[thelist] Standrards Compliance -fine-tuning

Will willthemoor at gmail.com
Mon Oct 20 00:47:48 CDT 2008


For sure, the best solution to the question in general is to use simply use
HTML text. This has more to do with design though, not front end
development. I was speaking from the point of view of some one tasked with
implementing other people's designs.

While neither solution is perfect, I'd therefore argue that img is
> actually preferable from an accessibility point of view to CSS for
> crucial content, like text and buttons.


I think we can start to split hairs here. If we can't simply use HTML text,
some one is going to have a rough time of it. For instance, if images are
off, alternate text isn't going to scale or display according to user
specified color requirements. Sort of the same problem.

http://www.mezzoblue.com/tests/revised-image-replacement/
<http://www.mezzoblue.com/tests/revised-image-replacement/>has
a number of techniques.  The most accessible requires an empty span in the
html element used for replacement.

I feel like I should disclose myself as "one of them". I don't think the img
tag should ever have been in the spec to begin with.  I'm very much looking
forward to XHTML 2 where it's been entirely dumped and replaced with:

<p src="willsmom.jpg">
 Will's mom is foxy!
</p>

If images are off, the text is displayed. That said, I'll still probably set
the image with CSS if the goal of the image is to simply replace text. In
that case, it's not content so CSS seems appropriate. After having revisited
that mezzoblue article, I'm starting to wonder if I should include the span.
Just makes me feel dirty.

If all we're talking about is a site masthead duplicated in the title of
> the page, it's not such a big deal either way.
>

Indeed. And to totally contradict myself, it may even be desirable to
include it as an image. If you print the page, it will be included where as
a bg image set in the CSS will not.

</end rambling message 237>

Will



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