#functional accessibility

In an ideal world, all image descriptions would happen in the "alt text." Which is like, when you're adding an image to your website, you go to the <img> tag and add alt="image description goes here" Alt text is super great for screen readers because they know that it's an image, and they read the alt text accordingly. It's also nice to configure things this way because then there is less text-clutter, which can otherwise be a pain to folks with certain learning disabilites/ADHD.

However, this is very often not an option for tumblr-users. When you're uploading a photo post, for example, you don't even get the opportunity to add alt text. But there are things you can do to compensate:

Put the image descriptions right below the picture. Even if it's a reblog, you should just add in the description before the blockquotes that have everybody else's commentary. Because of how tumblr is set up, the description will be credited to you. This helps sighted folks who skip around when they're reading to know what not to read, and it also allows people using screenreaders to know what the image looks like before they hear everything other people have to say about it.

Let people know that it's an image description by following the convention "[image:...]."

Put a paragraph break between the image description and the commentary. (It shouldn't function as the first sentence of some longer comment).

If you can, add the alt text to images you upload. When you upload an image on a non-image post, tumblr gives you a space to add in an image description. That's where it should go! If you're worried that a sighted follower might not realize that you have an image description already (and therefore they might re-write one), you can put [image described in alt text] below. 

Screenreaders can also grab all of the links on a page, and allow the user to search them alphabetically. So if your "about me" is titled "stuff about me," then the person trying to read your blog won't be able to find the page just by searching under "a" in the list. In general, main links (contact, about, ask, etc) should begin intuitively, so they can be searched and recognized. Good links are both concise and informative.

There are also some links that aren't accessible to people who can't use mouses. (Generally, folks with screenreaders don't). Specifically, anything that ends with a "#" isn't helpful, because clicking on it doesn't take you anywhere. Those types of links are typically created in javascript as a way of making drop-down menus. If you go to your tumblelog/dashboard, there's a drop-down menu of all the blogs you belong to, right under your "likes." If you hover over it, you can see that the url for that menu ends with a pound sign (mine looks like "tumblr.com/tumblelog/fuckyeahaccessibility#"). This is because you're not going to a new page to use the menu, but as a result this menu is inaccessible to folks with screenreaders/no mouse.

There's nothing you can do about tumblr's crap-tastic design (unless you want to start a petition--I'd be down with that). But you can avoid themes with drop-down menus. And if you're writing your own theme in javascript, make sure the links are all clickable. Especially, some search functions are really crappy on specific tumblr themes. (This one included).

Many people with screenreaders will skim a blog by reading all of the links on the homepage, especially if they're looking for one section/function in particular. Consequently, the text you put a link on is important. "Click here" doesn't make any sense out of context, nor does "this [post]" or "here." Instead, try to write your links so that they're obvious even out of context.

I totally fucked this one up when responding to Kantala's ask earlier with the phrase "clickable link" (link to what??). In the end, I changed the linked text to "thread on pausing gif animation" because that's what it is (and if someone were to be looking through the site, they would know immediately if that was the link they wanted).

In addition to using descriptive links on your tumblr's content, it's also important to make your "ask" and "submit" boxes very obvious. When you link to your ask page with "when the revolution comes, what we will sing?" it's not clear whether the link will go to your submit feature, a blog you love, or a youtube video (cuz it kinda songs like a song lyric). In an ideal world, all tumblrites would stick to "ask me anything" and "submit."