Guidelines For Accessibility In Flash - MACROMEDIA FLASH MX 2004-USING ACTIONSCRIPT IN FLASH Use Manual

Authoring projects
Authors on a Flash project do not change the project root, directory structure of the project, or
the site. This includes adding, removing, or changing subdirectory names, or adding additional
subdirectories to the project on their local computer. If individual authors change the site or
project structure, the local files are out of sync with those on the server. This causes problems in
the application, such as class path and missing file errors, and so on. Individual authors can copy
assets to the subdirectory files that the project's administrator creates.
Each author on a Flash project selects File > Open from Site, selects the name of the site, and then
selects the project's FLP file. Then the author updates the project with any missing files. This
ensures that the author is working with the latest version of the site. When the author selects Yes,
all the project files download to the author's local computer, so the structure on the local
computer matches the structure on the server.
Changing structure
When the project's structure needs to be changed, authors check in all their files. The project's
administrator checks out all the files to make any necessary changes. After this is done, each
person working on the project deletes the root folder of their own local copy of the project. Each
individual author should use File > Open from Site to download a new copy of the site. This
helps reduce errors when working with the project from accidentally using legacy files, and
reduces similar versioning problems.

Guidelines for accessibility in Flash

Screen readers are complex, and you can easily encounter unexpected results in FLA files
developed for use with screen readers, which is software that visually impaired users run to read
websites aloud. Flash applications must be viewed in Internet Explorer on Windows, because
Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA) support is limited to this browser.
For more information, see the following topics:
•
"Creating accessible sites" on page 130
•
"Using screen readers" on page 131
•
"Exposing SWF file structure and navigation" on page 131
•
"Controlling descriptions and repetition" on page 132
•
"Using color" on page 132
•
"Ordering, tabbing, and the keyboard" on page 133
•
"Handling audio and animation" on page 134
•
"Extending Flash and accessibility" on page 134
•
"Working with accessibility and components" on page 134
•
"Testing frequently and making changes" on page 135
Guidelines for accessibility in Flash 129