8 ms·

I have nothing against the previews. However when a website hijacks the link to serve a stripped down version of the content locally, it goes against the expect

by Xevi 5y ago

I have nothing against the previews. However when a website hijacks the link to serve a stripped down version of the content locally, it goes against the expectations of the user, and it can really f*k up accessibility tools. This is a bad use of javascript imo. A really bad use. And unfortunately it is being pushed as a way to retain users, meaning that it prioritises profits over everything else. I don't want to be served a fullscreen auto playing video in a pop-up window when I click on a YouTube link. I want to go to YouTube and view it there, where I can like, subscribe, comment, and so on. It breaks my expectations in a bad way, and I can see why people are growing increasingly frustrated with javascript on websites due to this. Sorry for being so negative about this. It's a cool concept, but I also really hope that this never becomes the norm. And that's coming from a web developer, someone that's usually cheering on all advancements in the web.

vittor1o 5y ago
I do sometimes get similar first impressions, though when you look closer at the implementation - the very opposite of your comments is true. Accessibility of the previews has been thought through & tested. The previews are clearly marked when they open in a lightbox. When you are using a screen reader, the experience improves(!) significantly; on click you get the content right away, not a website in a tab where you need to find the content, and remember that some websites were not tested for accessibility by their devs. Separately, you can always do, CMD+Click and get the same auto-playing video on Youtube.com in a new tab to like, subscribe & comment. Or click a direct link within a preview to go to YouTube website when you feel that you need to like, subscribe & comment. And for what it worth, Linkz.ai makes a planet a bit greener with less traffic going back & forth and less CPU & energy used to render a preview vs. a full-featured website :)
- idreyn 5y ago
  > The previews are clearly marked when they open in a lightbox. Oh, I didn't realize that because I was on mobile. > on click you get the content right away, not a website in a tab where you need to find the content This is quite nifty for sites like Soundcloud and YouTube that offer an embeddable version of their content > Separately, you can always do, CMD+Click This isn't working for me (Firefox, MacOS)

by Xevi 5y ago

vittor1o 5y ago

I do sometimes get similar first impressions, though when you look closer at the implementation - the very opposite of your comments is true. Accessibility of the previews has been thought through & tested. The previews are clearly marked when they open in a lightbox. When you are using a screen reader, the experience improves(!) significantly; on click you get the content right away, not a website in a tab where you need to find the content, and remember that some websites were not tested for accessibility by their devs. Separately, you can always do, CMD+Click and get the same auto-playing video on Youtube.com in a new tab to like, subscribe & comment. Or click a direct link within a preview to go to YouTube website when you feel that you need to like, subscribe & comment. And for what it worth, Linkz.ai makes a planet a bit greener with less traffic going back & forth and less CPU & energy used to render a preview vs. a full-featured website :)

idreyn 5y ago
> The previews are clearly marked when they open in a lightbox. Oh, I didn't realize that because I was on mobile. > on click you get the content right away, not a website in a tab where you need to find the content This is quite nifty for sites like Soundcloud and YouTube that offer an embeddable version of their content > Separately, you can always do, CMD+Click This isn't working for me (Firefox, MacOS)