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The headings, if you can wrap your head First of all, the belief that screen readers used
around their use, can not only help you break by the visually impaired read them out to the
down, organize and display your text (and user is not so; while some screen readers have
image) content, it helps the search engine “read” the ability to do this, apparently they’re by
the whole site and properly index it, rendering default set to “off”.
it a “real catch” and more likely to be easily
reached and reported to search-engine users in Screen readers scan the alt attributes, to tell
their results pages. seeing-impaired users what they are ‘seeing’.
Getting back to attributes, and that “title” Then there is their usability - since the title
referred to earlier... attribute text only appears to users who can
hover over the element with a pointer device
Unlike what everyone erroneously refers to such as a mouse, those who browse exclusively
as the “alt tag”, the title attribute (If we called via keyboard or use touch-screens such as
it a title tag it would get us all confused with those found on phones, PDAs and tablets, will
the actual <title> tag in the <head> section of not be able to see title attribute content they are
site pages, which would not be good; we are an not able to hover.
easily confused lot.) does not need to describe
the element. Now, this attribute has been around for twenty
years or more. Some people say kill it, get rid
Unlike the alt attribute, the title attribute can
of it, never use it; they are one extreme. Others
be used in almost any tag or element in html
say it’s great on hovers for an extra call to action
(a global attribute). The alt attribute works
(“Click here to See her Naked!” or “Just one Click
only as an alternative to an image - besides an
and you Could Win!” etc.)
actual img tag, it can also be used in an input
element, for a form’s graphical Submit button
Well, it’s true the title tag can be used on almost
for example, and in an area element, which is any element or tag within an html construct.
part of something called an image map (please
It’s also true it’s useless to those users who
let us forget I said that).
can’t hover, and the web is increasingly being
accessed via those other devices. And most
A title attribute is very dynamic and flexible
of those who use screen readers can’t “hear”
and can be included in a div, p, table, td, tr, and
what’s contained in a title attribute.
virtually any part of the html vocabulary.
However, as we’ve learned from the evolution
And also, images.
of the hover-ability and function of alt tags
on images, or the re-assignation of design-
What’s interesting about the title attribute is
adapted heading tags to a more vital role as
that it doesn’t need to describe the element or
an optimization element for search engines,
tag it’s in as an alternative to the actual thing; it
the web and W3C Consortium are nothing if
can, as its name implies, act as something more
not adaptable and dogged. When something
encompassing, or instructional, or, in links for
is elegant and simple, yet potentially greater
example, as an indicator of what lies beyond the
than it’s current usage would suggest but
click.
nonetheless structured so deliberatedly and
Apparently there is value in using them in with an internal logic that indicates it’s its own
useless text links such as “Read More” or viable entity, then what yesterday is teaching us
“Continued” and so on (those links may not be is that tomorrow the potentially orphaned title
useless, but their text content is wishy-washy). attribute will probably find its place.
And one place they’re particularly useful is as In other words, keep using those title tags.
part of an element such as a div whose image They aren’t useful to everyone, and they’ll never
is set in the background via css (and thus can’t replace the alt attribute, but someday someone
have a text-equivalent alt or title in and of itself). (or some AI?) will divine the role of the title
attribute and we will all be the recipients of the
However don’t go selling the title attribute benefits of its universal applicability.
too hard, because there are many schools of
thought on its usefulness. Whatever they are.
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