Module 7: Creating Links with Unique and Descriptive Names

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Voice Over (VO): Accessible Electronic Document Community of Practice, AED-COP.

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VO: You are watching how to make an accessible document in Microsoft Excel.

VO: This is Module 7, creating links with unique and descriptive names. This video is one in a series showing how to make an Excel worksheet section 508 conformant.

VO: When adding links to an Excel worksheet, you must make sure that each link has a unique and descriptive name. Additionally, the purpose of the link should be discernible when reading the surrounding content.

VO: Assistive technology users rely on meaningful names to determine the destination, function, or purpose of links. For example, multiple Click Here links confuse Assistive Technology users because the name for each link is the same while the destinations may be different.

VO: Excel automatically creates a hyperlink when a user pastes a full URL onto a worksheet and presses Enter or Space. Raw URLs may not make sense to screen reader users or others, so make the link text descriptive.

VO: To insert a link, copy the link URL, select the desired text in your worksheet, right-click or hold Shift and press F10.

VO: Select Link. Paste the link into the address field and select OK.

VO: To change the link text, right-click the link and select Edit Hyperlink. A dialog box will appear.

VO: Click in the Text to Display field at the top of the dialog and enter your descriptive link text. Note, deleting the last character in the link name will remove the link.

VO: To test the hyperlinks in your worksheet, locate all of the hyperlinks. Do the links have meaningful names that describe their destination, function, and/or purpose, or are these determinable within context?

VO: If not, the document fails this test. In this worksheet, the link Click Here is unclear and has no context.

VO: This example is not accessible. This worksheet contains two links, www.section508.gov and get my Section 508 questions answered.

VO: These examples are considered accessible because the links are either uniquely named or their destination, function, and/or purpose can be determined through context.

VO: Thank you for watching Module 7. You are encouraged to watch the other modules in this video series and revisit modules to gain a mastery of the information provided.

VO: To learn more about Section 508, visit www.section508.gov. This video is a product of the Accessible Electronic Document Community of Practice, Chief Information Officers Council, and the Federal Aviation Administration.