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What Makes an Accessible Fillable PDF Form?

| Nina Overdorff

Accessible fillable PDF form on a computer screen.

People with disabilities, many of whom use assistive technology (AT), are unable to access and use forms if they aren’t both fillable and usable with their screen readers and connected Braille displays. Accessible fillable PDF forms are usable by everyone help prevent digital accessibility litigation.  What is a fillable PDF form? A fillable PDF form is an electronic PDF document that allows a person to enter and save or submit requested information digitally.  Fillable forms consist of various types of… Continue Reading What Makes an Accessible Fillable PDF Form?

Batch Processing: Automated Accessibility Done Right

| Nina Overdorff

Statement with digital template for automated accessibility

A quick Google search for fully automated accessibility tools, those which remediate PDFs without human intervention, yields surprisingly few results. You might find some automated accessibility checkers or website accessibility plug-ins, but not much for PDFs. Why? Surely in this day and age there must be a plug-in that can tag PDFs in an instant without the need for human intervention, just like there are for websites. Unfortunately, there are two problems with that. First, fully automated website accessibility plug-ins… Continue Reading Batch Processing: Automated Accessibility Done Right

Accessibility Overlays: Automation That’s Too Good to be True

| Nina Overdorff

Starbucks logo which accessibility overlays might not be able to identify

Using accessibility overlays to make your website accessible to everyone might sound like a great idea. Installing an overlay plugin and trusting it to do the complex and nuanced work of correctly structuring tag trees on your website is tempting if you just don’t have the time, manpower, or HTML knowledge to make and keep your digital resources accessible. But downloading and inserting a quick, generic line of code into your website that promises to take away all your accessibility… Continue Reading Accessibility Overlays: Automation That’s Too Good to be True

ADA Compliance for the Tech Industry

| Nina Overdorff

Apple retail store impacted by ADA compliance for the tech industry

The tech industry has the ability to make the world a significantly more accessible place for everyone. Groceries, prescriptions, clothes, and other household items can be delivered to your door in just a few clicks. TV shows can be captioned. Books can be read aloud. Smart speakers can tell you whatever you want to know by simply asking a question.  Impressive accessibility advances can sometimes overshadow less exciting accessibility features like an accessible website and PDF files. PDFs, for example,… Continue Reading ADA Compliance for the Tech Industry

ADA Compliance for Hospitality

| Nina Overdorff

Marriott ADA compliance for hospitality

 Restaurants, hotels, airports, museums, bowling alleys, gyms, ski resorts, and many others in the hospitality and tourism industry have had to amp up their marketing efforts considerably to be able to make up for lost time when COVID forced closures around the world. To drive more traffic through your doors, your website needs to get the word out to all potential clients that you’re ready and eager to welcome them. If your website or other digital resources are inaccessible, excluding… Continue Reading ADA Compliance for Hospitality

ADA Compliance for the Healthcare Industry

| Nina Overdorff

Healthcare provider speaking with patient

Healthcare companies have a responsibility to ensure every patient receives the best possible care. That includes ensuring that necessary information is available to all patients. Documents saved as PDFs retain their security and structure on most platforms and devices.  However,  those PDFs may not be accessible to all clients, particularly people with disabilities who may use assistive technology. Over 25% of the population has some disability, either temporary or permanent.  Patients and employees who use devices like screen readers or… Continue Reading ADA Compliance for the Healthcare Industry

State Accessibility Laws Don’t Stop At Curb Cuts

| Nina Overdorff

Woman working remotely on website following state accessibility laws

Thirty years ago, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) made discrimination against people with disabilities illegal, and led to the addition of state accessibility laws.  The ADA covers state and local government entities, all employers, and places of public accommodations, and individual state accessibility laws may have additional regulations. Since then, businesses have updated both their physical and digital landscapes to accommodate a variety of different needs to comply with national and state accessibility laws. Curb cuts with raised bumps… Continue Reading State Accessibility Laws Don’t Stop At Curb Cuts

Case Study: Hill College 508 Compliance

| Nina Overdorff

Logo for Hill College Texas. College 508 Compliance

All Colleges Must Meet Section 508 Standards Like nearly all colleges and universities, Hill College receives federal funding and is subject to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. Section 508 regulations stipulate that all federal government programs, or programs that receive money from the federal government, must make their electronic and information technology (EIT) accessible to people with disabilities. EIT includes websites and documents stored on it and must be accessible to everyone, including people who use assistive technology.   Hill… Continue Reading Case Study: Hill College 508 Compliance