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How to tag PDFs for assistive technology

| Tammy Albee

Orange pdf download button

An accessible PDF is one that all users can open and read, even those using assistive technology such as screen readers or connected Braille displays.  As organizations are learning more and more about how to ensure their online content is compliant with digital accessibility legislation and reaches everyone, tagging PDF documents also needs to be addressed.  PDFs are often not accessible PDFs are one of the most flexible and secure document types. Many organizations use these documents both internally and… Continue Reading How to tag PDFs for assistive technology

Equidox PDF Academy – Tagging Tables in PDFs

| Tammy Albee

Equidox PDF Academy Logo (shows Equidog carrying a briefcase)

Tables are one of the most complex elements found in any document.  In PDFs, this is also true.  Properly tagging tables is required for assistive technology users to be able to understand the relationship between the rows, columns, and cells.  Interpreting table data without proper tagging is nearly impossible, as the content will be presented as a stream of numbers and words with no indicating of how they fit together.  Row and Column Headers are a Must Row and column headings,… Continue Reading Equidox PDF Academy – Tagging Tables in PDFs

Equidox PDF Academy – How to set reading order in PDFs

| Tammy Albee

Equidox PDF Academy Logo (shows Equidog carrying a briefcase)

One of the biggest problems in remediating documents for assistive technology users is setting the reading order in PDFs.  All elements in a PDF document must be correctly tagged, in the correct order, so that assistive technology like screen readers and connected Braille displays can read the document in a logical order.  The last and most important step in remediation is to set the reading order in PDFs.  Top-Down and Left to Right are not always correct The default reading… Continue Reading Equidox PDF Academy – How to set reading order in PDFs

Equidox PDF Academy – How to tag headings in PDFs

| Tammy Albee

Equidox PDF Academy Logo (shows Equidog carrying a briefcase)

Equidox PDF Academy – Tagging headings in PDFs One of the most useful items for navigating PDF documents (or any document) are headings.  Headings help the reader find the information they need in a document, quickly and easily.  Users of assistive technology can set their screen readers or connected Braille displays to search through headings, just as sighted people skim headings to find content.  In order for people using assistive technology to be able to use headings within your PDF documents,… Continue Reading Equidox PDF Academy – How to tag headings in PDFs

Equidox PDF Academy – adding alt text for images in PDFs

| Tammy Albee

Equidox PDF Academy Logo (shows Equidog carrying a briefcase)

Images within PDF documents convey information or add decoration.  Because they are a purely visual medium, people using assistive technology cannot receive that information without a text alternative (or “alt-text”) for any image.  These must be added to digital documents in order for them to be accessible.  What is alt-text? Alt text is a text alternative to the image depicted.  Without alt-text assistive technology like screen readers and connected Braille displays will simply read “image” or “graphic.” Each image must… Continue Reading Equidox PDF Academy – adding alt text for images in PDFs

Equidox PDF Academy – Tagging Links in PDFs

| Tammy Albee

Equidox PDF Academy Logo (shows Equidog carrying a briefcase)

Links appear in nearly every online document.  They redirect the user to another page with further information.  It’s important to tag links properly for assistive technology users, so they know where they are going, and so all users can quickly get to the link destination. Use Descriptive Text When including a link in your content in a digital document, use descriptive text.  For example, the link should say “Equidox Software,” rather than, “click here.”  Often the URL assigned is not descriptive,… Continue Reading Equidox PDF Academy – Tagging Links in PDFs

Equidox PDF Academy – Tagging Lists in PDFs

| Tammy Albee

Equidox PDF Academy Logo (shows Equidog carrying a briefcase)

Lists are one of the more complex features of digital documents. They contain several elements that must all be identified in order for an assistive technology user to understand what is being conveyed.  A person using assistive technology cannot obtain the information that items are part of a list without correct list tags.  They also won’t know where the items fall in the list order (which can be an issue if the list is very long), or if they are… Continue Reading Equidox PDF Academy – Tagging Lists in PDFs

What is PDF Remediation?

| Tammy Albee

Keyboard with PDF button and finger pressing it. ADA compliance in marketing includes accessible PDFs.

If you are responsible for your organization’s website and online documents, you may find yourself answering questions such as “What is Accessibility?” and “What is PDF remediation?” and “What are tags?”  Below is a brief overview of what PDF remediation entails.  What does accessible mean? “Accessible” means “able to be reached or entered.”  When referring to digital content, it means able to be used by a person using assistive technology, or by someone who has a disability.  Accessible documents are… Continue Reading What is PDF Remediation?