We often forget that when we add links to a webpage, we don't need to visually show the web address. Those are only required on print materials and publications. On the web and other electronic documents (as long as you have an internet connection), link text in the form of a web address can be very confusing if not exceedingly annoying.
These can be resolved by either removing the web address instructions, if they are already on the page, or replacing the web address as link text with the title of the page and linking directly to the page desired. This clarifies the location and improves usability, since they don't have to navigate (or type) anywhere else for the link to information.
Bad Link Examples
Bad Link Text |
Why is it Ineffective? |
http://bit.ly/83de85rfe4 |
It provide no information whatsoever of what the link is about or where it will take you. Plus, it is just a bunch of letters and numbers being spelled out, character by character. |
http://www.tarleton.edu/accessibility/standards/links.html |
You have an idea where this will take you, but you were burdened with the character by character and word by word reading of the text. |
Users with cognitive or visual impairments and disabilities need links across the website, both in navigation and in the main content, to consistently:
- behave (e.g. function in a commonly known fashion)
- display on the page (e.g. indicating what type of link)
When expectations are changed, this causes confusion (see a light-hearted explanation of user expectations, starting at 1:49 in the video). Our goal is to reduce that confusion, known as the principle of least astonishment.
For example, users expect to be able to control how the links they select appear in their browser. They are familiar with their device's functionality and their own habits. However, when a user opens a new tab, that removes navigational options.
Whenever possible, make sure your links do not force your users to open them in new windows/tabs of their browsers. This decision should be controlled by the user, not the designer, as menu and keyboard options are available on browsers to allow the user to make that choice.
Confusion and usability issues for all individuals, no matter their abilities, get amplified when documents (e.g. PDF, DOC, XLS, PPT) are in the main content or navigation.
In the main content of a webpage, Tarleton's new responsive template automatically identifies types of documents, so users know to expect their browser to open a document1:
- in the same tab of the browser
- in a new tab or window of the browser
- in the application installed on their device (if it is installed)
Exceptions are described below for special link types, like email addresses and phone numbers.
As a general compliance rule, documents are not as accessible as webpages or need far more effort to become in compliance, so this change in environment and access should be used only when absolutely necessary. If the content cannot be displayed and maintained in a webpage to function correctly (e.g. web form, résumé), then a document can be used1 (see Nielsen Norman Group's web usability article Can Hated Design Elements Be Made to Work?).
In the navigation of a website, users expect to find a way from one webpage to the next within the website, not exit the navigation of the website entirely. This happens when a user selects a link to open a document1, and includes the following potential issues:
- The document is self-contained; it may have its own table of contents and/or links, but it is not the same navigation as the website the user was previously on. This removes the user from the website's navigation and requires them to determine for themselves where they are and how to get back.
- TAC 206.70 requires websites to now support the "variations in internet connection speeds and emerging communications protocols and technologies," an accessibility guideline that affects individuals of all abilities. Documents are often inaccessible due to file size because users are not willing or able to wait for the documents to download to their device. They must be fully loaded on a user's device before the user can open and view them.
- Webpages open much faster than documents with similar content.
- Tarleton's responsive template allows portions of the page to load and special parts, including images, to load later as desired by the user as they scroll down the page.