Chapter 17: Creating Accessible Content - MACROMEDIA FLASH MX 2004-USING FLASH Use Manual

You can create Flash content that is accessible to all users, including those with disabilities, using
the accessibility features provided with Macromedia Flash MX 2004 and Macromedia Flash MX
Professional 2004. As you design accessible Flash applications, consider how users might interact
with the content. For example, visually impaired users might rely on assistive technology, such as
screen readers that provide an audio version of screen content, and hearing-impaired users might
read text and captions in the document. Other considerations arise for users with mobility or
cognitive impairments.
For a quick lesson in how to create accessible content, select Help > How Do I > Quick Tasks >
Create Accessible Flash Content. To view a sample of an accessible application, see
accessibility features in Flash" on page
You can create accessible content with Flash by using accessibility features included in the
authoring environment user interface, taking advantage of ActionScript designed to implement
accessibility, and following recommended design and development practices. The list of
recommended practices that follows is not exhaustive, but rather suggests common issues to
consider. Depending on your audience's needs, additional requirements might arise.
Visually impaired users
remember the following design recommendations:
•
Use the Accessibility panel or ActionScript to provide a description of your document and
nontext elements for use with a screen reader. See
information for screen readers" on page 359
on page 369.
•
Describe the layout of your Flash application and the individual controls used to navigate
through it. See "Using Flash to enter accessibility information for screen readers" on page
•
Design and implement a logical tab order using either the Accessibility panel or ActionScript.
See "Creating a tab order index for keyboard navigation in the Accessibility panel (Flash
Professional only)" on page 367
objects" on page 371.
•
Design the document so that constant changes in the Flash content do not cause screen readers
to refresh unnecessarily. For example, you should group or hide looping elements. See
an object from the screen reader" on page
Creating Accessible Content
421.
For visually impaired users, including those with color blindness,
and
and "Using ActionScript to create a tab order for accessible
364.
CHAPTER 17
"Using Flash to enter accessibility
"Creating accessibility with ActionScript"
"Using the
359.
"Hiding
355