Null Alt Text

After talking to a screen reader user I have some new thoughts about IMGs
and blank Alt text.

If an HTML author inserts a transparent image into a document to provide
space between two blocks of text then the Alt text should be set to spaces
(Alt="   "). The number of spaces indicates the size of the space required -
the size of the transparent image.

Normally the screen reader would speak "image" then speak the Alt text. If
an image has Alt text set to spaces then it would NOT speak "image" but
simply pause before speaking the next block of text.

In this way the transparent image would provide an aural pause that worked
the same as the visual pause. The flow of the text from the screen reader
would not be broken up with an unwanted "image" word.

All images should have Alt text. Images that have Alt text set to Null
(Alt="") would be incorrect.

The WAI guidelines are at:
http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/wai-gl-techniques-19980918.html#spacer-images
but they do not seem to seem to clarify this matter.

Make sense?

Chris

-----Original Message-----
From: Charles (Chuck) Oppermann <chuckop@microsoft.com>
To: w3c-wai-au@w3.org <w3c-wai-au@w3.org>
Cc: Judy Brewer (E-mail) <jbrewer@w3.org>
Date: November 19, 1998 5:27 PM
Subject: RE: Minutes: November 11 Conference Call


><<
>2. Chuck Opperman did not join the conference call to clarify his concerns.
>>>
>
>My apologies, however Active Accessibility version 1.2 shipped on November
>11 and I was not available.  I did participate in the joint UA-PA
conference
>call that same day for an hour.  I could not devote another hour to
>Authoring Tools.
>
>I'd like to suggest that the WAI get more coordinated in the conference
call
>planning.  Most conference calls I'm part of go way over time, usually just
>as the discussion is getting good.  The timing of two calls over a 3 hour
>span is not practical for me.
>
><<
>* If a tool does generate Alt text then the tool should inform the user and
>allow the user to change it.
>>>
>
>What's the expectation here?  That the default placeholder strings be
>modifiable, or at the moment a default ALT text is inserted into HTML that
>the user be told and can change the string?
>
><<
>* Tools should not generate NULL Alt text (Alt=""). (Anything inserted into
>a document has a meaning.)
>>>
>
>What about in the case of transparent images used for spacing purposes?
>
>Thanks!
>Charles Oppermann
>Program Manager, Accessibility and Disabilities Group,
>Microsoft Corporation
>mailto:chuckop@microsoft.com http://microsoft.com/enable/
>"A computer on every desk and in every home, usable by everyone!"
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Jutta Treviranus [mailto:jutta.treviranus@utoronto.ca]
>Sent: Thursday, November 19, 1998 7:45 AM
>To: w3c-wai-au@w3.org
>Subject: Minutes: November 11 Conference Call
>
>
>The following are the minutes for the November 11, Conference Call.
>
>Present: Charles McCathie Neville, William L., Jan Richards, Karen McCall,
>Ian Jacobs, Lauren Wood, Jim Allen, Jutta Treviranus
>
>1. Lauren Wood of SoftQuad gave her perspective on the Guidelines from the
>point of view of a developer. She felt that some guidelines were too
>draconian, not giving developers the flexibility to position their tool
>competitively ( 3.4.3 and  6.6.2). This would put developers who adopt the
>guidelines at a competitive disadvantage. Other guidelines were too broad
>and required further detail (ie, 5.5.3 & 6.4.1). She also felt that
>guideline 4.3 was patronizing and suggested that the wording be changed.
>
>2. Chuck Opperman did not join the conference call to clarify his concerns.
>
>3. The previously posted, suggested wording on placeholder and default
>alt-text was accepted by the group:
>Automatic generation of Alt Text:
>* Tools should only generate Alt text when they are absolutly sure of the
>meaning (bullets for example)
>* If a tool does generate Alt text then the tool should inform the user and
>allow the user to change it.
>
>Place-holder Alt text:
>* Tools must not generate place-holder Alt text (ever).
>* Tools can generate a comment line close to the missing Alt text as a
>reminder - (example <! put Alt text here>)
>* Tools should not generate NULL Alt text (Alt=""). (Anything inserted into
>a document has a meaning.)
>
>4. Based upon input from Judy Brewer it was decided that User Interface
>accessibility would stay in. The document would refer to the UA guidelines
>but may incorporate the relevant UA guidelines in the next draft.
>
>5. Ian presented his perspective on techniques: techniques being
>recommended or required actions that can be checked off by a developer as
>being complete. In other groups the techniques are maintained in a seperate
>document. The rationale being that techniques would change more rapidly
>than guidelines. It was decided that the techniques would remain integrated
>with the guidelines and would be linked to examples.
>
>6. The public working draft would be released Nov. 12, incorporating the
>agreed upon revisions.
>

Received on Tuesday, 24 November 1998 15:13:16 UTC