Adobe 62000236 Extended User Guide - Page 292

USING ACROBAT 9 PRO EXTENDED 286 Accessibility, tags, and reflow These stages are presented in an order that suits most needs. However, you can perform tasks in a different order or iterate between some of the stages. In all cases, first examine the document, determine its intended purpose, and use that analysis to determine the workflow that you apply. For more information about creating accessible PDFs, see these online resources: • Guide to creating accessible PDFs, General Services Administration: www.section508.gov/docs/PDFGuidanceForGovernment.pdf • Acrobat plug-in for creating Section 508-compliant PDFs: www.commonlook.com/documents/english/cl_adobe_home.asp • Best practices: amp.ssbbartgroup.com Consider accessibility before you convert a document to PDF Whenever possible, think about accessibility when you create the source files in an authoring application, such as a word-processing or page-layout application. Typical tasks in the authoring application include adding alternate text to graphics, optimizing tables, and applying paragraph styles or other document-structure features that can be converted to tags. For more information, see "Creating a tagged PDF from an authoring application" on page 288. Note: If you intend to design PDF forms, use Adobe LiveCycle® Designer, which is dedicated to the design of interactive and static forms. LiveCycle Designer adds structure tags to forms, improving accessibility. Add fillable form fields and descriptions, and set the tab order If your PDF includes form fields, use Advanced > Accessibility > Run Form Field Recognition to detect form fields and make them interactive (fillable). Use the Forms tools to create fillable form fields, such as buttons, check boxes, pop-up menus, and text boxes. When you create a field, type a description in the Tooltip box in the Properties dialog box for that field. Screen readers read this text aloud to the user. For more information, see "Create form fields" on page 192. You can also use the TouchUp Reading Order tool to add descriptions to form fields. For information on setting the tab order to use document structure, see "Set form field navigation" on page 199. Add other accessibility features to the PDF This stage includes setting the document language, making sure that security settings don't interfere with screen readers, creating accessible links, and adding bookmarks. For more information, see "Set the document language" on page 299, "Prevent security settings from interfering with screen readers" on page 299, "Add accessible links" on page 298, and "About bookmarks" on page 309. Tag the PDF Improve the accessibility of PDFs by adding tags in Acrobat. If a PDF doesn't contain tags, Acrobat attempts to tag it automatically when users read or reflow it, and the results may be disappointing. With a tagged PDF, the logical structure tree sends the contents to a screen reader or other assistive software or hardware in an appropriate order. For best results, tag a document when converting it to PDF from an authoring application. Examples of these applications include Adobe FrameMaker®, Adobe InDesign®, Microsoft Word, or OpenOffice Writer. If you do not have access to an authoring application that can generate a tagged PDF, you can tag a PDF any time by using Acrobat. Last updated 9/30/2011