1. Creating Accessible Documents: Basics
February 2015
Creating Accessible Documents: Basics
Gaeir (rhymes with “fire”) Dietrich
HTCTU Director
11/10/2018
* Access to IT * 1 1

2. Not Equal Digital does not mean accessible!
Just because something is on a computer, tablet, e-book reader, etc., does not make it accessible!

3. Online Documents Need to be text, not pictures of text
In other words, not just scanned
Text documents are searchable
“Searchable PDF” is a text-based PDF
But accessible is more than just text
11/10/2018

4. Accessible? What does it mean to be accessible?
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 from the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium)
11/10/2018

5. In a Nutshell: Four Guidelines
Perceivable
Operable
Understandable
Robust
So POUR yourself into your work. ;-)
11/10/2018

6. Perceivable Make sure pictures (graphics) have text descriptions
Alt text or alt tag
Use structure
Allows for ease of reformatting
Use good contrast
Make sure that text can be distinguished easily from the background
11/10/2018

7. Operable Make sure everything works from the keyboard
Make sure the tab order is logical
Do not require a mouse
Make content easy to find and navigate
Use logical headings
Make sure header rows in tables are clearly marked
11/10/2018

8. Understandable Write clearly Define terms Spell out acronyms
Always write out the first time used
11/10/2018

9. Robust
Use good design to ensure that the document will work with all assistive technology
Not just JAWS
Provide multiple formats
PDF and RTF
11/10/2018

10. Accessible Documents
U.S. Dept of Education

11. U.S. Dept of Ed
Led a team to develop document guidelines for federal agencies
Came up with 17 specific suggestions
11/10/2018

12. PDF Documents
In the beginning was Word…

13. The Life and Times of PDFs
Creating Accessible Documents
February 2015
The Life and Times of PDFs
PDFs happen two ways
Documents are scanned
Documents are authored in Word or other program and turned into PDF 13
* Access to IT * 13

14. Graphical vs. Text-based PDF
Creating Accessible Documents
February 2015
Graphical vs. Text-based PDF
Scanned PDFs are pictures of text
Computers cannot read a picture
Documents are not e-text unless the computer can see the letters as text
Text can be highlighted with the mouse
Text can be selected a letter / word at a time
Text can be searched 14
* Access to IT * 14

15. PDFs Need to be Text-based
Creating Accessible Documents
February 2015
PDFs Need to be Text-based
Searchable PDFs are text-based
Not scans or “pictures” of text
If you scan, you need to run Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to obtain text
If you start from a Word document, you will have text
Now you just need to ensure the PDF will be accessible 15
* Access to IT * 15

16. Four Primary Steps to Access
Use templates (PPT) and styles (Word)
Add alt text
Picture descriptions
Mark the header row in tables
Use logical hyperlink names
THEN make it into a PDF

17. Step One Use styles Pay special attention to headings Headings Lists
Numbered lists
Pay special attention to headings
11/10/2018

18. Word Styles? Paragraph styles Attribute Styles Paragraph attributes
Font type & size, line spacing, indent
Affects entire paragraph
Attribute Styles
Applies only to selected characters
Font type, size, style

19. Word Styles for Braille
Use Word paragraph styles
Normal, Body Text
Headings One, Two, Three
List, Bulleted List, Numbered List
Index levels one-nine
Can also use attribute styles
Strong (for bold)
Emphasis (for italic) * 19

20. Applying Styles Paragraph styles Attribute styles
Click in text, click on style name
Use format painter
Use keyboard shortcut
Attribute styles
Select text, click on style name

21. Handy Style Shortcuts Heading One Heading Two Heading Three
Ctrl + Alt + 1
Heading Two
Ctrl + Alt + 2
Heading Three
Ctrl + Alt + 3
List Bullet
Ctrl + Shift + L
Change case
Shift + F3 * 21

22. Seeing Styles Work in Draft Mode Turn on “Area Pane” View Draft
Button > Word Options
Advanced > Display
Set area pane over 1 inch

23. Area Pane

24. PPT Styles Themes Styles Use built-in themes (under design tab)
Allows user to adjust contrast as needed
Styles
Are applied automatically
If you have issues with the styles check the layout master
11/10/2018

25. Step Two Add descriptive text to graphics Two steps involved
How to add alt text
What to say (how to describe the graphic)
First the how…
11/10/2018

26. Right-click on Picture
Choose Format Picture
11/10/2018

27. Alt Text Right click on picture At bottom of window, choose Alt Text
Note: Put the alt text where it says “Description”
11/10/2018

28. PowerPoint Same thing: right click (When in doubt, right click…)
And remember to always keep the description SHORT
11/10/2018

29. Now the What First figure out the purpose of the graphic.
What does the graphic convey?
How much is the purpose of the graphic informational? How much decoration?

30. Describing Graphics
When determining the purpose, always consider the context in which the graphic is being shown.
The same graphic may have a different purpose in a different context.
Sometimes decoration
Sometimes informational

31. How Do I Decide??
Does the reader need to do something with the graphic or understand something from it?
Informational
Is the graphic simply entertaining or “pretty”?
Decoration

32. Informational If information is being conveyed, then consider…
What is the information being presented in the graphic?
Is that information already conveyed in the text?
How can I describe the graphic in as few words as possible?

33. Decoration Does it even need to be described?
If not, null text it or “_” .
If yes, how much? Usually very little.

34. What Do I Say?* 1. Be objective 2. Be brief 3. Be descriptive
Stick to the facts, do not interpret
2. Be brief
The shorter the better
3. Be descriptive
Use words that convey clear meaning
4. Be logical
Use a sequence or structure
5. Be accurate
Make sure the information you give matches the book/site
* From A Picture Is Worth 300 Words: Writing Visual Descriptions For An Art Museum Web Site by Adam Alonzo

35. No Single Right Way There is not only one way to describe graphics.
Just remember…
Keep context in mind
Ask yourself: Is this something the person really needs to hear?

36. Exercise Photo 1
In a book about exercise, this photo appears at the beginning of a chapter on nutrition:

37. Possible Alt Text The photo is decorative.
It is simply illustrating the theme of the book.
Keep the description simple:
People biking
Gaeir: tell story about the over-described graphic

38. Exercise Photo 2
In the same textbook, the graphic below is included next to boxed text about the benefits of strength training.

39. Possible Alt Text This graphic is purely decorative.
Since this graphic is essentially “eye candy,” it is a good example of when a null tag might be useful.
If you do want to describe, keep it very short: “Smiley face lifting weights.”
Robert: Several ways can do; any of them could be right

40. Logo Example 1
Kansas City Kansas Community College Presents an Evening of Jazz Come join us for two hours of wonderful jazz by the lake. …

41. Possible Alt Text The logo is decorative.
Logo is branding for school, but in this context is essentially decorative from the end-user’s viewpoint.
Since the graphic is decorative, keep it simple.
College logo
KCKCC logo

42. Logo Example 2
In marketing your business, the design of a logo can make a big impression or can be a waste of money. The logo needs to be attractive but not dominate other information presented along with the logo. In the example below, what catches your attention?

43. Possible Alt Text The logo is informational.
In this case, the same logo is a specific example and requires a more lengthy description.
Focus on what the reader needs to know:
Interlocking blue K and red C on left with the words “Making Life Better” in red above the college name in black blocked and underlined with a blue line.
Robert: two opposite interns
Gaeir: When a graphic is part of an exercise, a lengthier description is required.

44. Step Three Mark the header row in your tables
Word calls this “Repeat as header row at top of every page” or just “Repeat Header Rows”
11/10/2018

45. Tables
By setting the header row in a table, screen reader users will be able to hear the header text repeated as needed
Note: If you have column headers (i.e., header in first column), that will need to be marked in Adobe Acrobat Pro
11/10/2018

46. Working with Tables
Tables are awesome tools!
11/10/2018

47. Select Header Row
Right click on header (top) row and select Table Properties
11/10/2018

48. Marking the Header Choose Row Tab
Under Options click Repeat as header row…
11/10/2018

49. And for Column Heads
If column one is a header that applies to the entire table, you will need to mark that in Adobe Acrobat Pro
11/10/2018

50. Checking Your Word…er…Work
Accessibility Checkers Can Help

51. MS Word Built-in Checker
11/10/2018

52. Color Contrast Color Contrast Analyzer (CCA)
Can download checker for free
Windows or Mac version
11/10/2018

53. Create the PDF
Adobe Acrobat Pro is your friend!

54. Create PDF and Run Action
Install Adobe Acrobat Pro XI
From the ribbon go to the Acrobat tab and choose Create PDF and Run Action
11/10/2018

55. Create Accessible PDF
11/10/2018

56. Older Version of Pro
Check your conversion settings and make sure “Enable accessibility” is selected
11/10/2018

57. Checking in Acrobat Tags
View > Show/Hide > Navigation Panes > Tags
11/10/2018

58. No Tags? Tools > Accessibility > Add tags
And tags can be changed by right-clicking on them
11/10/2018

59. Reading Order
Occasionally a document will not read in the proper order
Accessibility > Touch Up Reading Order
11/10/2018

60. Table Inspector
If a table has a column header, you will add it with the Table Inspector.
From Touch Up, select table then Inspector
11/10/2018

61. Accessible Documents
For maximum accessibility include both the PDF and the Word document online
PDF and RTF
If concerned about security with Word, can apply permissions
11/10/2018

62. Permissions in Word
File > Info
11/10/2018

63. Restrict Access as Needed
11/10/2018

64. Getting Buy-in
Make sure that staff understand that accessibility is not the enemy
There are ways that creating accessible documents benefits all of us
11/10/2018

65. Styles for Example Quick and easy formatting Very simple to change
Using “Outline” feature allows for rapid editing and rewriting
Oh…and BTW, it’s now accessible!
11/10/2018

66. Additional Resources

67. Learning from Others W3C Guidelines DO-IT (University of Washington)
WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) 2.0
DO-IT (University of Washington)
WebAIM *

68. Digital Media DCMP Captioning Key NCAM – STEM WGBH – Web Media
NCAM – STEM
WGBH – Web Media
11/10/2018

69. What the CSUs Are Doing CSU Accessible Technology Initiative
11/10/2018

70. Thank you! Gaeir (rhymes with “fire”) Dietrich gdietrich@htctu.net
To schedule a site visit, please contact Admin Assistant Jasper Haze: or
11/10/2018