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Thread: Different link text, same link target?

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From: Rick Hill
Date: Thu, Feb 09 2012 12:42PM
Subject: Different link text, same link target?
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Question,

In our CMS, we're providing users the ability to create a feature box composed of:

* A descriptive title of the feature that links to the full feature content page. This title can be above or below the image
* An image that also links to the full feature content page
* Some summary text
* Another link to the feature page at the bottom

Image of this attached. My issue is that the top link and bottom link text don't necessarily use the same text. Yet they both link to the same target page. The image link can use either text as the alt. The argument is the the top link text is the descriptive name of the article and the bottom link is an abbreviated description.

Isn't it the case that the text of links pointing at the same linked resource (URL) are supposed to be the same? And conversely, link text that is the same on a page should point at the same URL (so "About" used more than once on a page as a hyperlink points to the same URL)?

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Rick Hill, Web CMS Administrator
University Communications, UC Davis

From: Rick Hill
Date: Thu, Feb 09 2012 2:12PM
Subject: Re: Different link text, same link target?
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Sorry, no image attached (the list doesn't allow it). If it would be clearer, I can try to post a link to an image of the feature box.

In reviewing WCAG 2 it looks like links with the same text "label"that is the same on a page but point at different URL's is allowed under WCAG 2AA. Just not WCAG AAA (so "About" used more than once on a page as a hyperlink can point to different URL's)..

It will also seem that is is allowable to have links on a single page that all reference the same URL/target to have different descriptive text applied as long as it is sufficiently descriptive.

In the example I tried to upload, the box would work sorta like this:

From: Rick Hill
Date: Thu, Feb 16 2012 2:24PM
Subject: Re: Different link text, same link target?
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Any comment/help with this? We are finalizing a CMS design now and need to decide how to best deal with this.

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Rick Hill

From: Rick Hill < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = <mailto: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = >>
Reply-To: WebAIM Discussion List < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = <mailto: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = >>
Date: Thu, 9 Feb 2012 21:15:38 +0000
To: WebAIM Discussion List < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = <mailto: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = >>
Subject: Re: [WebAIM] Different link text, same link target?

Sorry, no image attached (the list doesn't allow it). If it would be clearer, I can try to post a link to an image of the feature box.

In reviewing WCAG 2 it looks like links with the same text "label"that is the same on a page but point at different URL's is allowed under WCAG 2AA. Just not WCAG AAA (so "About" used more than once on a page as a hyperlink can point to different URL's)..

It will also seem that is is allowable to have links on a single page that all reference the same URL/target to have different descriptive text applied as long as it is sufficiently descriptive.

In the example I tried to upload, the box would work sorta like this:

From: Jared Smith
Date: Wed, Feb 22 2012 12:09PM
Subject: Re: Different link text, same link target?
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Sorry for the VERY long delay in responding.

I think you're misunderstanding the WCAG 2.0 requirements a bit. The
requirements don't require that the link text be different and that
URLs be the same or different. What they do require is that the link
text make sense. Level AA requires that it make sense by itself or in
it's context, and Level AAA requires that the link text make sense all
by itself.

So, two "About" links (whether they go to different URLs or the same
URL is irrelevant) are acceptable at Level AA so long as their context
adequately distinguishes them from each other. At level AAA, they'd
have to be changed to "About X" and "About Y".

I'm not sure I entirely understand the example you provided. It seems
to me that the first two elements ("Feature About Test" and the
feature image) could and probably should be combined into one link.
CSS could be used to present the image however you like. Because they
are seemingly adjacent to either other, this seems best - it would
reduce the number of links, markup amount, redundancy of content, etc.
Because this link provides the full context of the link, no other
accessibility issues are present.

The "More About Test" also is perfectly accessible and compliant
because it seems to provide the full context for where the link goes.
If the text were simply "More", this would be Level AA conformant
because the "Feature About Test" text (which should probably be a
heading) provides the necessary context, but it would not be Level AAA
conformant.

Hopefully this helps. And I might just be misinterpreting the
questions and example.

Jared Smith
WebAIM.org


On Thu, Feb 16, 2012 at 2:19 PM, Rick Hill < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = > wrote:
> Any comment/help with this? We are finalizing a CMS design now and need to decide how to best deal with this.
>
> –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
> Rick Hill
>
> From: Rick Hill < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = <mailto: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = >>
> Reply-To: WebAIM Discussion List < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = <mailto: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = >>
> Date: Thu, 9 Feb 2012 21:15:38 +0000
> To: WebAIM Discussion List < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = <mailto: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = >>
> Subject: Re: [WebAIM] Different link text, same link target?
>
> Sorry, no image attached (the list doesn't allow it). If it would be clearer, I can try to post a link to an image of the feature box.
>
> In reviewing WCAG 2 it looks like links with the same  text "label"that is the same on a page but point at different URL's is allowed under WCAG 2AA. Just not WCAG AAA (so "About" used more than once on a page as a hyperlink can point to different URL's)..
>
> It will also seem that is is allowable to have links on a single page that all reference the same URL/target to have different descriptive text applied as long as it is sufficiently descriptive.
>
> In the example I tried to upload, the box would work sorta like this:
>