You will have noticed that the text on this site (and indeed on most sites who strive for site accessibility) is not justified. Is there a reason for this?
photo credit: bartmaguire
This subject is so important I am going to quote verbatim from an article published in RNIB in 2005:
There are two main reasons for justified text not working well on web pages - the way we actually read text when we’re viewing it on screen, and the way browsers handle text justification.
Text is more difficult to read on screen than it is in hard print because of differences in resolution, and the fact that, even if we’re not consciously aware of it, the image on screen is not totally static (the image is constantly being refreshed, many times a second). So anything which makes it more difficult to find and read words, phrases, paragraphs, etc, is generally not a good idea.
Browsers are not very good at handling justification and displaying justified text, and one is likely to be presented with text where the spaces between words varies a lot, unlike the more subtle variation in spacing that is achieved in printed text. This extreme variation in the spacing makes the text more difficult to read - instead of the eye being able to move smoothly along the line of text, it has to move in “fits and starts”, searching for and jumping to the start of each word.
While someone with no sight problems or reading difficulties might find this no more than a mild aggravation, it can present real problems to anyone using screen magnification software (since the gaps between words are also magnified), and to people with conditions such as dyslexia. Some people with reading difficulties and/or some cognitive disabilities find that the “rivers” of white space which can easily occur within justified passages of text on screen form a more distinct pattern than the actual words themselves, making the text extremely difficult to read and comprehend.
Some links to articles & information about this issue:
- Developing sites for users with Cognitive disabilities and learning difficulties (Juicy Studio; a simplified version of the “An Accessibility Frontier” article listed above).
- Designing web pages for dyslexic readers (Dyslexia Online Magazine for Parents)
Donna Smillie
Senior Web Accessibility Consultant
RNIBCopyright 2005, RNIB.
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Hopefully you will think twice before you justify the text on your site.
