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Tagging and Advanced Techniques

Tagging and Advanced Techniques

Owned by Daniel LaGrow, created
Last updated: Dec 11, 2024
10 min read

Instructions

Overview: Tags are invisible labels that give semantic meaning to the document. Tags help screen readers and other assistive technologies know what each element is. It could be a heading, an image, a paragraph, anything. They convey this information to users as tags, then users have the ability to easily navigate the document and understand its structure.

There are two methods to manually add a tag:

  1. Directly in the tag tree

  2. Using the Reading Order Tool

When you tag directly in the tag tree you can either,

  • Create an empty tag and then associate the content with it. (Not recommended due to it taking longer.)

  • Create the tag and associate the content at the same time. (Much faster)

When you use the Reading Order Tool, the tag is automatically created and associated with the content at the same time.

The text Empty tag with an arrow pointing at an empty Heading 1 tag.
The text tag has an arrow pointing to a Heading 1 tag. The text Content has an arrow pointing at the content of the heading 1 tag saying Coastal Comforts Employee Handbook.

Section 5.1: Working with the Tag Tree

To see if your document has tags, go to the Navigation Pane and select the Tags Page. The Accessibility Tags pane will open and you will see one of two things.

  1. There is a tagged tree with several tags for your document.

  2. The words No Tags Available.

Section 5.2: Adding a Tags Root to an Untagged PDF

If there are no tags in the Accessibility Tags Pane, you need to start by creating a Tags Root. This is very similar to HTML’s Body Tag.

  1. To create a Tag Root, click on the Options Button.

  2. Click Create Tags Root. The No Tags Available alert will change to Tags. There is also an option to Autotag the Document, but that will be discussed later.

Section 5.3: Add Tags

Next, you need to add tags for the content in your project. To add tags,

  1. Click on the Options button and select New Tag.

  2. The New Tag popup box will appear. Choose the type of tag you want to make from the dropdown menu. Our example is a document, so the Type will be a Document Tag.

  3. Add an optional title and click OK. This is the process for creating all of the tags available in Adobe Acrobat.

Note: Instead of right-clicking the Root Tag, you can create new tags by opening the Options Menu in the Tags Pane. When using this method, ensure the appropriate tag level is highlighted or selected in the tag tree. For instance, if a Heading 1 level tag is selected and you create a new tag via the Options Menu, the new tag will be added as a child of the Heading 1 tag. To place a new tag at the top level of the tree, make sure to click on or select the Tags Root first.

Section 5.4: Edit Tags/Change Tag Type

You have the ability to change any type of tag to another type - for example, you can make a simple change a Heading Level 1 Tag to a Heading Level 2 or a more radical change like a Paragraph Tag to a List Tag. In your tag tree, you can change tags in two ways:

  1. Double-click the tag and type in the new tag name directly.

  2. Right click the tag and select Properties. In the Tag tab, select the Type from the drop-down menu.

Note: If you use the first method, there is no warning when an entry is mistyped. For example, if you accidentally type <J1> instead of <H1>, you will receive no error alert. Instead, any tag that is misspelled will be considered as a simple paragraph.

Section 5.5: Moving Tags

If you want to move a tag, you need to drag and drop it within the tag tree.

  • If the small black arrow is positioned to the left of the tag icon with a longer line, the tag will be added immediately after the current tag, at the same hierarchical level.

  • If the arrow is positioned to the right of the tag icon with a shorter line, the tag will be added below the current tag, as a nested child.

Section 5.6: Deleting Tags

There are two ways to delete tags in Adobe Acrobat.

  1. Select your tag and press the Delete key on the keyboard.

  2. Right click a tag and click Delete Tag.

Section 5.7: Associate Content with Tags

After you create a tag, you need to add content to those tags for the content to be read by a screen reader. To add content to an existing tag,

  1. Click the Selection Tool and click on the content in the Document Pane.

  2. Right-click the tag and select Create Tag from Selection.

  3. Now a container with the content will be created inside that tag.

Note: Create Tag from Selection is somewhat inaccurate in this sequence, as the tag already exists. Think of it as being "Associate the tag with the selection."

You also have the ability to create a tag with its content at the same time. It is recommended to use this method because it is usually must faster and saves you a couple steps. Keep in mind that there are some cases where it is still better to use the previous method, so keep both methods in mind when tagging. To create a tag with its content at the same time,

  1. Click the Selection tool and select the content.

  2. Click the Options button and select Create Tag from Selection.

  3. Select the Type of tag from the drop-down menu and click OK. A tag with its content will appear in the Accessibility Tags Pane.

Section 5.8: Finding Tagged Content from the Tag Tree or Document Pane

To find tagged content from the tag tree, click on the tag in the tag tree and a pink outline will appear around the content in the Document Pane.

If you want to find tagged content from the Document Pane,

  1. Click the Selection Tool and highlight/select the item with your cursor.

  2. Click on the Options button in the Accessibility Tags Pane and select Find Tag from Selection.

  3. The tag will be highlighted/selected in the tag tree.

Section 5.9: Using the Reading Order Tool

The Reading Order Tool, formerly known as the Touch Up Reading Order Tool (TURO), provides a visual method for adding and editing tags. While it achieves the same outcome as working in the tag tree, this tool offers a more intuitive tagging experience, especially for those unfamiliar with HTML tagging.

To use the Reading Order Tool:

  1. Click on the Prepare for Accessibility Tool in the Tasks Pane.

  2. The Prepare for Accessibility Pane will open. Go to the bottom of the listed tools and click Fix Reading Order.

  3. The Reading Order Tool will appear. Keep in mind that this tool doesn’t offer all possible tag types, so if you need one that isn’t listed, you’ll have to create that tag in the Accessibility Tags pane.

  4. Next, draw a rectangle around the content you want to tag and select the desired tag type (e.g., Paragraph).

  5. The tool automatically creates the tag and associates it with the selected content. Whether you choose this visual approach or prefer to edit tags in the tag tree depends on your personal preference.

Section 5.10: Container Tags

Container elements are top-level elements used to group other block-level elements hierarchically. While they don't carry semantic meaning in the document, they help organize the tag structure, primarily aiding the document author rather than the end user. Screen readers will not detect or announce them, but they can be invaluable for navigating lengthy documents.

The following tags serve as container elements, primarily used to group and organize other tags within a document:

  • <Document>: The root element of a document's tag tree.

  • <Part>: Represents a major division of a document, such as a chapter or a page. It can group smaller content units like divisions, articles, or sections (described below).

  • <Div>: A generic block-level element or grouping of block-level elements.

  • <Art>: Represents an article—a self-contained body of text that functions as a single narrative within a larger context.

  • <Sect>: Denotes a section, typically part of a chapter or article, and is used as a general container element.

These container tags are intended solely for grouping and structuring other tags, without adding semantic meaning.

For example, a book could be organized using <Part> tags for each chapter, <Sect> tags for each section of that chapter, and <Part> tags again for every page in that chapter.

Section 5.11: Artifacts

To ensure screen readers ignore specific content, like decorative images, you must mark those items as Artifacts. Simply leaving them untagged is not a proper method for designating content to be ignored.

If you use the Reading Order Tool,

  1. Go to the All Tools Pane and click on the Prepare for Accessibility Tool.

  2. Click on the Fix Reading Order Tool. Using the cursor (which is shaped like a crosshair) click and drag a box around the content.

  3. In the Reading Order Tool, select the Background/Artifact button.

  4. Now your content will be turned into an artifact and any tags made for that item will be gone. If you want to make several things an artifact at once, hold down the shift key while selecting the zone around each one, then select the Background/Artifact button.

If you use the Tags Pane,

  1. Open the Accessibility Tags pane and right click on the content that needs to be labeled as an artifact. This should not be the tag itself, but the content within the tag which is next to the container icon that looks like a little box.

  2. Select Change Tag to Artifact.

Section 5.12: Finding Artifacts

To find an Artifact that has been removed from the tag tree:

  1. In the Accessibility Tags Pane, click on the Options button and click Find.

  2. Artifacts will already be selected as the first option in the drop-down menu.

  3. Select Search Page or Search Document and click the Find Next button.

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