The web promises an idea of universal access - a place where everyone is truly equal. This is a bold and exciting aspiration. But if that is to be the case, it means we need to think carefully about what accessibility means:
For the visually impaired, deaf and hard-of-hearing people, as well as for those with motor or cognitive disabilities, we will ensure that their needs are addressed first and foremost in all services developed from this point on. This is an attitude we at Novo Nordisk need to keep top of mind in the modern age. We must create services that are accessible to users of all ages and all abilities, making it easy for every single person to reach our content, and once there, to determine for themselves the value they derive from us.
Access keys are essentially keyboard shortcuts on a website that give a keyboard or screen-reader user quick and easy access to all the main areas of the site.
If you are using Windows, pressing the 'Alt' key in combination with the access key will highlight that link on the page, you then press 'Enter' to select that link.
If you are using a Mac, pressing the 'Ctrl' key in combination with
the access key will automatically send you to that specific
page.
Browser | What to do |
Internet Explorer 5+ (PC) | Hold down the 'Alt' key, press the number of the Access key, release both keys then press 'Enter' |
Netscape 6 and earlier (PC and Mac) |
Access keys are not supported |
Netscape 7 (PC) | Hold down the 'Alt' key and press the number of the Access key |
| Firefox, Mozilla (Linux) | Hold down the 'Alt' key and press the number of the Access key |
Firefox, Mozilla (PC) | Hold down the 'Alt' key and press the number of the Access key |
Firefox, Mozilla (Mac) | Hold down the 'Ctrl' key and press the number of the Access key |
Safari and Omniweb (Mac) | Hold down the 'Ctrl' key and press the number of the Access key |
Opera | Hold down the 'Shift' key and press 'Escape ', release both keys, then press the number of the Access key |
Please note: This table is not exhaustive, your browser may or
may not support Access keys.
(A wide range of solutions to help you see websites, your computer system and common applications more clearly.)
A lot of web pages can be difficult to view because the text is too small to read comfortably.
This section explains how you can make the text bigger in your web
browser.
Choose from the following Windows web browsers for
step-by-step instructions on how to increase the size of the text on
any web page you are viewing:
1. Open the ' View ' menu with the mouse or by pressing
'Alt'+'V'.
2. Select the 'Text Size' option with the mouse or by
pressing 'X'.
3. Choose your preferred text size with the mouse
or by using the up and down arrow keys and pressing 'Enter' or by
clicking on it.
The text on our website should now have changed to reflect your
choice.
Some websites have fixed the size of their text
('hard-coded') and as a result these websites will not show the change
you have just made. If you would like to use your larger text on these
sites follow the following steps:
1. Click on the 'Tools' menu with the mouse or press
'Alt'+'T'.
2. Click on 'Internet Options' with the mouse or
press 'O'. You should now see the 'Internet Options' box.
3.
Click on the 'Accessibility' button or press 'Alt'+'E'.
4. Click
the 'Ignore font sizes specified on web pages' checkbox to add a tick
or press 'Alt '+'Z '.
5. Click the 'OK' button twice with the
mouse or press 'Enter' twice, to return to Internet Explorer.
Note: If this does not work, it could be because your computer
settings cannot be changed due to local IT policies. In this case,
contact your local IT support for further help.
Follow these steps to increase or decrease the size of the text for
the web page you are viewing:
1. Open the 'View' menu with the
mouse or by pressing 'Alt'+'V' at the same time.
2. Select the
'Text Size' option with the mouse or by pressing 'S' twice.
3.
Increase or decrease the text size with the mouse or by using the up
and down arrow keys and pressing 'Enter'.
4. Alternatively you
can press 'Ctrl' and ' + ' to increase the text size, 'Ctrl' and ' - '
to decrease the text size. 'Ctrl' and '0' returns you to the default size.
Follow these steps to set a minimum text size for all pages you visit:
1. Open the 'Tools' menu with the mouse or by pressing
'Alt'+'T'.
2. Click on 'Options', or press 'O', to open the
Options dialog box.
3. Make sure that the 'General' option is
selected - if not, either click on it or press 'Tab' until it is
highlighted (in blue) and then press the 'Enter' key.
4. Click
on 'Fonts & Colors', or press 'F' , to open the 'Fonts and Colors'
dialogue box.
5. Click on the 'Minimum font size' box or press
'Alt'+'Z'. Use the up and down arrows to select a new font size and
press 'Enter'.
6. Click on 'Always use my:' 'Fonts' check box,
or tab to this check box and press the 'Spacebar'.
7. Click 'OK'
button or press 'Enter'.
8. Click 'OK' button or tab to 'OK'
button and press 'Enter'.
Note: If this does not work, it could be because your computer settings cannot be changed due to local IT policies. In this case, contact your local IT support for further help.
(Explains the various ways web content can be made accessible to deaf and hard-of-hearing people.)
There are a number of text to speech programmes that are either freeware or shareware, which allow any text that can be selected with the keyboard or mouse to be spoken back in a range of different voices.
This may be a very valuable facility for someone who needs to give their eyes a rest or who has difficulties reading.
One such program is ReadPlease. You can download a free copy of ReadPlease
here.
There are various speech output software packages that
can also be used with your browser (talking browsers), as well as
speech output software designed especially for this purpose.
There are two main technologies that enable websites to be read aloud. One is called Browsealoud. The other is called ReadSpeaker. Both require websites to sign up in order to be 'enabled', but both are free to web users.
To use Browsealoud, you need to download and install the software. When it is running, simply move the mouse over some text on a web page, and it will be read aloud. No clicking or selecting of text is required.
To view a list of enabled websites and download a copy of the
software, visit the Browsealoud
website.
ReadSpeaker speech enabled sites have a 'SayIt' button as shown above. When you click on it or 'Tab' to it and press 'Enter', the web page/text will be read aloud in a new window. Unlike Browsealoud, there is no need to download and install software beforehand.
To learn more about ReadSpeaker and view the list of websites that it supports, visit the main ReadSpeaker website at ReadSpeaker.com.