{"id":85326,"date":"2022-10-13T21:09:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-14T02:09:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allyant.com\/?p=85326"},"modified":"2024-08-23T09:59:21","modified_gmt":"2024-08-23T14:59:21","slug":"what-is-a-pdf-accessibility-checker-what-does-it-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allyant.com\/blog\/what-is-a-pdf-accessibility-checker-what-does-it-do\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is A PDF Accessibility Checker? What Does It Do?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A PDF accessibility checker is a digital tool that checks whether a PDF document is accessible (readable) to everyone, including people with visual disabilities. CommonLook PDF Validator and PAC3 are two powerful PDF accessibility checkers that check the accessibility of PDF documents.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Portable Document Format, abbreviated as PDF, is the native file format of the Adobe Acrobat family of products. The format allows users to view and share electronic documents conveniently and without the loss of any information. This is important because the loss of even the smallest bit of information can potentially tamper the overall accuracy and value of the document in question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to the power of this format, most government and private organizations all over the world publish PDF documents on their websites, apps and other digital offerings which are then accessed by the general public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But here\u2019s the problem: most PDF documents published online are not truly accessible. In other words, they may not be read (in the way they were intended) by everyone, including people with disabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is where PDF accessibility comes into the picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is PDF accessibility?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A PDF document is considered accessible if it can be read by everyone, including people with disabilities; this includes access by people who are blind, visually impaired, cognitively impaired or color-blind. An accessible PDF makes it easier for people with disabilities to access PDF documents with the aid of assistive technology software and devices, like screen magnifiers, screen readers, speech-recognition software, text-to-speech software, alternative input devices and refreshable Braille displays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can read about accessible PDFs in detail here: What\u2019s an accessible PDF and what does it look like?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The term PDF accessibility<\/strong> generally refers to the attribute of a PDF document being accessible to all users, including people with disabilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most PDF documents published on the web are not created with PDF accessibility in mind, which is why organizations get sued for publishing inaccessible documents on their digital assets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you create a PDF document and want to ensure that it is accessible, what do you do? And how do you check a PDF for accessibility?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You use a PDF accessibility checker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a PDF accessibility checker?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Simply put, it\u2019s a software that tests whether a given PDF document is accessible or not. In order to do that, most accessibility checkers run the PDF document through a set of predetermined tests and checkpoints. If the document passes those tests, then it\u2019s deemed as an accessible PDF.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are only a few PDF accessibility checkers available on the web, here is how to choose the best one for your organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Features of an effective PDF accessibility checker<\/h2>\n\n\n\n