Today I sat in on the the “Assistive Technology Access to Flash and PDF” session presented by Matt May from Adobe Systems.

There it was announced that the next release of Acrobat, Acrobat Reader, Flash Player and Flex will support the iAccessible2 API. MSAA is what these products currently use which limits the accessible API to Windows platforms. This is great news as this will expand accessibility for these products beyond the Windows platform and allow users of OS2 and Linux to make use of the accessibility features in these products.

If you are not sure what iAccessible2 is, Peter Korn’s Weblog has a great explanation at: http://blogs.sun.com/korn/entry/completing_the_accessibility_picture_iaccessible2.

In addition to the support of iAccessible2, Adobe is planning on including support for the ARIA specifications in the near future for Flash Player and Flex. This will make it easier for developers to expose Flash content to assistive technologies.

It sure is nice to see advancements like this being made in these products. The hope is that the industry as a whole will follow Adobe’s example!

If you happen to be at this conference, feel free to stop by the HiSoftware booth #108 and say ‘hello’ as that is where I’ll be hanging out!

Now costs are a big concern to most, especially in today’s economic environment. So it is hard for many businesses to justify the cost of a product like Acrobat Professional. For the home user this cost is even harder to justify. So the low cost 3rd party applications and plug-ins that allow users to create PDFs have held a lot of appeal. But those low cost applications do nothing to help promote accessibility.

Well a new era of PDF accessibility is on the horizon. I just discovered a plug-in for Microsoft Office 2007 that will allow the saving to a tagged PDF! I tested this plug-in briefly and can say that my quick tests show that the plug-in works with Word, Excel and PowerPoint. It apparently will work with eight different Microsoft Office 2007 applications. Amazing!

I am truly excited about this plug-in because to me it does more than just allow any Microsoft Office 2007 user to create accessible PDF documents. It empowers them to be a part of enabling users everywhere to have equal access to information without having to worry about the added cost of “doing the right thing”.

Now a person will still need to take steps to ensure the proper care is given to the source document so that the final PDF version is accessible. This is especially true since you will still need a copy of Acrobat Professional to make any accessibility edits after the fact. So there is still a need to educate people on how to create accessible documents. That is something blogs and discussion forms like this one help to promote.

The sad part about this is that the download page that gives an overview of the plug-in says nothing about accessibility or its ability in this regard. It still makes me wonder what is required to get the big players in this industry to put the proper focus on accessibility. With that being said, I certainly hope that the accessible part of this plug-in is not an oversight. If it is we may see this plug-in pulled quickly. So don’t hesitate and grab your copy now!

You can find this plug-in at:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=4D951911-3E7E-4AE6-B059-A2E79ED87041&displaylang=en

This plug-in was released with little to no fanfare that I know if. I just discovered it while searching through the help file in Office. The published date is listed as 11/8/2006. Maybe I am “Johnny Come Lately”? I don’t think so, or I would have heard about this sooner. Why haven’t I heard about this sooner? Am I the first to discover that this plug-in creates tagged PDFs?! No matter. I am still excited about this find!

In my opinion this one plug-in can do wonders for the world of accessible documents. I feel like the Berlin Wall of accessibility barriers (cost) has just started to fall!

Please, shout with me. WOOT!

Many Microsoft Word documents are exported to PDF files for the purpose distribution to a wide range of users. How well a Word document converts to a PDF file has a lot to do with the document design which is also going have a bearing the accessibility of the document.

Below are some suggestions on how to avoid the common problem areas when converting a Microsoft Word document to a PDF file.

Add Structure to Word Documents

Design your document with styles. Styles add the structure necessary to make your documents usable to people with disabilities. Headings are the best way to structure document sections.

Graphics and Images

All graphics and images should be configured with alternative text descriptions. Avoid placing graphics too close to text. This can cause problems when converting a Word document to a PDF file. Place white space between text and graphics as this helps the conversion to PDF process distinguish the one from the other.

Alternate Text (Alt Text)

Alternative Text or Alt Text refers to text that can be read by a screen reader to describe the graphics and images which people with visually disability cannot see.

In Word 2003 you can add alt text by:

• - Double clicking on an image
• - OR right clicking and selecting the Format Picture menu selection
• - Select the Web tab and enter the alt text for the image

Text

Some considerations for the text of the document are:

• - Try to use at least 12 point type or larger
• - Avoid using text boxes
• - Avoid using Enter to create space between paragraphs. Use the space before and after properties in your styles

Columns

To create columns, do not use the tab key to make space between text columns or put text in a table. Instead use the column formatting option in Word.

The Column dialog can be access via the toolbar by selecting the column button.

You can also access the Column dialog by selecting the Format menu and then Columns.

Headings

Use styles to create heading formats such as:

• - Title
• - Heading 1
• - Heading 2
• - Heading 3
• - etc

Make styles progress in a logical manner. For example a Heading 2 should come after a Heading 1.

The Styles and Formatting Task Pane can be opened by selecting the Format menu and then Styles.

You can make use of the Keyboard Shortcuts in Word for applying header styles 1 thru 3.

They are:

• - Ctrl + Alt + 1 = Heading 1
• - Ctrl + Alt + 2 = Heading 2
• - Ctrl + Alt + 3 = Heading 3

Hyperlinks

Add a meaningful description to hyperlinks. Avoid using non-descriptive text such as “Click here”.

To insert a Hyperlink select the text you want to be the link and then:

• - Insert the link by pressing Ctrl+K to open the Insert Hyperlink dialog
• - Use the screen tip button to add text descriptions to hyperlinks

Lists

When using lists be sure to:

• - Use Bulleted Lists to emphasize individual points.
• - Use Numbered lists to describe the proper order for a series of steps in a sequence.

Tables

When creating tables:

• - Do not use tabs and spaces to create tables. Use the Insert Table command.
• - Avoid letting table rows break across a page.
• - Tables that go beyond a page should repeat header rows.

This can be done from the Table Properties dialog by placing the cursor within the table and then selecting the Table menu and then Table Properties.

Conclusion

Taking care to format your document correctly using these tips will help to create an accessible PDF document.

If you find you still need assistannce with making your Word documents accessible in PDF format please contact us here at TheAccessPond.