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Just let me select text

aartaka.me

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Re: Just let me select text

#71

Post by whstl »

catapart wrote: post #60
whstl wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's that behavior? Do you have an example of a website where selectable text makes keyboard navigation not possible? Could this be a browser problem? I can tab between links here in HN and it's perfectly also selectable.

Use a mouse to click inside of a word link (like "threads") in the HN header. Try to drag to highlight. Note that the link tries to drag instead of highlighting. This is default behavior for anchors because of the issues that it would otherwise cause with the whole selection API. Alternatively, set your cursor at the end of the header in the empty space, and drag your mouse backward to highlight the items. At that po…

Then I don't think the article is advocating for what you think it is.

You are saying "tab headers, buttons, or even text-sparse tiles [...] should, prevent text selection".

The website is advocating for not disabling selection, not for enabling in random places.

Re: Just let me select text

#72

Post by csmantle »

catapart wrote: post #21

As a web dev, I fully agree with this, but with a huge exception: clickable text. Anything that is meant to be read as content should absolutely, without fail, be selectable and copyable (assuming appropriate permissions). But stuff like tab headers, buttons, or even text-sparse tiles - things meant for the user to click on - can, and usually should , prevent text selection. It is super annoying to be clicking back a…

I sometimes shop on Japanese webstores for CDs and merch. Many of these sites are actually where natives buy stuff, so few to no translations are available there. It's a routine for me to copy the Japanese on the nav bar to a translator, then get a list like "Cart Orders Account Help".

Another example for buttons. Assuming I don't speak Chinese, how could I know what "下单" and "返回" mean without copy-pasting them into a translator?

Re: Just let me select text

#74

Post by catapart »

odo1242 wrote: post #50
huimang wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This breaks translation. Text must be selectable.

What would be your ideal solution to the described problem? (Clicking on UI elements selecting text instead of processing the click)

I know you're not asking me, but I would really love the "copy" feature added to ALL context menus.

Right clicking a standard anchor element gives you the "copy link" option, but you don't get to copy the word without having it selected. Would be nice to just have a "copy word" feature, for starters. Could even be expanded so that it auto-selects the text after copying it so that if you wanted to copy more than just one word, you could expand the highlight (with the little widgets on mobile, or with keyboard/mouse selection in that one state on desktop) and then get a "copy text" option that copies all of the selected content.

Re: Just let me select text

#76

Post by Hobadee »

catapart wrote: post #21

As a web dev, I fully agree with this, but with a huge exception: clickable text. Anything that is meant to be read as content should absolutely, without fail, be selectable and copyable (assuming appropriate permissions). But stuff like tab headers, buttons, or even text-sparse tiles - things meant for the user to click on - can, and usually should , prevent text selection. It is super annoying to be clicking back a…

Real-world example I use nearly daily: Selecting the nav header that's the ticket number in our ticketing system. I copy-paste the number elsewhere.

Of course there are many other bad design decisions that go into requiring me to do this, but it's still a real example of why all text should be selectable.

Re: Just let me select text

#77

Post by stfp »

setgree wrote: post #56

I wonder if Bumble/Hinge/etc. set profiles to be non-searchable as a kind of minimum barrier to doxxing. I have many objections to modern dating apps [0], but there's an actual tradeoff/problem here that they're trying to deal with. I don't think that uploading a screenshot to ChatGPT/Claude to figure out the translation is an unreasonable ask. [0] https://setharielgreen.com/blog/date-me-docs-obviously/

Maybe but it happens in many many other contexts. Especially apps - right now for example in Hipcamp I cannot copy the detailed instructions for my trip. In Airbnb I can copy the entire “house rules” doc but not just an arbitrary paragraph or sentence.

Re: Just let me select text

#78

Post by klausa »

catapart wrote: post #53
whstl wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

100% disagree. Not everyone is fluent in every language, and not every website works perfectly with the browser's translator. There will be situations where people will want to translate that ONE word that is actually in a button or tab, and isn't selectable because someone thought they knew better.

isn't selectable because it breaks the UX for keyboard-only users. Has nothing to do with "thinking" anything. It's about testing with accessibility parameters and knowing* what practical problems occur. If you really need to translate ONE WORD, it's not that onerous to type it. You're bringing edge-case hypotheticals to a discussion about practical functionality.

I needed to translate a button on a Chinese website to buy a train ticket three days ago.

How would you have me type it?

Re: Just let me select text

#79

Post by ZYbCRq22HbJ2y7 »

whstl wrote: post #43
catapart wrote: post #21

As a web dev, I fully agree with this, but with a huge exception: clickable text. Anything that is meant to be read as content should absolutely, without fail, be selectable and copyable (assuming appropriate permissions). But stuff like tab headers, buttons, or even text-sparse tiles - things meant for the user to click on - can, and usually should , prevent text selection. It is super annoying to be clicking back a…

100% disagree. Not everyone is fluent in every language, and not every website works perfectly with the browser's translator. There will be situations where people will want to translate that ONE word that is actually in a button or tab, and isn't selectable because someone thought they knew better.

That is a i18n issue with the website itself? Or are you saying you know a good portion of a language, but you aren't fluent, so you read it in whatever the default language is, by default, without translating the page or using it in your native language?

Re: Just let me select text

#80

Post by Ghoelian »

catapart wrote: post #51
djtango wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I personally like to click text absent mindedly when I'm reading a bit like holding your finger while reading Also if you're a non native speaker you want to be able to select the text so you can translate it

Why would you want to translate "My Account" into another language? And, more pertinently, why should I support it, at the expense of keyboard-only users?

> Why would you want to translate "My Account" into another language?

When you don't know the language or what "My Account" means? Not everyone speaks English.

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