Screen Reader Accessibility Error Workaround for Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader DC The AVAiCDialog dialog used by Adobe Acrobat DC to display online storage options for opening and saving PDF files cannot be read by popular screen readers such as JAWS for Windows, NVDA, and Window Eyes. A workaround is available which involves bypassing this […]
View PostThere is lots of advice on just what is involved in making electronic documents like Microsoft Word documents and PDF files accessible and that, as it turns out, may be a bit of a problem. While Accessibility is universally acknowledged to be a good and desirable thing, you would be hard pressed to find […]
View PostMillions of people are visually impaired and must use assistive technology (AT) to read electronic content. Assistive technology software is sometimes called screen readers. To ensure equal access to information, the US Congress enacted legislation in 1998 to require U.S. Federal agencies and contractors to procure accessible software and to produce accessible electronic documents. The […]
View PostA significant portion of people around the world use assistive technology to aid sensory, motor or cognitive disabilities, but improperly designed website elements render these tools nearly useless. Every aspect from navigation to website text to images to downloadable documents should be available to those who use assistive technology. Section 508 compliance is an involved process with no easy fixes. However, there are some initial, cost-effective steps you can take on your way to becoming compliant.
View PostJust as physical accessibility to stores, offices and public buildings is now commonplace, so should access to information in documents and on websites. However, experts say that’s the last thing on many web developer’s minds. “It is disappointing to me that we have seen lots of mainstream technology get easier and more attractive, but the […]
View PostBefore diving into PDF accessibility and Section 508 compliance, we’d like to introduce you to a few basic facts. You’ll hear these again as you learn more about what it takes to make PDFs comply with Section 508, but if you want a FAST overview to get you started, this is it. Almost any PDF […]
View PostContents Executive Summary Introduction The Australian Government’s Report What the Report Gets Right What the Report Misses What the Report Gets Wrong Conclusions References & Endnotes Appendix: Four Basic Policies to Promote Accessible Documents Executive Summary This article analyzes the recent Australian Government’s study into the Accessibility of the Portable Document Format for people with a […]
View PostWhy PDF “reading order” is irrelevant to accessibility Introduction This article attempts to explain the concept of “reading order” in PDF files. Why is this necessary? End users are often frustrated by inconsistent and often illegible results when attempting to read PDF files on mobile devices, search for PDF content online, or when using assistive […]
View PostThe latest International Standard for PDF is almost here! Today in Schaumburg, near Chicago, Illinois, Adobe’s Greg Pisocky, Appligent’s Duff Johnson and Microsoft’s Cherie Ekholm together offered a presentation describing ISO/DIS 14289, better known as PDF/UA (Universal Accessibility). This page includes a very basic overview of the new Standard. Scroll down for the ATIA presentation. The […]
View PostIt’s pretty sad that Congress itself isn’t yet up to speed on Section 508, to say nothing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). On April 22, a subcommittee of the House of Representatives Committee for the Judiciary displayed it’s own disability. It seems this committee of Congress can’t meet a simple requirement for equal […]
View PostFrequent readers of this blog may recall that I recently took the Read Out Loud feature in Adobe Acrobat out for a good flogging. It’s not an accessibility tool, nor is it an accessibility testing tool, and my life’s work (it seems) is becoming a long-drawn out effort to convey this simple, uncomplicated fact to […]
View PostRecent versions of Adobe’s Acrobat and Reader software include a feature called “Read Out Loud” (ROL). A well-intentioned effort, ROL was (originally) meant to provide a snazzy new feature that would look good on sales calls, impress gullible executives, that sort of thing. It would just be super cool, it seemed, to be able to […]
View PostPDF was originally designed to do one thing: deliver an author’s intent to screen or printer in an efficient, precise and platform-independent manner. This “print paradigm” persists today, and colors the issue of accessible PDF in subtle but pervasive ways. To understand how the print orientation in PDF presents a challenge to accessibility, begin with […]
View PostWhen I first tell someone that blind people can read PDF files, I often get a slightly puzzled expression. Sighted people sometimes appear to assume that the blind can’t read; that maybe somehow blind professors and programmers and lawyers are born, not taught. I digress. The fact is that blind and other disabled individuals can […]
View PostAccessibility is not an especially familiar concept in the computing world. Most of us encounter the idea of accessibility often enough by way of special vehicle parking spaces, ramps, braille signage, beeping crosswalks, and so on. Improving accessibility is more than a courtesy, it is an accepted and vital goal of any advanced society. Both […]
View PostA blind person cannot read from a screen any more than from a printed page. Technologies nonetheless exist that allow blind and other disabled users impressively full-featured access to documents. To be accessible, however, the document contents must be available to these so-called “assistive” technologies. To address the needs of visually impaired and other users […]
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