#readtheALT
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elle1968.bsky.social
#ReadtheAlt
I was getting ready for bed. I was out in the living room.
I looked at my arm chair and one of the cats was "splooted" under it and it was hilarious!
I didn't have my phone!
I raced down the hall, yelling, "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!" really loud.
I got my phone, went back, and:
An artistic rendering of a kitten, lying on his tummy, half of his body under the chair, lower body out, legs splayed out to each side. The artist is not a professional.
August 26, 2026 at 6:22 AM
maximeduchamp.bsky.social
Euh, vive le vélo:)

#readthealt
Photo fake faite avec gimp, faux prix d'essence
March 10, 2026 at 6:20 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
And, my precious children, it delivered. And the ZX81 birthed the Spectrum; the Spectrum laid the ground for the Psion 3 and 5mx.

And then the Single Pane of Glass extremists stole that future from us.

But we can - we must! - restore what was lost! #ReadTheALT
My beautiful Ericsson MC218, based on the Psion 5mx handheld computer, from around the Millennium, still in use a quarter of a century later as my noting and organising computer for Genetics and Genomics notes. Delivering real utility and convenience in an age otherwise dominated by single pane of glass smartphone dinosaurs. The mammals scuttling between the feet of the ossifying giants.
January 28, 2026 at 6:56 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
I'm wiping the floor with the Hard Psion #AI in #Dragonfell - still @cyningstan.bsky.social 's Beta release - watch out for the full release soon, and maybe get a last-minute Psion for that special retro person in your life :-) #ReadTheALT
Dragonfell is a strategy war game for the Psion range of handheld computers. It's close to full release, and very very addictive! Pit your wizards, ogres, dragons and dark elves against the enemy as you vie for supremacy over the shattered landscape. You'll need a Psion 3, 3a, 3c or 3mx - also works on Siena, I believe. You can pick these up for <£40 on ebay, and then a link cable to port it across. Better yet, join a Psion group and share resources! The Psion is the perfect distraction-free writing device, and so much more. They deserve to be freed from their back-of-the-drawer prisons, where they've been since the late 1990s. Retro can be productive and mobile!
December 21, 2025 at 1:04 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
Grand Duke of #Lithuania Gediminas was *rocking* the ALT Text as far back as 1323!
#ReadTheALT
Here's how Grand Duke Gediminas described his seal: "An oval wax seal with a 12 corners edging, in its centre featuring an image of a long-haired man sitting on a throne with a crown in his right hand and a sceptre in his left hand; in addition, a cross is engraved around the man along with a forty-one letter Latin inscription [S DEI GRACIA GEDENINNI LETHWINNOR ET RUTKENNOR REG]; The seal of Gediminas, by the grace of God, the King of the Lithuanians and the Ruthenians." He'd have loved Bluesky. [From Vilnius Upper Castle Tower - LOVING Lithuania & Vilnius!]
August 19, 2025 at 8:24 PM
defvaur.bsky.social
Saw this in an exhibit on Homosexual out in Chicago ... Love how the internet describes the figure on the right (not the artist) as 'representing a faun' or 'a muse of her mind' when grrrrrrrl they weren't just roommates.

#meme #oc #memes #pride #gayhistory #readthealt
A painting by Florine Stettheimer titled 'Self-Portrait with Palette (Painter and Faun)'. On the left, a pale woman with red hair, representing the painter, sits with a palette. Text next to her reads 'what's the dumbest thing you've ever done?'. On the right, a goldenbrown figure, "they were roommates" naked figure, leans back and looks upwards. Text next to the goldenbrown naked figure reads 'Bold of you to assume I've peaked'."
July 9, 2025 at 11:45 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, 32 years ago, when I was doing my Medical Student elective up in Nazareth. #ReadTheALT for more info on this scene.
View of the Old City of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, 1993 (from the Dominus Flevit Church). In the foreground is a cemetery with goats wandering through it. Beyond a wall and a line of trees you can see the Russian onion-topped towers of the St Mary Magdalene Church. Beyond that lies the Kidron Valley, then the Old City itself. The Dome of the Rock is to the left of the picture - at this time it was covered in scaffolding as the Northern Irish construction firm MIVAN were repairing it and plating it with gold.
July 5, 2025 at 10:04 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
I sometimes like to do my ALT text in the style of a 1980s text adventure game. It appeals to my retro side, and I find it rather immersive. #ReadTheALT :-)
June 6, 2025 at 10:03 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
I sometimes use the style of a 1980s text adventure for my ALT text... I hope it helps build the image in people's heads. There's 2000 characters to play with - it's great for everyone to #ReadTheALT @retroadventurers.bsky.social
Grassy Bank. Score: 52 > LOOK You are standing on a grassy bank leading down to the shore across a jumbled pile of rocks. The sunlit sea glistens in the distance under a blue sky. There is a little cluster of pink flowers here, nodding gently in the breeze. You can see a red bike, propped up among the rocks. What now? >_
April 29, 2025 at 1:40 PM
treepharm.bsky.social
Nice evening. Why not?

#kayak #redbud #goldenhour #phish #readthealt
Beautiful Eastern Redbud by serene pond during golden hour with a kayak awaiting a float. Kayak ready for launch. Launched kayak on pond looking at Golden sunset.
April 24, 2025 at 12:40 AM
shaneir.bsky.social
Read the ALT :-) #ReadTheALT
shaneir.bsky.social Shane McKee @shaneir.bsky.social · Apr 16
Local residents are overwhelmingly calling for Council to stop denying them access to their beach - access which has been eroded over the years; rights of way that Council failed to properly enforce, and now wants to give a veto to those who want to block their neighbours from enjoying the shore.
The lane that leads down to Greenisland Beach. You can see the water of Belfast Lough in the distance, under a blue sky with light skiffs of clouds. Lovely. #ShareTheShore - you're all welcome down on the beach - at least, you would be if Council would get their act together and allow access.
April 16, 2025 at 10:38 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
When I can, I try to write my #ALTText #ReadTheALT in the style of a 1980s text adventure game, as this helps (at least for some of us) to bring the viewer "into" the story and the image as a participant, hopefully making it more vivid. Accepting that this doesn't work for everyone...
> LOOK You are standing beside a field, not far from the Northern Irish town of Carrickfergus. You can see the large inlet of Belfast Lough in the distance, as well as Carrickfergus Castle and the spire of St Nicholas' Church. There is an alpaca in the field. The alpaca eyes you warily. What now? >_
March 30, 2025 at 12:26 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
"Explain it to me in simple terms", and turns off replies 😳. Dude, click on the #ReadTheALT hashtag, use it yourself. I absolutely want to make my posts accessible, fun, enjoyable for all, including visually impaired, neurodiverse & other friends & people. Try it yourself! X
March 2, 2025 at 12:18 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
What the actual heck?!? #PubMed #ReadTheALT
> GO TO PUBMED You try to navigate to PubMed. An error page appears, telling you that PubMed can't be reached. You react in horror. What now? >_
March 2, 2025 at 9:08 AM
shaneir.bsky.social
#ReadTheALT
davidmack.pro David Mack @davidmack.pro · Mar 1
“Why aren’t you wearing a suit?”
From STAR WARS, Episode VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI — Jabba the Hutt, a large, slimy orange wormlike thug of a mob boss who oozes perversion, holds the rightfully disgusted General Leia Organa (formerly of Alderaan, now a key figure in the Rebellion) and sticks his tongue out at her like he expects a deep kiss instead of the stainless-steel-strangling she later delivers to his fat ass. Any similarities to current political figures is exactly the fucking point.
March 2, 2025 at 7:50 AM
shaneir.bsky.social
The re-revolution is growing! ;-) #Psion #ReadTheALT
MAKE PSION GREAT AGAIN - for your T-shirts, bumper stickers, coffee mugs and baseball caps...
February 23, 2025 at 2:28 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
Safe to say that Athens is AMAZING. #ReadTheALT
> EXAMINE CAT The black-and-white cat sits nonchalantly atop a grubby junction box, of which there are many in Athens. To his left is a wall with some interesting graffiti. > READ GRAFFITI The graffiti says "Live your myth with Greeks." What now? >_ Lycabettus Hill in Athens Shane on Areopagus Hill in Athens with the Acropolis in the background. Statuary at the Erechtheion Temple of the Acropolis in Athens.
February 22, 2025 at 10:29 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
Last morning in Athens, and finally the sun comes out! #ReadTheALT
> LOOK You can see a beautiful view of the Acropolis and the Parthenon peeping through the trees. Shane is here, wearing sunglasses and looking like he wants to sell you something shady. What now? >_
February 22, 2025 at 7:35 AM
shaneir.bsky.social
Dune scrolling

Lettermacaward, Co Donegal #ReadTheALT
> LOOK The sand stretches out into the distance, where you can make out a small inlet, with the mountains beyond. A line of footprints heads north. What now? >_ > JUMP You jump off the grassy crest of the dune onto the sand below. FFLUMPF!! That was fun! What now? >_ > EXAMINE DUNE You see the sand stretching in all directions on this vast dune. Crests of grass flank the sandy valley. In the distance Gweebarra Bay glistens in the dappled sunlight that filters through the scattered clouds. What now? >_
February 13, 2025 at 10:37 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
Lego and Psion - what a combo! Concept for hinge repair...

#ReadTheALT
> ATTACH LEGO TO PSION You attach the Lego hinge to the Psion. The hinge now functions normally, allowing you to open and close the PDA. What now? >_
February 13, 2025 at 9:34 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
I got 41%, but in my defence, I don't see anyone else using the #ReadTheALT hashtag and hiding easter eggs in the ALT text...
> READ ALT TEXT You click on the link to read the ALT. It appears to be written in the style of one of those 1980s computer text adventure games. You feel a wave of nostalgia, along with a real connection to the narrative. What now? >_
February 8, 2025 at 1:20 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
What about outventors? People doing innovative things with really old tech that they can't bear to send to landfill? ;-)

#ReadTheALT
> EXAMINE DESK The surface of the desk is strewn with the innards and outnards of multiple Psion palmtop computers in various stages of disassembly. Some of the bits look serviceable; some of them look totally stuffed. What now? >_
February 7, 2025 at 1:58 PM
shaneir.bsky.social
I love #Jerusalem and #Israel and #Palestine, and really hope to go back soon to visit my friends and maybe do some biking for the "English Hospital" in wonderful #Nazareth. Trump's imbecilic waddling has real consequences for real people. But there is a lot of good out there. #ReadTheALT
You are on a small hill close to the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. You can see a large sculpture in the bright sunlight. > EXAMINE SCULPTURE The sculpture is ten feet high and consists of four Hebrew letters in a square, representing the word AHAVA ("love"). On closer inspection you see four dodgy characters clustering in the shade within the letters. You swiftly recognise them as your wife and children. What now>_ > TAKE SELFIE You take a selfie with your phone, managing to capture your biking gear (Nazareth Challenge 2022) and a wooden decking with a large sign in the background, looking out over the Mediterranean. > READ SIGN The sign is really a sculpture of letters: TE-heart-emoji-IV. Your brain tells you, "Aha! It's TE-Love-IV - Tel Aviv!". The other Nazareth Challenge bikers are yelling at you from out-of-shot, saying you need to get a move on, or we'll never make it to Neve Shalom by sunset. What now? >_
February 6, 2025 at 10:02 AM
spikenip.bsky.social
#ReadTheAlt
February 4, 2025 at 9:21 PM