Gregory's Server@coffee4danz I'm blind and for me alt text is the Big Special Thing about Mastodon. If someone posts a meme, I'm in on the joke. Someone shares beautifiul moss, or their cat, I'm in on the beauty or fun or whatever. I'm now 62, and this is the first time I entered a community and a culture where people grant me this kind of access and community. So grateful for people who do alt text.
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 @coffee4danz @anantagd I'm beyond encouraging, i demand alttexts. From followed people, from mutuals, from everyone. If someone persistently refuses to make them, i mute or block.  @Dingsextrem @anantagd speaking of human rights, I was once in the British Museum and saw a man running his hands over a marble pedimental sculpture while his companion described it. My first reaction was shock because touching things in a museum is generally not allowed. Then I realized what was happening and I was glad. That museum is for everyone regardless of ability, and it’s all just stolen loot from other civilizations anyway. @anantagd @coffee4danz I’m so glad this working for you! This is the first community I’ve been in that encourages alt text.  @anantagd @coffee4danz Saw this yesterday, may be of interest. I did this irl for partner who lost her sight in 2003. She would point & I’d read or describe the scene. It’s lovely of you to say so, but don’t be too grateful: you have a right to *expect* things like Alt text; it’s fairly basic humaning to provide it. I’m still learning how to do it better - like all functions, there’s a skill in it. @Badgardener @anantagd Quite. As I say, it's a skill to be learned. I think posting frequency and general level of engagement come into it: the ones who have a past of Instagram and twitter and who collect followers but don't follow, post incessantly and don't engage with responses, are probably the box-tickers. A lot of their Humaning is very basic indeed.  |
@anantagd Facebook seems to be almost entirely shared images and memes and if they really wanted to expand their user base, they’d make #alttext a feature and encourage it heavily. When I joined Mastodon and saw people using and encouraging alt text use I quickly realized its importance. My Toot! app is set to stop me from posting without it now.