Creating Accessible Content > Specifying advanced accessibility options |  |

Specifying advanced accessibility options

Flash provides several accessibility authoring features that go beyond simply providing names for objects. You can provide a description for text or text fields, buttons, or movie clips, and keyboard shortcuts for input text fields or buttons. You can also turn off automatic labeling behavior for your movie.

You can choose to hide a selected object from screen readers. For example, you may choose to hide animated movie clips if you think the verbal description does not enhance the accessible version of the movie. You may also decide to hide accessible objects that are contained inside a movie clip or movie, and expose only the movie clip or movie itself to screen readers.

For keyboard shortcuts, use the following conventions:

| Spell out key names, such as Ctrl or Alt
| Use capital letters for alphabetic characters
| Use a plus sign (+) between key names, with no spaces—for example, Ctrl+A

Note: If you provide a keyboard shortcut for an input text field or button, you must also use the ActionScript Key object to detect the key the user presses during movie playback. SeeCapturing keypresses. Keyboard shortcut functionality also depends on the screen reader software used.

To define the accessibility for a selected object in a movie:

1 | Select the object on the Stage.
2 | Do one of the following:
| Choose Window > Property inspector if the inspector is not visible. In the Property inspector, click the Accessibility button.
| Choose Window > Accessibility.
3 | In the Accessibility panel, do one of the following:
| Select Make Object Accessible (the default setting) to expose the object to screen readers, and to enable other options in the panel.
| Deselect the option to hide the object from screen readers.
4 | If you selected Make Object Accessible in step 3, enter information for the selected object as needed:
| For dynamic text, enter a name for the text object. Enter a description of the text in the Description field. (To provide a description for static text, you must convert it to dynamic text.)
| For input text fields or buttons, enter a name for the object. Enter a description of the object in the Description text box. Enter a keyboard shortcut in the Shortcut text box.
| For movie clips, enter a name for the object. Enter a description in the Description text box. Select Make Child Objects Accessible to expose the objects inside the movie clip to screen readers. Deselect this option to hide any accessible objects contained in the movie clip from screen readers.
5 | Click OK.

To turn off an automatic label for an individual object:

1 | On the Stage, select the button or input text field for which you want to control labeling.
2 | Do one of the following:
| Choose Window > Property inspector if the inspector is not visible. In the Property inspector, click the Accessibility button.
| Choose Window > Accessibility.
3 | In the Accessibility panel, select Make Object Accessible (the default setting).
4 | Enter a name in the Name text box.
| The name will be read as the label for the button or text field. The text string that was the automatic label is read as a regular text object, unless you turn off accessibility for the text string.
5 | To turn off accessibility for the automatic label (and hide it from screen readers), select the text object on the Stage.
6 | If the text object is static text, convert it to dynamic text: in the Property inspector, choose Dynamic Text from the Text type pop-up menu.
7 | In the Accessibility panel, deselect Make Object Accessible.

To define accessibility for an entire movie:

1 | When the Flash document is complete and ready to be published or exported, deselect all elements in the movie.
2 | Do one of the following:
| Choose Window > Property inspector if the inspector is not visible. In the Property inspector, click the Accessibility button.
| Choose Window > Accessibility.
3 | In the Accessibility dialog box, do one of the following:
| Select Make Movie Accessible (the default setting) to expose the movie to screen readers.
| Deselect the option to hide the movie from screen readers.
4 | Select Make Children Accessible to expose the accessible objects contained in the movie to screen readers. Deselect this option to omit any accessible objects contained in the movie clip from screen readers.
5 | If you selected Make Movie Accessible in step 3, enter information for the movie as needed:
| Enter a title for the movie in the Title text box.
| Enter a description of the movie in the Description text box.
6 | Select Auto Label (the default setting) to use text objects as automatic labels for accessible buttons or input text fields contained in the movie. Deselect this option to turn off automatic labeling and expose text objects to screen readers as text objects. See About animation and accessibility.
7 | Click OK.