[accessibility] Revisiting creation of accessible PDF files

[Cory Samaha]

Hello Everyone,

I believe I had brought this up a while ago, but I wanted to revisit this subject in case anything changed in the past couple of years and if there is perhaps a more streamlined approach to this process.

I often receive PDF files from my employer and they ask me to review these files for accessibility. Unfortunately, many times these files fall short in many areas. The documents in question contain form fields, tables, headings and so on, however the form fields are not labeled correctly, tables are not marked with row and column headers and you get the idea. When I had last enquired about remediating pdf documents to be more accessible, the answer seemed to be to start with a LaTeX file and include a package that would convert the forms / elements into properly labeled and interactive elements. The only down side to this is that this process is a bit more lengthy for me than one of my sighted counterparts who can click around and create the tagging structure necessary for a screen reader.

As far as I know, Adobe Acrobat has not improved their accessibility on that end, although if I am wrong feel free to correct me. Is LaTeX still the best option when it comes to PDF remediation as a blind or visually impaired person who cannot use the mouse? If anyone has personal experiences they can share about PDF remediation I would love to hear that as well.

I am not sure if this is quite on the level of a programming question, but it is markup; I am hoping this question is on topic. Any input or assistance is always appreciated!

Sincerely,
Cory