The immediate access to information through electronic documents is a large part of so many people's lives, for both work and leisure purposes. Utilising electronic documents the information needs of blind and partially sighted people can be met with relative ease through a little consideration and planning. Most often this means using effective formatting and configuration of existing mainstream formats, the result of which improves document usability for everyone.
In this section:
E-books - with developments in the publishing industry in both e-book file formats and e-book reading technology, there is a very real potential that blind and partially sighed people will be able to read a book on the day of its launch.
Email - commonly the primary communication method in the workplace and in higher and further education, there are a few steps which can be taken to ensure email messages reach their intended audience without accessibility issues.
Spreadsheets - data presentation can be quite effective using a spreadsheet, making it available for manipulation and interrogation. All of the major spreadsheet applications offer accessibility features, however the configuration of the documents are key to ensuring both usability and accessibility.
Word processing - electronic text documents in word processing applications are some of the most common electronic documents people encounter. The way these documents are configured and the features utilised can make the difference between a document which is clear and usable, and one which causes frustration.
Presentation software - there are several presentation applications which are designed to help you communicate your message effectively, and the choices you make when you design your presentation will decide quite how clearly you communicate with your audience, including those individuals with sight loss.
File formats - where certain applications are well recognised as the most widely used, in this section we offer some additional hints and tips to help document creators make the best decisions to ensure their content is accessible. In this section we cover Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) as well as Adobe PDF and the Open document format ODF.