Member-only story
MANNERS
Why Nice People Provide Alt-Text for Photos
Are you a nice person?
Do you hold the door if someone is close behind you? Will you hold it even if they are ten feet away but are carrying a child or a heavy package?
Would you hold it for a blind person?
That’s what alt-text is about. It’s holding the door for someone with vision difficulties. It provides accessibility for visually impaired readers, and Medium provides an easy way to add it: just click on your photo while editing, click again on the floating alt-text popup and you’ll see something this:
It asks you to “Write a brief description of this image for readers with visual impairments” and then suggests, “E.g., An antique typewriter with a blank sheet of paper sits on a wooden desk”.
Medium doesn’t insist that you do this. I do insist if you want to put a story in any of my publications. Why am I so bossy?
Because being considerate of others should be something we all strive for. I hold doors for people. I give twenty dollars to kids selling Girl Scout cookies or collecting for their school team and don’t take…