Make Accessible

Make Accessible Wizard in Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat has a "Make Accessible" feature.  Although the results vary, this is a good place to start your remediation process if you have good source files.  UC Berkeley staff, faculty and students can Download Adobe Acrobat for free.

The steps for using the Make Accessible Wizard are listed below and showcased in the following video:

Make Accessible Wizard Steps

  1. Open this Download Accessibility Quick Start Guide which is purposely saved as a scanned image to demonstrate this Adobe Acrobat feature.  Note:  Follow up these steps by visiting the Leverage Adobe Acrobat's Make Accessible feature. 
  2. Open the full version of Adobe Acrobat DC and select the "Tools" option from the main menu.Select Tools from the main menu
  3. Locate and "Add" the Action Wizard.  This places the Action Wizard in your right sidebar.Select Add the Action Wizard. This places the Action Wizard in the right navigation window
  4. Select "Action Wizard" from the right sidebarSelect Action Wizard from the right sidebar
  5. Select "Make Accessible"Select Make Accessible
  6. Select "Start"
    Select Start

  7. In the Description pop up window, enter the Title, Subject, and Author.  Select "OK"
    Enter the Title, Subject, Author. Select OK
  8. The default language should be English.  Select "OK."
    The default language should be English for this document. Select OK.
  9. The Output should read Searchable Image and the Downsample should be 600 dpi.  Select "OK"
    The defaults should be correct. Document Language is English (US), Output is Searchable Image, and Downsample to 600 dpi. Select OK
  10. This document does NOT have fillable forms.  Select, "No Skip this Step."
    There are NO fillable forms in this document. Select, No, Skip this Step
  11. The default Reading Language should be set to English.  Select "OK"
    The default language should be English (US). Select OK.
  12. The Make Accessible tool then searches for images that require alternative text.  The first image it finds in this document is decorative so select "Decorative figure." Select the right arrow to proceed to the next image.
    The first image is a decorative image. Select the Decorative figure check box. Then choose the right arrow to continue to the next image.
  13. The second image can have the alternative text as "UC Berkeley Campanile."  Enter this text in the relevant field.  Select "Save and Close"
    The second image is of the Campanile. Enter UC Berkeley Campanile in the relevant field. Select the Save & Close button
  14. The next step is to run an Accessibility Checker.  Select "Start Checking."Select Start Checking
  15. After the accessibility checker is complete, select "Close"Select Close
  16. From the File Menu, select Save As and give the file a name.
    From the File menu, select Save As and give the file a new name.
  17. Move onto the Leverage Adobe Acrobat's Make Accessible Feature