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Posted by William Tasso on 08/18/05 07:38
Writing in news:alt.www.webmaster,alt.html
From the safety of the No thank you cafeteria
Charles Sweeney <me@charlessweeney.com> said:
> Safalra wrote
>
>> The purpose of a logo is to identify the organisation it represents.
>
> Yes but crucially, the purpose of a logo is to *visually* identify the
> organisation it represents. Nothing else.
>
> As you go some way towards saying, you cannot represent a purely visual
> sensation with words. To try to do so is ludicrous. Therefore the best
> you can do is tell the user that there is an image there, and give a
> short desription of it.
>
>> In text this is the same as just stating the name of the organisation,
>
> It's not. It's anything but the same. You don't get the mood, the
> feel, the ethos, the subliminal influences. A crap logo identifies the
> organisation, but also tells you (amongst other things) that they may
> not be a serious outfit. Just as a quality logo has the opposite
> effect. Text can't do that.
No, it can't. But a text only UA/speech UA/Radio/etc. can never 'show'
the logo either. One useful treatment is to use the company name and the
strapline in such circumstances.
"Bodgit Bros IT - Making computers make cents."
> Again, better to give the user the organisation name, and tell them
> there's a logo there. Sighted people get the organisation name, and can
> choose to view the logo. Blind people still get the organisation name.
> What possible drawback can there be to stating that there's a logo
> there??
What you are describing is a description of the page, rather than a
representation of its content.
> When I surf with images turned off, I find the alt text "picture of..."
> very helpful. It tells me first of all that there is an image there,
> and it helps me to know if I should choose to view it.
>
> If the alt text says "organisation name logo", I might choose to view it
> because I am interested in logos.
Yes, that is one instance when it's useful to know there is a logo present
- surely such a researcher would be using a graphical UA?
> If the alt-text does not tell me it's a picture (or logo) then the page
> does not read well. I see little snippets of text, but completely out
> of sync with the surrounding text.
and that is exactly the issue.
ok - one other thought to throw into the mix. The title attribute,
containing a description of the image can probably be the same regardless
of context. The alt attribute however is very much context sensitive.
> But "picture of..." or "...logo"
> tells me all I need to know, and does not get confused with surrounding
> text.
You know what, it seems to me there are many opportunities for throwing a
completely crap page at a visitor. Also, there are few absolutes in this
issue. I suggest a useful treatment of this subject would be made by
presenting a real page from a real site and discussing/chronicling its
development in here.
--
William Tasso
** Business as usual
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