RE: Alternate images for different media

> Problem:
> Images designed for display on computer screens are too small to be used
> on video/TV screens. When such images contain text, they can be read due
> to the closeness of the computer screen. These words disappear at the
> larger distance of video/TV screens.

They shouldn't contain text.  More precisely, they shouldn't contain text
that isn't made available in some alternate form.

> Web documents designed for computer screens can be adapted by using
> style sheets for different visual media, but the problem is that such
> images cannot be resized without sacrificing too much resolution. There
> is something missing.
>
>Solution?:
> One solution would of course be vector images. But this cannot be
> applied across the board.

I don't see why not.

>  when an IMG is declared in a document, there should be the possibility
> to declare alternatives. Then we would need an additional attribute,
> perhaps an extension of the functionality of the "media" attribute?

In addition to the media mechanisms in CSS, some functionality exists in
HTTP to handle this.  The HTTP accept header allows the server to negotiate
content to some extent using quality ratings.  Also, a proxy server between
the special device and server to automatically modify the content might be
appropriate, also.  Microsoft's WebTV set-top-box service is one example of
a proxy server being used to optimize content for the display device.

> I am not sure what the solution would be, but I cannot find any solution
> in the present recommendations. Is there something I've missed?

Possibly.  It probably isn't perfect.  But, many complimentary methods do
exist.  Lack of implementation is the main problem.  Most webmasters
wouldn't begin to tackle content-negotiation.  In my experience, many
webmasters aren't willing to learn how to configure the server, either.  I
am really not sure why.  Just because the methods aren't popular doesn't
mean they don't exist.

,David Norris

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Received on Thursday, 31 December 1998 01:26:38 UTC