remove additional image tags

22 Jun 2011, 16:56

#1

Zen Follower

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remove additional image tags

Hi, How can I remove the alt tags that appear on my product additional images?

My site sells prams and the additional images may be of the choice of wheels that the customer can have, or even some accessory, but when you hover over it the alt tag is the main product name which is not correct for the image. Please help. Many thanks

23 Jun 2011, 19:03

#2

congerman

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Re: remove additional image tags

Anyone help with this? It is really annoying

23 Jun 2011, 21:16

#3

drbyte

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Re: remove additional image tags

You'll need to hack out the $products_name variable and replace it with '' in the zen_image calls of the module that's building those images ... /includes/modules/additional_images.php

23 Jun 2011, 21:54

#4

schoolboy

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Re: remove additional image tags

Bear in mind that you "lose SEO points" for having images with no alt tags.

Additionally (if you are in the UK or EU) you are technically breaking the law. Provisions in the Disability Discrimination Act make it an offence to have elements displayed on a website that cannot be interpreted by a person with a visual impairment.

Yes, yes... I know that's pedantic. But it's not me writing the law! :D

23 Jun 2011, 22:01

#5

dbltoe

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Re: remove additional image tags

In the US, it's Section508 of the Rehabilitation Act. It is not mandated here for other than those receiving Federal monies.

Still, all of the requirements (including alt tags) help a search engine to traverse your site. After all, they're all "blind."

24 Jun 2011, 05:43

#6

congerman

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Re: remove additional image tags

Thanks for the imput, I will try to find that bit of code. As for SEO I don't find my sites get penalised by any of the search engines for not having alt tags, I really don't think they carry as much weight as they used to. I have never heard of any law that would insist on them.

You say they help traverse my site, well yes if they say the right thing i guess, but I have additional images of wheels and the alt tag says it is a pram, so not really helping at all.

Is there a way to specify alt tags for each image?

Is there a way that I can turn them off site wide?

24 Jun 2011, 06:07

#7

kim

Obaa-san

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Re: remove additional image tags

In addition to the above, the alt tag is a required attribute of the <img> tag - your site will not validate without them and non-validating sites can render improperly in some browsers.

24 Jun 2011, 07:12

#8

drbyte

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Re: remove additional image tags

Congerman:
Is there a way to specify alt tags for each image?

No, there is no built-in way to do that in the current version.

Congerman:
Is there a way that I can turn them off site wide?

No. You don't want to do that.

The method I described will remove them for *just* the additional-product-images.

24 Jun 2011, 08:40

#9

congerman

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Re: remove additional image tags

Great thanks. There are quite a few $products_name in that file do I remove them all?

24 Jun 2011, 08:48

#10

drbyte

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Re: remove additional image tags

DrByte:
You'll need to hack out the $products_name variable and replace it with '' in the zen_image calls of the module that's building those images ... /includes/modules/additional_images.php

Congerman:
Great thanks. There are quite a few $products_name in that file do I remove them all?

Um no ... as I said, only the ones in the zen_image function calls.

24 Jun 2011, 08:48

#11

schoolboy

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Re: remove additional image tags

I think you are about to turn a pimple into a tumour.

There is a massive down-side to hacking out the alt tags. For people who can see normally, the description rendered temporarily in the little hover box is likely to be absolutely ignored. They are not dumb... they can see what the image is showing. Just live with this (very minor) limitation within ZC. You are not going to get visitors abandoning your site in horror or disgust just because an alt tag is a little "inaccurate".

But you will be penalised elsewhere. Your site will not validate, and will also be penalised on search engines.

To me, that's a silly sacrifice.

However, as your site is in an arena (baby goods) that competes with a site of one of my clients, I am going to encourage you to go ahead with your plan... At least you won't be competing for Google SERPS with my client! :clap:

24 Jun 2011, 09:02

#12

congerman

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Re: remove additional image tags

ok thank you