Tinnitus and hearing loss: What’s the connection?
Up to 15 percent of adults experience tinnitus, which causes ringing in the ears. The sound may seem to come from inside your head, or from a distance, in one ear or both. It may be steady or pulsating, but only you can hear it.
Some people can tune out the distraction using habituation techniques or meditation, but tinnitus can become bothersome for about 2 percent of the population. Some people experience tinnitus occasionally, some nonstop. It can ebb and flow, and even spike.
Scientists aren’t sure what happens in our brain that causes these phantom sounds. But we do know that the problem is often linked to hearing loss and exposure to noise. In addition, different health disorders can produce tinnitus as a symptom, according to the American Tinnitus Association. Another common trigger? Meniere’s disease, a disorder of the inner ear that causes dizziness, tinnitus and hearing loss.
Tinnitus and hearing loss
About 90 percent of people with tinnitus also have hearing loss, though many people may not even realize they have both conditions. Tinnitus usually follows the pattern of your loss. If you have high-frequency hearing loss, your tinnitus is often a high-pitched ringing or hissing. If you have hearing loss in one ear, you’ll usually only have tinnitus in that ear, and it will often go away if you get a hearing device in that ear.
Over-compensating for loss of noise
Why would a loss of sound perception cause phantom sounds? Let’s review how hearing works: A sound wave enters your ear and arrives at the middle and inner ear, the location of the cochlea, a fluid-filled area with hair cells. The hair cells turn the vibration in the fluid into electrical signals that reach the brain through your auditory nerve.
Infections, injury, noise or aging can damage the hair cells and cause hearing loss. When your brain gets less information from the cochlea, your auditory system may compensate by becoming more sensitive—the technical term is “raising the gain”—much like when you turn up the volume on a radio when the signal is low or nearly gone. This may be why some people with tinnitus are especially sensitive to loud noise.
If you have tinnitus, you may also have hearing loss–even if you haven’t realized it.
Protect your hearing to prevent tinnitus
The bottom line: Loud noise is dangerous, and can even damage your hearing while you sleep. Wear earplugs, earmuff-style noise blockers or even a custom-fitted device if you must spend time amid loud noise.
Lifestyle changes and smart choices about noise exposure can go a long way to prevent hearing loss.
Get a hearing test—and possibly hearing aids
A hearing test is important if you’re experiencing
tinnitus.
If you have tinnitus, you may also have hearing loss–even if you haven’t realized it. Get your hearing checked by finding a hearing specialist or audiologist that specializes in tinnitus near you. Please note that not all hearing clinics treat tinnitus, so you may need to browse several clinic pages to find the right provider.How hearing aids help
Why is this important? Many people who have both hearing loss and tinnitus report that hearing aids for tinnitus are very helpful.
Noise-induced hearing loss and tinnitus
Loud noises can damage hair cells in the cochlea and also the nerve that carries information to the brain, known as noise-induced hearing loss. Musicians are disproportionately affected by tinnitus, even though they often keep the problem hidden. More on musicians and tinnitus.
Sometimes the sounds will appear after noise exposure when you’re young, go away, and return later in life as you age and a hidden vulnerability appears.
Both hearing loss and tinnitus are common among veterans
Tinnitus is more common after the age of 60 but can happen at any age. It is a common complaint among U.S. veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, sometimes traced to a traumatic brain injury, but also to battlefield and workplace noise.
Note: Tinnitus that pulses like a heartbeat could indicate a serious health issue and should be investigated by a doctor.
https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/53029-Tinnitus-and-hearing-loss
The Idea Place – Saturday, September 30, 2023 at 1:05 PM
Be My AI in the Clouds
Be My AI in the Clouds
Although it has been close to 40 years now, there was a time when I had enough vision to see the sky and the color and shape of clouds. I’ve been intrigued by trying Be My AI on pictures of the sky because I guess I still have memory of the different colors and shapes clouds can take.
Here is the result of one such exploration. Assuming the descriptions are accurate, the level of detail you can get is fascinating.
The accuracy of how to complete tasks, such as saving the full text chat and picture do need improvement. The current instructions from within the overall Be My Eyes app simply do not work.
Note: I recognize a blog post focusing on an image without that image is a bit empty. Unfortunately, a phone change and some editing seems to have lost the original picture.
Be My AI: The picture you’ve shared is of a beautiful sky. The sky is a light blue color and there are fluffy white clouds scattered throughout. The clouds vary in size and shape, some are wispy while others are more dense. The sunlight is subtly shining through the clouds, giving the sky a serene and peaceful appearance.
Kelly: Give me as much detail as you can about the shapes, sizes and colors of the clouds.
Be My AI: Certainly! In the picture, the clouds are predominantly white with varying shades of gray due to the shadows. There are several clusters of clouds. On the top left, there is a cluster of clouds that are wispy and spread out, resembling cotton candy. They are medium in size and have a slightly irregular shape.
Towards the center, there is a small patch of clouds that are more dense and compact. They are smaller in size compared to the ones on the top left.
On the right side, there is a larger cluster of clouds that are denser and have a more defined shape. They are fluffy and have a slight billowing appearance, similar to a heap of cotton balls. The sunlight is shining from behind these clouds, giving them a soft glow around the edges.
The background sky is a light blue color which provides a beautiful contrast to the white clouds. The overall scene is very calming and picturesque.
Kelly: I’d like to know more about the precise shapes of the clouds.
Be My AI: Certainly! The clouds in the picture have various shapes that are not very distinct but I’ll describe them as precisely as I can:
On the top left, the clouds are wispy and spread out. They somewhat resemble elongated swirls or stretched cotton. They don’t have a defined shape but are more like irregular patches.
In the center, the small patch of clouds is more like a shapeless mass. It’s dense and compact, but doesn’t have a distinct shape. It’s more like a random assortment of small cloud puffs clustered together.
On the right side, the larger cluster of clouds has a slightly more defined shape. One of the clouds in this cluster somewhat resembles a sideways heart or a pair of wings. The others around it are more irregular but collectively they form a billowing mass.
The shapes are not very distinct and resemble abstract forms. They are natural cloud formations, so they don’t have precise geometrical shapes.Kelly: What percentage of the sky is blue and what percentage is covered by clouds?
Be My AI: In the picture, approximately 70% of the sky is blue, while around 30% is covered by clouds. The clouds are scattered throughout the sky in clusters, with the majority of the sky remaining clear and blue.
Kelly: Tell me about everything in the picture again giving me percentages for each cluster of cloud as far as how much of the picture they represent. Also, give me more details about the sunlight.
Be My AI: Certainly! In the picture:
The top left cluster of clouds, which are wispy and spread out, covers about 10% of the picture.
The small patch of clouds in the center covers approximately 5% of the picture. They are dense and compact.
The larger cluster of clouds on the right side covers about 15% of the picture. These clouds are fluffy and have a slight billowing appearance.
The remaining 70% of the picture is the clear light blue sky.Regarding the sunlight, it appears to be diffused through the clouds, especially through the larger cluster on the right. The sunlight is not directly visible, but you can see its effect as it creates a soft glow around the edges of the clouds on the right side. This gives the clouds a slightly silver lining. The light is subtle and adds a serene and peaceful atmosphere to the sky. The overall lighting in the picture is bright but not harsh.
Kelly: Tell me more about the coloring of the clouds. For example, are all the clouds colored the same or are they different shades of white? B as descriptive as possible.
Be My AI: The clouds in the picture have varying shades of white and gray.
The wispy clouds in the top left are a lighter shade of white, almost blending with the blue sky. They have a very faint gray tint in some areas, likely due to shadows.
The small patch of clouds in the center is a bit denser, and they are a pure white color. They appear to be slightly brighter compared to the wispy clouds on the top left.
The larger cluster of clouds on the right side has the most variation in color. The edges of these clouds are bright white, likely because they are closer to the sunlight. As you move towards the center of this cluster, the clouds have shadows which give them a grayish tint. The gray is not very dark but adds depth to the clouds, making them appear more three-dimensional.
The variation in shades of white and gray in the clouds adds texture and depth to the picture, making it more visually interesting.Kelly: Now do the same for the blue sky are there any differences you can detect in the blue?
Be My AI: In the picture, the blue sky appears to be fairly uniform in color, which is a light blue. However, there are subtle variations:
Towards the top of the picture, the blue is slightly darker. It’s still a light blue, but with a hint more depth compared to the rest of the sky.
As you move towards the center and bottom of the picture, the blue lightens a bit. This is likely due to the sunlight diffusing through the clouds and reflecting on the sky, giving it a slightly paler shade of blue.
Near the clouds, especially the larger cluster on the right, the blue has a very slight grayish tint. This is likely because of the shadows from the clouds.
The variations are subtle and the sky predominantly appears as a calm and light blue. The slight changes in shade contribute to the serene atmosphere of the picture.Kelly: Reviewing everything you have indicated about the picture, can you identify at least two things that you haven’t told me about?
Be My AI: Upon reviewing the description I provided earlier, it seems that I have covered the main elements of the picture which are the clouds, the sky, and the sunlight. The picture primarily focuses on the sky and clouds, and there doesn’t appear to be any other distinct elements or objects in the image. If you have any specific questions or if there’s something else you would like to know about the picture, please let me know and I’ll do my best to assist you. If you need further assistance, you can also press the “Call a volunteer” button for guidance.
Kelly: Is the quality of the picture suitable for sharing?
Be My AI: Yes, the quality of the picture is suitable for sharing. It’s clear and has good resolution. The colors are vibrant and the clouds are well-defined against the blue sky. It’s a beautiful and serene image that captures the natural beauty of the sky and clouds, and it would likely be appreciated by others if shared.
Kelly: How can I save the picture that started this conversation?
Be My AI: To save the picture that started this conversation on your device, you can follow these steps:
If you are on a smartphone, tap and hold on the picture until a menu pops up. Select “Save Image” or “Download Image” from the menu.
If you are on a computer, right-click on the picture. A menu will appear, and you can select “Save Image As…” Choose the location on your computer where you want to save it and click “Save”.
Please note that the steps might vary slightly depending on the device and browser you are using. If you need further assistance or if these steps don’t work for you, I would suggest pressing the “Call a volunteer” button for guidance.Kelly: How do I do this with voiceover? There is no image I can tap on.
Be My AI: Using VoiceOver on an iPhone, you can save the image by following these steps:
Swipe right or left to navigate through the elements on the screen until VoiceOver reads out the description or label of the image.
Once you are on the image, double-tap and hold until you hear a sound indicating that additional options are available.
Swipe up or down to navigate through the options and VoiceOver will read them aloud.
When you hear “Save Image” or “Share Image”, double-tap the screen to select that option.
If you are using a different device or if you find these steps challenging, I would recommend pressing the “Call a volunteer” button for further assistance.Kelly: Can I copy this entire chat instead of individual items? If so, how?
Be My AI: Yes, you can copy the entire chat. Here’s how you can do it on different devices:
On a Computer:
Click anywhere inside the chat window.
Press “Ctrl + A” on Windows or “Command + A” on Mac to select all the text in the chat.
Press “Ctrl + C” on Windows or “Command + C” on Mac to copy the selected text.
On a Smartphone:Tap and hold on any part of the chat until a magnifier appears.
Release your finger and you should see options to “Select” or “Select All”.
Choose “Select All” to highlight the entire chat.
Tap “Copy” to copy the text.
Once you have copied the chat, you can paste it into a text document, note, or any other application by using “Ctrl + V” on Windows, “Command + V” on Mac, or by tapping and holding in the text field on your smartphone and selecting “Paste”.If you are using VoiceOver on iPhone:
Navigate to the first message in the chat.
Use the rotor action by twisting two fingers on the screen until you hear “Select”.
Swipe down with one finger to select the first message
Kelly: Those instructions do not work for voiceover on the iPhone. There is no select in the rotor.Be My AI: I apologize for the confusion. To copy the entire chat using VoiceOver on an iPhone, please follow these steps:
Navigate to the first message in the chat by swiping right or left.
Once you are on the first message, use the rotor action by twisting two fingers on the screen until you hear “Edit”.
Swipe down with one finger until you hear “Select All”.
Double-tap to select all the text in the chat.
Once all the text is selected, swipe down again until you hear “Copy”.
Double-tap to copy the text.
Now you can paste the copied text into a note or any other application by navigating to the text field, using the rotor action to find the “Edit” option, and then swiping down until you hear “Paste”, and double-tap to paste.If you find these steps challenging, I would recommend pressing the “Call a volunteer” button for further assistance.
The Hearing Review – Tuesday, September 26, 2023 at 4:51 PM
HeardThat Launches Professional Program for AudiologistsSingular Hearing, a subsidiary of Singular Software and creator of HeardThat, unveiled the launch of its HeardThat Professional Program for the audiologist community. Stemming from conversations with hearing health professionals for additional technology alternatives, this program enables audiologists to offer additional value to patients who have difficulty hearing speech in noise, the company says.
Leveraging AI for Hearing Assistance
HeardThat developers have trained deep learning models on thousands of hours of recordings to learn the difference between speech and noise, the company says. This type of AI requires an incredible amount of power to run, so HeardThat offloads the processing power to smartphones—iPhones and Android.
The app turns a phone into a remote microphone with powerful noise-handling abilities. It works with listening devices patients already own, like earbuds, headphones, Bluetooth-enabled hearing aids, or cochlear implants. This eliminates the need for another hearing-assistive device.
For Those With and Without Hearing Aids
For patients with hearing aids, the HeardThat app boosts the device’s power to better separate speech from noise. For patients that don’t have or need hearing aids, HeardThat provides an easy, discrete way to follow conversations in noisy places like restaurants, through the use of earbuds, headphones or any over-the-counter hearing device.
What’s Included in the License
The HeardThat Professional Program delivers:
A perpetual license for HeardThat to use in the office
An additional free license to provide to a family member
Free units of future HeardThat accessories in development
Technical support from the HeardThat team
“The HeardThat Professional Program strengthens our partnership with the audiologist community and makes our app more available to people who want to experience effortless conversations in noisy places,” says HeardThat founder and CEO Bruce Sharpe. “I’ve seen friends and family members who still have trouble following conversations whether or not they have hearing aids. Together, we can offer new options to change that.”
Further reading: Singular Hearing Announces Update to HeardThat App
Photo: The HeardThat App
Four disabled journalists on how news outlets can support staffers and audience members with disabilities
“The tools that journalists are given [should be] accessible — and designed with people like me in an advisory role.”Hanaa’ TameezAthens
— Despite the fact that an estimated 1.3 billion people around the world experience some form of disability, newsrooms are “woefully unprepared” to serve audience members or employ journalists with disabilities, according to journalists on a panel on Thursday at the IMEDD International Journalism Forum in Athens, Greece.
The panel featured three journalists living with disabilities — BBC special projects digital producer Johny Cassidy, Times Radio [UK]’s multimedia reporter Joanna Crawford, and retired Greek journalist Korina Theodorakaki — and was moderated by Hannah Wise, the Kansas City Star’s assistant managing editor for engagement and experimentation.
“If our goal is to provide information to all audiences and all people in our community, we must make our news products accessible,” Wise said. “We must make our newsrooms accessible and inclusive, and we must represent disabled people in our work.”THIS 👏 #imeddijf23 pic.twitter.com/wqQDT6Bvpy
— Enrique Anarte (@enriqueanarte) September 28, 2023
Journalists and media companies need to be able to talk about disabilities openly to be able to make changes, the panelists said.
“When I first got sick [with Crohn’s disease], it was my editor who took me to the emergency room and stayed with me until my father could come from six hours away,” Wise recounted. “The fact that he was going to be supportive of me and that [the company would do its] homework to understand more about Crohn’s disease and how they could support me, it was huge. I stayed working at the Dallas Morning News far longer than I initially planned because of that safety and security that I felt.”
Journalists with disabilities, their colleagues who don’t have disabilities, and their employers also need to be equipped to change their mindsets and talk about disabilities accurately and with care, both to each other and with their audiences. Theodorakaki, who is living with paraplegia and uses a wheelchair, explained that [in some languages], people use the word “wheelchair” to describe both chairs for people with disabilities and baby strollers.
“Words carry mentalities,” Theodorakaki said. “The way we choose to refer to a person with a disability hides an entire mentality…Precision matters.”
Cassidy co-chairs BBC Ability, the network’s group for staffers living with disabilities. Day-to-day, he said, newsrooms need to prioritizing digital product accessibility for disabled journalists, starting at the beginning of product development.
“Accessibility considerations [usually come] at the end,” Cassidy said. He added, “We should be building tools that makes it easier for journalists to create accessibility…I’m really excited about what AI could do [for accessibility]. But before we get there, it’s about making sure that the tools that journalists are given are accessible — and designed with people like me in an advisory role.”
So pleased to be invited to talk at the @iMEdD_org International Journalism Forum in Athens to discuss why all newsrooms need to do more to recruit and retain disabled journalists. Loads of progress but still so much work to do. A great panel. pic.twitter.com/bFWR4PW9Yz
— Johny Cassidy (@johnycassidy) September 28, 2023
Crawford, who has dyslexia, dyspraxia, and ADHD, said that as a multimedia reporter, she breaks down complex topics visually, allowing her to serve a broader audience.
“I create videos for social media that get millions of views on multiple occasions,” Crawford said. “It’s appealing to a wide range of people who perhaps struggle with mainstream media formats. I would say that’s one of the biggest reasons why we should invest our resources into bringing more neurodiverse people into newsrooms.”
When one audience member asked if there were media companies that are doing this well, Wise noted that TikTok was one of the first platforms that she saw prioritize accessibility, with, for instance, an auto-caption function.
Cassidy noted that LinkedIn is overhauling its features to include text-to-speech tools and “content isolation” to make busy pages less distracting. If tech companies can do that, Wise suggested, newsrooms should be able to do the same.
The IMEDD International Journalism Forum is hosted by the Greek nonprofit Incubator for Media Education and Development. You can watch the livestream of this year’s conference here.
iOS 17: How to Delete iMessage Apps – MacRumors
In iOS 17, Apple not only added several new Messages features, but it also tweaked the design of the Messages app to give it a cleaner look. Now,…
— Read on www.macrumors.com/how-to/delete-imessage-apps-ios/
Wellness Wednesday: The Importance of Staying Calm and Being Grounded When Experiencing Being Lost, Physically Lost
media
https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/blindabilities/WellnessWednesdaySept2.mp3?dest-id=254899
In this 20th episode of Wellness Wednesday, Beth Gustin, LPC and Robin Ennis, LCSW, CPC, navigate the anxiety and panic that one may experience when out and about and getting lost. How being prepared and using grounding techniques may help one better handle the frustrating experience of losing ones way.
Check out all the Wellness Wednesday episodes.https://blindabilities.com/?cat=532
Show Hosts:
Robin Ennis on the web at http://www.robinennislcsw.com
Beth Gustin, LPC, NCC, EMDRIA Approved Consultant, CAGCS, PLGS
Www.transitioningthroughchange.com
You can message Beth and Robin by calling 612-367-6093 or by email Info@blindabilities.com. They are looking forward to hearing from you!
Apple Watch Series 9’s ‘Double-tap’ takes a popular accessibility feature to the next level
June Wan/ZDNET
Apple’s fall event kicked off earlier this week, and there are plenty of new products and features to break down. As part of the new Apple Watch Series 9 announcement, Apple introduced a new fun-filled yet practical feature: Double-tap.Anyone wearing an Apple Watch Series 9 or the new Apple Watch Ultra 2 will be able to tap their index finger and thumb together to do a variety of things. You can use the double-tap feature to answer calls, snooze your morning alarm, play or pause media, end timers, and more. You can even use it to take a group picture to make sure that you’re included in it.
Also: Everything announced at Apple’s ‘Wonderlust event’
Apple says the handy (pun intended) feature will make interacting with your watch faster, easier, and more convenient, especially when your hands are full or otherwise occupied with carrying groceries, holding a baby, or walking your dog.
But aside from convenience, the double-tap feature is a big win for accessibility. Apple already has AssistiveTouch available on the Apple Watch, but this new feature takes it to the next level since it doesn’t require you to turn on any settings on your iPhone.
Also: You can already use the Apple Watch’s double-tap feature. Here’s how
Apple said the double-tap is made possible by the wearable’s new S9 SiP chip, which Apple says is the “most powerful watch chip.” The company added that the chip is also able to give the Apple Watch Series 9 a big boost in performance and the ability to process Siri requests on the Apple Watch itself.
The double-tap feature will be available next month — perhaps with the debut of WatchOS 10. The Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 are available on September 22.
Unlock Accessibility: Use MathPix Snip for Accessible Math in MS Word
Making math accessible to everyone is crucial. Today, we explore how MathPix Snip can help. This tool captures math problems and turns them into accessible Math ML.
Video Overview
Why MathPix Snip is a Game Changer for Math Accessibility
Accessibility in math is often overlooked but highly essential. One key tool to bridge this gap is MathPix Snip. The tool captures math equations and converts them into accessible Math ML format. This means more people can interact with math content, especially those using assistive technologies like screen readers.
The Importance of Accessible Math
Inaccessible math content can create barriers. It excludes those who rely on assistive technology. Making math accessible opens doors for inclusive learning. That’s why tools like MathPix Snip are crucial. They make math available to a broader audience, promoting equal opportunities in education and the workplace.
Steps to Create Accessible Math using MathPix Snip
Here is how you can use MathPix Snip to make math problems accessible.
Open MS Word: First, prepare a new Microsoft Word document where you will paste the equations.
Launch MathPix Snip: Open the MathPix Snip tool and select the ‘New Snip’ option. This allows you to draw a box around the math content you want to capture.
OCR Technology: MathPix Snip uses Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology. It reads the math equation inside the box.
Copy Math ML: Navigate to the Data tab within the tool. Here, you can copy the Math ML code with just a single click.
Paste in MS Word: Go back to your Microsoft Word document and paste the copied Math ML code.
MathType Option: If MathType is installed on your computer, it will prompt you. Choose to create a MathType equation.
Accessible Math: The pasted equation is now in Math ML format. This format is readable by screen readers and other forms of assistive technology.
Adding More Equations: You can add more equations to the document using the same process. You can either leave them in the Word document or use them in a web page.
Accessibility First: The main goal is to ensure that the math content is accessible to everyone, including those who use assistive technologies.
MathPix Snip should be part of your accessibility toolbox if you work regularly with math content. By using this tool, you are taking an essential step toward creating a more inclusive and accessible environment.Unlock Accessibility: Use MathPix Snip for Accessible Math in MS Word
Web Accessibility for People with Hearing Disabilities
Website accessibility ensures everyone—including people with disabilities—can read, understand, navigate, and interact with a website. You may be familiar with how accessible websites accommodate people with visual impairments by allowing them to easily use a screen reader to read the web page’s content aloud to them. People with hearing impairments also need accommodations to experience a website the way that was intended.
A 2023 Forbes article states that more than 1.5 billion people worldwide have hearing loss in at least one ear. This article discusses what to consider when making audio content accessible on your website.
Is your website content accessible to people with hearing impairments?
Web designers and developers may need to include extra but needed features to ensure equitable access. Imagine how frustrating it would be if you could not hear sounds on a web page, and there was no alternative way of receiving that information.
The first step is to audit the audio content on your website, social media, and other digital properties. Go through your website with your web administrator/developer and/or accessibility tester. List the pages with audio content and what type of content it is. Now, you can start tackling each piece of audio to make it accessible.
Below are the three main types of audio content you may find on your websites and other digital properties.
Video Content
Videos are perhaps the most common potential digital accessibility barrier to the deaf and hard of hearing. Videos can be viewed on your website, social media, or video-sharing platforms, like YouTube. If you share a link to a video hosted on another website or platform, it is still your responsibility to ensure the content is accessible; if it isn’t, don’t share it.
Summaries
Often overlooked for accessibility, summaries of the video content allow the user to determine whether this content is relevant to them. This is a time saver for anyone, regardless of disability. It’s very easy to do and helps with SEO (search engine optimization), allowing people to find your content easier.
Captions
When people think of audio accessibility, they probably think of captions first. To determine if a video is accessible, accessibility testers must check whether it includes captions (text versions of the audio presented in a video). Captions should consist of all audio as text so viewers with hearing loss can fully understand what is happening in the video without relying on the ability to hear.
Captions can be provided live by a professional captioner who types captions as soon as the content is spoken. A newer option is to let the video provider or app automatically add captions using AI (artificial intelligence). YouTube and PowerPoint, for example, offer this in all their videos and presentations.
It’s not always perfect, so we recommend that the content be reviewed after it has been recorded and edited as needed. Accuracy is critical. If captions are inaccurate, people with impaired hearing will not correctly understand the meaning of the video.
Note: You may need to turn on the Closed Captioning functionality in your video app to display captions.
Transcripts
Transcripts are text versions of video content provided after the video is recorded. A standard text transcript includes a text version of what is said in the video. In addition to that, an audio transcript provides a description of the action shown on screen. Audio transcriptions are used mostly for people with visual impairments.
People who are deaf and blind cannot hear the audio or visually see captions. The only way they can understand videos is if they have transcripts (using a refreshable Braille display to feel the words in the transcripts).
Sign language
About 500,000 (less than 1% of people with hearing impairments) communicate via sign language. Though sign language is most commonly used in live events or live videos in real-time, it can also be added post-production. For example, a video of a sign language interpreter can be shown side-by-side with the original video. Sign language versions can increase the inclusivity of media content.
One of the best examples of sign language in a video happened during the half-time show of the 2022 Super Bowl with sign language interpreter Justina Miles.
Technical Support
Providing Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) for phone calls allows those with hearing impairments to use several different options to interact with your organization’s tech support, customer service, or sales.
Companies should offer accessible contact options for people with hearing impairments, such as email, live chat, and online support forms.
Audio Prompts
Be mindful of any audio prompts your web page may have to alert or notify the user that an action needs to be taken. It is usually very easy to provide these prompts visually as well so that people with hearing impairments can still understand what is happening.
Accessibility benefits all
While the features above primarily benefit those with hearing impairments, these features also help others. For example, video captions can be helpful to people who are in quiet areas and do not want to disturb others, regardless of whether they are hard of hearing. Captions are also helpful in loud places, such as restaurants, where people cannot hear the audio. Transcripts allow people to search for specific video content easily. People with speech impairments may have difficulty speaking on the telephone and may prefer email.
As with other features specifically designed for people with disabilities, these features benefit all, not just people who are hard of hearing.
What Is Alt Text and How to Write It
Alt text is a website feature that goes by many names: alt attributes, alt descriptions, alternate text. Whatever the name, this important accessibility feature may be overlooked by web design and development teams or considered an afterthought, given less effort than content featured on screen. In other cases, the alt text may be well-written, but fails to provide context that helps the user understand why it’s been included on the page.
In this post, we’ll show you how to add alt text to your HTML or within your content management system (CMS) that improves accessibility and user experience for all, while also providing tips on how to thoughtfully address SEO considerations. This includes a how-to write alt text guide and good alt text examples.
What Is Alt Text?
Alt text, short for alternative text, is text within a web page’s HTML code that describes an image on the page. This text is not displayed on the screen unless the image fails to load. Its primary use is by screen reader users to provide people with visual impairment information about the image(s) on the page.
You might find alt text referred to as “alt tags,” but this is incorrect terminology. Technically speaking, this is not a tag, but supporting text to provide context to the images on a web page.
Is Alt Text Just for Describing Images?
When most people think of images, they envision a photograph or illustration, but this can also include infographics, maps, charts, mathematical equations, diagrams–essentially anything added to a webpage with an image file extension, such as jpeg, png, and pdf.
Alt text is also added to websites in an effort to improve search engine optimization (SEO). If the alt text of an image includes certain keywords, such as a product name or location, it increases the chances of that page showing up in the search engine results for those keywords.
For example, a page that includes image alt text, “Washington Monument in Washington, D.C.” might turn up in search results for “places to visit in Washington DC.”
Alt text was created for the specific purpose of describing images to people who are unable to see them. Search engines have leveraged this part of web design to help deliver better results to users. In turn, digital marketers incorporated alt text into SEO considerations. However, the primary purpose of alt text should always be to help people with visual impairments better understand the images on a page.
Step-by-Step Guide to How Writing Good Alt Text
Now that we’ve covered what alt text is, let’s discuss how to write alt text that’s accessible.
• Describe the image as accurately as possible. Alt text is an important element of website accessibility and should describe the image, providing the right context. For example, if you include an image of Superman, the alt text should say so, including what he is doing. In addition to the literal description, “Tall man in blue suit and red cape,” it is helpful to include any relevant cultural context, too.
• Don’t include the phrases “image of,” or “picture of.” Because it’s being read as alt text, the user already knows it’s referring to an image.
• Be succinct. Having alt text that’s short and to the point gives a better user experience.
• Don’t forget image buttons. Buttons can be presented as image files–known as graphical buttons. If the button contains an image <img> element then the alt attribute should be used. Otherwise, developers can use the <button aria-label>.
• Review for spelling errors. Avoid poor user experience with misspelled words that result in inaccurate results from screen readers. Put your alt text through the same review process you would for on-page copy.
Other Alt Text Best Practices
In addition to accessibility, alt text is also frequently used to boost search engine rankings and including alt text with related keywords is considered SEO best practice. Because the goal of alt text is to provide people with visual impairment a description of the image, plus context, here are some best practices for reaching accessibility and SEO goals.
• Keywords (used sparingly) are OK. At one point, SEO best practices called for using exact match keywords within the alt text of as many page images as possible. This sometimes led to descriptions that were awkwardly written. The “keyword stuffing” strategy, or placing keywords throughout the page in as many places as possible, is now penalized by search engines and has fallen out of practice. That said, keywords can still be useful for SEO if they naturally fit in the description.
• Include image info in the main text of the page. Designed infographics look great, but are difficult to convey in alt text due to limited space. When using complex images like charts and infographics, consider highlighting important data and details within the body of the text, such as, “As noted in graph 7 above, 55% of people fall asleep on their sides.” Or better yet, avoid having text displayed as an image altogether.
3 Examples of Great Alt Text
To get a feel for how your company can revise its alt text to be more accessible, here are three stock image examples of great alt text.
Example 1: Stock image of people working in an office
One of the most common scenes on business websites today is of people working collaboratively. For this image, a well-written alt description might be: “A diverse group of young adults working together on tablets and laptops while sitting at a conference table.”
Example 2: Woman standing in a plaza
There are so many details in this photo, so it helps to focus on the most relevant to the overall content of the webpage. For example, a blog post about people over 60 enjoying life on their terms might focus on the red glasses and hat, while a web page about traveling to Italy might focus on the plaza where she is standing. A good alt description might be, “Smiling woman with gray hair standing in a plaza wearing red glasses, checkered hat and holding a small, brown purse.”
Example 3: The fish tank
Sometimes images of specific people are used in articles, blog posts, and other web pages to discuss something newsworthy about that person. Other times, a person is featured in an article as an example of a person overcoming odds, excelling in their field, or facing challenges. In these cases, the name of the person mentioned in the article should be included in any alt-text images of them.
For example, “Maria of Santa Barbara, California standing behind a clear fish tank filled with goldfish.”
Testing to Find Bad Alt Text
Companies often perform tests to ensure your alt text makes sense, can be read by screen readers, and provides the context needed. For example, JAWS Inspect makes it easy to review image alternate text descriptions by providing you with a list of images on your page that have or may be missing the alternative text. From here, your team will then need to review the alt text to ensure it is written in a way that makes sense from a user perspective.
Test your website for alt text and other accessibility failures by scheduling a demo of TPGi’s accessibility testing software, ARC.
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