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Thread: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
Number of posts in this thread: 10 (In chronological order)
From: Krista Greear
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 7:33AM
Subject: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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Looking for best practices about how to communicate links that open in new
tab or window within the LMS environment. I read the info on WebAIM
Hypertext <https://webaim.org/techniques/hypertext/> page but still have
some questions.
What is the best way to let the students know that links open in a new tab
or window?
- Should this information be communicated in the syllabus or LMS
instructions?
- Should there be a blanket statement at the beginning of each module?
- Should there be (link opens in new window) directly inline after each
link?
- If there is a link in the middle of the sentence, does that change
what we should do?
- If there is a need to open some links in a new tab vs a new window, it
is okay to mix the two? Or should it always be consistent?
Thanks in advance,
Krista
--
Krista Greear
Accessibility and Inclusivity Crusader
From: Joe Humbert
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 7:56AM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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Hi Krista,
I think it really depends on how the "opens in a new window" information is conveyed to all users. If there is no indication to a sighted user, I think you have to answer your questions from a usability perspective instead of an accessibility one.
Users can control this using browser settings (at least in Firefox for sure, ref: http://kb.mozillazine.org/Browser.link.open_newwindow, http://kb.mozillazine.org/Browser.link.open_newwindow.restriction)
I'm not sure you are going to get a consensus here, but I maybe wrong. ð
Joe Humbert
I do somethings in the accessibility field
From: glen walker
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 10:09AM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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Joe is spot on regarding usability vs accessibility.
If your links have a visual clue next to them to indicate they open in a
new page and you **didn't** indicate that to AT users, that would be an
accessibility issue. You can see a good example of the external link on
https://webaim.org/resources/, under the first h2 heading, "Popular
Resources", the "WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool" link has an icon
next to it to indicate it opens in a new window/tab. It also has an
":after" pseudo class that adds "external link" to the accessible name and
is announced by AT. So there's a visual clue and an AT clue that the link
opens in a new window/tab.
From: Swift, Daniel P.
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 10:37AM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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I thought you always had to indicate to the user that the link would open in a new window. You're email suggests that if you target one group, you must target all, but that if you target nobody, you're okay.
Am I wrong?
Dan Swift
Senior Web Specialist
Enterprise Services
West Chester University
610.738.0589
From: glen walker
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 10:51AM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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You're not necessarily wrong, but there isn't a WCAG requirement that a
link must indicate it opens in a new window. 2.4.4 talks about the link
purpose, and if the purpose of the link (go to site "foo") is understood,
then whether that link opens in the same window or a new window is somewhat
separate. You might argue that part of the "purpose" is to also tell the
user it will open in a new window, but 2.4.4 doesn't specifically say
that. That's why it's more of a usability issue, as Joe stated.
And in general, and this is a super broad statement, accessibility deals
with things that are available to some users but not others. That is,
equal access is not given to all users. If all users have the same access,
then it's typically not an accessibility issue. In this case, if the link
does not indicate it opens a new window, meaning no users know it will open
in a new window, then it's not an accessibility issue. It's a usability
issue. All users have the same access and get the same (bad) experience.
Glen
From: Swift, Daniel P.
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 11:05AM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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Thanks for the clarification, Glen - much appreciated!
Dan Swift
Senior Web Specialist
Enterprise Services
West Chester University
610.738.0589
From: Krista Greear
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 4:07PM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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Let's say that the LMS does NOT have any type of visual cue about how the
link is going to interact. So it's a usability and an accessibility issue
(does not tell the AT user what's happening).
Considering I can't fix the LMS, how should I handle the links within the
LMS?
On Fri, Oct 5, 2018 at 11:05 AM Swift, Daniel P. < = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = > wrote:
> Thanks for the clarification, Glen - much appreciated!
>
> Dan Swift
> Senior Web Specialist
> Enterprise Services
> West Chester University
> 610.738.0589
>
>
From: glen walker
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 4:43PM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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No, it's just a usability issue. All users have the same experience (they
don't know the link will open in a new window).
There's nothing for you to fix from an accessibility perspective.
On Fri, Oct 5, 2018 at 4:07 PM Krista Greear <
= EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED = > wrote:
> Let's say that the LMS does NOT have any type of visual cue about how the
> link is going to interact. So it's a usability and an accessibility issue
> (does not tell the AT user what's happening).
>
>
From: Colleen Gratzer, Gratzer Graphics LLC
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 5:29PM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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In Heydon Pickering's book Inclusive Design Patterns, he suggests (for
usability and accessibility) that you warn users of opening links in new
tabs or windows by using something similar to the following in CSS:
[href^="https"]:not([href*="URL_goes_here"])::after {
display: inline-block;
height: 1em;
width: 1em;
background-image: url(link_to_an _image_here_like_an_arrow_out_of_a box);
background-repeat: no-repeat;
background-position: center;
background-size: 75% auto;
content: '(external link, opens in new window)';
overflow: hidden;
white-space: nowrap;
text-indent: 1em;
}
Note: this isn't specific to an LMS, but websites in general. It would
automatically insert the image you designate after any external links
(in this case).
From what I understand, this method works for most screen readers.
Colleen Gratzer
Creative Director :: Visual Brand Expert :: Accessibility Specialist
Gratzer Graphics LLC
https://gratzergraphics.com
GET IN TOUCH: Please use this email instead: = EMAIL ADDRESS REMOVED =
On 10/5/18 9:33 AM, Krista Greear wrote:
> Looking for best practices about how to communicate links that open in new
> tab or window within the LMS environment. I read the info on WebAIM
> Hypertext <https://webaim.org/techniques/hypertext/> page but still have
> some questions.
>
> What is the best way to let the students know that links open in a new tab
> or window?
>
> - Should this information be communicated in the syllabus or LMS
> instructions?
> - Should there be a blanket statement at the beginning of each module?
> - Should there be (link opens in new window) directly inline after each
> link?
> - If there is a link in the middle of the sentence, does that change
> what we should do?
> - If there is a need to open some links in a new tab vs a new window, it
> is okay to mix the two? Or should it always be consistent?
>
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Krista
>
From: glen walker
Date: Fri, Oct 05 2018 8:01PM
Subject: Re: Links open in new tab or window in LMS
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Yes, Heydon has good stuff. The method he recommends is similar to how
WebAIM does it too. It's a great idea, but one of the points discussed
here was that *not* having it does *not* mean you fail any WCAG success
criteria.
Glen