Design Accessible Reports Using Publisher Layouts

This section describes the following techniques for designing accessible reports using the Publisher layout editor.

Define Document Titles

You define the title of a report at the same time as you save the report layout. You can also rename the report at a later time.

Define Alternative Text for Images

You can define alternative text for images so that they're describable in accessibility mode.

To define alternative text for an image:

Select an image such as a chart.
On the Properties pane, expand Misc.
In the Alternative Text property, enter the alternative text for the image.

Define Summary Text for Tables

You can define a text summary to describe a table within a report.

To define summary table text:

Select a table.
On the Properties pane, expand Misc.
In the Summary property, enter the table summary text.

Define Table Row Headers

Table row headers summarize each row in a table. The layout editor automatically includes table row headers on all inserted tables. No further action is required.

Define Text Header Levels

You can define text header levels to specify structures within a report.

To define text header levels:

Select a text item.
On the Properties pane, expand Misc.
In the Header Level property, select a value 1 to 6.

Define a Layout Table

You can use layout tables to present information in columns and rows and arrange content without using headers and a table summary.

Use a layout table when you don’t need column headers, row headers, IDs, table summary, and other semantics used by a data table. When you've enabled accessibility mode, if you leave the value of the summary property empty or if you set <?table-summary:?> in a table, Publisher sets role=”presentation” for that table, and specifies that table as a layout table in the HTML output.

To define a layout table:

Select a table.
On the Properties pane, expand Misc.
In the Summary property, make sure the value is empty.