The Accessibility Options dialog box for Windows XP
Other accessibility tools in Mac OS X
The Mac OS X platform has built-in tools that provide increased or alternative access to information on the computer screen. To modify accessibility preferences, choose Apple menu > System Preferences > Universal Access, and then select the category to change. For more information on the accessibility tools in the Mac OS X platform, visit the Apple accessibility website at http://www.apple.com/accessibility/.

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The Universal Access dialog box for Mac OS X
Summary of the sections in this document
This section describes accessibility, the characteristics that make an Adobe PDF document accessible to people with disabilities, and the primary reasons why a PDF document might be inaccessible. It also provides an overview of the accessibility features in Adobe Reader and information on how to get to the Adobe accessibility website.
This section describes the Adobe Reader 7.0 user interface, including its layout, navigation, and basic commands. It also provides an abundance of keyboard shortcuts for people who dont use a mouse or a similar pointing device. While most information in this section is not specific to accessibility features, instructions in other sections in this document presume that you are familiar with the interface items and navigation that are described here.
This section describes how to use the six features that are specific to enhancing accessibility in Adobe Readerthe Accessibility Setup Assistant, the accessibility Quick Check tool, the Read Out Loud tool, Reflow view, automatic scrolling, and the Save As Text feature.
This section provides detailed information on the many Adobe Reader preferences that are relevant to accessibility. It tells you where these options are in the Preferences dialog box or the Accessibility Setup Assistant. It also describes general techniques for using a keyboard to select these preferences from the Preferences dialog box.
This appendix provides the common keyboard shortcuts, including single-key accelerators, for navigating much of Adobe Reader by using a keyboard instead of a mouse. It organizes keystrokes by Windows and Mac OS operating systems, and then by categories of tasks. Many other keyboard shortcuts are listed in Adobe Reader menus, next to their command names. If you cant find the shortcut that youre looking for in this section, look in the Adobe Reader menus.
This section describes accessibility, the characteristics that make an Adobe PDF document accessible to people with disabilities, and the primary reasons why a PDF document might be inaccessible. It also provides an overview of the accessibility features in Adobe Reader and information on how to get to the Adobe accessibility website. This section primarily discusses Adobe Reader 7.0.

ADOBE READER 7.0 7

In an accessible PDF document, tags perform two functions: They depict the hierarchy of contentsuch as text blocks, headings, sidebars, and other page elementsand they define the intended reading order of the content on each page. Assistive tools rely on these tags to present text in a way that makes sense when someone is hearing the text read out loud or reading it on-screen in an alternative viewing mode. Some PDF documents dont have tags. In this case, Adobe Reader analyzes the document and temporarily adds tags to improve the reading order of the PDF document. It does this any time that you use assistive technology, the Save As Text feature in Adobe Reader, or the Read Out Loud feature in Adobe Reader. Note: If a particular untagged PDF document is very long or you refer to it often, its a good idea to tag the document permanently. You can add permanent tags to the PDF document by using Acrobat 7.0 Professional or Standard. Instructions for doing so are in this guides companion document, Creating Accessible PDF Documents with Adobe Acrobat 7.0: A Guide for Publishing PDF Files for Use by People with Disabilities. You can download the document at http://www.adobe.com/accessibility.
2. Alternate text descriptions for figures, form fields, and links
A second feature of accessible PDF documents is descriptive text, called alternate text, for figures, form fields, and web links. Screen readers and other text-to-speech tools typically cant read these page elements, so authors of accessible PDF documents add alternate text to describe them. When screen readers encounter alternate text, they can interpret the element and read its alternate text description aloud to you.

3. Navigational aids

Accessible PDF documents also have navigational aids, which include links, bookmarks, a table of contents, and an optimized, preset tab order for forms and embedded links. These navigational aids enable you to go directly to a particular place in a document, instead of reading it through page by page.
4. Security that doesnt interfere with assistive technology
Some authors of PDF documents restrict users from printing, copying, extracting, commenting, or editing text. These restrictions can sometimes interfere with a screen readers ability to convert the on-screen text to speech. An accessible PDF document is both secure and available to a screen reader. Note: If your particular assistive technology product is registered with Adobe as a Trusted Agent, you can read PDF documents that might be inaccessible to another assistive technology product. Adobe Reader recognizes when a screen reader or other product is a Trusted Agent and overrides security settings that would typically limit access to the content for accessibility purposes. However, the security settings remain in effect for all other purposes, such as to prevent printing, copying, extracting, commenting, or editing text.

In general, to select or deselect a check box, button, link, or similar interface item when focus is on that item, press
Enter or Return or the Spacebar. Note for Windows users: You can often use the Alt key in combination with other keys, called access keys, to select interface items by using one keystroke in most menus, dialog boxes, and panes. Place focus on an interface element, and then press the Alt key once. Underlined letters in the names of the interface items show you the access key to press, either with the Alt key or without, to select that interface item. Most screen readers announce these letters as they read these items.

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The Adobe Reader for the Windows interface with the primary areas labeled. A: Title bar. B: Menu bar. C: Toolbar area. D: Navigation pane. E: Document pane. F: Status bar.

Title bar

At the top of the Adobe Reader application window is the title bar, which contains the name of the application and the name of the current document. In Windows, press Alt+4 to close all documents and quit Adobe Reader.

Menu bar

Beneath the title bar is the menu bar, which contains seven menus for Adobe Reader: File, Edit, View, Document, Tools, Window, and Help. To hide the menu bar, press F9 (Windows) or Command+Shift+M (Mac OS). This keystroke is a toggle keystroke, so pressing F9 (Windows) or Command+Shift+M (Mac OS) again shows the menu bar.
Selecting items from the menu bar (Windows only) To move focus to the menu bar, press F10 or the Alt key. When focus is on the menu bar, the first letter of each
menu is underlined as the access key. The Alt key is a toggle key, so pressing it again removes focus from the menu bar.
To open a specific menu, bring focus to the menu bar, and then either use the Left Arrow and Right Arrow keys, or
press the access keythe letter that is underlined in the menus name (for example, press F to show the File menu). You can also combine Alt and the access key to open the menu directly. For example, Alt+F shows the File menu.
To select commands from an open menu or submenu, either press the access key or use the Up Arrow and Down
Arrow keys, and then press Enter or the Spacebar.

ADOBE READER 7.0 13

To return to the previous level of your menu selection, press Esc. To return focus to the document pane, press Alt or F5. Selecting items from the menu bar (Mac OS only) To move focus to the menu bar, press Control+F2 (this default can be changed in the System Preferences for

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The Save As dialog box, where you can save a PDF document as text for use with alternative translation technologies To save a PDF document as accessible text: 1 Choose File > Save As Text (in Windows, press Alt+F, and then press V). 2 In the Save As dialog box, do one of the following:
In Windows: Activate the Save As Type drop-down menu (press Alt+T), and choose Text (Accessible) (*.txt). In Mac OS: Activate the Format pop-up menu, and choose Text (Accessible).
3 Name the file and locate the drive and folder where the file should be stored. 4 Select Save (in Windows, press Alt+S).
This section provides detailed information on the many Adobe Reader preferences that are relevant to accessibility. It tells you where these options are in the Preferences dialog box or the Accessibility Setup Assistant. It also describes general techniques for using a keyboard to select these preferences from the Preferences dialog box. For information on other settings within an operating system that are relevant to accessibility, see Other accessibility tools in Windows on page 4 or Other accessibility tools in Mac OS X on page 4. Keyboard shortcuts listed in this section work in both Windows and Mac OS unless otherwise specified. For an extended list of keyboard shortcuts for Adobe Reader, see Appendix: Adobe Reader keyboard shortcuts on page 59.
Accessibility preferences
Adobe Reader has numerous preferences that relate to accessibility. You can adjust these preferences by using the Preferences dialog box and the Accessibility Setup Assistant wizard. The tool that you last used overrides the settings in the other tool. The wizard presents accessibility preferences that are most relevant to people who have screen readers and magnifiers. The Preferences dialog box offers the same accessibility preferences (sometimes under slightly different names), as well as other accessibility preferences that the setup wizard does not offer. By using the Preferences dialog box, you can customize your reading and viewing experience in the following ways:

Setting Read Out Loud preferences
The settings that are described below affect only the Read Out Loud tool in Adobe Reader. They do not affect the corresponding settings for a screen reader. You set all Read Out Loud preferences in the Read Out Loud Options area of the Reading category in the Preferences dialog box. The voice-control options are Volume, Voice Type, Pitch, and Words Per Minute. The volume setting determines the magnitude of the Read Out Loud voice relative to the volume setting for the operating system. It does not change the volume setting for the operating system. The Pitch and Words Per Minute options are available when you deselect Use Default Speech Attributes. You can also set Adobe Reader to read fillable form fields aloud as you tab to them in an Adobe PDF form. When you select the Read Form Fields preference, the application always reads the short descriptions (if available in the document) of each form field. It also reads the current state of the form field. After you type text in a form field, you can have Adobe Reader repeat aloud what you typed by pressing Tab to exit the form field, and then pressing Shift+Tab to reenter the form field. Note: When activated, the Read Form Fields preference makes Adobe Reader read form fields aloud when you tab to the field whether or not you are using the Read Out Loud tool. If this preference is enabled and you are using a screen reader, the field will be read twiceonce by Read Out Loud and once by the screen reader. Note: If the Read Form Fields preference is activated and you do not hear short descriptions for fillable form fields, the author of the PDF document did not include them in the document.

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You can set Read Out Loud options in the Reading category of the Preferences dialog box. To change Read Out Loud preferences: 1 Open the Preferences dialog box by doing one of the following:
2 Select the Reading category (in Windows, press the R key). 3 To adjust the volume, activate the Volume drop-down menu (in Windows, press Alt+V) and change volume from

0 to 10.

4 To adjust the default voice, select or deselect Use Default Voice (in Windows, press Alt+U). 5 If you deselect Use Default Voice, activate the Voice drop-down menu (in Windows, press Alt+C) and select

a voice.

6 To change the speech attributes, select or deselect Use Default Speech Attributes (in Windows, press Alt+A). 7 To change the pitch of the speech, activate the Pitch drop-down menu (in Windows, press Alt+P) and select a pitch

value from 0 to 10.

8 To change the speech speed, activate the Words Per Minute option (in Windows, press Alt+W) and type a value
for words per minute. The value must be in the range of 150 to 650, inclusive.
9 To have Adobe Reader read form fields out loud when the field receives focus, select Read Form Fields (in

Windows, press Alt+F).

ADOBE READER 7.0 45

Using Full Screen view

A Full Screen view of an Adobe PDF document hides the toolbars, status bar, menu bar, and other windows so that only the document pane is visible. The settings described in this section affect Adobe Reader only while it is operating in Full Screen view.
Navigating Full Screen view
To enter Full Screen view, choose View > Full Screen, or press Ctrl+L (Windows) or Command+L (Mac OS). To page forward through the document, press Enter or Return or the Down Arrow or Right Arrow key. To page backward through the document, press Shift+Return or the Up Arrow or Left Arrow key. To exit Full Screen view, either press Esc or press Ctrl+L (Windows) or Command+L (Mac OS).
Note: The Esc key works only if you have selected Escape Key Exits in the Full Screen preferences by following the instructions below.
Setting Full Screen preferences
For Full Screen view, you can set Adobe Reader to advance from one page to the next at regular intervals, with interval times from 1 to 60 seconds. When you select this setting, you can still go forward and backward manually by using the arrow keys and mouse. You can also set the Esc key to work for exiting Full Screen view.
You can set the options for using Full Screen view in the Full Screen category of the Preferences dialog box.

ADOBE READER 7.0 46

To set Full Screen preferences: 1 Open the Preferences dialog box by doing one of the following:
2 Select the Full Screen category (in Windows, press F). 3 To make pages advance automatically, select the Advance Every check box (in Windows, press Alt+A), and then

You can replace colors for the background, text, and line art in the Accessibility category of the Preferences dialog box.

ADOBE READER 7.0 49

To replace background, text, and line art colors: 1 Open the Preferences dialog box by doing one of the following:
2 Select the Accessibility category (in Windows, press A). 3 Select Replace Document Colors (in Windows, press Alt+R). 4 Decide the color scheme that you want to use:
(Windows only) If you want to use the current Windows system colors, select Use Windows Color Scheme (press
Alt+W). By default, Adobe Reader uses the Windows high-contrast system colors. If you have changed the color scheme for your computer, however, this option lets you return to the Windows high-contrast color scheme.
If you want to use one of four preset high-contrast color combinations, select Use High-Contrast Colors (in
Windows, press Alt+H), and then choose a color scheme from the High-Contrast Color Combination dropdown menu (in Windows, press Alt+G).
If you want to choose text and background colors that provide the best contrast for you, select Custom Colors
(in Windows, press Alt+C), and then choose a color from the Page Background palette (in Windows, press Alt+B), and from the Document Text palette (in Windows, press Alt+T).
5 Decide whether both black objects and color objects will incorporate the new color scheme:
To apply the new color scheme only to black objects and not to color objects, select Only Change The Color Of
Black Text Or Line Art (in Windows, press Alt+O).
To apply the new color scheme to both black objects and color objects, deselect Only Change The Color Of Black
Text Or Line Art (in Windows, press Alt+O).
6 Decide whether both text objects and line art objects will incorporate the new color scheme:
To apply color changes to both text objects and line art objects, select Change The Color Of Line Art As Well As
Text (in Windows, press Alt+N).
To apply color changes only to text objects and not to line art objects, deselect Change The Color Of Line Art As

embedded in a video file. If captioning is available in different languages, you can also choose the preferred language for this content.
Show Audio Description (Or Video Description, Or Descriptive Video) When Available. This option succinctly
explains visual details that are not apparent from the audio file alone.
You can control media player options in the Multimedia category of the Preferences dialog box. To set Adobe Reader to enable multimedia accessibility options, when they are available: 1 Open the Preferences dialog box by doing one of the following:
2 Select the Multimedia category (in Windows, press M), and then select any of the following options:
Show Subtitles When Available (in Windows, press Alt+S) Play Dubbed Audio When Available (in Windows, press Alt+U) Show Supplemental Text Captions When Available (in Windows, press Alt+T) Show Audio Description (Or Video Description, Or Descriptive Video) When Available (in Windows, press Alt+A)
3 Activate the Preferred Language For Content drop-down menu (in Windows, press Alt+G), and then select a

language.

ADOBE READER 7.0 53
Setting the tab order to match what a screen reader reads
In Adobe Reader, you can use the Tab key to move among focusable items on a page in a tagged Adobe PDF document. Focusable items are links, form fields, and comments. An underlying tab order, added by the author of the tagged PDF document, determines where the next press of the Tab key will take you on a page. Some tagged documents, however, dont specify a tab order. In such a case, Adobe Reader first tabs through all form fields on the page, and then through all links, and then through all comments. This tab order may not match what the screen reader reads aloud as you read the page in order. If a PDF document is tagged and on-screen content does not match the screen reader content when you tab, you can instruct Adobe Reader to use the document structure to define the tabbing order. Because the screen reader also uses the document structure to determine what item to read next, Adobe Reader and the screen reader can present the tabbed items in the same order. This preference can be used only with tagged PDF documents, and it is on by default.
You can instruct Adobe Reader to use a files document structure for tab order in the Accessibility category of the Preferences dialog box. To set the tab order to follow the documents structure for tagged documents: 1 Open the Preferences dialog box by doing one of the following:

ADOBE READER 7.0 56

Displaying the keyboard selection cursor at all times
The keyboard selection cursor is the flashing vertical line that indicates where a selection will begin when you use a keyboard to select text. By default, the keyboard selection cursor only appears when you have placed an insertion point in the text by using the Select tool. If you prefer, you can set Adobe Reader to make the keyboard selection cursor available at all times on the current page, without requiring you to activate the Select tool first. This option is useful when you are using a screen magnifier. After you activate this preference, the keyboard selection cursor appears before the first word (or in a word very close to the first word) of the current page when you open a document. The page display and magnification settings for the document determine the word that Adobe Reader considers to be first word on the page. To locate the cursor quickly, use the keyboard to select a few characters.
You can choose to display the keyboard selection cursor at all times in the Accessibility category of the Preferences dialog box. To display the keyboard selection cursor at all times: 1 Open the Preferences dialog box by doing one of the following:
2 Select the Accessibility category (in Windows, press A). 3 Select Always Display The Keyboard Selection Cursor (in Windows, press Alt+D).
Note: You can also set this option in screen 2 of the Accessibility Setup Assistant. There, it is called Always Use The Keyboard Selection Cursor. See Running the Accessibility Setup Assistant on page 27 for instructions on using the setup wizard.

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Reopening documents to the last viewed page
In Startup preferences, you can set Adobe Reader to insert a place marker that makes the document open to the page that you were viewing before you closed the document.
You can set documents to open to the page you were last viewing in the Startup category of the Preferences dialog box. To set Adobe Reader to use place markers for Adobe PDF documents: 1 Open the Preferences dialog box by doing one of the following:
2 Select the Startup category (in Windows, press S). 3 Activate the Reopen Documents To Last Viewed Page drop-down menu (in Windows, press Alt+V), and then

select All Files.

ADOBE READER 7.0 58
Enabling single-key accelerators
You can alter the functionality of your keyboard by using single-key accelerators. Most keyboard shortcuts in Adobe Reader dont require that you enable this option. The keyboard shortcuts that do require a single-key accelerator are generally used for selecting tools or for working with comments. See Appendix: Adobe Reader keyboard shortcuts on page 59 for keyboard shortcuts.

Task Go to next screen Go to previous screen Go to first page Go to last page Go to next page Go to previous page Go to previously viewed page (similar to a browsers Back button) Go to next viewed page (similar to a browsers Forward button) Go to next document Go to previous document Scroll up Scroll down Zoom in Zoom out Temporarily activate Zoom In tool Temporarily activate Zoom In tool (while any tool is active) Temporarily activate Zoom In tool or Zoom Out tool (while either tool is active) Temporarily activate Dynamic Zoom tool (while Zoom In or Zoom Out is active) Windows keystroke Page Down or Spacebar Page Up Home or Shift+Ctrl+Page Up or Shift+Ctrl+Up Arrow End or Shift+Ctrl+Page Down or Shift+Ctrl+Down Arrow Right Arrow or Ctrl+Page Down Left Arrow or Ctrl+Page Up Alt+Left Arrow Alt+Right Arrow Alt+Shift+Right Arrow Alt+Shift+Left Arrow Up Arrow Down Arrow Ctrl+plus sign (+) Ctrl+hyphen (-) Ctrl+Spacebar Ctrl+Spacebar Ctrl Shift
Keystrokes for use with the navigation pane
Task Open or close navigation pane (focus is on navigation pane when opened) Move focus to navigation pane at any time (also opens the pane if it is currently closed) Cycle focus to navigation pane Cycle focus through navigation tabs (when focus is anywhere in navigation pane) Cycle focus through navigation tabs (when focus is in another tab) Cycle focus through elements of the active navigation tab (Options menu, other tools, close box, tab contents, and tab name) Move focus to next item in navigation tab contents Move focus to previous item in navigation tab contents Expand current bookmark (when focus is on bookmark) Collapse current bookmark (when focus is on bookmark) Expand all bookmarks (when focus is on any bookmark) Rename current bookmark Activate current bookmark Windows keystroke F4 Ctrl+Shift+F5 F6 or Shift+F6 Ctrl+Tab or Ctrl+Shift+Tab Up Arrow or Down Arrow Tab or Shift+Tab Down Arrow Up Arrow Right Arrow or Shift+plus sign (+) Left Arrow or minus sign () or forward slash (/) Shift+asterisk (*) F2 Enter or Spacebar

ADOBE READER 7.0 62

Keystrokes for navigating the Help window
Task Open Help window (focus is on window when opened) Close Help window Toggle focus between Help navigation pane and document pane Cycle focus through Help navigation tabs (when focus is anywhere in navigation pane) Cycle focus through Help navigation tabs (when focus is on name of another tab) Cycle focus through elements of active navigation tab (text-entry boxes, tab contents, and tab name) Move focus to next element in active navigation tab contents Move focus to previous element in active navigation tab contents Expand current Help topic (in Contents and Index tabs) Collapse current Help topic (in Contents and Index tabs) Expand all Help topics (in Contents and Index tabs) Activate current Help topic (in Contents and Index tabs) Move focus to toolbar in Help window Move focus to tools on Help toolbar (toolbar in focus) Activate tools (Help tool in focus) Windows keystroke F1 Alt+F4 or Ctrl+W F6 and Shift+F6 Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab Right Arrow or Left Arrow Tab or Shift+Tab Down Arrow Up Arrow Enter or Right Arrow or Shift+plus sign (+) Shift+Enter or Left Arrow or minus sign () or forward slash (/) Shift+asterisk (*) Enter or Spacebar Shift+F8 Tab and Shift+Tab Enter or Spacebar

ADOBE READER 7.0 64

Mac OS keyboard shortcuts
In Mac OS, you must enable Full Keyboard Access in the system-level preferences before you can navigate and interact within the Adobe Reader work area and with Adobe PDF documents by using keyboard shortcuts.
To set up system-level preferences to enable Full Keyboard Access: 1 From the Apple menu, choose System Preferences, and select Keyboard & Mouse. 2 Click the Keyboard Shortcuts tab (Mac OS 10.3) or Keyboard Access tab (Mac OS 10.2). 3 Select the Turn On Full Keyboard Access option.
Area of the Adobe Reader interface Menu bar Show or hide menu bar Move focus to menus at any time Move focus among menus Move focus to menu items Toolbar area Move focus to toolbar area at any time Move focus to next tool Move focus to previous tool Move focus to next toolbar Move focus to previous toolbar Document pane Move focus to document pane at any time Cycle focus forward through panes and panels (including document pane, navigation pane, How To window, Search PDF window) Cycle focus backward through panes and panels (including document pane, navigation pane, How To window, Search PDF window) Move to next open document (when focus is on document pane) Move to previous open document (when focus is on document pane) Close current document Close all open documents Tabs, buttons, options, list items, and other elements in dialog boxes and panes Move focus to next item Move focus to previous item Activate focused item Move focus to next tab in a tabbed dialog box Move focus to previous tab in a tabbed dialog box Text Move cursor to beginning of next word (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Move cursor to beginning of previous word (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Move cursor to beginning of line Move cursor to end of line Select or deselect next text character (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect previous text character (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect next word (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect previous word (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect to beginning of line (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Command+Right Arrow Command+ Left Arrow Home End Shift+Right Arrow Shift+Left Arrow Shift+Command+Right Arrow Shift+Command+ Left Arrow Shift+Home Tab Shift + Tab Spacebar or Return Right Arrow Left Arrow F5 F6 Shift+F6 Command+tilde (~) Command+Shift+F6 Command+F4 or Command+W Command+Shift+W Shift+F8 or Control+F5 Tab or Right Arrow Shift+Tab or Left Arrow Option+Tab Option+Shift+Tab Shift+Command+M Control+F2 Left Arrow and Right Arrow Up Arrow and Down Arrow Mac OS keystroke

ADOBE READER 7.0 65

Area of the Adobe Reader interface Select or deselect to end of line (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect next text line by character (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect previous text line by character (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect next line by full word (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select or deselect previous line by full word (when keyboard selection cursor is active) Select all content on page Deselect all content on page Other general interface items Open context menu Close context menu without making a selection Close an open menu or dialog box Move focus to status bar (when focus is in document pane or How To/Search PDF window)

Mac OS keystroke Shift+End Shift+Down Arrow Shift+Up Arrow Shift+Command+Down Arrow Shift+Command+Up Arrow Command+A Command+Shift+A Control+click Esc Esc Shift+F5
Note: To use the following keystrokes, you must turn on the single-key acceleration preference in Adobe Reader. See Enabling single-key accelerators on page 58. Other single-key accelerators are also listed under Keystrokes for working with comments on page 68.
Task Activate Hand tool Activate Select tool Activate Snapshot tool Activate current Zoom tool Cycle through Zoom tools: Zoom In, Zoom Out, Dynamic Zoom Mac OS keystroke H V G Z Shift+Z

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Task Go to next screen Go to previous screen Go to first page Mac OS keystroke Page Down or Spacebar Page Up Home or Shift+Command+Page Up or Command+Shift+Up Arrow End or Shift+Command+Page Down or Command+Shift+Down Arrow Right Arrow or Command+Page Down Left Arrow or Command+Page Up Up Arrow Down Arrow Command+plus sign (+) Command+hyphen (-) Command+Spacebar Command+Spacebar Option Shift

Go to last page

Go to next page Go to previous page Scroll up Scroll down Zoom in Zoom out Temporarily activate Zoom In tool Temporarily activate Zoom In tool (while any tool is active) Temporarily activate Zoom In tool or Zoom Out tool (while either tool is active) Temporarily activate Dynamic Zoom tool (while Zoom In or Zoom Out is active)
Task Open or close navigation pane (focus is on navigation pane when opened) Move focus to navigation pane at any time (also opens the pane if it is currently closed) Cycle focus to navigation pane Cycle focus through navigation tabs (when focus is anywhere in navigation pane) Cycle focus through navigation tabs (when focus is in another tab) Cycle focus through elements of the active navigation tab (Options menu, other tools, close box, tab contents, and tab name) Move focus to next item in navigation tab contents Move focus to previous item in navigation tab contents Expand current bookmark (when focus is on bookmark) Collapse current bookmark (when focus is on bookmark) Expand all bookmarks (when focus is on any bookmark) Rename current bookmark Activate current bookmark Mac OS keystroke F4 Command+Shift+F5 F6 or Shift+F6 Option+Tab or Option+Shift+Tab Up Arrow or Down Arrow Tab or Shift+Tab Down Arrow Up Arrow Right Arrow or Shift+plus sign (+) Left Arrow or minus sign () or forward slash (/) Shift+asterisk (*) F2 Return or Spacebar

ADOBE READER 7.0 67

Task Open or close Help window (focus is on window when opened) Toggle focus between Help navigation pane and document pane Cycle focus through Help navigation tabs (when focus is anywhere in navigation pane) Cycle focus through Help navigation tabs (when focus is on name of another tab) Cycle focus through elements of active navigation tab (text-entry boxes, tab contents, and tab name) Move focus to next element in active navigation tab contents Move focus to previous element in active navigation tab contents Expand current Help topic (in Contents and Index tabs) Collapse current Help topic (in Contents and Index tabs) Mac OS keystroke F1 or Command+question mark (?) F6 and Shift+F6 Option+Tab or Option+Shift+Tab Right Arrow or Left Arrow Tab or Shift+Tab Down Arrow Up Arrow Return or Right Arrow or Shift+plus sign (+) Shift+Return or Left Arrow or minus sign () or forward slash (/) Shift+asterisk (*) Return or Spacebar Shift+F8 Tab and Shift+Tab Spacebar

Expand all Help topics (in Contents and Index tabs) Activate current Help topic (in Contents and Index tabs) Move focus to toolbar in Help window Move focus to tools on Help toolbar (toolbar in focus) Activate tools (Help tool in focus)
Task Open How To window at any time (focus is on window when opened) Close How To window at any time Move focus to How To window at anytime (also opens window if it is currently closed) Cycle focus to How To window Move focus between contents of How To window and tools at top of How To window Move focus down through contents of How To window Move focus up through contents of How To window Go to next page in How To window Go to previous page in How To window Mac OS keystroke Shift+F4 Shift+F4 Shift+F1 F6 or Shift+F6 Option+Tab or Option+Shift+Tab Tab or Down Arrow Shift+Tab or Up Arrow Right Arrow Left Arrow

ADOBE READER 7.0 68

Task Keystrokes for navigating comments Move focus to next comment (when focus is on document pane) Move focus to previous comment (when focus is on document pane) Open pop-up window for comment that has focus Tab Shift+Tab Spacebar Mac OS keystroke
Cycle focus through the items at the top of a pop-up comment window (when focus in on the window) Option+Tab and Option+Shift+Tab Single-key accelerators for activating commenting tools (focus must be on the Commenting or Drawing Markups toolbar) Activate Note tool Activate Text Edits tool Activate Stamp tool Activate current highlighting tool Cycle through highlighting tools: Highlight Text, Underline Text, Cross-Out Text Activate current tool for attaching comments Cycle between tools for attaching comments: Attach A File As A Comment, Record Audio Comment Activate Callout tool Activate Cloud tool Activate current Drawing tool (from Drawing Markups toolbar) Cycle through Drawing tools: Arrow, Rectangle, Oval, Line, Polygon Line, Polygon, Pencil, Pencil Eraser Activate Text Box tool Single-key accelerators for browser-based reviews Save document and work offline Send and receive comments Mark document status as complete Go back online Y O W I S E K U Shift+U J Shift + J P Q D Shift + D X

Creating Accessible PDF Documents with Adobe Acrobat 7.0
A Guide for Publishing PDF Documents for Use by People with Disabilities
2005 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved.
Adobe, the Adobe logo, Acrobat, Adobe PDF, Capture, FrameMaker, InDesign, LiveCycle, PageMaker, and Reader are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. Apple and Mac OS are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the United States and other countries. Microsoft, Windows, and Windows XP are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Mention of third party products is for informational purposes only and constitutes neither endorsement nor recommendation.

Contents

Introduction
Purpose of this guide.1 Audience for this guide.1 Software described in this guide.1 Adobe PDF software described in this guide.1 Authoring applications described in this guide.2 Acrobat system requirements.2 Accessibility tools in Windows.2 Accessibility tools in Mac OS.2 Summary of the sections in this guide.3 Section 1: Accessibility and Adobe PDF.3 Section 2: Understanding tagging and document structure.3 Section 3: The accessibility workflow.3 Section 4: Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from word-processing and desktop publishing applications.3 Section 5: Converting scans to accessible Adobe PDF content.3 Section 6: Creating a single tagged Adobe PDF document from multiple documents.3 Section 7: Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from web pages.3 Section 8: Making Adobe PDF forms accessible.3 Section 9: Adding tags to Adobe PDF documents.3 Section 10: Evaluating Adobe PDF documents for accessibility problems.4 Section 11: Repairing reading order and basic tagging problems.4 Section 12: Adding other accessibility features.4 Section 13: Fixing advanced accessibility problems.4 Appendix: Standard tags for Adobe PDF documents.4
Section 1: Accessibility and Adobe PDF
What accessibility is.5 Why accessibility is important for Adobe PDF documents.5 What makes Adobe PDF documents accessible.6
Section 2: Understanding tagging and document structure
How tagging and document structure affect accessibility.8 How to tell if an Adobe PDF document has been tagged.8 What tagging looks like in Acrobat.9 When to tag documents. 10 Why touchup is often needed. 11 Visit the Adobe accessibility website for more information. 11
Section 3: The accessibility workflow
Six general steps. 12 Step 1: Start from the document you have. 12 Step 2: If the document is a form, add fillable, accessible form fields. 14 Step 3: Tag the Adobe PDF document. 14 Step 4: Evaluate the Adobe PDF document and repair common problems. 14 Step 5: Add other accessibility features to the Adobe PDF document. 14 Step 6: As needed, edit the tag tree to fix advanced problems. 14
Section 4: Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from word-processing and desktop publishing applications
Options for converting to Adobe PDF from authoring applications. 16 Using Acrobat PDFMaker in non Adobe applications (Windows only). 16 Using the Save As or Export command in Adobe applications (Mac OS and Windows). 16 Using Adobe PDF Printer (Mac OS and Windows). 16 Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from Microsoft Office 2000 or later. 17 Tips for improving the Adobe PDF tagging and document structure in Microsoft Office documents. 17 Tips for making artwork accessible. 17 Tips for making tables accessible. 17 Tips for making large Excel tables (worksheets) accessible. 18 Converting Microsoft Office documents to tagged Adobe PDF documents (Windows only). 18 Converting Microsoft Office documents to Adobe PDF documents (Mac OS only). 21 Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from InDesign CS or later. 21 Planning ahead to minimize tagging rework. 21 Using threads to affect the structure of Adobe PDF tags. 21 Using InDesign CS tags to improve accessibility. 22 Adding accessible text to graphics. 23 Converting InDesign CS documents to tagged Adobe PDF documents. 23 Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from FrameMaker 7.0. 25 Adding alternate text to imported graphics. 25 Converting FrameMaker documents to tagged Adobe PDF documents. 25 Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from PageMaker 7.0. 26 Converting PageMaker documents to tagged Adobe PDF documents. 26 Finishing the Adobe PDF document for accessibility. 27

Audience for this guide

This guide is written primarily for three audiences:
People who are creating source documents that are meant to become accessible Adobe PDF documents People who want to improve the accessibility of existing PDF documents and interactive PDF forms People who want to test the accessibility of the PDF documents they have already created
Software described in this guide
This guide provides information about using Acrobat software to optimize Adobe PDF documents for accessibility. Because the best results come from planning for accessibility before you convert documents to PDF, this guide also provides basic tips on how to prepare documents for optimal accessibility in popular word-processing and desktop publishing tools. Note: For best results when you are creating and reading PDF documents, be sure to use the most current version of Acrobat software, as well as the most current version of the authoring applications that you use. For information about ordering Acrobat products, visit www.adobe.com/products/acrobat.
Adobe PDF software described in this guide
Acrobat 7.0 Professional. This application provides a full complement of tools for producing and repairing Adobe
PDF documents for accessibility. You can use it to tag PDF documents, edit tags, optimize reading order, add a full range of accessibility features, and repair accessibility problems for PDF documents that are generated from almost any source. The breadth of its feature set makes Acrobat Professional the recommended application for achieving accessibility for PDF documents. Most of the information in this guide applies to Acrobat 7.0 Professional.

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Acrobat 7.0 Standard. This application includes limited support for achieving accessibility with PDF. You can use
it to apply one-time-only tagging of untagged PDF documents, to perform a quick check on the extent of accessibility in a PDF document, and to set basic accessibility functionality. Because Acrobat Standard lacks tools for editing tags and adding other accessibility features, this application is not recommended for those who want to create accessible PDF documents. Acrobat 7.0 Standard supports only a few of the techniques that this guide describes.

1. The document is a searchable text file, not an image-only scan
An Adobe PDF document of a scanned piece of paper is inherently inaccessible because the content of the document is an image, not searchable text. Assistive technology cannot read or extract the words, users cannot select or edit the text, and you cannot manipulate the PDF document for accessibility. Once you properly apply optical character recognition (OCR) to the scanned file, however, the image becomes searchable text with selectable graphics, and you can apply other accessibility features to the document. Both Acrobat 7.0 Professional and Acrobat 7.0 Standard include utilities for capturing scans and for converting scanned images to searchable PDF documents.
2. The documents form fields, if any, are accessible
Some Adobe PDF documents are forms that a person is to complete by using a computer. To be accessible, these PDF forms must have interactive (fillable) form fields, descriptions of form fields that screen readers can read, and a preset tab order that helps users navigate among the form fields. To set up these features for PDF forms, you can use Acrobat 7.0 Professional or LiveCycle Designer.
3. Document structure is indicated by tags
Accessible Adobe PDF documents use tags to indicate the structural elements of a documentsuch as which page elements are titles, headings, figures, text, tables, and so onand how these elements relate to each other. These tags are analogous to the paragraph styles, HTML tags, or XML tags you might use in a non-PDF document. Different kinds of assistive technology may process document structures in different ways. However, using a consistent tagging system nearly always produces better accessibility results for people with disabilities than if you do not use tags at all. You can prepare some documents for proper tagging before you convert them to PDF, or you can use Acrobat Professional (recommended) or Acrobat Standard to add tags to documents that have already been converted to PDF.
4. Reading order is clear and easy to follow

A fourth characteristic of an accessible Adobe PDF document is that it has a logical, easy-to-follow reading order. Assistive technology is designed to read page content in the order in which it receives the content from an application such as Acrobat or Adobe Reader. If the content is not presented to the assistive technology in a logical reading order (such as if a heading comes after its body text, or a figure caption is not near its figure description), people with disabilities may not be able to understand the content. Tagging a PDF document usually establishes an appropriate, structured reading order. For complex PDF documents, you may need to fix the reading order by using Acrobat 7.0 Professional.

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5. Descriptive text is available for all graphics, links, and form fields
Accessible Adobe PDF documents also have descriptive text, usually called alternate text, to describe special items on a page, such as illustrations, graphs, charts, form fields, and links. Screen readers and other assistive technology typically cannot read graphical elements. By adding alternate text, you enable the technology to interpret the element and read a description of the element to the user. And although screen readers can state that a form field is present and can read URLs out loud, you can give the user a more meaningful context for navigating them if you also provide descriptive text about these elements. You must have Acrobat 7.0 Professional to add alternate text and descriptions to PDF page elements.
6. Navigational aids are available
Accessible Adobe PDF documents also have many navigational aids for the userlinks, bookmarks, useful and frequent headings, a detailed table of contents, and an optimized, preset tab order for forms and embedded links. These navigational aids enable users to go directly to a particular place in a document instead of reading through it page by page. You can set most navigational aids during conversion to PDF from authoring applications. You can set bookmarks and links by using Acrobat 7.0 Professional or Acrobat 7.0 Standard.

The Acrobat PDFMaker menu and buttons that appear in the interface of many non Adobe Windows applications
Depending on how an authoring application implements PDFMaker functionality, Acrobat PDFMaker can create tags from a source files style elements (such as paragraph styles and lists). It often gives you control over how bookmarks, embedded cross-references, and embedded links convert to PDF for accessibility. Acrobat PDFMaker can also recognize alternate text that you add to graphics in the authoring application. Creating tagged PDF documents by using Acrobat PDFMaker generally provides better accessibility results than creating untagged documents and then tagging them from within Acrobat 7.0.
Using the Save As or Export command in Adobe applications (Mac OS and Windows)
The best way to create Adobe PDF documents from Adobe applications is to use the applications Save As command or Export command. Performing a typical installation of Adobes design and layout applications, including InDesign CS and PageMaker, automatically installs and configures all the necessary components for creating PDF documents. Depending on how the application implements the PDF functionality, Adobe applications can create tags from a source files style elements (such as paragraph styles and lists); can generate a document structure and reading order that reflects the authors intentions; can provide control over how bookmarks, embedded cross-references, and embedded links convert to PDF for accessibility; and can recognize alternate text that has been added to graphics. Creating tagged PDF documents by using the Save As or Export command almost always provides better accessibility results than creating untagged documents and then tagging them from within Acrobat 7.0.
Using Adobe PDF Printer (Mac OS and Windows)
Many applications do not support either Acrobat PDFMaker or the ability to export tagged Adobe PDF directly from the application by using Save As, Export, or a similar command. For these applications, you can use Adobe PDF Printer, which enables you to create untagged PDF documents from any application that can print. You must then use Acrobat Professional to add tags, hyperlinks, and other accessibility features to the PDF document. Adobe PDF Printer is installed with Acrobat 7.0 Professional, Acrobat 7.0 Standard, and Adobe Acrobat Elements 7.0.
Adobe PDF Printer creates untagged PDF documents from any application that can print.

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Note: If you plan to combine source files from multiple authoring applications into one PDF document, to combine multiple PDF documents into one, or to insert new pages into a PDF document, you may need to start with untagged PDF documents and then tag the final PDF document once everything is consolidated. See Section 6: Creating a single tagged Adobe PDF document from multiple documents on page 32 for guidelines.

InDesign CS documents tend to be graphics-intensive. If you dont add alternate text in the InDesign CS tag structure, you must add it in Acrobat 7.0 Professional after you create the tagged PDF document. Note: Although you can add alternate text and change the reading order of elements in Acrobat Professional, keep in mind that you must redo these changes every time you generate a new PDF document from the InDesign CS file. By adding alternate text and adjusting the reading order in the source file in InDesign CS, you can eliminate duplicate effort in Acrobat each time you generate a new PDF document.
To add view tags in an InDesign CS document: 1 In InDesign CS, choose View > Structure > Show Tagged Frames to open the document tag Structure pane at the
left. The Structure pane initially contains only a root tag.
2 From the Structure pane, choose Structure > Add Untagged Items to tag all the objects. 3 Click the arrow next to Tags Root to expand the structure outline and to view the tags.

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InDesign CS document tags
For instructions on using the InDesign CS Structure pane to arrange the sequence of frame tags, see About using Acrobat structure tags for PDF export in InDesign CS Help.
Adding accessible text to graphics
You can use the Structure pane to add alternate text to graphics in an InDesign CS document before converting the file to PDF. To make a graphic accessible to screen readers, apply one of the following alternate-text attributes to the graphics tag:
ActualText. This attribute is intended to present any words that are represented as a graphic (that is, words that
have been made into a graphical element). You should keep ActualText short, and have the text exactly replicate whatever text is in the graphic.
Alt text. This attribute is meant to fully describe a graphic or its content to convey information about the graphic.
For instructions on using the InDesign CS Structure pane to add alternate text to graphics tags, see About using Acrobat structure tags for PDF export in InDesign CS Help.

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7 Click Set to accept the changes in the PDF Setup dialog box. 8 In the Print dialog box, deselect Print To File, and then click Print to generate the PDF document.
The PDF Setup dialog box in FrameMaker 7.0
Creating tagged Adobe PDF documents from PageMaker 7.0
To complete these tasks, you need PageMaker 7.0 or later and either Acrobat 7.0 Professional or Acrobat 7.0 Standard installed on your computer.
Converting PageMaker documents to tagged Adobe PDF documents
You create Adobe PDF documents from PageMaker by using the Export command. Unless the PageMaker document is to be a PDF form with fillable form fields, do not print the document to PDF by using Adobe PDF Printer; this method produces an untagged PDF document and requires that you add tags and alternate text to the PDF document in Acrobat 7.0. Note: If you have created a form that is to be fillable, first produce an untagged PDF document from PageMaker by using Adobe PDF Printer. Add fillable form fields in Acrobat Professional, and then tag the file by using Acrobat Professional or Adobe PDF Forms Access. See Section 8: Making Adobe PDF forms accessible on page 39 for instructions.
To create accessible Adobe PDF documents from a PageMaker document: 1 Open the PageMaker document. 2 Choose File > Export > Adobe PDF. 3 In the PDF Options dialog box, select PDF as the Save As Type. 4 In the General tab of the PDF Options dialog box, verify that the Embed Tags In PDF (For Accessibility And
Reflow) option is selected.
5 Click Export to generate the tagged PDF document.

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The PageMaker PDF Options dialog box with the Embed Tags In PDF option selected
Finishing the Adobe PDF document for accessibility
Remember that creating a tagged Adobe PDF document is only part of the PDF accessibility workflow. Regardless of what application you use to create the PDF document, you should also perform the following steps in Acrobat Professional to ensure the accessibility of the PDF document:
1 Check the PDF document for form fields, and add fillable, accessible form fields, if necessary. See Section 8:
Making Adobe PDF forms accessible on page 39.
2 Tag the PDF document for accessibility (if it is not already tagged). See Section 9: Adding tags to Adobe PDF

documents on page 48.

3 Perform an accessibility Full Check and verify that the fonts in the document are accessible. See Section 10: Evalu-
ating Adobe PDF documents for accessibility problems on page 52.
4 Use the TouchUp Reading Order tool to fix reading order and other problems. See Section 11: Repairing reading

Reading the Add Tags Report
The Add Tags Report opens in the How To window after you tag a document in Acrobat 7.0 Professional. The report lists potential errors by page, provides a navigational link to each error in the document, and offers suggestions for fixing the errors. You should assess the context of an error before following a particular suggestion for fixing it. For example, the report might state that an element that has been tagged as a figure requires alternate text to make it accessible. When you examine the figure in its context on the page, you may decide that the figure is a background design element instead of a graphic that conveys valuable content to the user. If its a nonessential figure, you would change the Figure tag to a Background tag; if the figure is important for the reader, you would add the missing alternate text. Note: The Add Tags Report highlights tagging-related problems only, and it is a temporary file that you cannot save. You can assess other tagging, reading order, and accessibility problems by using an accessibility Full Check. This tool generates a full accessibility report that you can save and refer to later. The accessibility Full Check is available in Acrobat Professional. See Section 10: Evaluating Adobe PDF documents for accessibility problems on page 52.
Use the links in the Add Tags Report to find potential problems that Acrobat Professional encountered during the tagging process.

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Retagging a document, if needed
Acrobat can retag an already tagged document after you first clear all existing tags from the tree.
To clear all tags in an Adobe PDF document: 1 Open the Adobe PDF document in Acrobat 7.0 Professional. 2 Open the Tags tab of the navigation pane and select the root (topmost) tag. 3 In the Tags tab, choose Options > Delete tag.
Remember that creating a tagged Adobe PDF document is only part of the PDF accessibility workflow. You should also perform the following steps in Acrobat Professional to ensure the accessibility of the PDF document:

This section describes the two Acrobat tools that you should use for checking the extent of accessibility in Adobe PDF documents. These tools enable you to identify figures that are missing alternate text and pages that have reading order problems. It also highlights global accessibility problems, such as whether all the fonts in the document are accessible to screen readers. The information in this section applies to both Adobe Acrobat 7.0 Professional and Acrobat 7.0 Standard unless otherwise noted.
Two tools for checking the accessibility of Adobe PDF documents
Acrobat provides several ways for you to check the extent of accessibility of an Adobe PDF document. When you are first evaluating a document, the two features that you will use most often are:
The accessibility Full Check (Acrobat Professional only). Use this tool to find figures that need alternate text and
other problems. Full Check generates a detailed report of all problems, together with suggestions for fixing them.
Reflow view. Use this feature to quickly check the reading order of a document by flowing a page as one column

of text.

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Note: The TouchUp Reading Order tool in Acrobat Professional enables you to closely examine and fix reading order problems. This tool is described in detail in Section 11: Repairing reading order and basic tagging problems on page 59. You should perform an accessibility Full Check on a tagged PDF document before you begin repairing the document, and occasionally thereafter to test your progress. You should also check the document one final time when you have finished the PDF accessibility workflow. Note: To fix problems with reading order or to add missing descriptions to figures, form fields, and links, you must use the TouchUp Reading Order tool or the tag tree in Acrobat 7.0 Professional.
Performing an accessibility Full Check
In Acrobat 7.0 Professional, you can run an accessibility Full Check, which analyzes a document to find inaccessible content. This tool lets you choose the kinds of accessibility problems to look for, and it creates a detailed error report after the checking is complete. The error report provides links (or comments) to specific errors on a page, as well as suggestions for fixing them. You can save these reports for later reference.
To run an accessibility Full Check, choose Advanced > Accessibility > Full Check.
Note: Performing an accessibility Full Check on an entire document at once can be time-consuming. If checking a document is taking too long, you can stop the process by pressing Esc, and then choose a smaller page range in the Accessibility Full Check dialog box.

A Full Check report indicating that the PDF document has font problems that make the document inaccessible to assistive technology

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Using Reflow view to check reading order
One quick way to check the order of elements in a document is to temporarily reflow the text in Reflow view. In this view, Acrobat flows the tagged Adobe PDF document one page at a time as a single column of text that fits across the width of the document pane. Reflow view lets you check whether other stories are interrupting the flow of text that spans columns or pages. You cannot save or edit a document while it is in Reflow view. Acrobat displays most, but not all, text in Reflow view. Form fields, comments, digital signature fields, and page artifacts, such as page numbers, headers, and footers, do not display in Reflow view. Also, Acrobat does not reflow pages that contain both readable text and form fields or digital signature fields.
When properly tagged and structured, headings and columns (left) flow in a logical reading order in Reflow view (right).
If the reflowed document doesnt read in the order that you expect, use the TouchUp Reading Order tool to locate and fix the problem areas. See Section 11: Repairing reading order and basic tagging problems on page 59 for instructions.

To use Reflow view:

To reflow a document, choose View > Reflow. To exit Reflow view, either choose View > Reflow again, or select any other view, such as Actual Size, Fit Page, or

Fit Width.

Other ways to check the reading order
Acrobat and Adobe Reader offer several features that people with disabilities use to read accessible Adobe PDF documents. You can use some of these same features, as well as other tools that are available only in Acrobat, to check the reading order of content and to obtain valuable information about how users will experience your document. You may find one of the following features easier to work with than another:
Turn on Read Out Loud. Use this feature to hear the document read aloud according to the current reading order.
(To turn on this feature, choose View > Read Out Loud. See Using the Read Out Loud feature in Acrobat Help for more information.) This feature is also available in Adobe Reader.
Save a document as accessible text. Use this feature to visually confirm the reading order. (Choose File > Save As

Problem: You would like a figure and its caption to be near where they are discussed in the reading order (upper left). Solution: Click the number of the highlighted region (upper right) and drag the mouse to place the text-insertion pointer at the target location (lower left). The result (lower right) splits the target region into two regions and creates a new entry for each region in the Order tab.

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Adding alternate text to figures and descriptions to form fields
Alternate text and descriptions provide more information about figures and form fields for people who cant visually interpret the page. Figures that can have alternate text include images, graphics, charts, and illustrations. Note: You can also add alternate text to links by editing the tag tree. See Section 13: Fixing advanced accessibility problems on page 92.
EXAMPLE 10. Adding alternate text to figures
Alternate text is meant to provide meaningful descriptions of graphical elements that illustrate important concepts in the document. A screen reader cannot recognize figures unless you add alternate text. When you select Show Tables And Figures in the TouchUp Reading Order dialog box, Acrobat indicates whether alternate text exists for figures. If alternate text exists, Acrobat displays the first few words of the text as part of the highlighted region for the figure. To add or edit alternate text, select the figure and choose Edit Alternate Text from the context menu. Note: You can also add alternate text to figures by using the TouchUp Object tool. Select a figure with the tool, open the tools context menu, select Properties, and then type the alternate text in the Tag tab.
Problem: Figure lacks alternate text (upper left). Solution: Use the TouchUp Reading Order tool to select the figure, open the context menu, and then choose Edit Alternate Text (upper right). In the Edit Alternate Text dialog box, type a description for the figure (lower left). Acrobat displays the first words for the figure in its highlighted region (lower right).

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EXAMPLE 11. Adding descriptions to form fields
You can add a description to a form field as you create the form field by typing the text in the Tooltip box of the fields Properties dialog box, as described in Section 8: Making Adobe PDF forms accessible on page 39. If you did not add a description at that time, you can add it in this step of the workflow by using the Edit Form Field Text command that is on the context menu of the TouchUp Reading Order tool. A description enables screen readers to identify the form field to users. Users hear the description read aloud when they tab to the field. Write descriptions that are terse but complete. For example, for a first-name field, type a description that is something like First name. Descriptions should not contain instructions such as Enter. Note: Do not edit the tag tree to add alternate text (which is different from a description) to a Form tag; doing so is a serious accessibility error, for screen readers never find out about the form field.

Drag existing tags into the proper reading order and hierarchy. Put <TH> tags at the same level as <TD> tags

for the same row.

Rename incorrectly tagged <TD> tags to <TH>. (Type over the name of the tag.) Add empty <TD> or <TH> tags for any cells in the table that are blank. (See Understanding the proper
hierarchy of a table on page 102.)
Add ColSpan and RowSpan attributes to any <TH> or <TD> tags that represent merged cells. (For instructions,
see Advanced tools for correcting tagging errors in Acrobat 7.0 Help.) Note: When you are working with table tags, use the TouchUp Text tool (not the Select tool) to select table content on the page. Using the Select tool on a table selects the whole table. Using the TouchUp Text tool enables you to select a particular cell, so that you can find its tag directly in the tag tree by using Options > Find Tag From Selection.
Checking and fixing the reading order of complex pages
After you have used the TouchUp Reading Order tool on complex pages, you may want to verify the final reading order of certain highlighted regions, such as on multicolumn or highly designed pages. If the content isnt in the right reading order, you can drag the document content tags into the proper order in the tag tree. Moving tags in the tag tree has no effect on the highlighted regions that you see when you use the TouchUp Reading Order tool or the Order tab, but it ensures that screen readers can present the text in the proper order. This technique enables you to use the Up and Down Arrow keys in the tag tree and highlight the content in the order that the tags appear. Note: You can also use the technique below to skim the contents of a page and check the logical reading order without using a screen reader.
1 Open the Tags tab and Ctrl+click (Windows) or Option+click (Mac OS) on the plus sign of the Tags root to

expand all the tags.

2 Go to Fit In Window view. 3 From the Tags tab, choose Options > Highlight Content. 4 Starting at the root (or at the first tag of a page that you want to check), use the Down Arrow key to highlight each
tag in turn and check that its corresponding content on the page is in the logical reading order.

the occurrence of the text in the main body of the document
Table of contents element <TOC> An element that contains a structured list of items and labels identifying those
items; has its own discrete hierarchy
Table of contents item element <TOCI> An item contained in a list associated with a table of contents element

Table elements

Table elements are special elements for structuring tables:
Table element <Table> A two-dimensional arrangement of data or text cells that contains table row elements as
child elements and may have a caption element as its first or last child element
Table row element <TR> One row of headings or data in a table; may contain table header cell elements and

table data cell elements

Table data cell element <TD> A table cell that contains nonheader data Table header cell element <TH> A table cell that contains header text or data describing one or more rows or

columns of a table

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Inline-level elements

Inline-level elements identify a span of text that has specific formatting or behavior. They are differentiated from block-level elements, and may be contained in, or contain, block-level elements. The standard inline-level elements are:
Bibliography entry element <BibEntry> A description of where some cited information may be found Quote entry element <Quote> An inline portion of text that is attributed to someone other than the author of
the text surrounding it; different from a block quote, which is a whole paragraph or multiple paragraphs, as opposed to inline text
Span entry element <Span> Any inline segment of text; commonly used to delimit text that is associated with a
given set of styling properties
Special inline-level elements
Similar to inline-level elements, special inline-level elements describe an inline portion of text that has special formatting or behavior:
Code entry element <Code> Computer program text embedded within a document Figure entry element <Figure> A graphic or graphic representation associated with text Form entry element <Form> A PDF form annotation that can be or has been filled out Formula entry element <Formula> A mathematical formula Link entry element <Link> A hypertext link that is embedded within a document and that is associated with an