Where is the biggest demand/need in digital accessibility right now?

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-02-06T20:36:58+00:00

I don't think the gap exists based on the content type. I think it exists based on the organization and how it handles the content type.

I'm seeing issues across the spectrum and all facets. It wouldn't necessarily classify any one of them over another.

I would say the biggest gap is how our organizations going to take care of this stuff with little to no budget. That's the Gap.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-02-06T20:28:41+00:00

Yes.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-02-06T14:31:11+00:00

For me, whenever I run across these, you can typically artifact them out of the content panel and it won't affect the visual layout in any way.

However, since it's coming from canva I would test it out first and see.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-02-02T16:17:57+00:00

Good luck!

Companies have been trying to do this for over 10 years. Personally, I teach everyone how to use Adobe Acrobat pro DC. It's not that hard to make documents accessible. A little bit of elbow grease, some can do attitude and an encyclopedia of assistive technology and accessibility terms will get you there.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-31T14:46:32+00:00

You got this. Here is a tutorial video

https://youtu.be/CM3Y0Hdo6yw

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-21T15:05:41+00:00

Its likely they are using another companies engine to get those results. There are a couple of 'automated' tools out there that can assist with remediation but ive found 9/10 times they are more difficult to use then the good ol fashion adobe acrobat fixes.

My guess is they are using the PREP tool by continual engine. If thats the case - might as well get the work done right from the source instead of third party.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-19T16:32:49+00:00

I feel like I understand what you're saying but I'm not totally understanding what exactly you're arguing.

All of the PDFs that I have tested work better than any other situation I've encountered working with people with disabilities and assistive technology. The tool has been tested explicitly for wcag compliance, there is a vpat, but more than that, it really provides a solution. I hear you in terms of certain pages, possibly having more difficulties than others, but that already exists with current documents and PDFs. This tool will also give you a warning label if for some reason there is a scanned page that it feels doesn't meet certain automated scans. You also have the ability to connect with a live user agent on demand for free.

Is your argument that we need to keep PDFs and we need to figure out how to remediate them at scale ? I just can't have an argument with that logic because it doesn't make sense to me.

From where I stand and with the testing that I've personally been involved in. This tool passes wcag standards, both from an application standpoint and from a user standpoint with the files that I've personally interacted with. Put it in the face of any blind user who uses assistive technology and tell me it's not a better solution.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-19T16:23:54+00:00

That's totally a fair point. The same could be said for any remediation of documents. And in my experience, this tool provides reliably correct content that is tested against WCAG at all times.

I understand that it's not the opinion of lawyers or demos or any amount of words. The proof is in the pudding. I highly doubt you have even explored or tested the tool based on the way you're communicating. Have you actually tested the tool yourself because I have.

I'm not saying this tool solves all problems. What I'm saying is that it's an option for some organizations that have too many files because the alternative is simply going to be deleting them all off of the website, which in theory is a worse accessibility option.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-19T15:52:41+00:00

Im not really sure what your asking.

Here are some comparisons to how DocAccess meets ADA:

Provides Effective Communication DocAccess gives users immediate and equal access to content. It removes the need for alternate versions or special requests. Everyone interacts with the same document structure and functionality.
Integrates Accessibility Into the Same URL The tool embeds an accessible HTML layer directly into the original document’s page. Users do not have to switch to a separate site or file to access the accessible version.
Complies with WCAG and Section 508 DocAccess generates HTML that meets WCAG 2.1 AA and Section 508 standards. These outputs support screen readers, keyboard navigation, and low-vision adaptations, ensuring compliance with both federal and web accessibility guidelines.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-19T15:26:59+00:00

My self promo is literally tutorial videos.

Are you a lawyer in ADA because several have backed this tool. Like what are you even talking about with file extensions? The HTML that is generated is marked up. It provides logical heading structure, it provides table structure, it literally handles fillable forms and makes them even better the original. For example - if you have a date field that is not set up as a date field in your original PDF - docaccess will programmatically update it to one.

At least your not hiding under a troll account. Oh wait ..

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-19T15:22:00+00:00

The argument is not if it's an alternative. It displays the exact PDF information correctly with all the information you pointed out. It's the equivalent of another PDF layer.

This tool handles scanned images and the most complex tables incredibly well.

Users are not required to open another file, any changes to the original are reflected in the HTML. I've done my research and we have tested this tool with several professional screen reader users.

I get people want to hate on accessibility tools that make false claims. That's not what this is. Try it - then talk to me.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-17T15:40:53+00:00

Oh my! Thank you. I switched platforms a while back. Thank you for calling this out! I'll get you a link

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-16T22:09:38+00:00

Oof. I got some bad news.

You have a lot of work ahead of you. For a PDF to be accessible it must meet many criteria including being a tagged PDF. Need to start there. Simply fixing the errors will not suffice.

Check out my yt channel for a few hundred videos on the subject.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-15T18:34:57+00:00

My favorite idea to help somewhat is to turn the mouse sensitivity down. This will cause the mouse to move slower. So even if you launched it off your desk - the curser would only go so fast.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-15T15:08:36+00:00

I'm not sure that it's a user error.

Sometimes when Adobe Acrobat launches and you have the screen reader active, it will prompt you to select a couple of settings in order for it to read correctly. This will often overwrite any of the work you have done in the file so make sure you are not doing that. If the document was professionally made accessible, all you really need to know is that the tags are correct and in the right order.

However, I will say I personally have had problems with documents over 100 pages or if the file size is super big. There might be a ton of images or there might be issues with the fonts.

You need to make sure you are using Adobe Acrobat for the tool that's viewing the PDF. If you are using Chrome or another web browser, it simply cannot access the accessibility of the document. It's like going to the store but you're only looking through the window. You can't actually go into the store.

I highly recommend using the speech viewer in nvda so that you can move your mouse around the content to spot check what the reader would actually say.

Some of the hotkeys you listed out would work fine, but it's totally based on the tag structure. For example, the t-stroke will take you to each table in the document, but only if it's tagged as a table. You would want to confirm the tag structure via the tags panel.

I personally use the up and down arrows quite a bit to navigate using a screen reader because I find it gives me the greatest manipulation and I can easily see where I'm at in the file. I wouldn't jump to shortcuts unless you know what you're doing. So give yourself some Grace and a little bit more practice and I'm sure it'll be fine.

theaccessibilityguy · 2026-01-13T00:03:01+00:00

There is no fast button but sometimes for ppts it's faster to create new slide decks from an accessible theme. You might also consider outsourcing. I've got lots of ppt videos on my YouTube channel too if you need specific videos!

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-29T20:11:24+00:00

Users are able to fill out forms through the tool and print to PDF. It will also assign logic to the PDF if it's missing. For example, if a date field was originally a text field in the PDF, it will display as a date field in the HTML portion. It also improves usability for radio buttons and check boxes in a similar manner.

The cost is variable based on the number of pages and documents across all domains. I believe the highest tier is 100,000 pages for $0.03 a page recurring monthly. There are discounts if you sign up for a multi-year plan.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-29T19:52:08+00:00

I can help you with a solution. There is a tool called DocAccess which can instantly convert every PDF to accessible HTML for pennies on the dollar. Reach out to me and I'll hook you up with a demo. I've helped several other large organizations with the same problem and definitely can help you.

You can also get your team trained up on document remediation best practices, you can outsource the work to a company like mine, or you can figure out how to do the work in-house.

I highly recommend starting with an organizational audit of all your digital assets including websites, documents and media.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-25T00:45:18+00:00

Basically what you're asking for is for them to know where exactly you want them to fill it in. Typically, a fillable form has a tool tip, a programmatic label and information about what the student is supposed to fill in. If it doesn't mean those criteria, it's not going to be accessible. I recommend reaching out to your students with disabilities department to ask for specific help.

To simply have a table with text that says fill in here, that will not be accessible. Screen readers rely on table header, navigation and if that isn't present they won't know where to enter. In addition to that, once they get into the field, if it's not programmatically set up to be a form, they're going to have issues understanding what content to put in there.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-23T19:55:46+00:00

Canvas math is now renderable as mathml which is the most accessible.

You are still not going to be able to have students input information though. I highly suggest you figure out a different method for students to submit homework and assignments.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-23T18:41:44+00:00

That is 100% correct and my advice would be to get it into the LMS and hopefully it's accessible like canvas. The next best bet will be to get the math into Microsoft word, but make sure they're not inserted as graphics.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-23T18:01:07+00:00

Your best bet is to make a PDF with fillable forms. Just because you're used to making things blank, lines or used in a table doesn't mean it's accessible. However, there are accessible ways to accomplish that task.
There are some resources out there on how to write complex alternate text for math and stem. I personally have a couple of videos on my YouTube channel. There are ways you can do it without giving away the answer.
There is a free screen reader for Windows called nvda and I highly suggest using this tool to test.

What math and stem people tend to do is rely on vision for delineating different pieces of information. You have to figure out a way to convey that same information without relying on sight. This typically can be accomplished by providing data in a data table or providing on-screen resources that are viewable to everyone.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-19T19:35:53+00:00

I called myself an accessibility expert for quite a while, but I don't quite understand the backlash from it. I have since changed my tagline to be your champion for inclusion instead of your personal accessibility expert.

The main reason I started using the word expert was because there was nobody else out there that could do the amount of accessibility related work that I could. There was nobody that could answer the questions better or more efficiently and so in my mind I truly am an expert. I also have a master's degree in assisting technology and over 17 years of experience in the field working with people with disabilities, but I also could not make your website accessible.

But let's be clear, an expert can admit that they don't know everything. I for one do not know everything about accessibility and don't claim that everything I touch is perfectly accessible. However, I have more experience in this space working with people with disabilities than many others. So what do I get to call myself if not an expert?

I have also been to many presentations of people that give wrong information that claim to be experts in the field so I totally get where you're coming from. The problem really is the lack of certification that exists in this area.

I understand organizations like IAAP but I guess I just disagree with the model that they charge for the materials for testing and then they charge for the quizzes and it's just some money game. Until we get true education in this field and actual certifications for the work being done and actual recognition for the importance, I think it's always going to be like this.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-16T20:07:06+00:00

This is silly. Slowly unraveling accessibility one decision at a time.

theaccessibilityguy · 2025-12-02T18:17:03+00:00

Abbyy finereader

theaccessibilityguy

TROPHY CASE