Accessibility Checker results remediation

When the Accessibility Checker results are presented, any heading that shows there are issues should be opened and the issues fixed.

It is important to always start from the top of the list as fixing some of these larger issues may also fix the issues below.

3 common issues

Even if your document has no issues according to the Microsoft Accessibility Checker, there are three common issues that are flagged by the Adobe Accessibility Checker

They are 1) checking the Logical Reading Order, 2) adding a Title, and 3) checking the color contrast.

When remediating ANY problem start by right clicking on the line where the issue is written. You will receive a drop down menu that shows all your options.

Title

Right clicking on the Title - Failed line produces this dropdown:

Choose the Fix option and either the title is automatically fixed or a dialog box opens where you can enter a title:

Uncheck the Leave As Is box in the Title area and enter a Title for the document.

Note: Many people ask "Isn't this just the file name?" Well, it can be, however, some people may prefer to file their documents differently, i.e., Filename: May 2019 Research, Title: The Effects of Extended Screen Time of Toddlers.

Color Contrast

A document that is black and white will have sufficient color contrast and you can right click on the item and choose Pass from the dropdown. However, if text is a different color or colored headings have text printed on them, the color contrast will need to be checked using a color contrast checker:

Color Contrast Checker from The Paciello Group

Color Contrast Checker from WebAim

Juicy Studio Luminosity Colour Contrast Ratio Analyser

Logical Reading Order

The Reading Order tool provides the easiest and quickest way to fix reading order and basic tagging problems. When you select the tool, a dialog box opens that lets you see overlay highlights that show the order of page content. Each highlighted region is numbered and highlighted with gray or colored blocks; the number indicates the region’s placement in the page’s reading order.

You can use the Reading Order tool to perform the following accessibility tasks:

• Visually check, and then repair, the reading order of page content
• Tag fillable form fields and their labels
• Add alternate text to figures and descriptions to form fields
• Fix the tagging of simple tables, and prepare complex tables for more advanced manipulation in the logical structure tree
• Remove nonessential content, such as ornamental page borders or extra spaces, from the logical structure tree

Check and Correct the Reading Order

In the left side toolbar (below the Attachments paperclip icon) right click to open the menu below:

Choose Order from the menu.

You will now see the document with 1) numbered and shaded areas denoting the reading order and 2) to the left you will see an order panel with a list of the numbered areas.

To change the reading order drag and drop the selections in the order panel (2) to their desired location.

If there are blanks in the order panel or items that to not need to be read they can be deleted and a screen reader will ignore them.

Use the Reading Order Tool

If the only issues with your document are the Title, Color Contrast and Reading Order issues, then you can simply check the reading order as above and make any small corrections. However, if you have issues with Headings or Tables you may need to use the Reading Order tool to re-tag the text in your document.

Choose Tools > Accessibility, and then choose Reading Order in the right pane to open the tool.

In order to tag part of a document with any of the following options, simply open the Reading Order tool, highlight the section you would like to tag and then select the option in the tool dialog box.

Reading Order options

You can select Reading Order options from the dialog box, from the pop-up menu that appears when you right-click a highlighted region, or from the options menu in the Order panel. The Reading Order tool includes the following options:

Text/Paragraph - Tags the selection as text.

Figure - Tags the selection as a figure. Text contained within a figure tag is defined as part of the image and screen readers don’t read it.

Form Field - Tags the selection as a form field.

Figure/Caption - Tags a selected figure and caption as a single tag. Any text contained in the tag is defined as a caption. Useful for tagging photos and captions and preventing caption text from being incorrectly added to adjacent text blocks. Figures may require alternate text.

Heading 1, Heading 2, Heading 3, Heading 4, Heading 5, Heading 6 - Tags the selection as a first, second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth level heading tag. You can convert heading tags to bookmarks to help users navigate the document.

Table - Tags the selection as a table after the selection is analyzed to determine the location of headings, columns, and rows.

Cell - Tags the selection as a table or header cell. Use this option to merge cells that are incorrectly split.

Formula - Tags the selection as a formula. Because speech software may handle formula tags differently from normal text, you may want to add a description using alternate text.

Note - Tags the selection as a note.

Reference - Tags the selection as a reference.

Background/Artifact - Tags the selection as a background element, or artifact, removing the item from the tag tree. That way, it doesn’t appear in the reflowed document and screen readers don’t read it.

Table Editor - Automatically analyzes the selected table into cells and applies the appropriate tags. The table must be tagged as a table before you can use the Table Editor command on it.

Show Page Content Groups - Shows content elements as highlighted areas that contain numbers to indicate the reading order. Specify the highlight color by clicking the color swatch.

Show Table Cells - Highlights the content of individual table cells. Specify the highlight color by clicking the color swatch.

Display Like Elements In A Single Block - Adjacent squares with the same tag type are collapsed into a single, bigger square with the common tag type that encompasses the original square.

Show Tables And Figures - Outlines each table and figure with a crossed-out box. The box also indicates whether the element includes alternate text. Specify the box color by clicking the color swatch.

Clear Page Structure - Removes the tagging structure from the page. Use this option to start over and create a new structure if the existing structure contains too many problems.

Show Order Panel - Opens the Order tab for reordering highlighted content.

Edit Alternate Text - Available in the menu that appears when you right-click a highlighted figure. Allows the user to add or edit a text description about the figure properties that a screen reader or other assistive technology reads.

Edit Form Field Text - Available in the menu that appears when you right-click a form field. Allows the user to add or edit a form field text description that a screen reader or other assistive technology reads.

Edit Table Summary - Available in the menu that appears when you right-click a highlighted table. Allows the user to add or edit a text description about the table properties that a screen reader or other assistive technology reads.