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Re: Chrome Color Contrast Analyzer

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From: Chagnon | PubCom
Date: Aug 9, 2016 11:52PM

Alan, I'm not sure your sample is an adequate way to test legibility, readability, and contrast of text on a background.

The test in your link is a pixelated, bitmapped graphic of text, not live, vector text that is rendered from scalable fonts (like OpenType fonts). It has large pixels from a low-resolution screen capture that don't adequately mimic the smooth curves of our letter shapes. That's why it's illegible.

All the Chrome contrast analyzer did was assess the values of the white and green colors in your graphic and determine that yes, there is enough contrast between them. It analyzed the pixel colors, that's all.

It did not analyze, however, the readability and legibility of the text; I don't believe any contrast checker can do that, not yet at least.

And given that your test graphic was so poorly made, I doubt it's useful to test anything at all.

Question: is the text on your webpage live, scalable text? Or is it graphical text, that is, faux-text made up of pixels arranged to mimic the shapes of letterforms?

If it's live scalable text, then it's probably ok because 1) The colors passed the contrast checker, and 2) live text is scalable so low vision readers can adjust its size as needed.

If it's graphical text, I assume you know that it doesn't meet accessibility needs at all.

<< If we keep with the Chrome tool, what criteria should we use to make these judgment calls? >>
Common sense? Good taste? A graphic design degree from an accredited school of higher education where someone had courses in color theory and human perception?

There will always be people who will make stupid choices for their fonts, such as the Banshee font for body text https://typekit.com/fonts/banshee-std or bright red text on an intense green background that causes visual vibration for sighted users.

I don't know if it's possible at this state of our technology to develop programs that can assess stupid choices.

But wouldn't that make an incredible app in real life? Sort of like a magic eight-ball for reality held in our iPhone. ...
1) Point phone at boyfriend.
2) Submit question: should I marry him?

Or 1) Upload selfie of yourself in your favorite pants.
2) Submit question: do these pants my butt look big?

Or 1) Direct app to your website URL.
2) Submit question: is the Banshee font ok for body text?

The answer to the last one: Are you nuts? Whatsa da mattah wid you?

--Bevi Chagnon

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