GSA

What is GSA Eliminate Barriers for People with Disabilities?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYR0bGTxi8I

UPCOMING EVENTS

508 TRAINING - BETHESDA OFFICE
Thursday - February 25, 2010
Conference Room 200
10:00 am to Noon
Sponsored by: Imelda Demus

TIPS AND TRICKS

Making your MS Word Documents 508 Compliant

One of the things I really love about my job are the opportunites presented to me to learn a new medium or technique that will improve the usability of the many documents that come across my desk. About a year ago, I was asked to make a document 508 Compliant and I will admit that I didn't have the slightest clue where to begin and frankly didn't know too much about the subject. It is safe to say that I was completely intimidated by the whole subject.

Since I am the so-called "Word Expert" of the organization, I had to learn quick, fast and in a hurry in order to comply with our government clients as well as to demonstrate to my colleagues that I am worthy of the title given to me! I am proud to say that I met the challenge successfully and am pretty confident about my ability to make a Word document 508 Compliant.

What is 508?

Click here for complete definition http://www.section508.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=Content&ID=3.

Steps to Making a MS Word Document 508 Compliant

• Use built in styles to format your document - Formatting content should be done via Microsoft Word Styles, NOT via font.
• Always create tables using the Insert Table feature. Do not use the Tab key or the Draw Table feature. This ensures that the table is identified as a table by the document.
• Never leave cells blank - To indicate an empty cell, type an appropriate term or number (i.e., “0” or “N/A”).
• Graphics and Images should have Alternative Text - The text information associated with a non-text element should, when possible, communicate the same information as its associated element.
• Color should not be used to as the primary means of emphasis - Use an asterisk, border, or other identifier. This doesn’t mean you can’t use color – just not color alone.
• Hyperlinks - All hyperlinks are active and use the full Web address, e.g., http://www.hhs.gov/

Microsoft Word Tip

Section Breaks vs Page Breaks

All I can say is "The Truth Shall Set You Free!" In my opinion, the section break feature in Microsoft Word is one of the most powerful features. The day I learned to maneuver breaks was the day I was liberated from MS Word Hell!

Why a Section Break?

Sometimes you may want to insert a page break or a section break in a Word document before the application does it automatically. Section breaks are especially helpful when creating books or reports. For each section, you can specify formatting, such as header and footer appearance, sequence of page numbers, page orientation (portrait or landscape), and page margins.

Below are a few very helpful sites that will walk you through step-by-step on inserting the appropriate breaks for your documents.

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word/HP012265021033.aspx

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/291184

http://www.uwec.edu/help/Word07/sectbreaks.htm

I hope that you find these sites useful.