Photographs have become an integral part of Twitter, so the social platform has added a feature that makes pictures accessible to the visually impaired.
Twitter users are now prompted to add descriptions to their photographs to aid assistive technology for blind people.
The technology was rolled out this week on iOS and Android apps. The descriptions, also known as alternative text (alt text), will be available to technology like screen readers and braille displays.
The feature is enabled by using the compose image descriptions option in the Twitter app's accessibility settings. Each thumbnail in the composer will have an add description button. Descriptions can be up to 420 characters.
"To ensure publishers and third-party clients also have the capability to add alt text to images, we've extended our platform products to both the REST API and Twitter Cards," said Todd Kloots, a Twitter engineer, in a blog post.
This is important for specialised Twitter clients for the visually impaired, such as EasyChirp, Chicken Nugget and The Qube.
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