Web pages Images Conferencing Chat Audio/Video PowerPoint PDF Advanced Multimedia

Students Affected:

Principles: Build Usable Navigation, Write for Comprehension

What It Means

Hyperlinks tie Web pages and Web sites together. The link name—the text you underline or otherwise identify as a link—must be descriptive so that students can easily identify its destination, even out of context.

Many screen reader users navigate using a summary list of links. This list includes only the links on your Web page—not the text that surrounds the link. Non-descriptive link titles like "click here" do not identify the link destination to screen reader users and other students who access the link out of context.

If You Do It Wrong: Confusing link names force users to guess which paths to take, making your site much harder to use.

If You Do It Right: Link names are clear and unambiguous, so students need not hunt for information. Browsers can create summary lists of links for easy access.

How it Works

1. Use concise link names that identify the destination, making the purpose of the link clear. Don't use "click here."
   
   

   Example Instead of: Click here to see the syllabus. Click here to see a list of assignments. Try: To learn about course requirements, view the syllabus and the list of assignments.

   
   
2. Visually distinguish links from other text on the page. For example, underline and/or make links a different color.
   
   
3. Differentiate external links from other links on your site. For example, consolidate external links in one area of your Web page or site, add a disclaimer after a link ("link to external Web site"), or change the way you name external links to make the destination clear.
   
   

   Throughout this Web site, external links are placed in a "More Info" box.

   
   
   

Testing Tips

Scan the links on your page to confirm they make sense out of context and clearly describe their destination.

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