Mastodawn

Hmwhatnow Jul 3, 2023

It’s great that more people are moving to Mastodon, but that influx has already resulted in far more posts with pictures that have no Alt Text description.
If you’ve just moved here, please bear in mind that there are a lot of visually impaired screen reader users here, and because Mastodon is far more inclusive than Twitter, it is considered polite to describe what your pictures show. Thank you, and welcome to a nicer social media platform. Please help keep it that way.

Derek Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon you inspired me to go add alt text to some recently posted pictures. Editing image failed in Android mastodon app multiple times on two posts. Guess ill try again next time...

Dendan Setia (Nins)Jul 3, 2023

@nz0p
Can't edit to add alt-text to an existing uploaded pic actually 😅 you have to delete and re-up and then add the text. Ask me how I know lol
@BlindGordon

Alfred R. Baudisch Jul 3, 2023

@cendawanita @nz0p @BlindGordon you actually can! 99% of the times I forget to add Alt text when posting, but then I just edit the post and edit the Alt of the images (Mastodon web Desktop).

Jeri Dansky Jul 4, 2023

@cendawanita @nz0p @BlindGordon
This used to be true when using the web interface (I can't speak for all apps) but it got fixed in a recent release. Now you can indeed edit pics to add alt text, assuming your instance is running an up-to-date version of the Mastodon software.

Gordon Anthony Jul 3, 2023

@nz0p Thanks for trying. I wouldn’t worry too much about past posts, but if you can do it for future pictures, your posts may gain greater reach. Some people won’t boost a post which has a photo with no description because so many visually impaired people would be excluded. It will also make you feel good, and you can have a lot of fun with the descriptions.

The Evil Microwizard Jul 3, 2023

@nz0p @BlindGordon Which Android app are you using? Want to make sure that mine (Tusky) allows me to add the ALT text after the fact...

Mrs Julie Scattergood Jul 3, 2023

@evilmicrowizard @nz0p @BlindGordon

I use Tusky as well, and I just checked: yes, you can edit posts and alt text without having to delete and start over.

Gotanda 🏞️ 🗼Jul 3, 2023

@nz0p
Thanks for giving it a try. Just checked and you can do it on Tusky app for Android. Edit toot, then click the little A in the bottom right of the image and can add alt text. I view it as a kind of writing exercise and chance to add some creativity to "just a pic" posts. Have fun.
@BlindGordon

Don Hawkins - W7DAH Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon Gordon, I was looking to post a book review, & include an image of the cover; I checked the source image & it did not include any alternate text & when I tried to describe it in words myself, I found my skill for portraying an image thru words as lacking as my art skills for drawing the thing. I’ll get more practice.

Gordon Anthony Jul 3, 2023

@donhawkins Thanks for trying. Imagine what you would say if describing the picture to someone over the phone. Detail what is important or striking about the picture.
If you’re really stuck, you could simply write, “cover of (insert name of book)”. That’s not ideal, but it does let screen reader know what it is you’ve posted, even if it doesn’t explain what is on the cover. Good luck. Practice makes it easier.

Don Hawkins - W7DAH Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon yup, will do.

canoegirl Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon thanks for this. Could you explain please? Do you mean to include a written description of pics?

Rainwolf /ᵔᴥᵔ\Jul 3, 2023

@canoegirrl @BlindGordon yes that's the idea so that visually impaired users can still have a idea what you're posting about

Gordon Anthony Jul 3, 2023

@canoegirrl Yes, exactly that. Imagine you are trying to describe a photo to someone over the phone. Detail what is important about the photo so that someone who can’t see it can understand why you have posted it. It’s that simple. And you can have a lot of fun with the image description too.

ZZ Bottom Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon ❤️

@BlindGordon @JetSm00th good call Gordon! And if you forget to add alt text till you post - we all do it - then you can go back and edit the post! Yes edit. - oh and add #tags !

John🥛Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon no excuse of forgetting

Dale Reardon Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon I guess the community could change the Activity Pub API to refuse to accept images with a blank alt text field & then software tools could popup an alert to fill it out

Gordon Anthony Jul 3, 2023

@dalereardon If that can be done, it might help, although I suspect that there will always be some people who find ways around that by simply typing some random letters in the description field. Fortunately, most folk coming to Mastodon do seem to get into the habit once they learn about the feature. I simply unfollow or even block those who refuse.

Dale Reardon Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon At the very least a reminder popup would be great provided it is turned on by default rather than Twitter where it is off by default & you have to manually turn the reminder on

Gordon Anthony Jul 3, 2023

@dalereardon Absolutely. I’m told there are Mastodon bots which will do that, but again people need to find and follow them. An automatic prompt would be a great improvement.

Wortex17 Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon I wonder if we could have a filter that hides posts with images without alt text. A) avoids posts meaningless to screen readers
B) gives you less "reach" by default if you don't include it and therefore incentives inclusion

The again, Mastodon isn't that much about reach in the first place..

Gordon Anthony Jul 3, 2023

@Wortex17 It’s a tricky one to find the best solution. Most phones are able to decipher text in a photo, and can sometimes give a vague idea of what is in a picture, so blocking them entirely might cut people off even more. but then, “A person wearing a hat” doesn’t really provide any context, so the auto description is usually fairly meaningless unless it’s a photo of text.

ArnJaguard Jul 3, 2023

@BlindGordon
Thank you for the heads-up