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Big News: Twitter Is Adding Alt Text for Images
Twitter released a blog post today announcing Accessible Images for Everyone. The post explains, "Starting today, people using our iOS and Android apps can add descriptions — also known as alternative text (alt text) — to images in Tweets," and goes on to describe how to enable the new feature.
“We applaud Twitter’s access efforts. Tens of thousands of people who are blind or visually impaired use Twitter every day, and they will be excited to use and benefit from this increased level of…
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In the News, Accessibility
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Apps Can and Should Be Accessible to All
The Washington Post published an article today about accessibility problems that occur not only on companies' websites, but in their mobile applications (apps), noting that "Apps can be a game-changer for people with low vision — if companies build them right."
TechCrunch also recently reported on the question: Will apps become the next disability lawsuit target?
They don't have to be. As Lee Huffman, AccessWorld editor and manager of AFB's technology information, explained: "The iPhone has…
Blog Topics
Low Vision, Technology, Accessibility
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Usability and Accessibility Go Hand in Hand
I was delighted to see this article from the Nielsen Norman Group on why Placeholders in Form Fields Are Harmful. Placeholders are those words that lurk in your online forms, frequently an almost unreadable pale gray.
The example the author provides in the article is a password field where the label "Password:" appears above the form field, and the hint "Must have at least 6 characters" appears as light gray placeholder text inside the form field.
The intent is to help users, by giving an…
Blog Topics
Accessibility, Assistive Technology, Usability
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Celebrate World Usability Day by Embracing Accessibility
World Usability Day (November 10, 2011) was founded in 2005 as an initiative of the Usability Professionals' Association to ensure that services and products important to human life are easier to access and simpler to use. Each year, on the second Thursday of November, over 200 events are organized in over 43 countries around the world to raise awareness for the general public, and train professionals in the tools and issues central to good usability research, development, and practice.
The…
Blog Topics
Accessibility, Usability, Technology
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