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PDF
Page 4 of 17

1. Introduction
2. Files You Need
3. Adobe PDF Tools
   1. Accessibility Settings
   2. Security Settings
4. Improve PDF Access
5. Structure & Read Order
6. Alternative Text
7. Forms
8. Testing Accessibility
9. Publish to Blackboard
10. Publish to WebCT
11. Resources

Accessibility Settings of PDF Tools

Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader provide built-in accessibility settings to assist a user in reading, viewing and translating a PDF file. The accessibility settings include:

• Keyboard shortcuts.
• Checking the structure of the PDF.
• Reading order selection.
• High-contrast mode.
• Zoom and reflow.
• Saving PDF as text file.
• Read out loud function.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Individuals who have a disability that affects their fine and/or gross motor skills can sometimes have difficulty operating a mouse and may only use a keyboard. To enable easier navigation, keyboard shortcuts are provided for some of the common tasks and settings in Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader (i.e., Control (Ctrl) + 'K' keys for preferences).

For specific use of keyboard shortcuts:

1. Note: this is for Acrobat, not Acrobat reader.
2. Do one of the following to open the Help manual:
   • Press the 'F1' key, or
   • Under the 'Help' menu, choose 'Adobe Acrobat 9 Help.'
3. - Select the 'Keyboard Shorcuts' section in the contents
   
   - Choose the related subtopic in this menu.
    

Checking the structure of the PDF

Defining the structure for a PDF file is an important accessibility requirement; a well-defined structure is used by assistive technologies to help deliver content in a meaningful, organized way. Without structure, the PDF content cannot be reorganized to fit the size of the viewing window and screen readers will have difficulty interpreting certain layout elements such as multiple columns or embedded tables. However, by identifying which text is a header and which is a paragraph, the PDF file becomes logically structured and facilitates the creation of a tagged (accessible) PDF file. Both Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader provide a mechanism for checking the structure and accessibility of a PDF file.

To check the structure of a PDF in Adobe Acrobat:

Note: This is for older versions.

1. Start Adobe Acrobat.
2. Open a PDF file.
3. Go to the 'Tools' menu and select 'Accessibility Checker.'
4. In the 'Accessibility Checker Options' dialog box, select 'OK' to accept the default settings and start the check.
5. When the check is complete, an 'Adobe Acrobat' dialog box appears with the information on the structure and any accessibility features of the PDF file.
   Note: The Accessibility Checker is covered later in this module in Testing PDF files for Accessibility.

Note: This is for Acrobat 9.

1. Start Adobe Acrobat.
2. Open a PDF file.
3. Go to the 'Advanced' menu, and mouse over 'Accessibility.'
4. Select a "Quick Check" or a "Full Check".

To check the structure of a PDF in Adobe Reader:

Note: This is no longer available in Adobe Reader 9.

1. Start Adobe Reader.
2. Open a PDF file.
3. Go to the 'Document' menu and select 'Accessibility Quick Check.'
4. When the check is complete, an 'Accessibility Quick Check' dialog box appears with the information on the structure and any accessibility features of the PDF file.

Reading Order Selection

Individuals who are blind or have low vision may use screen readers or refreshable Braille systems to interact with the computer. In Adobe Reader 9.0, there are three choices for the reading order of the PDF file:

• Acrobat choose the Reading Order (Infer reading order from document),
• Standard Word Order (Use reading order in raw print stream),
• Left to Right, Top to Bottom.

To choose a reading order:

1. Start Adobe Reader.
2. Do one of the following to open the Preferences dialog box:
   • Press the combination of 'Control (Ctrl)' + 'K' keys.
   • From the Edit Menu, select 'Preferences.'
3. In the dialog box, select 'Reading' from the left column.
4. From the Reading Order drop-down menu, choose one of the three choices ('Infer reading order from document', 'Left to Right, Top to Bottom', or 'Use reading order in raw print stream [word order]').
5. Select 'OK' to close the dialog box and save the settings.

High-Contrast Mode

Individuals with low vision may have difficulty reading documents with dark-colored text on a light-colored background (see Image 3). High-contrast mode allows the option to change to a light-colored text on a dark-colored background. Windows operating systems offer high-contrast mode in their accessibility suite and these high-contrast settings can be carried over into Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader (see Image 4). The user also has the ability to customize the settings to suit his or her needs, including increasing the font sizes.

To set up high-contrast mode:

1. Start Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader.
2. Do one of the following to open the Preferences dialog box:
   • Press the combination of 'Control (Ctrl)' + 'K' keys.
   • From the Edit Menu, select 'Preferences.'
3. In the dialog box, select 'Accessibility' from the left column.
4. Select 'Replace Document Colors.'
5. Select 'Custom Color' then choose the desired color of the background and text (see Image 5).
   
   
   
   

   Image 5: Setting up high-contrast mode
   
   
6. Select 'OK' to close the dialog box and save the settings.

Zoom and Reflow

Individuals with low vision may use assistive technologies such as magnification software or accommodations such as larger fonts, high-contrast mode, or a combination of both. In Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader, a user can magnify (zoom in) or reduce (zoom out) as well as customize the viewing settings to suit his or her needs.

To access the zoom tools:

1. Start Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader.
2. Open a PDF file.
3. Do one of the following to 'Zoom In' (magnify) the view:
   • Press the 'Z' key or the combination of Control + 'plus' key.
     ('Z' Doesn't work in Acrobat 9.0)
   • From the 'View' Menu, select 'Zoom in.'
   • On the toolbar, select the magnifying glass with the plus sign (+).
     
4. Do one of the following to 'Zoom Out' (reduce) the view:
   • Press the combination of Shift + 'Z' keys or the Control + 'minus' keys.
     ('Shift + Z' Doesn't work in Acrobat 9.0)
   • From the 'View' Menu, select 'Zoom out.'
   • On the toolbar, select the magnifying glass with the minus sign (-).

As you zoom in for a closer view, the font size is increased and the amount of content that can be viewed at one time is effectively decreased. When the content's width becomes larger than the size of the viewing window, typically a scrollbar appears indicating that more content is available off-screen and forcing the user to repeatedly scroll back and forth to view the content. For example, compare the original view of a PDF file (see Image 6) to the zoomed-in view where a scrollbar appears (see Image 7). To make viewing magnified content easier, Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader offer the ability to resize (or reflow) the content of a structured PDF file to the viewing window (see Image 8).

To reflow a structured PDF file:

1. Start Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader.
2. Open a PDF file.
3. Do one of the following to 'Zoom In' (magnify) the view until a scrollbar appears:
   • Press the 'Z' key or the combination of 'Control (Ctrl)' + 'plus' key.
   • From the 'View' Menu, select 'Zoom in.'
   • On the toolbar, select the magnifying glass with the plus sign (+).
4. Do one of the following to re-align the content to appear in the viewing window:
   • Press the combination of 'Control (Ctrl)' + '4' key.
   • From the 'View' Menu, select 'Zoom,' then 'Reflow.'

Saving PDF As Text File

Adobe Acrobat allows saving a PDF file as a basic formatted text file. This option is valuable to individuals who are using a text browser or who do not have a screenreader that is compatible with Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader.

To save the PDF as a text file:

1. Start Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader.
2. Open a PDF file.
3. Go to the 'File' menu and select 'Save As.'
4. Use the 'Save as type' drop-down box and select 'Text' (see Image 9).
5. Name the document in the 'Object name' textbox.
6. Select 'Save' to finish.

Read Out Loud Function

Individuals who are blind or have low vision may use screenreaders or refreshable Braille systems to interact with the computer. Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA) is a programming interface designed to help facilitate communications between screenreader software and other software programs. Adobe Reader 9.0 and Adobe Acrobat 9.0 work with MSAA to expose important information about a PDF file, such as structure and alternative text, to screenreaders and many other current assistive technologies. To enable a fully functioning reading experience. Adobe Acrobat 9.0 and Adobe Reader 9.0 offer a Read Out Loud function, which synthesizes text in PDF files into speech using standard Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X capabilities. Additionally, Adobe Reader 9.0 and Adobe Acrobat 9.0 provide support for screen reader capabilities which can include PDF form navigation and toggling between table and text reading modes.

To Set Preferences for Read Out Loud:

1. Start Adobe Reader or Adobe Acrobat.
2. Do one of the following to open the Preferences dialog box:
   • Press the combination of 'Control (Ctrl)' + 'K' keys.
   • From the Edit Menu, select 'Preferences.'
3. In the dialog box, select 'Reading' from the left column.
4. For the Read Out Loud Options, select the settings you want for Volume, Voice, Pitch, and Words Per Minute.
5. You can also choose to deliver data to the accessibility interface a page at at time for long documents. For Screen Reader Options, select the checkbox next to 'Deliver Data in Pages When Document Exceeds', and then enter the number for the amount of pages to download (default is 10 pages).
6. Select 'OK' to close the dialog box and save the settings.
    

The next page will present information on the security settings of Adobe Acrobat.

Previous Page Page 3: Adobe PDF Tools

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Georgia Tech Research on Accessible Distance Education (GRADE)
Center for Assistive Technology and Environmental Access (CATEA)
Georgia Institute of Technology (GT) College of Architecture (COA)
Email: gradeproject@coa.gatech.edu Fax: 404-894-9320 Phone: 404-894-4960 (v/tty)

Accessibility User Agreement
Developed in collaboration with IDET Communication (IDET).
Funded by the Office of Post Secondary Education (OPE) under Grant #P333A020050.
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