Alt text – helped by AI

I have written about alt texts before, and about using AI to help me generate better descriptions for the images and videos that I share online. Some of the posts I have written about this topic can be found through these links: Descriptions & alt texts, Getting some help… & Sharing. So, why am I writing this now, if I have already mentioned the topic a few times? Well, I guess it's because it's on my mind now. It's something that I feel I need to write about, and since it will hopefully help me sort out my busy thoughts, I have started typing, and I will see where it will take me. In the first post that I mentioned here, the descriptions one, I have a whole "formal" explanation on what alt texts are. But, I will give a little "informal" explanation beneath the read more bit, so you don't have to switch posts to know. If you want to know the deeper stuff though, then yeah, you may want to click that link 😉. […]

https://cynnisblog.wordpress.com/2026/05/23/alt-text-helped-by-ai/

Watch Dean Penney re-enact with an undercover officer how he says he killed Jennifer Hillier-Penney with a hammer
With Dean Penney sitting on one side of a desk, and Rudy — as he can only be identified as — sitting on the other, Penney is seen in a video describing how he struck his estranged wife. Warning: this video contains language and descriptions some may find offensive.
https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/9.7173168?cmp=rss

Re last boost, if you are making alt text, make it descriptive. You want visually impaired people to engage with your posts, be inclusive about it. You took the time to put alt text on your picture which obviously means you care in some fashion about accessibility. The truth of it is though, a simple sentence repeating the text of your post, isn't a description. Don't just tell us this is a bird, or this is a flower. Even if you identify the species, that does not give a blind viewer an idea of what is being shown, unless the person has felt the flower or had that flower or bird described to them.
Even if you don't use AI to help describe your picture, which we understand how controversial AI usage is, there are other ways to help improve your descriptions. Consider the color of the flower, the way the bird is moving, the way a cat's face looks or how your fluffy furball is positioned in the photo. Highlight those details, rather than reusing the vvague text of the post, and putting said vague text in the alt text box as a placeholder. Be respectful to those that need accessibility and desire inclusivity.
-- Altheda
#AltText #pictures #descriptions #accessibility #inclusivity #VisuallyImpaired #blindness

Descriptions & alt texts

They can make a difference! I had heard about them, before I joined Mastodon in November 2022 (what's being called "The Great Migration of '22", due to many people trying to find a better alternative to Twitter, as it was going to be bought by Musk...). But, on Mastodon, I quickly learned about their importance! Some people were kind in explaining how to use them, why they were so important. Some people were acting like gatekeepers/bullies, as they were rude to people that were new to the platform and, like me, didn't know about the importance of the texts... But, I found out something that I already knew, if that makes sense... One of the things that came forward during my AuDHD diagnosis track, was that I either missed a lot when looking at pictures, or I saw way too much and could not focus on the main things... And that makes writing proper alt texts rather challenging. I tried, and I guess some were decent enough. But... First with altbot, and then with other AI, I learned how to get decent descriptions of my images. And slowly, I am trying to add more info to many of my (vacation) pictures on my Flickr account. […]

https://cynnisblog.wordpress.com/2026/02/20/descriptions-alt-texts/

What exactly is selling to the highest bidder?

It is always entertaining when an auction company loudly announces that everything is being offered to the highest bidder, then immediately adds pages of legal language warning bidders not to rely on anything they just said. Bid confidently, they insist, while also explaining that every photo, description, statement, or whisper should be treated as fiction. It creates a remarkable tug of war between marketing and self-protection. The contradiction becomes even richer when these companies […]

https://mikebrandlyauctioneer.wordpress.com/2025/11/28/what-exactly-is-selling-to-the-highest-bidder/

Using AI intelligently as an auctioneer

Using artificial intelligence intelligently can help auctioneers work faster, smarter, and with greater precision. An auctioneer’s talent has always depended on quick thinking, strong communication, and a firm understanding of both bidders and the market, but AI can now complement these skills by simplifying operations and improving the auction experience for everyone involved. AI can manage bid tracking and data analysis during live or online auctions, monitoring bidding patterns, […]

https://mikebrandlyauctioneer.wordpress.com/2025/01/06/using-ai-intelligently-as-an-auctioneer/

Auctioneers: AI legal considerations

Artificial intelligence is now commonly used in the auction industry to draft item descriptions, organize catalog data, and speed up listing production. Auctioneers increasingly rely on these tools to improve efficiency and reduce writing time. From an SEO and operational standpoint, this supports scale, but it also raises auction AI description legal risk concerns. Despite the technology, legal responsibility does not shift to AI systems. Auction descriptions are treated as representations […]

https://mikebrandlyauctioneer.wordpress.com/2025/10/27/auctioneers-ai-legal-considerations/