Template Shenanigans

Let’s say I’m a website editor that has been given access to a template. Surely I can’t cause too much trouble with using that, right?

I’m using a WordPress theme and WYSIWYG editor to somewhat demonstrate how even a low-code environment can cause some horrendous issues on a page. I’m not to say that anyone would inherently be malicious when editing a site. People may make bad choices simply because they don’t know how to do things the right way.

Table of Contents

Can I insert text?

Does the template allow me to put text anywhere? Sweet. I gotsta put meh in sum spellin’ mistks and turrible grammar with words that ain’t used good. Or perhaps I can overintellectualize an extremely simple concept such that the average reader in the United States of America is presented with a verbose and rambling sentence that, while comprehensible in a sense, is using a plethora of words, syllables, and consonants to illustrate the necessary position.

So yeah, if a user can put text anywhere, maybe you’d want to check that for spelling, grammar, or readability. Or maybe we are Coca-Cola and we want to know any time our content writers are talking about the much superior Pepsi, or how delicious a Mountain Dew is, or how you can really taste all 23 flavors of a Dr Pepper, and don’t even get me started on a good ‘ole AriZona Sweet Tea.

Can I add a link?

OOO so not only can I edit text, but I can also add links. That’s really cool. If you want to know what I really think about our company, you can click here. Learn more about the exciting opportunities that await you. And while you’re at it, here’s this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ.

So there we have bad link text, possibly linking to content we don’t want to link to, and links that open in a new tab that don’t explicitly say they do (unless WordPress does something fancy here).

Can I add an image?

I can add headings to this template? Sweet! I really don’t love the heading styles that they’ve given me, so I think I’ll just do my own thing.

Ah yes, that’s a perfect not even 2:1 contrast ratio. Beautiful. What if I just make my entire article be one giant image, because I already made this content for a flyer we can pass out at events and hang around town, and it’s really hard to replicate that design for a website, so I’ll just put that image here. No need to have any alt text on this image, right? We don’t need to have any actual text on the page that talks about this event, right? Did we even test ANY of the text on this image for contrast issues? And if my web page is just a dozen 100 MB images like this one that won’t give anyone any performance issues, right? Everyone else has gigabit internet and a powerful computer, right?

Also – legit – the WordPress theme I’m using actually put a blue filter on these images to make them even worse somehow:

Can I add a table?

The playing field of an empty Busch Memorial Stadium.

Can I edit the template CSS?

Ok now we’re cooking with fire! Because, you know, I really don’t like this template, even though it is specifically designed to align with our brand guidelines and encourage accessible design. Yes, this now looks SOOO much better.

Can I embed my own HTML / JS?

If I can do my own HTML and JavaScript, the whole world is my oyster! A form lets me collect data! Do we need it? Can a user edit it? How is that data stored? How is it transmitted? Can a user ask for its deletion? How long do we keep it?

What about about the form elements? Do they have enough contrast? Are the form labels descriptive? Does it even have form labels? How are errors reported on the form? Can you even fill out the form or select its buttons on a phone?

Maybe I’ll just iframe in an entirely different page that has its own issues, or write other custom code to make the experience a general nightmare for users. I mean, just look how great the frame below is aligned with the rest of this page. Can I do something here to make the page have 2d scrolling issues?

Oh cool, a table makes it easy for me to layout content on the page.	Like I can have content over there, and put some content over here.
I can even do the cool thing where I have some text on this side and a picture of a baseball stadium on the other site.
Surely all of this is fine for a screen reader user, right?	Wait, what do you mean a table should only be used for tabular data and this is actually a nightmare?