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Re: If an image doesn't add meaning, should it have alt text?

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From: Karlen Communications
Date: Apr 8, 2019 7:12AM

In the PDF format, decorative images can be identified as Artifacts using
the Reading Order tool. This means that adaptive technology "doesn't see
them" and therefore we don't spend valuable time listening to Alt Text for
images that don't really add or support meaning to the content.

In the latest version of Microsoft Office 365/2016+ subscription version,
you can identify an image in a document as an "Artifact" by checking the
check box to "Mark as decorative" in the Alt Text Pane.

If you then convert that Word or PowerPoint content to tagged PDF, the
images will be Artifacts/not seen by the adaptive technology.

BUT...

If you then share that Word or PowerPoint document with someone who is not
using the latest version of Office 365/2016+ subscription they will not have
access to the fact that the images are Artifacts. The ability to mark
something in an Office 365/2016+ subscription application is NOT backward
compatible. If someone using an earlier version of Office runs the
Accessibility Checker on the file, they will get errors for the images that
are marked as Artifacts/decorative that they are missing alt text. The
person reading that content will not be able to add Alt text as the Alt text
field is not available to them because someone using a more recent version
of the application identified the images as Artifacts/decorative.

And another BUT....

This is a relatively new tool/feature of Office 365/2016+ subscription and
the adaptive technology hasn't caught up with it yet. So what we hear are
"graphic, 6 inches by 4 inches" for images marked as Artifacts/decorative
which isn't helpful when reading through the document.

On the other hand, if you add Alt text in Word like "decorative image" you
will need to sift through those images in a PDF document to make them
Artifacts...or we will have to listen to "graphic, decorative image" for
every Artifact in a PDF document that is a decorative image.

So, We are at that awkward stage where we have tools to help those of us who
are document authors but the tools are not backward compatible and the
adaptive technology has not caught up.

Am not saying don't use this feature in Office 365/2016+ subscription, but
am saying that there are currently gaps in how this information is rendered
to other versions of Office and the end-user.

I do use the ability to mark images as Artifacts/decorative in Office as I
only publish in accessible PDF format and this makes life easier and less
complicated when it comes to images that are Artifacts/decorative.

Cheers, Karen