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Regarding “All Caps”
I realize that no two people are alike. Although I have not taken a formal survey at our technology center, many people have made the comment to me that viewing things in all-caps is difficult for them.
— Mary Secora, Show-Me Tech/Services for Independent Living, Columbia, Mo.
I conducted an informal survey today in a class where 17 adults with low vision were learning to use their vision to read. I gave them each a sample written in all caps and another sample written in upper- and lower-case letters. I asked them to indicate which they preferred, all-caps or the more traditional upper and lower case. Every single one of them preferred the mix of upper and lower case. I thought you might like to know some of the reasons they gave.
1. The spacing between letters and words is too close together [in all caps].
2. I cannot even tell where sentences end and begin [in all caps].
3. I am used to reading print with both upper and lower-case letters and that’s what I can see better.
4. Well, this print is too thin in some places and too fat in others.
5. When it’s all the same height, it’s too hard to tell the letters apart. I can’t even tell where the words end and begin.
My own opinion is that reading all caps for a low-vision person is like making someone who is a good braille reader —someone who reads at least 100 words a minute — read everything in grade one braille. I have low vision and print is my medium, but even I am slowed down when I am required to read in grade one braille instead of grade two.
It is also my opinion that size is the least important factor in readability of print. If print is too small for me to see clearly with my standard prescription lenses, I put on my reading glasses. If it is still too small, I can use my +24D halogen illuminated stand magnifier. If it is still too small, I can use a CCTV.
There are all kinds of ways I can get around size. What neither I nor any other low vision person can control are font style, color/contrast, and ink and paper quality. All of these factors are much more important than size.
I sincerely hope that no one in this organization, or any other for that matter, launches a campaign to get everything printed in all-caps. Not only would that make it extremely difficult for MOST low-vision people to read (note my survey results) but it would also evade the much more serious issues in readability, and give some government or private agency a great cop-out to use poor ink, poor paper and a terrible font and do nothing about improving because, after all, it IS written in all-caps!
Finally, I believe Mr. Harper must be a braille reader. But then, I would like to see him put braille in all upper-case letters. So much for “enough,” “to,” “in,” “into,” “by,” “was,” “were,” and the prefixes “be” and “con,” not to mention a few punctuation marks!
— Janis Stanger, Salt Lake City, Utah
I agree with Larry Harper. All caps is easier to read.
— Bertha N. Reynolds, St. Augustine, Fla.