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Colour Independence

Community
Owl-Listener
colour-independence

Design interfaces where colour is never the only way information is communicated. Use when designing status indicators, data visualisations, form validation, alerts, maps, or any content that uses colour to convey meaning. Triggers on: colour blind, color blind, colour alone, color alone, colour vision, color vision, red green, deuteranopia, protanopia, tritanopia, colour coding, status colour, chart colours, accessible colours.

Overview

PublisherOwl-Listener
Repositoryinclusive-design-skills
Skill namecolour-independence
Stars
108
Forks
28
Bundled files
Instructions only
LicenseMIT
Links
Skill sourceRepository
  • Markdown instructions

    A SKILL.md file the model loads on demand, so it only costs tokens when a request actually matches.

  • Works with any LLM

    AI skills are plain Markdown, not provider-specific code, so this works with GPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, or a local model.

  • Self-contained

    Everything the model needs lives in the instructions — no extra files to sync.

  • Open source

    Published by Owl-Listener on GitHub. Read the source before you install it.

Installation

Install the Colour Independence AI skill in TypingMind to use it with any LLM, or drop it into another agent that reads SKILL.md.

1

Install in TypingMind

TypingMind installs a skill straight from its GitHub folder — it reads SKILL.md, bundles the resource files, and stores the result locally.

  1. Open the app and go to Plugins → Skills.
  2. Choose "Install from GitHub".
  3. Paste the skill folder URL below and confirm.
    https://github.com/Owl-Listener/inclusive-design-skills/tree/main/adaptive-interfaces/skills/colour-independence
  4. Enable the skill in any chat where you want it available.
Plugins → Skills → Add skill → From GitHub URL, then paste the folder URL and press Continue.
2

Install in another agent

Any agent that reads the Agent Skills format can use this skill — copy the folder into that agent's skills directory.

Claude Code — .claude/skills
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/Owl-Listener/inclusive-design-skills.git /tmp/inclusive-design-skills
mkdir -p .claude/skills
cp -r /tmp/inclusive-design-skills/adaptive-interfaces/skills/colour-independence .claude/skills/colour-independence
Restart Claude Code after copying so it picks up the new skill.

Use it in TypingMind

Enable Colour Independence in any TypingMind chat and the model takes it from there. Its name and description sit in the system prompt, and the moment a request matches, the model loads the full instructions itself — you never invoke it by hand, and it costs no tokens until it is actually used.

The model loads Colour Independence on its own as soon as a request matches it.

Works with any AI model

AI skills are plain Markdown instructions rather than provider-specific code, so Colour Independence is not tied to the model it was written for. Install it once in TypingMind and use it with GPT-5, Claude, Gemini, Grok, DeepSeek, Mistral, Llama, or a local model you run yourself — all on your own API keys.

  • Loaded only when it is needed

    The system prompt carries just the name and description. The instructions are fetched on the first matching request, so an idle skill costs nothing.

  • Switch models mid-chat

    Because the skill is instructions rather than code, changing model does not break it — the next model reads the same SKILL.md.

Skill instructions

This is the SKILL.md content the model loads. Read it before installing — a skill is instructions your model will follow.

Colour Independence

Design so that every piece of information conveyed by colour is also conveyed by something else — shape, text, pattern, position, or icon. 8% of men and 0.5% of women have colour vision deficiency. That's roughly 1 in 12 of your male users.

Core Principle

Colour can enhance meaning. Colour must never be the only carrier of meaning.

Common Failures

Status Indicators

  • Bad: green dot = online, red dot = offline (colour only)
  • Good: green dot + "Online" label, red dot + "Offline" label
  • Better: green dot with tick + "Online", grey dot with x + "Offline"

Form Validation

  • Bad: red border on invalid fields (colour only)
  • Good: red border + error icon + error text message
  • The error message does the real work — the colour is reinforcement

Data Visualisation

  • Bad: line chart with 5 coloured lines, legend uses colour swatches
  • Good: different line styles (solid, dashed, dotted) + labels + distinct colours that work in greyscale
  • Good: bar chart with patterns (stripes, dots, solid) alongside colour
  • Always test charts in greyscale — can you still read them?

Links

  • Bad: links distinguished from body text only by colour
  • Good: links are coloured AND underlined
  • The underline is the accessible indicator — colour is the enhancement

Alerts and Badges

  • Bad: red badge = urgent, yellow = warning, green = ok
  • Good: red badge + "Urgent" label, yellow + "Warning" label, green + "OK" label
  • Icons reinforce: ⚠ for warning, ✓ for success, ✕ for error

Maps and Diagrams

  • Bad: regions coloured to show data (choropleth with no labels)
  • Good: colours + patterns + values displayed on each region
  • Good: interactive with values on hover/focus AND a data table alternative

Design Patterns

Double Encoding

Every colour meaning gets a second encoding:

  • Colour + icon
  • Colour + text label
  • Colour + pattern or texture
  • Colour + shape
  • Colour + position

Accessible Colour Palettes

  • Choose colours that are distinguishable in all types of colour vision deficiency (not just red-green)
  • Use a colour blindness simulator to test your palette
  • Blue and orange are generally safe for most types
  • Avoid red/green as the only pair distinguishing two states
  • Ensure sufficient contrast between adjacent colours in charts

Greyscale Test

Quick check: convert your interface to greyscale.

  • Can you still use it?
  • Can you distinguish all status states?
  • Can you read the chart?
  • Can you tell which fields have errors?

If any answer is no, colour is carrying meaning alone.

Assessment Checklist

  • No information is conveyed by colour alone
  • Status indicators use colour + icon + text
  • Form errors use colour + icon + message
  • Charts are readable in greyscale
  • Links are distinguishable by more than colour
  • Alert levels use colour + label + icon
  • Data visualisations have patterns or labels alongside colour
  • Interface passes the greyscale test

Frequently asked questions

What does the Colour Independence AI skill do?

Design interfaces where colour is never the only way information is communicated. Use when designing status indicators, data visualisations, form validation, alerts, maps, or any content that uses colour to convey meaning. Triggers on: colour blind, color blind, colour alone, color alone, colour vision, color vision, red green, deuteranopia, protanopia, tritanopia, colour coding, status colour, chart colours, accessible colours.

Why use Colour Independence on TypingMind?

Because you install it once and use it with any model. Colour Independence is plain Markdown rather than provider-specific code, so the same skill runs on GPT-5, Claude, Gemini, Grok, or a local model — and you can switch model mid-chat without it breaking. TypingMind runs on your own API keys, so you pay providers directly instead of a per-seat subscription, and your skills and chats stay in your own storage.

How do I install Colour Independence in TypingMind?

Open Plugins → Skills → Install from GitHub in TypingMind and paste https://github.com/Owl-Listener/inclusive-design-skills/tree/main/adaptive-interfaces/skills/colour-independence. TypingMind reads its SKILL.md and installs it as a skill you can enable per chat.

Which AI models can use Colour Independence?

Any model you connect in TypingMind. AI skills are plain Markdown instructions rather than provider-specific code, so GPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, and local models can all load this skill when a request matches it.

How many AI models can I use with Colour Independence?

As many as you like. As long as a model supports skills, you can use Colour Independence with it — GPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, DeepSeek, Mistral, Llama and more — all on TypingMind with your own API keys.

Is the Colour Independence AI skill free?

Yes. It is published on GitHub by Owl-Listener under the MIT license. You only pay your own AI provider for the tokens you use.

What are AI skills?

An AI skill is a reusable instruction bundle that teaches an AI model how to do one specific task. It follows the open Agent Skills format: a SKILL.md file with a name and description, plus any scripts, templates or reference files the model may need. The model reads the instructions only when your request matches the skill, so an installed skill costs nothing until it is used.

How are AI skills different from plugins or MCP servers?

A plugin or MCP server gives a model new tools to call — code that runs somewhere and returns a result. An AI skill gives the model knowledge and process instead: how to approach a task, which steps to follow, what good output looks like. Skills are plain Markdown, so they need no server, no API key and no runtime, and they work with any model.

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