OEBPS validation error

[mrmikel]

Alt can be set to "" for captioned pictures, so long as the captions are descriptive, not something like just Figure 1.

[kerliza]

file name example:

school-graduation_1893-from_jack_o-donnell.jpg

ever so much better as a prompt in code view than

0067image.jpg

In some cases I find very little editing needed for the alt description with such a detailed filename. Maybe I take access too detailed but its easier to track entries without having to switch views back and forth.

For Kindle specs, even with a caption the alt field is required.

[Jellby]

Actually, alt can be set to "" for most images, with or without captions.

alt is supposed to be the text displayed (or read aloud) when the image is not displayed for whatever reason (because it's disabled, because the medium does not support images, you name it).

For normal illustrations, there's absolutely no need for a reader (the human kind) who does not see the images to be reminded that "an illustration of the sentence you have just read should appear here". So, for most illustrations I simply use alt="".

Some other alt text is needed when the information in the image is important for the text: a handwritten letter, a treasure map that the text then refers to (in this case, rather than "Treasure map" I'd write "Treasure map with a big X next to the third tree in the row"), a special symbol or foreign word, etc.

Originally Posted by kerliza

For Kindle specs, even with a caption the alt field is required.

And it is required for ePub too. But as already explained, it can be empty.

[mrmikel]

I was trying to be kind to people using screen readers because of limited vision. How much is actually gained by this I have no idea, since the alt text is almost never detailed enough to tell much more than you could gain by the text.

[kerliza]

Originally Posted by theducks

Why would renaming the image file make Alt= need work??

Alt= Should be a descriptive of the Image or "" for decorations

good
alt="Cover"
better
alt="Girl in tiny Red Bikini on a bright, sandy beach"
alt= is not a place to just repeat the files name (frequently seen)

Well, to the viewer who doesn't know the file name of an image the file name appearing with underscores and dashes also isn't appealing but it's a short cut for the creator who is working with hundreds of image files.

In the end it is likely I'll comb over each alt descriptor anyway. The "Girl in tiny Red Bikini on a bright, sandy beach" is not a "better" descriptor--it is the best example type descriptor. No doubt.

[mrmikel]

Unless this is an ongoing project which will have images continually added to it as you update, it is important to make sure the book gets published before it is perfectly documented. There is a trade off somewhere between it being perfectly documented and being impossible to fix if needed, so that doing this one book doesn't become a lifetime's work, so to speak. (grin)