ALT text block for image

[Robert Frost-Bridges]

But why _only_ then should a browser reveal the alternate text? If a
reader who sees an image wants to know what the image's alternate text
is, there is no reason to stop him.

Perhaps we could add another attribute, "comp", which would display
it's value as a caption to the image?

 

[Robert Frost-Bridges]

Sandy wrote:

I don't have a broken design. What I have are limitations on what I
want to appear. My image is a map which I want to enhance with
commentary. I want the user to be able to see the whole map and when
the mouse hovers over a position on the map, they can see the
commentary about that particular site.

[...]

You could probably do something with brucie's butterflies,
http://www.porjes.com/butterflies/index.php

Slice the map up in to separate images and then as the users click their
way around the relevant text pops up with any further links required
included.

 

[Robert Frost-Bridges]

In alt.html Robert Frost-Bridges said:


yuck!

http://butterflies.usenetshit.info/

Yeah, that's better. GoogleGroups gave me the one I posted, I think the
op could make something of this.

 

[Sandy]

Attribute. It is an alt attribute.

thank you for the clarification

Er, what?

The title attribute will be displayed on however many lines it takes to fit
it all in.

I wouldn't have written that only one line is displayed if it didn't
happen that way.

Sandy

 

[Sandy]

In alt.html Sandy said:


no one cares what you use. its what your visitors uses that matters.

Uhm, excuse me, but there is going to be at least a certain percentage
that uses IE6 and if it isn't working for me, then it isn't going to
be working for them. Right?

it behavior is the same as title


IE6 will display title text until there is so much it can no longer fit
within the browser window. at full screen 800x600 thats almost 3k of
text.

Didn't happen that way for me....only the first line
displayed....that's why I posted my message that way.

your design is broken. dump it and start again or just continue wasting
your time.

You haven't seen my 'design', so how can you say it is broken? It
could just be that HTML doesn't provide me with the tools I really
need.

Sandy

 

[Sandy]

commentary. I want the user to be able to see the whole map and when
the mouse hovers over a position on the map, they can see the
commentary about that particular site.

[...]

You could probably do something with brucie's butterflies,
http://www.porjes.com/butterflies/index.php

Slice the map up in to separate images and then as the users click their
way around the relevant text pops up with any further links required
included.

Actually, I already have that. You've probably misread what my
problem is. I am already trying to display relevant text in the pop
up -- which it does. What it doesn't do, is remain on the screen long
enough to read ALL of the relevant text.

Thank you for your suggestion, though.
Sandy

 

[Neal]

I wouldn't have written that only one line is displayed if it didn't
happen that way.

The problem is that rf is right, that's how it's supposed to work. If it
doesn't, that's an issue.

Check out http://users.rcn.com/neal413/titletest.html and describe what
you see as a tooltip on each drawing of me in a hat.

For me:

alt and title set - IE6 and Opera, full title displayed; Firefox,
truncated title and I can find no simple way to correct this. :0\

alt, no title - IE6 displays alt in tooltip, nothing in Opera or Firefox

title, no alt - same as title and alt set. :0\

 

[Leif K-Brooks]

Perhaps we could add another attribute, "comp", which would display
it's value as a caption to the image?

Wouldn't work for image maps, which is what the OP's talking about. For
other images, what's wrong with adding a caption with ordinary CSS?

 

[Leif K-Brooks]

It
could just be that HTML doesn't provide me with the tools I really
need.

Sounds to me like you're trying to do something HTML was never designed
to do. If you're trying to imitate a desktop application in a browser,
start over with a genuine desktop application (hopefully for an intranet
only); if not, your design is broken.

 

[Sam Hughes]

[...] But the text should not be shown on the page in addition to the
image, including as a tooltip.

Why not?

Because it's an *alternative*.

But you see, the only reason it's an alternative is because you are
*calling* it an alternative.

Would you say then that Mozilla is doing things wrong in that it allows
readers to see an image's alternate text when the image is displayed? It
does do this -- a user can right-click and select "Properties...", where
the alt text is listed. Should Mozilla be modified to hide this
information? It seems to me that you are arguing that they should.

 

[Neal]

But you see, the only reason it's an alternative is because you are
*calling* it an alternative.

What else do you propose alt would mean?

 

[Kris]

your design is broken. dump it and start again or just continue wasting
your time.

You haven't seen my 'design', so how can you say it is broken? It
could just be that HTML doesn't provide me with the tools I really
need.[/QUOTE]

Design isn't decoration. Design achieves something, like in your case
"User picks a geographic location and gets to know more of that
location". If that is the goal of your design and it does not achieve
this, then you made a bad design.

Note that there are plenty of possibilities to achieve the mentioned
goal; nothing says that it has to be an image map, or that it only has
to be an image map. Also know that I (and plenty of people with me) are
geographically challenged and wouldn't know where to point on a map of
Holland, were I looking for a location there. I live in Holland. And it
is one of the smallest countries in Europe! Were I to choose from a
list, or to enter the location in a search field, I would easily succeed
in finding it.

 

[Kris]

But you see, the only reason it's an alternative is because you are
*calling* it an alternative.

What else do you propose alt would mean?[/QUOTE]

Although.

 

[Sandy]

The problem is that rf is right, that's how it's supposed to work. If it
doesn't, that's an issue.

Check out http://users.rcn.com/neal413/titletest.html and describe what
you see as a tooltip on each drawing of me in a hat.

Cute example. Everything displayed as it has been suggested that it
would.

I now see what was different in my test of the title 'attribute'. My
text has an initial line followed by a carriage return (not a coded
CR, nor a \n -- just text I typed in and followed up by hitting the
enter key), and then another line followed by a carriage return, and
then several none interrupted lines.

The alt attribute will display it exactly as I typed it.
The title attribute will only display the first line. When it
encounters a carriage return, it quits.

At least now I understand what it's doing, though not necessarily why.
Thanks for your example.

Sandy

 

[Neal]

Cute example.

I drew that myself, you know.

At least now I understand what it's doing, though not necessarily why.
Thanks for your example.

I'm still wondering why Firefox screws it up. Anyone know?

 

[brucie]

In alt.html Disco Octopus said:

speaking of which, i recently went to the mullimbimbi markets with the wife
and kids.

nice 4x4 country up in the back blocks there.

that was interesting.

i bet it was.

 

[Jukka K. Korpela]

But you see, the only reason it's an alternative is because you are
*calling* it an alternative.

Did you actually look at the HTML specifications on this? We have not
made up the meaning.

 

[Sam Hughes]

Did you actually look at the HTML specifications on this? We have not
made up the meaning.

But though it is specified as an alternative, that does not mean it is bad
for a browser to tell the user what the alternate text is in a secondary
manner.

For instance, Firefox will show the reader an image's alternate text if the
reader right-clicks and selects "properties." Do you see anything wrong
with this behavior?

 

[Neal]

But though it is specified as an alternative, that does not mean it is
bad
for a browser to tell the user what the alternate text is in a secondary
manner.

For instance, Firefox will show the reader an image's alternate text if
the
reader right-clicks and selects "properties." Do you see anything wrong
with this behavior?

No, but that's an optional way to view details about an image. Viewing
source code does the same thing.

 

[Sam Hughes]

No, but that's an optional way to view details about an image. Viewing
source code does the same thing.

And how is that different from an optional way to view details about an
image that is called a tooltip?