A note from us: Why we’re using the colon from now on (Autor:innen, Nutzer:innen)

Dear Community,

We are changing our writing style and will now use the colon instead of the asterisk (e.g., Autor:innen, Nutzer:innen).

Why are we doing this? We’ve researched the topic and received feedback from you, and we’d like to further improve accessibility on the platform:

• For people with visual impairments who use screen readers, the colon is often the better choice. Many systems automatically interpret it as a short pause in speech by default. The asterisk, on the other hand, is read aloud by some programs as a word (“star,” “little star,” or “asterisk”), which disrupts the flow of speech in the middle of a word.
  
• The colon is narrower than the asterisk and blends more discreetly into the text, making sentences flow more smoothly for everyone—without compromising our commitment to inclusivity.
  

We just wanted to briefly share this background information with you. Of course, it’s up to you how you write in your own posts, but perhaps the argument for accessibility might also be relevant to your texts.

Should we ever use the masculine form (e.g., “user” or “author”) in certain places for the sake of linguistic simplicity, this term naturally applies equally to all genders (m/f/d). This is in no way intended to be discriminatory.

Best regards,
Your Crazypatterns Team