# Understanding Text Alternatives

## Intent of Text Alternatives

The purpose of this guideline is to ensure that all non-text content is also available in text. "Text" refers to electronic text, not an image of text. Electronic text has the unique advantage that it is presentation neutral. That is, it can be rendered visually, auditorily, tactilely, or by any combination. As a result, information rendered in electronic text can be presented in whatever form best meets the needs of the user. It can also be easily enlarged, spoken aloud so that it is easier for people with reading disabilities to understand, or rendered in whatever tactile form best meets the needs of a user.

While changing the content into symbols includes changing it into graphic symbols for people with developmental disorders and speech comprehension difficulties, it is not limited to this use of symbols.

### Additional Techniques (Advisory) for Text Alternatives