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Why Nice People Provide Alt-Text for Photos

Are you a nice person?

A gym area with a bright orange wall featuring a set of black dumbbells on a silver rack, an ab roller, a red medicine ball, and a stack of black exercise mats. Note that the wall includes a small black shelf holding cleaning supplies, alongside signs reminding users to wipe down machines and indicating first aid locations.
Photo by author of my community gym

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:

The Medium interface for alt-text 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”
Screenshot by author of the alt-text interface

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…

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Tech and Me, Loving It or Hating It
Tech and Me, Loving It or Hating It

Published in Tech and Me, Loving It or Hating It

Your experience with technology in your life, work, or business.

Anthony (Tony/Pcunix) Lawrence đź‘€
Anthony (Tony/Pcunix) Lawrence đź‘€

Written by Anthony (Tony/Pcunix) Lawrence đź‘€

Retired Unix Consultant. I write tech and humor mostly but sometimes other things. See my Lists if your interests are specific.

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