Re: [WSG] accessible image form buttons

[Matthew Cruickshank]

Andreas Boehmer [Addictive Media] wrote: adding a title attribute for good measure and increased accessibility, providing your image doesn't use tiny text, and has good contrast between text and background ? I prefer giving my users the ability to increase font, if possible. Not everybody with a visual disability has got a screenreader to read out the alt text. Pure text can't go wrong. I generally agree, and I certainly prefer text where possible, but in practice resizable text is more necessary when using small fonts rather than large. Well designed images of text really does not leave users less able to access the web. Also in this case it's not large blocks of text in an image, and therefore the problems of representing structure in the plain-text ALT, but just individual words like Search or Submit. I think it's wrong to say that "pure text can't go wrong" when you consider the design requirements because it's more often a balance. This isn't to say that image submit buttons are always good, but they can be a reasonable (and accessible) choice if done well. I haven't ever found any accessibility expert saying images of text are inaccessible when the image is well designed (read: 12px+ font, high contrast), and I've looked. A couple of years ago this came up and I was trying to find a reference to someone who described this scenario but there was only blanket statements about text in images being bad, and how fixed font sizes affect accessibility but the examples they used were sites with tiny 8px fonts. I was unable to find examples of harm to users when it's done infrequently and carefully, and I tested it with about a dozen elderly and disabled users. Not a one had a problem. Also, http://joeclark.org/book/sashay/serialization/Chapter06.html#h2-5485 .Matthew Cruickshank http://holloway.co.nz/