62
Most Adobe PDF documents begin on computers as Microsoft Word documents; then
are converted to PDFs at the end of the process for distribution. This guide explores
how to produce a Microsoft Word document so that, when exported to an Adobe PDF
document, it will allow screen readers to correctly and completely read the document.
There are many elements that affect accessibility in a document, such as color use and
contrast. However, the main focus of this guide is to make you aware of how to format
Microsoft Word documents so that screen readers can read your exported PDF files
properly. For more detailed information about colors and contrast, please reference the
Other References page at the end of this document.
Instructions for creating accessible PDF’s from scanned documents are also included in
this guide.
Tips for Structuring a Microsoft Word Document for an Accessible PDF Export:
The following are suggestions for structuring a Word document for easier conversion to
PDF.
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Keep Your Word Document Layout Simple: Keep all of your content in a linear
single column progression. This will allow screen readers to obtain a proper
reading order of your document. More complex document layout design can
scatter the document’s reading order for screen readers. Complex documents
will need to be correcte
d
manually after conver
sion
by
using the TouchUp
R
eading order
feature of Adobe
.
Use Styles Instead of Text Attributes: To provide structure to your document use
the style formatting tool instead of the text bolding feature for text editing. Some
screen readers can read out the document's heading labels along with the
document's text
.
For example, the reader will read out loud "Heading 3"
for the heading above this paragraph. These headers will
become bookmarks in the PDF.
Create Alternative Text for Photographs or Graphic Images within Microsoft
Word: Right mouse click your document image and select the Format Object
from the popup menu and click the Web tab to type an alternative text passage in
the text field describing the image.
Add Hyperlinks to your Documents: If you want the screen reader user to access
a web link from your PDF, use the Microsoft Word's Hyperlink tool by selecting
the Insert menu and choose the Hyperlink… menu to hyperlink a web address.
Use Standard Text Fonts: Use standard text fonts such as Times New Roman
and Arial.
Data Tables: Avoid nested tables. Use the Insert – Table option instead of
creating a table with text boxes or layers.
Read the Table guidelines tips section found in the Other References section at
the end of this document.
Add a Blank Page to the End of Your Document: Make sure you add one blank
page at the end of the word document or else the accessible screen reader may
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
2
46
not read the last part of your document.
o Once your document has been converted to PDF, check the tabbing order to be
sure that the document reads as intended.
Things to Note:
o When using Roman numerals, screen readers will read Roman numerals as a
letter instead of a number equivalent. Instead of using Roman numerals, use
numbers.
o
o
o
o
Use the Bullet and Numbering feature from the Format menu when bullets are
required. Some screen readers will read out the word "bullet" to the user if the
document is formatted properly.
Use proper punctuation to allow for natural pauses and breaks in your lists.
Screen readers will pause when coming to a punctuation mark.
Information in the Header and Footer are NOT read by screen readers once the
document is converted to PDF.
Avoid using Word based check boxes and blank lines for forms since the screen
reader cannot detect these items for the end user. Once the document is
converted to PDF, use the forms feature in Adobe Acrobat to create the form
fields.
Adjust Adobe Acrobat’s Preference
Settings: Before converting a Word
document into a PDF file you must
adjust Acrobat Professional's
Preference settings with the following
steps. (The following is shown for Adobe
Acrobat 8 and may differ depending on
the Adobe version you are using)
1. Open Adobe Acrobat.
2. Choose Edit and Preference
from the top menu.
3. Choose Convert To PDF in the
Categories field and select
Microsoft Office Word in the
Converting To PDF field, and select the Edit Settings… button.
4. In the ‘Adobe PDF Setting for supported documents’ menu box choose Standard
from the Adobe PDF Settings drop down menu. (Note: see trouble shooting
section if accessibility is not available in the drop down menu)
5. Check the Add bookmarks, Add links and Enable accessibility & reflow boxes.
6. Finally, select the OK button to save each one of your menu preference box
changes.
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
3
11
Basic PDF file creation
Adobe continues to make it easier to create PDF files and offers multiple ways of
using Acrobat to accomplish this task. When you have Adobe Acrobat installed
properly, you can create a PDF file with a single click directly from Word.
You can also create a PDF file by using the “Print” command and selecting “Adobe
PDF” as your printer
. However, be aware that some features do not convert from
MS Word when creating PDF's this way.
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
4
39
Optimizing PDF Files
The versatility of PDF allows the format to be used on the Web, where small file size
is important, and also in the print industry, where the quality of the finished product is
much more important than file size.
When creating a PDF, you
should take steps to optimize
the PDF for the appropriate
purpose. Acrobat has some
built-in settings that you can
use or modify to create your
own. In Word, go to: Adobe
PDF > Change Conversion
Settings
Click “Advanced Settings” to
customize the conversion
settings.
Modifying the PDF File
1. Add Properties
Once your PDF file is created, you’ll want to add “properties” that describe the file.
These properties go with the PDF file and may be used by search engines to
discover and reference the PDF in searches. The language specification is
reference
d
by accessible technology.
The document properties screen is found under File - > Properties. At a minimum,
you should always add the following properties to your document.
ɷ
Title
ɷ
Author
ɷ
Subject
ɷ
Keywords
ɷ
Language
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
5
C# PowerPoint - PowerPoint Creating in C#.NET library is searchable and can be fully populated with editable text and with one blank page PPTXDocument doc = PPTXDocument.Create(outputFile); // Save the new
extract pdf form data to xml; pdf data extractor
24
N
ote
:
S
ome of
this information
could have
carried over
from the
original source
document,
which may not
be appropriate.
The language
specification
field is found on
the Advanced
tab of the
Properties
screen under
reading options.
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
6
20
2. Delete, Rearrange, Insert Pages
Along the left side of the Acrobat window are
a series of tabs. See the “Pages” tab? If not,
select pages from View > Navigation Tabs >
Pages.
Click on the pages tab to see a thumbnail of
each page in the PDF document. From this
window you can rearrange or delete pages,
extract one to create a separate PDF file, or
insert another PDF file.
3. Touch Up Text
Acrobat allows limited editing of PDF files. If you need to change a word or two,
correct a number, or make similar changes, go to: Tools > Advanced Editing >
TouchUp Text Tool. Select the text that you need to change, and type in the new
information. If extensive changes to text is required, it is suggested that you access
the original Word document to make those changes and then convert the new
document to PDF.
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
7
36
4. Changing a Scanned Document to Real Text
A PDF file made from a scanned document, such as a signed memo, may look to
contain text, but it is really just a picture of text. Zoom in on a portion of the text. If
you see jagged edges or other imperfections, you’re probably looking at a scanned
document. Try using the TouchUp text tool. If you can’t select text, it’s probably just
a picture of text. In order to be able to edit the text, or in order for a screen reader to
read the text, the text must be recognized from the scan and converted to real text.
This is what “optical character recognition” (OCR) is. A computer program, in this
case Adobe Acrobat, looks at the scan and determines what characters are being
depicted. It then replaces the image of the text with editable text. PDFs created from
scanned documents are frequently the biggest offenders in regards to accessibility.
To correct this:
Go to: Document > Recognize Text Using OCR > Start
In the “Recognize Text” dialogue box, you
can choose which pages you want
recognized. More importantly, you can
choose how you want Acrobat to output
the text to the PDF file.
To change the output settings, click on the
Edit button in the recognize text window.
Choose the “Formatted Text & Graphics”
in the PDF Output Style to create a
screen readable document.
Acrobat can retain the image and hold the
text “behind the scenes.” This allows the
search function to work, but doesn’t allow
you to edit text or for a screen reader to
read the file. Or it can
replace the text image with
real text. This is preferable for
accessibility, editing, and file
size; but it can require a lot of
cleanup.
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
8
21
Finding Suspects
:
After the OCR has converted the image to real text, you must review the document
for “suspects”. These are instances where the text image wasn’t clear enough for
Acrobat to make a good interpretation. You should progress through the document,
suspect by suspect, and correct Acrobat’s errors. To see and correct suspects, go
to:
Document > Recognize Text Using OCR > Find First OCR Suspect
Acrobat will offer a suggested reading. You can accept that or type in your own.
As you’re working through this task, you may find another problem: Acrobat has
recognized some text but put it in the wrong font. This happens typically with poor
scans or poor originals (photocopies, faxes, etc.).
To fix this, you must change the properties for that bit of text.
First, select the text using the TouchUp text tool.
Then, right-click (CTRL-
click on the Mac) and select Properties from the resulting drop-down menu. In the
properties window, change the font, size, and any other properties to give the
selected text the appropriate characteristics.
Guide to Creating Accessible Documents
Last Revised: 11/6/2007
9
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