Dúghlas MullinDec 5, 2022
Molly Cantrell-Kraig 🍷

I can’t find the original toot that mentioned this, but here’s a reminder: please put all hashtags at the end instead of interspersing them in the body of your message. When alt readers process the sequence of “hashtag topic” it’s a mashup that creates a barrier to communication.

#alt_text #blindness #CamelCase #FediTips #Accessibility #readers #FediHelp #MastodonNewbieTips #NewbieHashTagger #HashtagTrick

Dec 2, 2022 at 3:17pmWeb
Show threadAmber OsborneDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g Oh thank you! I didn't know this!
Show threadMark SherrickDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g did not know this. Will definitely change my hashing habits to either front or back. Good tip!
Show threadLee Matthew Jackson Dec 2, 2022
@mckra1g Thanks for this reminder. I am guilty of forgetting this sometimes!!!
Show threadskye it/its 🏳️‍⚧️Dec 2, 2022
@mckra1g uhm I have very recently seen multiple posts by blind people that said the exact opposite and asked to put Hashtags in the text, so that context helps understand the Hashtag, and that long lists at the end are confusing because they are annoying to read and they don't know if anything worthwhile will come after the Hashtags, so either they have to read the long annoying list or skip and risk missing relevant information.
Show threadskye it/its 🏳️‍⚧️Dec 2, 2022
@mckra1g I can't find the post anymore, maybe @oedipusnj or @Cassana can give their much more educated opinions (or ignore this mention if you're not feeling like it!)
Show threadDennas DavisDec 2, 2022
@skye @mckra1g maybe do both if possible?
Show threadJeff YangDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g Serious question, how helpful are hashtags for navigation purposes here? Most of the hashtags I see only bring me to two or three other posts when I click on them; some only bring me to one. Do people use them in a way other than that? (Someone said they’re searched for but how do you know what to search for then? The search is very “exact wording and spelling” here….)
Show threadJon (now at neuromatch.social)Dec 2, 2022
@originalspin @mckra1g Long-timers here use hashtags a fair amount because there's no full-text search so it's the only way to find stuff. And the latest version introduced the ability to follow a hashtag. That said, because of federation, any one instance only has a partial view of what's on a hashtag. Still, in the original post, FediTips and Accessibility are both quite active.
Show threadJeff YangDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g @jdp23 There do seem to be some more active “known” or “obvious” hashtags but most seem to go down blind holes. And to your point about federation…that’s the challenge to discovery here in general!
Show threadJon (now at neuromatch.social)Dec 2, 2022
@originalspin @mckra1g One of the reasons I find hashtags so interesting is that the differences across platforms mean that they have very different characteristics. It'll be interesting to see how things evolve on Mastodon. Back in the early days of Twitter hashtags there were directories, which seems like a very strange concept today!
Show threadTim JDec 2, 2022

@originalspin @mckra1g I'm finding them very useful, especially when I post a question—often if I then click the hashtags I've used, I find other people asking the same question and maybe an answer or two.

If I start typing a #hashtag in the mobile web interface, completion suggestions come up which also say how much each one is being used, so I've an idea which to choose.

Show threadrfrazier20161Dec 3, 2022
@originalspin @mckra1g. welp, that option doesn't appear to be available on mstdn.party
Show threadMark Jones - Digital Jockey™Dec 2, 2022
@mckra1g Oops, I'm guilty of this. Now I know for future posts.
Show threadSueDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g
Well said. Any hints about improving my descriptions of memes and photos welcome
#Accessibility
Show threadStudio 8502 Dec 2, 2022
@mckra1g is there some bit of markup or metadata we can put between the body of a post and the tags, to help the screen reader skip over it?
Show threadLee FifeDec 2, 2022
@mos_8502 @mckra1g I like this idea. It's a good one. Sort of like a CW for hashtags ...
Show threadBarbara J. KingDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g Very helpful, I will start doing so. Did not realize!
Show threadJasmine 🏳️‍⚧️Dec 2, 2022
@mckra1g I’ve heard literally the opposite from people who rely on screen readers. I think it is a matter of preference and not a hard and fast rule?
Show threadJackie ❤️☮️🇵🇸🇪🇺🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧Dec 2, 2022
@mckra1g I didn't know that, that's useful to know, thanks.
Show threadNoahDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g @donmelton Thanks for the info on that. I know more now. ✌🏼🖖🏼🤘🏼
Show threadTim JDec 2, 2022

@mckra1g I've seen posts asking for them at the end, and others saying they don't want that—maybe the thing is to be conscious of how many tags there are and what the result might be for someone.

People seem to use a wide range of different settings for their screenreaders too, so they won't all be getting the same thing.

Show threadMark SherrickDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g has anyone figured out the best link shortener for places like Mastodon? I realized now posting a bunch of music links, they are all way long and random.
Show threadLee FifeDec 2, 2022

@MarkSherrick @mckra1g
Doesnt Mastodon have its own link shortener? At least I've been told links only take up a fixed number of chars. And it's better to leave them in a human readable form rather than shortened gibberish.

Ah yes, 23 chars, don't use link shorteners:
https://docs.joinmastodon.org/client/guidelines/

Guidelines and best practices - Mastodon documentation

Things to keep in mind when implementing a Mastodon app.

Show threadMark SherrickDec 2, 2022
@colo_lee @mckra1g yes, long links only count as 23 characters in your toot but if the full link to a YouTube link or Spotify link actually shows, the gibberish has got to be annoying.
Show threadLee FifeDec 2, 2022
@MarkSherrick @mckra1g
I'd still rather know it's a youtube or spotify link than something like bit.ly ...
Show threadMark SherrickDec 2, 2022
@colo_lee @mckra1g true. Those can hide all kinds of stuff. Good point.
Show threadLee FifeDec 2, 2022
@MarkSherrick @mckra1g
How does a screen reader read a long youtube link? I'd sure rather it said "youtube link" rather than "h t t p s colon slash slash y o u t u b e dot c o m slash bunchanumbers".
Do they?
Show threadMark SherrickDec 2, 2022
@colo_lee not a clue to be honest. That's part of my question as well.
Show threadBrian WolfDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g I was not aware. Thank you.
Show threadLee FifeDec 2, 2022

@mckra1g I treat the hashtags like metadata that describes the post and makes it findable, rather than as really part of the content.

After all, even as a sighted person, I don't really like reading them. So, I treat 'em like decoration. Which makes placing at the end totally natural

Show threadBrian GrinterDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g @donmelton thanks, not something you’d think about but of course now makes obvious sense!
Show threadskye it/its 🏳️‍⚧️Dec 2, 2022

@mckra1g

found it for you: an actual blind person stating the opposite :) https://dragonscave.space/@jscholes/109373172877439910

James Scholes (@[email protected])

As a #ScreenReader user, I find #hashtags at the end of a post to be suboptimal. As I'm unable to visually scan, I don't know that you haven't written anything after the hashtags, and hence have to choose between: listening to them anyway, or being okay with potentially missing content. When written inline within the flow of your text, this problem doesn't occur. #accessibility #a11y

The Dragon's Cave
Show threadrosevinesDec 2, 2022
@mckra1g Thank you, very helpful.
Show threadquixoteDec 3, 2022
@mckra1g Thanks for the tip. I didn't know that.
Show threadJBattTXDec 3, 2022
@mckra1g Good to know.
Show threadJason HullDec 3, 2022
@mckra1g Thanks. I’ve been guilty of this.
Show threadChloe Baker FBPE 🇬🇧🇪🇺(🇫🇷🤞🏻)Dec 3, 2022

@mckra1g I did not know this, I will now endeavour to change my behaviour with hashtags accordingly.

#accessibility

Show threadMartin LanserDec 3, 2022
@mckra1g I understand the point of Camel-casing multi-word hashtags. But does that rule/suggestion also apply to single-word hashtags? In other words, is there a difference between #single and #Single?
Show threadFaith HarkeyDec 3, 2022
@mckra1g Are you sure? I read a post that said precisely the opposite -- put #hashtags in the post, not at the end. #Accessibility #Question
Show threadStrange TimDec 3, 2022
@mckra1g thanks for the tip!!!
Show threadIdealistic Pragmatist Dec 5, 2022
@mckra1g people who actually use screenreaders responded to that toot and said it isn’t actually true that screenreaders can’t handle interspersed hashtags, though, or isn’t true anymore.
Show threadDúghlas MullinDec 5, 2022
@mckra1g here is an article that gives this advice and more. https://publish.illinois.edu/accessibility-training/2019/11/05/best-practices-for-social-media-accessibility/
Best Practices for Social Media Accessibility – Accessibility for Online Teaching and Learning

Show threadbarstewardDec 5, 2022
@mckra1g I saw that this was disputed, so now I don’t know what’s best.
Show threadaaron Dec 5, 2022
@mckra1g I had no idea about this and have been doing it wrong. 😬 Great info, thank you for the heads up!
Show threadTrevor BrambleDec 6, 2022
@mckra1g It would be nice if Mastodon only treated hash-prefixed terms as hashtags if they appear at the end, if they're inside the text they don't get linked.