of appreciating the details. This post goes into detail about how context matters, and how longer IDs make sense for art sometimes. It puts it better than I could, so I really suggest reading it if this is something you're wondering about! Key word: not length, not brevity, but "relevancy."

In my opinion, IDs are easiest to learn by doing, but also by starting small. If you want to build up your "description muscles" and confidence by just transcribing tweets, that's perfectly fine — and also, the path that myself and a lot of people I know have followed.

Lastly: follow some described blogs! Check out how other people do it! Writing IDs is an art, and though it has a few hard do's and don't's we've gone over, we've also gone over how it's subjective. Everyone brings a slightly different style, with a different level of lengthiness, and it's great to learn from multiple sources. Here's one list of blogs like those (link)!

"Why would this matter if I know I don't have any blind people following me?"

Consider the cycle of inaccessibility (link). If no one ever accommodates blind people, then of course you're not going to see them on Tumblr, in fandom, or in whatever internet circles! And blind people aren't the only people who need image descriptions — again, consider this post, especially this addition (link).

Worst case scenario, even if you have no one who can benefit from IDs either following you, and no people who need IDs would follow you even if you included them, you're still helping people who do maintain accessible blogs to do so — and moreover, normalizing image descriptions in general.

"I don't think blind people would be in this fandom. I mean, there's a huge visual component!"

Described comics and webcomics exist. Audio descriptions for TV shows and movies exist. Disabled people who find creative ways to play video games exist. People who watched a playthrough of a video game by a person who happened to read out the dialogue, and give descriptive commentary on the action, also exist. People who lose their vision over time, or gain other reasons to rely on IDs over time, also exist.

[copperbadge]

Hi Sam. A potentially stupid question. Image descriptions for screen readers. Do they work the same way for audio and video? As in are they needed or helpful? I'm finding conflicting answers when I search for this.

Not at all a stupid question! I think sometimes it can vary by community, to be honest.

Screen-reader users, visually impaired folk, and others for whom IDs are particularly relevant, feel free to chime in; I'm going to ramble and you likely have more useful stuff to say. Remember to do it in reblogs or notes, as I don't post asks sent in response to other asks.

I'm not visually impaired, and I don't use a screen reader and thus am not really able to speak with firsthand authority. In the past, when I've asked, I've heard that in-post text is better than alt-text for images; even if that stops being the case, I prefer to use in-post text because there are people who aren't screen-reader users who also like the IDs. I do too, actually. And generally I've heard that video as well as image should be described. I don't do straight audio generally, but when I do, if it's a song I don't bother because the title is there and lyrics are googleable, if it's speech I like to see/give a transcript.

I like when videos have descriptions especially, because I am almost never in a position to play a video I see on my dash. If the video doesn't autoplay I don't want to hit play because then it will load with audio and I'm usually either a) somewhere I can't have audio or b) already listening to something and unwilling to turn it off. If the video autoplays it's muted, but if it's audio-heavy there's the same issue. So if someone posts a video without a description/transcript, unless it has captions, I can't engage.

There are a lot of guides out there for how to write IDs and I kind of think, based on conversations I've had, most of them are bullshit by people who don't use screen readers. In my experience, which is not universal but is relatively comprehensive, people who can't see an image often do not want a precise objective description as we're instructed to provide.

There's a great essay that touches on this, Against Access, where the writer, who is Deafblind, talks about how he doesn't want a diagram, he wants an emotional evocation.

Why are you telling me, telling me, telling me things? Your job isn’t to deliver this whole room to me on a silver platter. I don’t want the silver platter. I want to attack this room. I want to own it, just like how the sighted people here own it. Or, if the room isn’t worth owning, then I want to grab whatever I find worth stealing.

I've had people get shitty with me about putting "feelings" into my IDs, but the majority of people for whom those IDs are necessary have told me they like it because, for example, saying "She looks like she's about to commit violence" is a subjective opinion but conveys something that "A woman is standing with arms upraised and a frown on her face" does not. And if you're describing an image but there's not a ton of meaning to it, describing it in clinical detail is wasting time. A paragraph describing a fortysomething white guy and all the clothing he's wearing and the room he's in is not as helpful, on occasion, as simply saying "This is a photograph of me in my bedroom." It depends on context, which is your call to make, and the only way to get good at that is to do it.

But again: this is my experience with my readers, and even John Lee Clark, quoted above, doesn't speak for his whole community. So I would suggest that the best way to get an answer for this is just to ask your readers what they'd prefer. If you have friends who use screenreaders, ask them. If you don't, or if you don't get a response from your readers, I would do what you feel is best until someone tells you otherwise, and then be gracious and discuss it with them so you can better understand their needs. In my experience, when someone is genuinely trying to make a more welcoming space for disabilities -- as opposed to making virtue-signal attempts to Be The Perfect Ally -- they get a lot of slack when they don't get it exactly right. It is better to make a welcoming space for people to feel safe telling you that you fucked up than it is to pretend you're never going to fuck up.

So yeah, as someone who is more or less fully sighted, that's my two cents, but if you really want to know what your readers want, you know...I'd ask them. :) Good luck, either way.

[horatiocomehome]

Hello I have some accessibility and/or quality of life tips for people making isat dialogue gifs with that one maker!

the default text speed is “very slow.” please. please turn up the text speed a little. Maybe this one's just for me but my adhd will kill me if I have to wait too long to read / wait for the gif to reset

I like to put a 1s pause [PS=1000] at the end of each dialogue box to give people time to read as a good compromise.

If you’re doing a really long exchange in a single gif, you can use an online converter to make it a video and that way people can pause or rewind to the start instead of having to rewatch the full gif!

Also, consider including a transcript of the dialogue in either alt text or the body of the post for people using screen-readers!

If anyone else has accessibility / other tips feel free to add on!

[murdotranscribes]

[Profile picture transcription: An eye shape with a rainbow flag covering the whites. The iris in the middle is red, with a white d20 for a pupil. End transcription.]

Hello! This is a blog specifically dedicated to image transcriptions. My main blog is @murdomaclachlan.

For those who don't know, I used to be part of r/TranscribersOfReddit, a Reddit community dedicated to transcribing posts to improve accessibility. That project sadly had to shut down, partially as a result of the whole fiasco with Reddit's API changes. But I miss transcribing and I often see posts on Tumblr with no alt text and no transcription.

So! Here I am, making a new blog. I'll be transcribing posts that need it when I see them and I have time; likely mainly ones I see on my dashboard. I also have asks open so anyone can request posts or images.

I have plenty of experience transcribing but that doesn't mean I'm perfect. We can always learn to be better and I'm not visually impaired myself, so if you have any feedback on how I can improve my transcriptions please don't hesitate to tell me. Just be friendly about it.

The rest of this post is an FAQ, adapted from one I posted on Reddit.

1. Why do you do transcriptions?

Transcriptions help improve the accessibility of posts. Tumblr has capabilities for adding alt-text to images, but not everyone uses it, and it has a character limit that can hamper descriptions for complex images. The following is a non-exhaustive list of the ways transcriptions improve accessibility:

They help visually-impaired people. Most visually-impaired people rely on screen readers, technology that reads out what's on the screen, but this technology can't read out images.

They help people who have trouble reading any small, blurry or oddly formatted text.

In some cases they're helpful for people with colour deficiencies, particularly if there is low contrast.

They help people with bad internet connections, who might as a result not be able to load images at high quality or at all.

They can provide context or note small details many people may otherwise miss when first viewing a post.

They are useful for search engine indexing and the preservation of images.

They can provide data for improving OCR (Optical Character Recognition) technology.

2. Why don't you just use OCR or AI?

OCR (Optical Character Recoginition) is technology that detects and transcribes text in an image. However, it is currently insufficient for accessibility purposes for three reasons:

It can and does get a lot wrong. It's most accurate on simple images of plain text (e.g. screenshots of social media posts) but even there produces errors from time to time. Accessibility services have to be as close to 100% accuracy as possible. OCR just isn't reliable enough for that.

Even were OCR able to 100%-accurately describe text, there are many portions of images that don't have text, or relevant context that should be placed in transcriptions to aid understanding. OCR can't do this.

"AI" in terms of what most people mean by it - generative AI - should never be used for anything where accuracy is a requirement. Generative AI doesn't answer questions, it doesn't describe images, and it doesn't read text. It takes a prompt and it generates a statistically-likely response. No matter how well-trained it is, there's always a chance that it makes up nonsense. That simply isn't acceptable for accessibility.

3. Why do you say "image transcription" and not "image ID"?

I'm from r/TranscribersOfReddit and we called them transcriptions there. It's ingrained in my mind.

For the same reason, I follow advice and standards from our old guidelines that might not exactly match how many Tumblr transcribers do things.

[dcdisabilitypride]

How will DC Disability Pride Week make content accessible?

We have received tons of great ideas on how to make this event accessible to as many people as possible.

Required image and video descriptions AND alt text: Image descriptions and alt text are vital to many users, whether they be visually impaired, have visual processing difficulties, or would rather have an image described to them. If you don't have experience with or struggle writing image descriptions or alt text, our server has people ready and willing to help out as well as resources on how to write image descriptions and alt text.

Required transcription: On audio and video content, we will be requiring transcription for users who have hearing impairments, sound sensitivities, or would rather read the contents of a piece of audio than listen to it. Like image descriptions, our server has resources and people willing to help you if you don't have experience with or struggle to write transcriptions.

Flexible posting deadlines: While voting can only be open for set amounts of time (for example, prompt voting cannot be open during the event week), we will not impose any hard deadline on posting.

Warnings: Content that may be triggering or dangerous will be heavily tagged. We plan to tag for common triggers (medical problems, trypophobia, ableism, et cetera) as well as accessibility concerns such as flashing images, bright colors, and loud sounds.

Screen reader-friendly fan fiction: To make sure everyone can enjoy fics written for this event, we will be requiring works posted to Archive of Our Own to be screen reader-friendly.

Do you have other ideas for making this event as accessible as possible? Let us know in our inbox or on the notes of this post how we can make an inclusive event for the most people possible!

[opalescent-apples]

wait, how does one describe an image…

I'm really not the person to be asking this, as I don't require a screen reader. I believe I have a post explaining what little I know... I'm copy pasting the info here.

For good examples, please check out the blog @/accessible-art . They describe art as much as they can, and they would likely give better advice than I would.

If you still would like to hear what I know, here it is:

What I do is try to describe as much of what's in the image as possible without too many words and without adding any subjective opinions. Key details like colors, poses, shapes, styles, and expressions take priority when I describe my own art.

With a text screenshot, make sure to include the name of the person who said it if their name is in the shot, and the source if possible. Double check your transcription.

Also: treat words typed with numbers as letters as though they need an ID, or tag them undescribed. I have seen multiple screen reader users complain about Homestuck quirks.

And: Never fill the alt text with anything but an image description! I have seen so many people complain about that. A picture of a person holding a rock should be "person holding a rock" not "Image 1" or "teehehe let me tell you a pun here!" There's more than one way I've seen people add alt text.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, A DISCLAIMER: I am not someone who needs image descriptions. I am sighted, do not require a screen reader for Tumblr, and usually do not have trouble reading strange or edited fonts. I am not the target audience for an ID, so it would be better to research further if you want your IDs to be good.

I would also like people who are more qualified to correct any unintentional errors in this post. I am also looking to improve my IDs. I wish you the best of luck! Anyone who has better advice, please add on!

(do not use this post to talk about hating image descriptions.)

[army-of-bee-assassins]

back with more questions regarding image descriptions!!

let's say there is an artwork for a fandom that is specific to one country mostly. (Czechia in this example) since the thing the fandom is based on is in Czech. should I write the image description in English or in Czech?

also I've heard somewhere that proper writing should be used in them, is that true? like if the original text is caps lock I should put it to regular. or when no punctuation is used, I should add it.

i hope these aren't stupid, questions. I'm thinking of adding descriptions to all pictures on my art sideblog and I want to do it right :)!!

hi there! sorry for the late response on this one!

so for your first question, i would write the image description in czech in that case! generally speaking, i would write in the language that most of the post's audience will be using. or perhaps whatever language the op was using. you can also do the image description in more than one language (like english and czech for example) if you want. but one language will generally be sufficient.

in terms of proper grammar in image descriptions, i am not sure that it is vital (tho people are welcome to correct me on this), but i believe that it is preferred by some people. i usually use proper capitalization and punctuation in my ids. but again, any id is better than none.

as for correcting punctuation and capitalization when transcribing text, usually the rule of thumb is to transcribe the text as-is, without editing anything. the main exception would be for an honest-to-god typo (like fully a mistake, not a misspelling that was added for comedic effect) that may affect the post's legibility. in that case, you can usually correct the spelling. but otherwise i wouldn't edit the capitalization, spelling, or punctuation. if something would be truly incomprehensible for a screen reader (like something with a lot of words intentionally misspelled), then you might transcribe it as-is, followed by a "translation"/plain text of what it's meant to say.

when it comes to things that are in all caps - there are some mixed thoughts on this. i think these days most screen readers will read all caps just normally, but certain words may instead be read as an acronym. for example, "it" in all caps might be read as "I-T", like the acronym for "information technology." another thing to note is that no screen reader (as far as i'm aware) will make any note of something being in all caps. this means that when all caps are used for emphasis, a screen reader user has no way of knowing that the emphasis was there. lastly - and maybe this is just a personal preference and doesn't extend to other people - i find it kind of difficult to read a long stretch of text (like, more than a few sentences) that is in all caps. for all of these reasons listed, i often like to transcribe all caps with normal capitalization, just with a note that indicates that it was in all caps. for example: "The sign reads: [in all caps] 'do not enter'". these sorts of notes can also be added when all caps are used for emphasis. however - i'm honestly not sure if there's an agreed best practice on the transcription of all caps text. or if there is, i still need to learn about it.

just as a general note for alt text and image descriptions - a great way to learn a bit more about how screen readers work is to try out the screen reader on your phone! pretty much all modern phones have a screen reader in the accessibility settings, and you can set up a quick shortcut to turn it on and off with ease. for my phone, i just hold down both volume keys for a few seconds to turn it on. once the screen reader is on, swipe left or right to change what is highlighted and being read, and double tap to select what is highlighted. there are more settings than that, but that's what you need for just basic navigation. once you've figured out how to use your screen reader, try it out on different tumblr posts to see what it's like, and try it out on alt text or image descriptions that you write to see if they read well.

thanks for the thoughtful questions again!

[fuzzy-robot]

I love this post! If I may, I also wanted to add something on--

ACCESSIBILITY!

It's a personal webdev passion of mine and it's been frustrating seeing a lot of newer websites adopting fancier or more mobile-focused design at the cost of accessibility to a wider userbase. Whether you're new to web design or not, making sites more universally user-friendly is pretty simple imo!

Users To Consider:

Visually impaired people

Hard-of-hearing people

Neurodivergent people

People who don't navigate solely by visual screen plus mouse or touchscreen device (e.g. keyboard-only users, other assistive technology users)

People with older/less powerful devices or poor internet service

And many more!

Overview!

Current accessibility principles can be summed up with the POUR acronym: content should be Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust.

Perceivable: content is easy for the user to see or hear. One example of this is that images/video/audio should have alt text or transcripts where applicable. For sighted users, text and backgrounds should have enough contrast to be readable (more on that below) and you shouldn't alter the site in a way that makes visually impaired people unable to enlarge text.

Operable: the user should be able to navigate the page by mouse/touchscreen/keyboard--any simple HTML site will have basic keyboard navigation options provided by the browser, just be mindful of whether adding advanced features could alter that. Also, if your navigation buttons are images, make sure to use alt text or provide an alternative!

Understandable: both the content and controls should be understandable and easy to read. This means that as well as being Perceivable, they should be organized consistently and placed on the same part of the page. Also consider making plaintext links more obvious with your color choice and/or formatting.

Robust: content should work with current and future technologies. This means it can be accessed by different browsers and operating systems, but most importantly for this level of design, it means being accessible to screen readers and other assistive technologies!

QUICK TIPS!!

Use alt text!!! Here's a w3schools page showing where you put alt text in the html code, and here is a w3c decision-tree on where and how to use alt text. ABSOLUTELY use it if you're using images as links!!

Color usage! When picking out background/text/link colors, check the color contrasts here or here to see how well they match up to the W3C's accessibility guidelines! -Write meaningful link text! Here is one guide on that, including stuff like keeping links descriptive for screen readers, not making urls into link texts, and keeping them short and informative

In-Depth Guidelines

WebAIM (Web Accessibility in Mind) is a site with a ton of content on different aspects of web accessibility. Here is a direct link to a page of their most-used tools and guides.

Right here is a nice, simple rundown of universal design when it comes to web accessibility. The tone is a bit more academic but I think it's a nice overview.

Much more in-depth is W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines document! It's long and not necessarily exciting, but it's comprehensive AND has a nicely organized and linked table of contents that can lead you to suggestions for improving any features you're considering, meaning you can read the whole thing or just jump around to relevant or interesting parts.

I don't think I followed all of these tips in my own blog HTML or even the body of this post (oops) because I put it together on the fly, but if you can, I think these are all principles that are good to keep in mind🌟

neocities guide - why you should build your own html website

do you miss the charm of the 90s/00s web where sites had actual personality instead of the same minimalistic theme? are you feeling drained by social media and the constant corporate monopoly of your data and time? do you want to be excited about the internet again? try neocities!!

what is neocities?

neocities is a free hosting website that lets you build your own html website from scratch, with total creative control. in their own words: "we are tired of living in an online world where people are isolated from each other on boring, generic social networks that don't let us truly express ourselves. it's time we took back our personalities from these sterilized, lifeless, monetized, data mined, monitored addiction machines and let our creativity flourish again."

why should I make my own website?

web3 has been overtaken by capitalism & conformity. websites that once were meant to be fun online social spaces now exist solely to steal your data and sell you things. it sucks!! building a personal site is a great way to express yourself and take control of your online experience.

what would I even put on a website?

the best part about making your own site is that you can do literally whatever the hell you want! focus on a specific subject or make it a wild collection of all your interests. share your art! make a shrine for one of your interests! post a picture of every bird you see when you step outside! make a collection of your favorite blinkies! the world is your oyster !! here are some cool example sites to inspire you: recently updated neocities sites | it can be fun to just look through these and browse people's content! space bar | local interstellar dive bar creature feature | halloween & monsters big gulp supreme peanutbuttaz | personal site dragodiluna linwood | personal site patho grove | personal site

getting started: neocities/html guide

sound interesting? here are some guides to help you get started, especially if you aren't familiar with html/css sadgrl.online webmastery | a fantastic resource for getting started with html & web revival. also has a layout builder that you can use to start with in case starting from scratch is too intimidating web design in 4 minutes | good for learning coding basics w3schools | html tutorials templaterr | demo & html for basic web elements eggramen test pages | css page templates to get started with sadgrl background tiles | bg tiles rivendell background tiles | more free bg tiles

fun stuff to add to your site

want your site to be cool? here's some fun stuff that i've found blinkies-cafe | fantastic blinkie maker! (run by @transbro & @graphics-cafe) gificities | internet archive of 90s/00s web gifs internet bumper stickers | web bumper stickers momg | gif gallery 99 gif shop | 3d gifs 123 guestbook | add a guestbook for people to leave messages cbox | add a live chat box moon phases | track the phases of the moon gifypet | a little clickable page pet adopt a shroom | mushroom page pet tamaNOTchi | virtual pet crossword puzzle | daily crossword imood | track your mood neko | cute cat that chases your mouse pollcode | custom poll maker website hit counter | track how many visitors you have

web revival manifestos & communities

also, there's actually a pretty cool community of people out there who want to bring joy back to the web! melonland project | web project/community celebrating individual & joyful online experiences. Also has an online forum melonland intro to web revival | what is web revival? melonking manifesto | status cafe | share your current status nightfall city | online community onio.cafe | leave a message and enjoy the ambiance sadgrl internet manifesto | yesterweb internet manifesto | sadly defunct, still a great resource reclaiming online social spaces | great manifesto on cultivating your online experience

in conclusion

i want everyone to make a neocities site because it's fun af and i love seeing everyone's weird personal sites that they made outside of the control of capitalism :) say hi to me on neocities

[devoqdesign]

Designing for Accessibility: Creating Inclusive Web Experiences for Users with Disabilities

In today's digital landscape, creating inclusive web experiences is not just a trend but a necessity. With billions of people relying on websites and online platforms to access information, products, and services, it’s critical that these experiences are accessible to everyone, including users with disabilities. Designing for accessibility ensures that websites and applications are usable by individuals with diverse abilities, allowing them to engage with content in a way that suits their specific needs.

Accessibility in web design focuses on making digital experiences inclusive for individuals with a range of disabilities, such as visual, auditory, cognitive, motor, and other impairments. Not only is this crucial from a user-centered perspective, but it's also important from a legal standpoint, as many regions have established regulations that require businesses to provide accessible digital experiences.

This blog will explore the importance of designing for accessibility, the key principles of accessible design, and practical strategies for creating web experiences that cater to all users, regardless of their abilities.

1. Why Accessibility Matters

Designing for accessibility is more than just ensuring compliance with legal standards; it’s about fostering inclusivity and equality in the digital world. The internet has become an essential part of daily life, used for shopping, education, work, entertainment, and communication. When websites and apps aren’t accessible, they effectively exclude millions of people from these essential functions.

Here’s why accessibility matters:

- User Inclusion: Around 15% of the world’s population, or over 1 billion people, have some form of disability. Creating accessible digital experiences allows this significant group to interact with content and participate in the digital economy without barriers.

- Legal Compliance: In many countries, accessibility is mandated by law. For example, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the United States requires that websites provide equal access to individuals with disabilities. Similarly, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) set global standards for web accessibility.

- Improved SEO and Usability: Designing with accessibility in mind not only benefits users with disabilities but also enhances the overall usability of a website for all users. Accessible websites often perform better in search engine rankings because they are built with clean, semantic code and improved navigation structures.

2. Key Principles of Accessible Web Design

To create accessible web experiences, designers and developers must adhere to specific principles that make content usable for all. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) outline four key principles that form the foundation of accessible design, known as POUR: Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust.

a. Perceivable

Content must be presented in a way that users can perceive it, regardless of their sensory abilities.

- Text Alternatives: All non-text content, such as images, videos, and charts, should include text alternatives (alt text) that describe the content to users who rely on screen readers. For example, an image of a dog should include an alt tag like "a golden retriever playing in the park."

- Captions and Transcripts: For multimedia content, such as videos, providing captions for audio and transcripts for video ensures that users with hearing impairments can access the content.

- Color and Contrast: Visual elements, like text, should have sufficient contrast against their background to be easily readable by users with low vision or color blindness. Tools like contrast checkers can help ensure adequate contrast ratios in design.

b. Operable

Users must be able to navigate and interact with the interface regardless of their device or input method.

- Keyboard Navigation: Many users with motor disabilities rely on keyboards, rather than mice, to navigate websites. Therefore, websites should be fully navigable using just the keyboard, with focus indicators clearly visible as users tab through elements.

- Accessible Forms: Form fields should have clear labels, and error messages should be communicated in ways that users can easily understand. Assistive technologies should be able to read out form instructions to ensure that users can complete tasks without confusion.

- Navigation Consistency: Providing consistent navigation throughout a website ensures that users with cognitive or learning disabilities can easily understand and follow the interface's structure.

c. Understandable

Content and the user interface must be easy to understand.

- Readable Content: Use clear, simple language that can be understood by a wide range of users. Avoid jargon or overly complex vocabulary unless necessary, and provide explanations for technical terms.

- Predictable Design: Elements of the user interface should behave in predictable ways. For example, links should be easily distinguishable, and buttons should perform the actions that users expect when clicked. Inconsistencies in the interface can confuse users, particularly those with cognitive disabilities.

- Error Prevention and Recovery: Forms and input fields should have features that prevent users from making mistakes. For example, use drop-down menus or radio buttons when appropriate, and provide clear instructions on how to correct errors if they occur.

d. Robust

Web content must be robust enough to function across different devices and assistive technologies.

- Compatibility with Assistive Technologies: Websites should be coded in a way that allows compatibility with a variety of assistive technologies, such as screen readers, braille readers, and speech-to-text software. This includes using semantic HTML, ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) attributes, and ensuring that elements like buttons and links are properly coded for accessibility.

3. Practical Strategies for Designing Accessible Websites

While understanding the principles of accessibility is essential, applying them in practice requires specific techniques and tools. Here are some practical strategies that can help designers and developers create more inclusive web experiences:

Test with Assistive Technologies

Regularly test your website with screen readers and other assistive technologies to ensure it works correctly for users with disabilities. By using these tools during the development process, you can identify potential issues early on and make adjustments before launching the site.

Provide Keyboard Shortcuts

Offering keyboard shortcuts for common actions, such as navigating between sections of a page or interacting with form fields, enhances the usability of your website for users who rely on keyboards. Ensure that keyboard users can easily access all interactive elements, such as buttons, links, and forms, and that there are no "keyboard traps" where users get stuck.

Make Forms Accessible

Forms are a critical part of many websites, but they can be particularly challenging for users with disabilities. To improve form accessibility:

- Use descriptive labels for every form field, and ensure the label is properly associated with the input field using the `for` attribute in HTML.

- Provide clear error messages and instructions in a way that is accessible to screen readers.

- Offer visual and non-visual cues for required fields.

4. The Future of Accessibility in Web Design

As technology continues to advance, the future of accessibility in web design is bright. With the rise of AI, machine learning, and voice-based interfaces, web accessibility is becoming more dynamic and adaptive. AI can help generate more accurate alt text, offer real-time captioning for multimedia content, and even assist with personalized accessibility settings based on user behavior.

Moreover, companies like Microsoft and Apple are investing in advanced accessibility features, such as eye-tracking software and gesture-based controls, which will further enhance how users with disabilities interact with digital experiences.

Conclusion: 

Designing for accessibility is not just about meeting legal requirements or accommodating a specific subset of users—it's about creating a better, more inclusive experience for everyone. By following accessibility principles and employing best practices, designers can ensure that their websites are usable by all, regardless of their abilities. Prioritizing accessibility leads to more efficient, user-friendly designs that benefit all users, fostering inclusivity in the digital world.

As accessibility becomes a standard expectation rather than an afterthought, it’s important for businesses, designers, and developers to stay informed about the latest tools and techniques. Accessible design is ultimately about making the web a place where everyone, regardless of their abilities, can participate fully.

Devoq Design is a leading UI/UX design agency in Maitland and the UI/UX design agency in Blue Mountains, delivering creative and user-centric digital solutions. Their team specializes in designing intuitive interfaces and smooth user experiences that meet the specific needs of businesses. Whether in Maitland or the Blue Mountains, Devoq Design provides high-quality, tailored solutions that enhance digital engagement and support long-term business growth across various platforms.

[anistarrose]

Friendly but firm reminder that neither image descriptions nor audio/video transcripts should be in weird fonts, colors, or small text. With audio transcripts, it's presumably obvious why readability makes or breaks a caption, and with image descriptions, I genuinely understand the source of the misconceptions, but not all people who use IDs use screen readers. Some use large text instead, and weird fonts mess with that.

This is text that I personally have to squint to read more than a few words of, because the font has such a low weight.

["Chat" text reads: "This is text that I personally have to squint to read more than a few words of, because the font has such a low weight."]

Having to read text like this might be difficult for some people, or possible but eyestrain-inducing for others.

[Italicized text reads: "Having to read text like this might be difficult for some people, or possible but eyestrain-inducing for others."]

Here, the font is fine, but the colors are too low-contrast to be read on lots of tumblr themes.

[Green text reads: "Here, the font is fine, but the colors are too low-contrast to be read on lots of tumblr themes."]

And this is just way too small to be a useful accessibility feature for anyone who reads image descriptions directly, as well as anyone who reads transcripts.

[Small text reads: "And this is just way too small to be a useful accessibility feature for anyone who reads image descriptions directly, as well as anyone who read transcripts."]

For people using desktop who can't read some of this text, XKit Rewritten's AccessKit provides options to disable special colors and fonts (not to mention a nice alt text display option). But to my knowledge, there's no workaround for mobile users. That's why it's critical to include captions that are accessible themselves!

If you're on desktop and able to copy-paste, and a post you intend to reblog has an inaccessibly formatted ID or transcript, please consider taking just a second to copy the description in plain text. (Same for IDs under read more tbh, because we all know how glitchy that function can be.)

I do this often, and have never had anyone get mad about it — only the occasional sincere question as to why. Addressing misconceptions from well-intentioned users — and trust me, I used to have misconceptions too — is the best way to make Tumblr (or any other comparable website) more accessible, one or two posts at a time.

(guide to image descriptions) / (second alternate guide)

(guide to describing tags) / (make your blog's colors readable)

[mobileappdevelopmentsolution]

Why Accessibility Matters for UI/UX Design

User interface (UI) and user experience (UX) design aim to create digital products and services that are intuitive, enjoyable, and accessible to all users. However, accessibility is often treated as an afterthought rather than being built into the design process from the start. 

This blog post will explain why prioritizing accessibility in UI/UX design is crucial for both ethical and business reasons.

The Ethical Case for Accessibility

First and foremost, accessibility is about inclusion and upholding the rights of people with disabilities. According to the World Health Organization, over 1 billion people across the globe live with some form of disability. 

Some key statistics:

- Visual impairments affect 285 million people worldwide.  

- Hearing loss impacts 430 million adults globally.

- Around 15% of the world's population has some form of disability.

People with disabilities have the same rights to access information, engage with digital content, and participate in society as able-bodied users. However, inaccessible design creates barriers that exclude people from using technology successfully.

UI/UX designers have an ethical responsibility to ensure their work can be used by people with diverse abilities. After all, the purpose of design is to solve problems for *all* users, not just some. Failing to consider accessibility harms real people and perpetuates digital inequality.

Type of Disability

Number of People Affected Globally

Visual Impairment

285 million

Hearing Loss

430 million adults

Any Disability

~15% of world population

The Business Case for Accessibility

Beyond ethics, prioritizing accessibility also makes smart business sense for a few key reasons:

#1. Expanded Reach and Revenue

Accessible design allows businesses to reach a larger customer base. According to the Return on Disability Group, the annual disposable income for working-age people with disabilities globally is $8 trillion.

User Group

Estimated Spending Power

People with disabilities

$8 trillion

Friends/family of people with disabilities

$6.9 trillio

Building accessible websites and apps enables companies to tap into this lucrative market. It expands the potential pool of customers and leads. And by being inclusive, brands also build trust and loyalty amongst disability communities.

# 2. Mitigated Legal Risks

In many countries, digital accessibility is required by law. For example, in the United States, ADA Title III prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in "places of public accommodation" - including websites and apps. 

Companies that fail to comply face legal risks such as government audits, lawsuits, fines, and damaged public reputation. Proactively addressing accessibility minimizes these liabilities.

#3. Improved Search Engine Optimization

Accessible design also boosts SEO performance. Sites that conform with web accessibility guidelines tend to be cleaner and more optimized for search engines like Google.

Factors like semantic HTML markup, alt text for images, and closed captioning for videos all help search bots better crawl and index pages. This can lead to improved search rankings and visibility. 

Implementing Accessibility in UI/UX

Here are some tips to embed accessibility into the UI/UX design process:

- Conduct user research with people who have visual, hearing, mobility or cognitive impairments to understand needs and pain points.

- Design with accessibility guidelines like WCAG 2.1 and Section 508 in mind from the outset.

- Test prototypes with assistive technologies like screen readers to find gaps. 

- Write clean code that uses proper semantics and structure.

- Add appropriate alt text for every visual element.

- Ensure copy is readable by avoiding jargon, writing clearly and using sufficient contrast.

- Make interfaces keyboard and screen reader accessible so they don't require a mouse. 

- Provide captions/transcripts for audiovisual content.

- Allow flexibility in navigation and interactions to accommodate diverse needs.

- Include accessibility statements on sites to let users know about available features.

Conclusion 

While accessibility in UI/UX design still has room for improvement, the landscape is steadily evolving. Many companies are realizing the benefits of inclusive practices and working hard to implement them. 

Looking ahead, we can expect to see continued advances in accessible technology and more stringent web accessibility regulations worldwide. To stay at the forefront, UI/UX agencies must make universal usability a core tenet of their process.

At Consagous Technologies, a leading UI/UX design company, we specialize in building cutting-edge yet accessible mobile apps. Our UI/UX designers conduct in-depth user research, design with diversity in mind, and rigorously test products to ensure seamless experiences for all. To learn more about our human-centered approach, contact us today.

[adasitecompliance]

Video Accessibility Guidelines

Making Your Videos Accessible: A Step-by-Step Guide

Video content has grown into the most popular form of content available online. It does not matter if you have an educational institution, a banking app, a school, or a blog post. Videos are the most consumed form of content. Unfortunately, 15% of the world’s population finds accessing and consuming the content challenging. And it is because of their disabilities. This is why video creators should create accessible videos to level the playing field and let all their visitors access their online media. Follow Video Accessibility Guidelines for an inclusive online presence.

How can we make videos accessible?

Multiple things can be done, like the right video players, adding captions, and using the right colors and fonts. This needs time and effort; if you need help, we at ADA Site Compliance can help. We are the #1 source for all ADA website compliance issues and can make your video accessible to all users. We have a team of accessibility experts on hand to check the video’s dialogue for accessibility and perform the appropriate measures to ensure compliance.

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) was first published in 1999 to make web content available to users with disabilities. It was published by the World Web Consortium, and complying with WCAG 2.0 guidelines ensures governmental organization websites and media are accessible and compliant.

Who Benefits from Accessible Videos?

In addition to users with disabilities, other users may prefer watching the video without sound, like while in the library or at night when children are asleep. In this case, accessible videos with captions make a better choice for them.

Checklist to Create Accessible Video Content

Videos everyone can access can go a long way to getting people to view your fantastic content. It expands the reach of your content as the message is conveyed through images, sound, speech, and words on the screen.

The following tips are based on the WCAG and help ensure people with visual, hearing, or cognitive disabilities connect with your content.

1. Media alternative transcript

These are text transcripts describing what is displayed in the video displayed with the speech. Thus, blind users or those with visual loss can easily see alt text and access the video using screen readers.

2. Standard and Extended Audio Descriptions

Standard audio description is an audio description of the visual elements of a video created for the benefit of users with vision loss. Its voice track is written and recorded to fit the gaps between the existing dialogues and audio elements. A voice artist will record, or you can generate a synthetic voice of the final audio description. Extended audio descriptions are used in cases where the video does not have enough natural gaps within the soft track. The video is edited to pause at certain points to accommodate the secondary audio track description and ends up increasing the length of the final video.

3. Use an accessible media player

It is not just the content of video recording that has to be accessible for web accessibility. It also requires that the right accessible video player is used to relay the video content.

4. Adding Captions to Your Social Media Videos

Adding captions to your social media videos increases its web accessibility by:

Communicating your message better as words run with the speaker makes it easier for silent scrollers to enjoy your valuable content.

Making content accessible to everyone, even the hearing-impaired, as they can access the video.

Making content more engaging through moving captions to increase consumer interaction and attention.

5. Remove Autoplay From Videos

Autoplay can be distracting and even an obstacle to people with disabilities. They find it challenging and distracting to read the page with video playing while reading. Besides, the risk of videos hurting people with seizures makes auto video-playing a threat. This can be prevented by ensuring the video is played only when clicked.

6. Make High-Quality Audio

The video and audio must go in sync with your video. Quality voiceovers and a pleasant audio experience are important for accessibility and an overall user experience. Besides, WCAG requires reduced background music to cater to users with hearing or cognitive difficulties.

7. Closed Transcripts and Captions

Your video and audio content should include a caption file relating to every spoken message and non-speech sound. This means the captions should include song descriptions and indicate the tone while speaking, too. It is also always better to provide transcript documents for easy access by users with disabilities.

8. Don’t Forget an Audio Description or Voiceover

Your audio description can be compared to a podcast serving the same purpose. It delivers information without the viewer needing to visualize any information. Audio descriptions are better than transcripts for blind users or the visually impaired. Adding audio or video recording to descriptions may seem uncomfortable to some but becomes second nature once done.

9. Choose and Use the Right Video Colors

With about 7% of Americans having color vision deficiencies, the wrong color choices may lead to them not enjoying your artwork. Users suffering from color blindness find distinguishing between blue and red challenging. It is impossible to rebrand to eliminate colors, but avoid mixing red, blue, and green while creating relevant or meaningful videos. Using contrast-checking tools helps ensure you use the perfect text combinations for those with color vision to access important visual details in your content.

10. Mindfulness in Video Design

The accessibility of your visual content also depends a lot on its design. The wrong choice, like an overly busy video, can make it difficult for users with disabilities to access your video. On the contrary, there are some steps to adopt to ensure your video is design-friendly to cater to your entire audience:

Avoid placing text in places where closed captions will be placed. Too much text clutters the screen, making it challenging for those requiring closed captions. So remember where closed captions will appear before placing that text and place it accordingly.

Avoid having quick transactions or successive bright flashes in videos. It ensures your videos are safe for users with photo sensitivities and prevents possible epileptic seizures. Besides, avoiding flashing also helps users with autism, ADHD, and those recovering from a concussion.

Choose and use the right colors.

Including representations in content like casting or including disabled people or animated characters also helps. While it may not directly increase your video accessibility, disabled users enjoy seeing their representations in the message.

While these are easy and minute changes to implement, they make a lot of difference in your video accessibility.

11. Open, Closed, and Auto Captions and Subtitles

These terms are often used interchangeably and are minimally different. Subtitles display dialogues in a language different from what is spoken in the video. Open captions are found in the video, and are impossible to disable or remove. Closed captions can be activated or switched off if need be.

12. Include Video Descriptions on Social Media

Users with impairments read your content easily through a detailed breakdown of your shared video. The visually impaired people can easily read the video descriptions with the help of screen reading software. Just be very clear and thorough about everything in your content while writing a detailed video description. And remember that video descriptions vary on each social media platform. For example, Facebook includes videos in its description page, while Twitter requires you to enable video descriptions in options.

Conclusion

Many people have inaccessible social media videos mainly because of a lack of awareness. And those who do know about web accessibility do not do it because of the time and effort needed. Put some additional time and effort into creating accessible video content. However, it is well worth it because it avoids an accessibility lawsuit. Besides, if you do not have the time or do not know how to make your videos accessible, we can help. We at ADA Site Compliance are your #1 source for all ADA video compliance issues and can make your videos accessible to all users. Our team of accessibility experts is always at hand to check the accessibility and perform the appropriate remediation of your videos so that you can focus on doing what you do best!

[maiji]

[alt text: three images of the front cover, back cover, and full flat open spread of an 8-page zine by mossyvida, "anti-capitalized affirmations". The cover depicts a drawing of a person sitting cross legged, eyes closed, with a heart on their chest. The back cover has text over a faint photo of a sunflower. Transcript for screen readers follows.]

Cover: anti-capitalist affirmations + a small list of action ideas

Affirmations

I have value simply by existing

I welcome rest, and release any guilt I've been taught to feel for slowing down

I'm allowed to spend time doing things that make me happy

My actions matter and will make a difference

I'm allowed to enjoy something without monetizing it

I deserve to have fun, joyous experiences in life

It's okay to not have it all figured out

I'm allowed to do any activity regardless of my skill level

I deserve dignity and respect, regardless of how much money I have

I am my most authentic self.

Slow progress is still progress

Asking for help is a sign of strength

I'm allowed to take up space

I choose to be empathetic, and to show kindness and respect to all

I'm the change I want to see in the world!

Actions

(heart) Get active within your community!

Start organizing. Grow a diverse, knowledegable, and loving group of motivated people.

Participate in mutual aid! Help out a friend, organize fundraisers, trade, unionize, etc.

(heart) Keep yourself educated on current happenings, and learn the history of your causes!

(heart) Use what you have, or fix/make what you can. Accept gifts and support from others! Go thrifting if needed

(heart) Add a "give & take" cabinet to your neighborhood. Fill it with essentials, clothes and food

(heart) Speak up for what you believe in! Let your voice be heard!

Create art, protest, rally, send postcards + leave voicemails + make calls to your representatives for change.

Back cover: The rich are getting richer while the poor get poorer, and ingrained in many of us are destructive, unhealthy thinking patterns that our capitalist society has taught us. With time and patience, they can be unlearned.

Cultivating hope in yourself is the most radical thing you can do.

PNG of my new zine! Feel free to print it out + spread around for personal use only <3

[opalescent-apples]

Hey this is probably a dumb question, but how do you write an image ID?

I can tell you what little I know, but I am not an expert by any means, nor should I be considered an authority on the subject; I'm just trying to make my blog a little more accessible.

For good examples, please check out the blog @/accessible-art . They describe art as much as they can, and they would likely give better advice than I would.

If you still would like to hear what I know, here it is:

What I do is try to describe as much of what's in the image as possible without too many words and without adding any subjective opinions. Key details like colors, poses, shapes, styles, and expressions take priority when I describe my own art.

With a text screenshot, make sure to include the name of the person who said it if their name is in the shot, and the source if possible. Double check your transcription.

Also: treat words typed with numbers as letters as though they need an ID, or tag them undescribed. I have seen multiple screen reader users complain about Homestuck quirks.

And: Never fill the alt text with anything but an image description! I have seen so many people complain about that. A picture of a person holding a rock should be "person holding a rock" not "Image 1" or "teehehe let me tell you a pun here!"

There's more than one way I've seen people add alt text.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, A DISCLAIMER:

I am not someone who needs image descriptions. I am sighted, do not require a screen reader for Tumblr, and usually do not have trouble reading strange or edited fonts.

I am not the target audience for an ID, so it would be better to research further if you want your IDs to be good.

I would also like people who are more qualified to correct any unintentional errors in this post. I am also looking to improve my IDs.

I wish you the best of luck!

Anyone who has better advice, please add on!

(do not use this post to talk about hating image descriptions.)

[ryutarotakedown]

hi i'm making an intro post

i'm jules, any pronouns except it/its

if i write an image description on your post, please copy it and put it in the original post!!! preferably in the body text and directly below the image (alt text doesn't work for all screen readers!!!!!)

interests: ace attorney (trilogy + prequel duology), magnus archives, trice forgotten, ghost trick

more stuff under the cut :]

some trivia about me

i am really bad at tagging spoilers & triggers. if you ask for it i will tag but i recommend just using tumblr's content blocker it's really good at its job

that said please block "#ghost trick spoilers" if you haven't played it. i will be very touched and you will be better off going in without spoilers. trust me.

if you sent me an ask/message or tagged me in something i almost definitely got it, i am just really extremely horrifically bad at replying to people (it's a combo of brain problems & meatspace problems that have gotten worse recently). there is no foolproof way to communicate with me. i'm really sorry about this i am working on it

i am slightly better with asks than with messages though.

also this doesn't mean you shouldn't send me asks or messages i love receiving them! it just means i may reply to them after a year has passed. if it's urgent i recommend spamming me with the word URGENT the anxiety will probably kick in then.

i have a transcripts website! (it's forked from snarp's iconic magnus archives transcripts, all credit for the code + magnus transcripts comes from there) (in addition to those transcripts i also have all the trice forgotten ones, plus the first few eps of rusty quill gaming)

okay that's it for now i think

listen to trice forgotten

play ghost trick