Making Microsoft Word Documents More Equitable (than …
2019 Spring Conference on Student Learning and Success at Michigan State University May 8, 2018 10:45 AM to 11:30 AM (Revised from Accessible Learning Conference, Dec 6-7, 2018)Making Microsoft Word Documents More Equitable (than Others)?Jim White & Mike HudsonThis file itself, Word_NVDA_Slides Master.docx (), is posted to the MSU webaccess.msu.edu website and you should always be able to find its current version through the Microsoft Word tutorial on that site. We will be recording this presentation via Zoom and if that works out reasonably well we will post it to the webaccess.msu.edu site too and link it through the Word tutorial.Word Documents and the NVDA Screen Reader.Why NVDA? MSU IT Services Computer Labs have JAWS (Start > Accessibility > JAWS). VoiceOver, Android Talkback?This presentation’s concentration is on prep for screen reader useA novel vs a business or class document.Gussie it up Word features such as styling and color.Can they be read by NVDA?What of an NVDA user’s preferred settings?Can we accommodate both sets of NVDA users?Word document preparer priorities for screen reader user inclusiveness are identified but the presentation is not in priority order.Word standalone vs Word Online vs Google Docs (Mike generally will output the last 2 to standalone Word for better screen reader access)And more!Getting NVDA and its DocumentationVisit and choose Download.You can select the “Skip donation this time.”Generally just run the downloaded executable.Uncheck “Use NVDA on the Windows login screen.”Documentation: ? Settings in NVDAWe’re not going to do a full demo of setting NVDA but we want you to be aware that there are a wide variety of setting, there is a way to set it back to its defaults, and ways to save different sets of settings. Mike has his own preferred settings and we don’t want to mess up any of those other than the reading speed so that I can understand it. (NVDA+n gets to the basic control popup; down arrow to “Reset configuration to factory defaults” then Enter or R twice then Enter). Also be aware that we’ve already set Preferences > Mouse > Enable mouse tracking to off by unchecking it. Finally he will have NVDA read the below couple of lines.Friends, Romans, countrymen. Four score and seven years ago. (Ask not what your country can do for you.) I have a dream.By default the screen reader will not note any of the gussied up formatting or extra punctuation characters for those famous speech snippets. We will get into specifics for handling this in a few minutes, we just wanted to show you the variety of settings here and note the fact that you cannot and should not assume any specific user settings. We will provide some clues on dealing with that.Also an FYI, we’ve added some intentional blank lines (read as “Blank”) to this presentation strictly for the purpose of cluing Mike to stop reading. Also it should give you a clue that you should not use blank lines for formatting or spacing (not even between paragraphs), always use the proper tools, e.g., paragraph dialog options.Alternative Text (Priority 4)NVDA (with Mike’s help) will now tell you all about this picture.Figure SEQ Figure \* ARABIC 1 Pikes Peak, Colorado.Photo credit: Hogs555, Wikimedia Commons // CC BY-SA 3.0Generated description (standalone Word): A tree with a mountain in the background[standalone Word: select image, right click (Shift+F10), Edit alt text (A).] [online Word: select image, Picture Tools > Format > Alt-Text] (Description, not Title?)What are the issues?Should a figure caption precede or follow what it captions? Follow is acceptable practice.Don’t provide the screen reader user with more than other users.Fight the urge to overdescribe graphics, essential elements only, butConvey what the author intended to convey. (Accept that you cannot totally please everyone.)Label supporting material that is not obvious (the credit). Most (97%) of blind users were once sighted. It’s a matter of luck or fate.The alt text above is a poor example in this context, e.g., info that sighted users don’t get (14,000 feet).More Image Alt Text ExamplesBelow are the “Generate a description for me” descriptions for the two images. The first one is entirely wrong and while the second is correct as far as it goes it falls short of adequate.A close up of a logo.A close up of a sign.In both cases: Description generated with very high confidence.Shapes, Smart Art, Equations, ChartsAlternative text is also needed for shapes (decorative if decorative), SmartArt graphics (not encouraged), charts (succinctly, what does it convey), and equations (standard words and conventions).Equation OptionsSee the MSU WebAccess MathType for Equations Tutorial (webaccess.msu.edu/Tutorials/mathtype.html) which shows how to add it free (currently) through Microsoft’s “Get Add-ins”Or buy via MathType (, $39.95 for academics, $49.95 otherwise) add-in for Word, NVDA and Jaws can read the equations prepared by MathType or the internal Microsoft equation editor using LaTex entry.Precede your document’s first equation with: “If the following equation is not readable with screen readers and Braille displays try using the free MathPlayer download.” (or for classes put that in the syllabus). you must input an equation as a graphic, Alt Text must only use words, using the plus sign rather than the word “plus” or - (hyphen) for “minus,” etc., are not acceptable and even punctuation such as parentheses must be in words just as if it were being read to someone over the phone.Don’t be bashful about clearly stating in the document body text what you want people to get from the chart or whatever and do not repeat that information in the alternate text. You can, as part of the alternate text, state the name of the item and “described above” (or “below” as the case may be) and you must be aware that search engines can use alternate text to identify image content. Body text descriptions should generally be within 1-2 paragraphs. Or if the graphic, chart, whatever becomes effectively unnecessary mark the item as decorative – but don’t do so if the text references the item instead just have a succinct meaningful name as the alt text (and perhaps “as described in the text”).Bonus link, for more on math check MSU’s work in progress: Headings (Priority 1) {manually set font, color, size}Headings (Priority 1) {heading selected from styles}Title? Subtitle? No. (From the “Styles” section of the “Home” ribbon. They don’t translate to PDF or HTML, etc., at least presently)Heading levels properly applied (headings are Styles),Allow a useful navigation sidebar,Allow for Table of Contents creation (with internal document links),Screen reader heading scanning (browse mode = NVDA+spacebar toggle; then H and other keys just like in a web browser).Meaningful (not Section 1, Section 2)Understandable out of context (at least to the intended audience)Other styles? Strong? Emphasis? YES (but). (Priority 6)Subtle Emphasis? Intense Emphasis? NO. (Nobody could sort them out anyway unless you’ve provided clear definitions.)NVDA will read styles by name.And you can add your own, e.g., Red Emphasis. (Priority 7)BUT, be circumspect and, when important, redundant (the hit-em-over-the-head method, this is a Priority 1).Other Styling Examples (Priority 6)Mike will read the lines following twice the first time with default settings the second with reading of style and emphasis turned on.Line of plain text.Line of strong text.Line of not so plain text. {The text was styled with Dark Red, bold, 16 point.}Ctrl+I for italic vs Emphasis style; Ctrl+b for bold vs Strong style. {italics is NOT emphasis, bold is NOT strong}Style being checked will cause style names to be read including duplicating heading announcements. Emphasis being checked we’ve not seen have any effect but, one would think, cause emphasis and strong styles to be noted, maybe slight tone changes for some speech settings?System Sounds? An Office feature Mike uses most of the time.You can create your own styles as I’ll do now. The best route is to type the first text you want to have the style, style it with “Font” (on the ribbon) styling, not preset “Styles,” (in another group on the ribbon). Then select the now styled text, in the Home ribbon Styles group select either the “More” dropdown or the “Styles (Alt+Shift+Ctrl+S)” popup window, then find the A+ “Create Style, Create a New Style” or “New Style” and pop open the “Create New Style from Formatting” window then enter the Name you want to use (New Red Emphasis) and click OK. (You can choose to Modify other aspects but you better experiment enough to be sure you know what you are doing and that it will be effective for all users.)New Red Emphasis (I can now simply select the text to the left and apply my “New Red Emphasis” style.)The message vs Color Meaning (Priority 7)The below lines will be read one at a time and commented on:Turn in your final exam by Friday at 5:00 PM. {No issues whatsoever.}Turn in your final exam by Friday at 5:00 PM. {The plain red, #FF0000, fails on minimum 4.5:1 contrast with white background.}Turn in your final exam by Friday at 5:00 PM. {Fixed the contrast with background issue with Dark red, #C00000, but still no benefit for screen readers or some contrast deficient eyes because the black to red contrast ratio is below the minimum requirement.}Turn in your final exam by Friday at 5:00 PM. {Gave it a little more sighted impact and screen readers reading styles, strong, will hear it. Added Strong (not bold).}Turn in your final exam by Friday at 5:00 PM (non-negotiable). {Leaves no doubt for anybody! The beginning of the document should let users know that bold Red Emphasis text signifies the deadlines that are non-negotiable [baring documented emergency]. And, yes the 16pt font size in this example is overkill, the Dark Red and bold with the “(non-negotiable)” text should be sufficient.}Style Wrap Up and Template Replaceable Text (Priority 7)So you can add color! Do it with style when its important! Named style. Perhaps meaningfully named (Non Negotiable). Be circumspect, not all screen reader users will have color reading or styling checked and some will not take the hint even when you provide users with a key in the beginning of the document. (Redundant is still Priority 1.)What about replaceable text in a template document?Instructor: $$your name$$Begin the template document with instructions about the style and $$ replacement targets and make the instructions easy to delete cleanly (such as in a table). The $$ was chosen because the dollar sign is read by default, star (asterisk) might generally work too but occasionally might legitimately occur and thus be confusing.What’s important? Judgment calls, keep your burden low and everyone else’s too.When it’s important enough, and this is important, say so and/or provide other clues, don’t just style.Hyperlinks (Priority 3)All of the following need to be balanced: print, visual user, screen reader user.Mike’s going to read you some link examples then we will comment on each. {works for print and reasonably well for all}Web Access Website {doesn’t work for print, friendliest for screen reader and visual}MSU Web Accessibility Website (webaccess.msu.edu) {works for print though verbose for a link text only reading} {not acceptable to anyone. Don’t use. This one should have link text identifying the survey with the URL hidden behind it.}For more MSU Web Access Website tutorials click here. {Do NOT do this or similar!}Visit the MSU Web Access website for more MSU accessibility tutorials. {better, maybe verbose}See the MSU accessibility tutorials for more. {better but no help for print}If you can, also leave out “” and “index.html” or other directory default page designations in both visible URLs and hidden ones and possibly the protocol (e.g., http://) in visual ones. TEST every link!After some discussion our final choice compromise for this specific web URL: MSU accessibility tutorials (webaccess.msu.edu/Tutorials). (Note the removal of Word’s automatic URL link.) Judgement again, YMMV. And keep in mind this presentation is for Word document preparation, other considerations and weights may apply to other document types (such as HTML).Lists (Priority 2)By selecting a block of paragraphs and applying “Bullets” or “Numbering”.By starting a line with 1.space or Tab.Control further indents with Tab for deeper indents and Shift+Tab for lesser indents. Backspace goes back up a level and backs out of the list entirely.If the order is meaningful or an outline is appropriate, then use an enumerated style otherwise use bullet points.Optional punctuation at the end of each list item; comma, semicolon, period so the screen reader pauses but only use appropriate punctuation, do not add. Period is the best pause.Important: Do not try to manufacture an equivalent hierarchical appearance with spaces, tabs, and text.Read thisThen thisThen thisExperiment with the above in bullet/enumerated styles and with comma, semicolon, period and no punctuation and have NVDA read it for you.Tables (Priority 5)Simple only in Word – and that’s a good thing.Break your complex tables into simple tables.(it’s not elegance but meaningfulness that is the goal).Headed columns only.Vs headed columns plus row headings.Judgement needed on use of row headings. (NVDA users can turn them on.)Table Example (Good)2018 Accessible Learning Conference Schedule (Abridged)Activity/TitleLocationTimeSpeakersEngagement LevelRegistration & BreakfastAuditorium8:00 - 9:00NoneHeavy EngagementWelcomeAuditorium9:00 - 9:30Kate Sonka, et alConventionalOn the Persistence of Pages: Authorship and Access103AB9:45 - 10:00Hal HinderliterConventionalMaking Microsoft Word Documents More Equitable (than Others)103AB10:00 - 10:45Jim White. Mike HudsonConventionalRequired for Tables with HeadingsNVDA Setting: NVDA+n, Down arrow, Right arrow, Enter, D (for Document Formatting), Tab key, t for Tables (be sure it is checked, spacebar to check/uncheck), Down arrow for Row/column headers (be sure it is checked), (Down arrow for Cell coordinates and set it however you like), Tab key to OK then enter.Click any cell in the table. Choose Table Tools > Design from the ribbon. Be sure Header Row in Table Style Options group is selected. Generally you’ll want the first column to be meaningful and to check the First Column box.If your header row values are not entered, enter them now. If they were already entered before you did step 2 select the text of one, Ctrl+x then Ctrl+v. then repeat for another one (this primes Microsoft to make column headers).In the Word document with NVDA running click the first column heading (generally in column 1 but could be 2) then NVDA+Shift+c. If you wanted row headings too then (read only on row change) click the first column in the first row that has a heading (generally the second row) then NVDA+Shift+r. Microsoft will actually now remember these settings for screen reader users so they won’t have to turn them on themselves. (To turn off either do the above but click the c or r key twice.)Optional for TablesTitle (read when the table is landed on). Above we did a Heading 3 as a title before the table for everybody.Description (requires a special screen reader step while in (NVDA+spacebar) browse mode, NVDA+d, then Down arrow or NVDA+Down arrow to read description, Esc key to exit back into table).Probably best not to do either a table Title or Description. (Consistently put the table title in text for all users immediately above the table, convey what the main takeaway is in the body.)Table Example (Inferior design)Warning Devices at Public Highway-Rail Grade Crossings2013 (as percent of total)StateTotal (number)Cross bucksGatesFlashing lightsStop signsUnknownSpecial warningHWTS, WW, bellsOtherAlabama2,79125.929.218.023.61.50.41.00.3Alaska17926.343.04.519.02.22.80.02.2Arizona73010.42.157.71.41.00.46.620.5Arkansas2,70553.316.613.98.03.71.62.80.0Abridged (see below link for complete table)United States Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation StatisticsNo row or column headings or title or description have been enabled for screen reader users. Just let it read through in NVDA and see if you can keep track of what the numbers mean. Then play with it using the instructions with the good table example above.Text Boxes (Priority 8)-7620320040ImportantThis is a text box.Will it be read?00ImportantThis is a text box.Will it be read?Best not used at all. Best not used at all.In NVDA Text Box Alt Text will not be read at all.In NVDA if a Text Box is “In Line with Text” it will be read as “slash” but not its content so a user will only know the Text Box is there.In NVDA if Text Boxes are positioned their existence can be found by finding “Image or object not inline” In the Accessibility Checker Inspection Results then Enter to select on the message’s Group line. F6 back into the document then Tab will move through boxes and other objects and reading the text of Text Boxes and the Alt Text of other objects.Best if not used. If you must, at least reference a sidebar in the body of the document including the heading or distinctive text so a search can find it inside the box.Letterhead that uses Text Boxes is particularly problematic!! Mike searches for “the” when he suspects an “empty” document is a letterhead with the real content in a main Text Box. But that isn’t guaranteed successful and it likely will miss some things, the above text box being an example.Alt text does NOT (currently) help in finding Text Boxes.Best if not used at all. (You catching on yet?)After Word; Other FormatsPDF (Generally Do Not Do for Class Material, for public if HTML won’t do)From Word: ACROBAT > Create PDF when Adobe Acrobat Pro is installed is the most effective method requiring the least remediation (Options to Check: Convert document information; Enable accessibility and Reflow with tagged Adobe PDF; Create Bookmarks: Convert Word Headings to Bookmarks).From Acrobat Pro: File > Create > PDF from File... May create an equivalent file to above but has different settings you must pre-set first. (Edit > Preferences... > Convert to PDF > Microsoft Office Word > Edit Settings...)."Save as" from Word to PDF is less effective but satisfactory for simple documents.Print to PDF not effective at all (no bookmarks, no tags).PDFs created from Word documents nearly always require remediation after creation.MSU is moving to Word (and other native formats) rather than PDF:for internal documents due to Microsoft Office for MSU community;In copy for final: Accept All Changes, Delete All Comments in Document; Optionally Delete All Document Properties and Personal Information (then re-add the Title Property, maybe Author), Mark as Final. Check for and manually remove stuck comments, etc.; Perhaps "File" > "Options" > "Trust Center" > "Warn before printing saving … "accessible updates need no re-remediation as they would if output to PDF again;improved screen reader software for Word, etc., over the years;encouraging both Word (or other native format) and PDF availability for external to MSU users.HTML (By far, when done correctly, the best option for accessibility.)Generally best if a code stripper is used to remove Microsoft specific coding if you create it via saving HTML from Word.Often will still require manual adjustments after export and stripping.Inherently the most accessible when WCAG 2.x rules are followed.File Type and Change Considerations in webaccess.msu.edu tutorials also.Questions?Resource LinksMake your Word documents accessible (Microsoft)MSU accessibility tutorials (webaccess.msu.edu/Tutorials)Accessible Learning Conference () > About ALC > Archive for the original form of this presentationwebaccess.msu.eduwebaccess@msu.edu(The focus of this presentation has been on NVDA use in Word. Not covered are issues that might impact users with other needs such as fonts and setting styling font sizing for easy user adjustment for low vision users. Etc. Doing the only the items covered in this presentation is not the final answer.) ................
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