External PDF Files

If you have a PDF file that other people made and you want to share with your students, you still need to make sure it is an accessible PDF. This can be challenging because you may not have access to the original source file (e.g., Word document) to make the necessary adjustments. Here are a few possible solutions.

Find an Alternative Source¶

If the PDF file is for a textbook or a research article, check if there is an alternative source that is already accessible. For example, many textbooks have an e-book version that is more accessible than the PDF version. Many research articles are available on publishers’ websites in HTML format, which is more accessible than the PDF version (even arXiv now provides HTML versions for most new articles).

Use UDoIt to Convert to Accessible PDF or Other Formats¶

If you cannot find an alternative source, you can try using UDoIt (available in Canvas) to convert the PDF file into an accessible PDF file (by tagging the PDF) or into other accessible formats (e.g., a Canvas page).

1. Upload the existing PDF file to a Canvas course.

2. Launch UDoIt from the Canvas course (you can find UDOIT in the course navigation menu). If this is the first time you are using UDoIt, it may take a minute to scan your course content if there is a lot of content in the course.

3. Choose the Review Course Files tab. Find the PDF file you just uploaded. Click the Review button.

4. You can now request to convert the PDF file into an accessible format (such as a canvas page or an HTML file). Or you can request to auto-tag the PDF file to make it accessible while retaining the PDF format. You can review the generated document and decide if you want to replace the original file with the new accessible version. You can also find the generated versions in a folder called Alternate Files in the Canvas course’s file section.

Use Adobe Acrobat Pro to Add or Check Accessibility Features¶

If you have access to Adobe Acrobat Pro, you can use it to check the accessibility features in an existing PDF file, and also to add them if they are missing.

1. Open the PDF file in Adobe Acrobat Pro.

2. Go to Tools > Accessibility (sometimes called Prepare for accessibility)

3. Select Check for accessibility to see if the PDF file has the necessary accessibility features (e.g., tags, alt text for images, etc.). If there are issues, you can use the Accessibility Checker to identify and fix them.

4. If the PDF file is missing tags, you can use the Automatically tag PDF.

5. If the PDF file contains images that are missing alt text, you will need to add them with the Add alternative text option.