Click Here Now!
from the we-know-how-the-internet-works dept
We're now pretty far along into the web-based world, and you would think that most people would recognize what a "link" is. However, it appears that a debate is still raging on as to whether or not web-based writing should include the specific call to "click here" when linking to some other webpage. While it's been a common practice in web advertising, trying to entice people to click on an ad, it probably doesn't make very much sense any more in standard web writing. People know what a link is. They know that they can click on it if they want to. Maybe some people just like ordering others around -- even online.
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re:click here
i've tried to discontinue the use of "click here" as a link, but am always asked to "put it back".
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Footnotes next to links
One could include footnotes after their links with the footnotes containing the website address. For example if one wanted someone to go to Yahoo[1] they would link the word and then include the footnote.
I believe that some people just don't want to learn.
[1] Yahoo - http://www.yahoo.com
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Zero Tolerance for Zero Tolerance
I understand the arguments against "click here" instructions: redundancy, commanding tone, implied assumption that your reader is an idiot, etc., but as with any zero tolerance policy, there are times when it's just plain wrong. While the Techdirt article's complaint is valid, sometimes the sentence just flows better if you tell the reader he can click here to see the original reference.
Much of what we read on the web is about the found links, so "click here" language is only natural. If you have to twist your sentence into knots to avoid such phrasing, you've effectively put your effort into doing your reader a disservice. A good writer will avoid the practice when possible, but I must admit that even my own rants will not prevent a living language from evolving to use what works. "Click here" is simply a part of the language of the web, and like it or not, it's here to stay.
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Visually impaired
Quote:
Link accessibility: Some visually impaired web users have speech browsers that have a facility to collate links on a page so the user can tab through them. This helps them quickly assess what a page is all about. But this also means that links will be read out of context. So it is important that the link wording is self-evident on its own. Whereas ‘click here’, ‘next, ‘back’, ‘top’ are all meaningless without further explanation.
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No Subject Given
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Links
While we're on the subject, why do many corporations feel the need for flash pages with no html links, not even tiny ones at the bottom of the page? I'm trying to work, cut the crap and show me the data.
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Too much free time indeed!
"Click Here" takes very little effort to add, and it makes any page much easier to navigate for the uninitiated.
That being stated, who cares? It's really not a big deal either way.
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