Accessibility in Digital Documentation With thanks to Margaret Phelan of ITT who provided the content for this presentation.

What you can do to make a difference 2

25, 28, 13 Eels, elves, weevils, geese What is it like to have Dyslexia? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwZLFTW4OGY 3

MS Word Fonts (styles, colours and contrast). Document structure. Images (contrast, alternative text, captions, screen tips). 4

MS Word: Font Styles Use Sans Serif fonts, (e.g.) Verdana, Arial. and Helvetica. Size: minimum 12 point. Do not underline large sections of text. Do not write text in all capitals. Avoid using italics. Left align text. Use adequate paragraph spacing (1.5). 5

MS Word: Colours and Contrast Contrast between font and background colour. Black text on white background may be too severe. Avoid strongly-coloured paper. Use pastel colours instead. Use cream instead of white paper (less glare). Do not use textured/patterned background. 6

MS Word: Document Structure Users of screen magnifiers can focus on the key concepts within the text. Users with poorer English skills can extract the key concepts before negotiating the dense text. A motor impaired user can access the whole document with minimal keyboard or mouse movement. Users with learning difficulties can identify the main ideas of a lengthy document at a glance. Users can quickly customise styles to their own preferences (e.g., colour-coded headings). 7

MS Word: Document Structure Use styles (Home Tab > Styles MS Word built-in navigation system: The document map. (View Tab> Tick the Document Map button). 8

MS Word: Images Users with print related difficulties may find well labelled images much more meaningful than a lot of text. Users with poorer English skills can benefit from images. Users with learning difficulties can find relevant images more meaningful than text alone. Users with strong visual learning styles can benefit greatly from images. Visually impaired learners using a screen magnifier may find images more effective than a long description requiring screen scrolling. The use of screen tips over image 'hotspots' can be much easier for a screen magnifier user than having to scroll between the image and the explanatory text. 9

MS Word: Images Ensure there is good contrast. Use alternative (alt) text (in addition to an explanation of the image in the main text). Insert (relevant) captions (References tab > Insert Caption). Use screen tips to explain parts of the image (When you select picture/drawing, the toolbar will appear above the Format Tab). 10

MS PowerPoint: Advantages Available (upload to VLE/website). Transferable (download and customise). Accessible (using ‘notes’ field with screen readers). Structured (provides a clear structure to content). Pace (can help to pace delivery).

MS PowerPoint Basic good practice: General slide content. Colours. Notes field.

MS PowerPoint: General Slide Content Use short/concise ideas and content. Ensure every point ends with punctuation (for screen readers). Text should be minimum size 24.

MS PowerPoint: Colours Ensure there is adequate contrast between text and background colour (Design Tab > Background). Avoid use of background images. Environment: Bright room: Dark text on light background. Dark room: Light text on dark background.

MS PowerPoint: Colours Ensure consistency in text colour by changing the master slide (View tab > Slide Master). If using a dark background, increase depth of text (e.g., using bold).

MS PowerPoint: Notes Field Can be used to clarify content on slides. Can give online readers a greater understanding of the context of the information. Avoids overcrowding the slides. Can be used to explain visual content. A very important feature of MS PowerPoint that should be used when creating a presentation is the Notes Field. The notes field can be used in many different ways. As a minimum it should be used to explain the content of the slides and provide clarification where necessary. 16

MS PowerPoint: Interactivity Hyperlinks. Screen tips. Text boxes. Audio and video.

MS PowerPoint: Hyperlinks When linking, do not use ‘click here’ as the hyperlink description (for screen readers). Use screen tips (on hyperlinks and images). Use internal links enables users to navigate through the presentation without excessive scrolling. Linking to documents is an easy way to provide additional content.

MS PowerPoint: Hyperlinks

MS PowerPoint: Text Boxes Use text boxes to add information to slides when in presentation mode (Office Button > PowerPoint options > tick the Show Developers Tab in the Ribbon >Ok. Insert text boxes where needed in you presentation – See below). Use to gain audience opinion. Learners can use them to add their own comments.

MS PowerPoint: Audio & Video When using audio/video, always add a transcript to the Notes field. Record sound using Windows sound recorder (Programs > Accessories > Entertainment > Sound Recorder). Insert sound/movies (Insert > Movies and Sounds > Sound/Movie from file).

MS PowerPoint: Pointer Options Using the pointer can benefit visually impaired or the hard of hearing user as it helps them to focus their attention on current information. During the slideshow, right click and select Pointer Options. Annotations can be saved.

MS PowerPoint: Alternative Formats Providing the PowerPoint format online allows learners to customise it to their needs. When printing handouts ensure they are not too small. Exporting to MS Word is very useful for screen readers.

Making the Most of PDFs Advantages: Layout is true to original design. Adobe Reader is free. They can be ‘locked’ to prevent editing. Drawbacks: Slow to download (esp. with large images). Difficult to navigate. May be inaccessible to visually impaired users (esp. if styles are not used).

Making the Most of PDFs Is a PDF really necessary? Use styles in MS Word to help screen readers. Use alternative text with images and do not use large images. Remove unnecessary security options (these may restrict users from printing/changing fonts).

Credits and more Information http://www.techdis.ac.uk http://digidocs.nuim.ie http://www.gateway2at.org