The contribution of technology

For their part, technology companies are anxious to be part of the process of enabling users with visual and print disabilities to access information on the same basis as those without such disabilities. Two companies in particular are often cited in this connection.

就科技公司而言，對於視覺障礙者與閱讀印刷本障礙者，以及沒有這些障礙的 人，他們都一樣想要在協助取用資訊的過程中佔有一席之地。在這方面尤其經常被提 到的是二家公司。

Adobe, the creator of the Portable Document Format or PDF format has applied considerable effort to ensuring that its ebook reader are compatible with access technologies.

A partial list of accessibility features would include:

創造可攜式文件格式(Portable Document Format, PDF)²⁶的 Adobe 公司，為了使其 電子書閱讀程式(ebook reader)相容於取用科技，已經投入了可觀的努力。取用功能的 部分清單包括：

Read Out Loud Feature 朗讀功能

26 Portable Document Format (PDF) is a file format developed by Adobe Systems for representing documents in a manner that is independent of the original application software, hardware, and operating system used to create those documents. A PDF file can describe documents

containing any combination of text, graphics, and images in a device independent and resolution independent format. These documents can be one page or thousands of pages, very simple or extremely complex with a rich use of fonts, graphics, color, and images. PDF is an open standard, and anyone may write applications that can read or write PDFs royalty-free.

可攜式文件格式(Portable Document Format, PDF)是 Adobe Systems 公司所發展之檔案格 式，能在創造文件的軟體、硬體及作業系統之外，獨立呈現該文件。PDF 檔案能夠不受 限於設備與解析度，而顯示出包含圖文、影像的文件。這些文件可以是一頁或千頁的文 件，可以是非常簡單，或是廣泛使用各種字形、圖形、顏色或影像的非常複雜文件。

PDF 是一種開放性標準，任何人得免付權利金，而撰寫讀取或寫入 PDFs 的應用程式。

Read Out Loud makes PDF files more accessible to people who are unable to access a PDF with their regular screen reader. It may also be useful for individuals who do not use a screen reader, but who still would benefit from having a PDF file read out loud.

For example, a person with certain cognitive disabilities might benefit from both reading and hearing information. It may also give developers an idea for how a PDF file would be read by a full-featured screen reader.

對於無法以正常螢幕讀取程式取用 PDF 檔案的人，朗讀使他們更容易取用 PDF 檔案。對於不使用螢幕讀取程式的人，也能夠由大聲讀出 PDF 檔案而獲益。例 如，一位有某種認知障礙的人，可以由閱讀與聽到資訊而獲益。對於如何透過全 功能螢幕讀取程式讀取 PDF 檔案，它也可以使開發者獲得想法。

Accessibility Quick Check 取用性快速檢查

The Accessibility Quick Check cannot always correctly identify whether a PDF file is accessible or not, but it can alert the user whether the PDF is tagged or not or if there are glaring accessibility errors, and this may be helpful to know.

取用性快速檢查無法總是正確辨認 PDF 檔案是否能夠取用，不過它可以提醒使用 者 PDF 檔案是否附加標籤，或是否有明顯的取用性錯誤，而知道這些可能會有所 幫助。

Quick check can, however, only detect the presence of tags, not their quality. It is therefore possible for an inaccessible PDF to pass this check. If there are no tags present, the message reads “This document is not structured so the reading order may not be correct. Try different reading orders using the Reading Preferences panel.”

There are other messages, like an alert if there is missing text, but these are the two messages that usually appear.

不過，快速檢查只能偵測標籤的存在，而無法偵測標籤的品質。因此一個不具有 取用性的 PDF 檔案能會通過這項檢查。如果沒有標籤存在，則會讀出如下訊息：

「此文件無結構，因此閱讀順序可能不正確。請嘗試使用「閱讀」偏好設定面板 來設定其他閱讀順序。」如果有文本缺漏，則會出現其他類似提醒訊息，不過經 常出現的訊息是這兩種。

Reflow 回流

There are two main advantages to reflowing a document:

回流文件有二項主要優點：

– It eliminates the need for horizontal scrolling.

– 不需要進行水平捲動。

– It changes the reading order to reflect either the order of the PDF tags or, if the document is untagged, Adobe Reader tries to infer the correct reading order.

Although this is usually an advantage, the reading order in Reflow view can sometimes be more confusing, especially if it has multiple columns or complex tables.

– 針對 PDF 標籤順序，或文件沒有標籤時，Adobe 閱讀程式(Adobe Reader) 會嘗試推測閱讀順序而變更閱讀順序。雖然這往往是一項優點，回流觀 看的閱讀順序有時可能會更加混淆，尤其是多重欄位或複雜表格的情 形。

Reflow can be a very helpful feature, especially for people who need to enlarge the text, either within Acrobat Reader or using an external screen magnifier.

不論是在 Adobe 閱讀程式或使用外部螢幕放大鏡，回流得以是一項非常有用的功 能，尤其是對於需要放大文本的人。

Save as (accessible) text

儲存為（可取用）純文字格式

A PDF file can be saved as plain text which can then be printed as braille. As with other accessibility features, this only works if the reading order is clear and if there are no complex tables.

一份 PDF 檔案可儲存為純文字格式(plain text)，而列印成點字。如同其他取 用功能，只有在閱讀順序清晰而沒有複雜表格時，這項功能才能運作。

Reading order 閱讀順序

Normally, Acrobat Reader tries to guess the best reading order for a document, but there are times when the default reading order is incorrect. Where this occurs, it is possible to change the reading order of a document by selecting Edit > Preferences > Reading, or by using the Accessibility Setup Assistant. There are two main changes that can be made to the reading order of a document:

通常 Acrobat 閱讀程式 (Acrobat Reader)會嘗試猜測一份文件的最佳閱讀順序，但 有時預設的閱讀順序會不正確。出現這項情況時，可以選擇：編輯(Edit) > 偏好設 定 (Preferences) > 朗 讀 (Reading) ， 或 使 用 取 用 設 定 助 手 (Accessibility Setup Assistant)，以變更文件閱讀順序。對於文件閱讀順序，有二種主要的變更方式：

Reading Order. There are three options.

閱讀順序 有三種選項。

– Infer reading order from document. Leaving this as the default setting usually produces the best reading order.

– 從文件推導閱讀順序。將這個選項訂為預設，通常可以產生最佳閱讀

順序。

– Left-to-right, top-to-bottom reading order. Every word will be read in this order, even if it is divided into columns, or there is a sidebar. Selecting this option seldom helps because reading order problems usually occur when the PDF is already being read left to right instead of some other way.

– 從左至右，從下至下的閱讀順序。即使文件分欄或是有邊條，每一個

字都將以這個順序閱讀。由於閱讀順序問題經常發生在 PDF 早已是從 左至右閱讀而非其他閱讀方式，所以這個選項很少會有助益。

– Use reading order in raw print stream. This reflects the order that the original document was converted into the PDF.

– 使用原始列印流的閱讀順序。這是原始文件轉換為 PDF 的文字順序。

Override the reading order in tagged documents 在標籤化文件中取代閱讀順序

If a document is incorrectly tagged, the reading order might be incorrect.

Selecting this option will disable the tagged reading order and Adobe Reader will try to infer a better reading order.

如果文件的標籤化不正確，則閱讀順序可能會不正確。選擇這個選項 將取消閱讀順序，而 Adobe 閱讀程式將會嘗試推導較佳的閱讀順序。

For more information on the accessibility features of the Adobe Acrobat Reader, refer to an article by Jon Whiting published on the WebAIM website in February 2005.

關於更多 Adobe Acrobat Reader 的取用功能，請參照 Jon Whiting 於 2005 年 2 月 在 WebAIM 網站上發表的一篇文章。²⁷

Microsoft places high importance on the improvement of access to information resources through the use of technology. At its headquarters in Redmond, Washington in November 2004, the Microsoft Accessible Technology Group (ATG) hosted a three-day international forum called, “Libraries for the Blind and Print Disabled: Moving Toward a Digital Future,” which attracted library representatives from around the world and featured a keynote address by Bill Gates, Microsoft chairman and chief software architect.

對於透過使用科技以改善取用資訊，微軟(Microsoft)公司投入了高度重視。於 2004 年 11 月，微軟可取用科技集團(Microsoft Accessible Technology Group, ATG)在華 盛頓州雷蒙市總部舉行了一場為期三天的國際論壇：「盲人與閱讀印刷本障礙者圖書 館：邁向數位未來」。這場論壇吸引了來自世界各地的圖書館代表，並由微軟公司總 裁與首席軟體工程師比爾蓋茲(Bill Gates)發表主題演說。

Gates talked about the advantages of digital technology over traditional analog formats, such as audio tapes, explaining how digital technology can lower the costs of converting and distributing content, enable libraries to share information more easily, and make more information available to more people. Gates also pointed out that digital formats often provide a better user experience for people who are blind or have print disabilities, allowing many different people to access the same information online simultaneously and making it easy for individual users to locate specific information within texts.

蓋茲談到了數位科技優於傳統類比格式如錄音帶的優點，並說明為何數位科技能 降低內容轉換與散布的成本，使圖書館更便於分享資訊，以及使更多人獲得更多資 訊。蓋茲也指出，對於盲人與閱讀印刷本障礙者，數位格式往往提供了更好的使用者 經驗，使得許多人同時在線上取用相同資訊，並使個別使用者更容易在文本中定位特 定訊息。

27 Accessibility Features in Acrobat Reader 7, available at

<http://www.webaim.org/techniques/acrobat/reader.php>.

Many other technology companies are of course engaged in exploring and developing different kinds of access technologies. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), for example lists upwards of 30 different companies offering technologies facilitating access to resources via the World Wide Web: <http://www.w3.org/WAI/References/Browsing>. The list is divided into five sections as follows:

當然，許多其他科技公司也投入了不同取用科技的探索與發展。²⁸例如，關於藉由

全球網路提供促進取用資源科技，全球資訊網組織(World Wide Web Consortium, W3C) 列出了三十家以上的公司：<http://www.w3.org/WAI/References/Browsing>。這份名單 分成下列五類：

– browsers which have been specially developed for people with disabilities.

– 專門為身心障礙者發展的網路瀏覽器。

– screen-readers, which allow visually impaired people to navigate with standard applications, and are therefore most often used in conjunction with mainstream browsers such as Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Opera, etc.

– 螢幕讀取程式，使視覺障礙者藉由標準應用程式瀏覽網路，因此最常與主流

瀏覽器程式如 Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Opera 等合併使 用。

– browsers not specifically designed for disabled people but which have features that have allowed them to be used in combination with adaptive systems.

– 並非專門為有障礙者設計的瀏覽器，但具有與調整性系統組合使用的功能。

– voice browsers which give spoken Web access, e.g. by telephone using voice input or dialed commands and speech output.

– 聲音瀏覽器，經由電話聲音輸入或撥號指令及語音輸出，而提供網路口語取

用。

– a “catch-all” section intended to cover any access methods not covered by the previous categories.

– 「其他」類，包含以上類別以外的所有取用方法。

4 DRM and accessibility