Tuesday, April 18, 2017

Accessibility in Microsoft Project

Accessibility in Microsoft Project

Microsoft is committed to making its products and services easier for everyone to use. Many accessibility features are built right into Project. These features are available to everyone, without the need for additional accessibility aids.

In this article

Customize Project to meet your needs

Work more efficiently

Accessibility limitations in Project

Learn about additional accessibility products and services from Microsoft

Customize Project to meet your needs

To customize Project to better suit your needs, consider the following options.

  • Change the magnification and color of text     You can change the magnification of a project to make information easier to read on the screen by scaling views and reports, changing the timescale, or zooming the screen display. You can also enlarge buttons on the Ribbon so that they are easier to see and use. If you use the Microsoft IntelliMouse pointing device, you can scroll and zoom directly from the mouse instead of clicking buttons on the screen. You can also create a custom color palette to use only the colors that you define.

  • Change the appearance of views     You can change how bars, boxes, link lines, and text appear in a view. For example, you can apply formatting directly to any selection to make your Gantt Chart view look just the way that you want. You can change the appearance of a Gantt bar by simply double-clicking the bar, and then selecting the appearance that you want, such as changing the font or increasing the size of text on the bars.

  • Customize toolbars and menus     If you use only a subset of buttons and commands, you can add buttons to the Quick Access Toolbar located above the Ribbon.

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Work more efficiently

Project includes features that help you automate repetitive tasks and work more effectively.

  • Use the spelling checker     Project can correct common spelling and typing errors as you work, and when you type a few identifying characters, it can automatically complete recurring entries within a column.

  • Automate frequently used tasks     You can use a macro to automate complex tasks, which reduces the number of steps that are required to complete a task that you perform frequently. You can assign a macro to a shortcut key, which makes the macro as convenient to use as any standard Project command.

    Security Note: Use caution when running executable files or code in macros or applications. Executable files or code can be used to carry out actions that might compromise the security of your computer and data.

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Accessibility limitations in Project

Project supports accessibility with the exceptions noted in the table.

Issue

Exceptions

Keyboard accessibility

The core functionality in Project is keyboard accessible. Keyboard access to other functions is provided with the following exceptions:

  • Text in the Task Notes, Resource Notes, and Assignment Notes dialog boxes cannot be richly formatted (such as bolded or italicized) without using a mouse.

  • Some dialog boxes in Project have grids with long lists of items. To scroll to an item within the grid, use the DOWN ARROW and UP ARROW keys, or use the PAGE DOWN and PAGE UP keys.

  • Grouped tasks in the Network Diagram view can be collapsed using the keyboard, but collapsed groups can only be expanded using the mouse.

High contrast and display attributes

Project supports the accessibility settings of the host operating system with exceptions.

Certain areas of the product do not display as they shoudl, or do not display at all, in High Contrast mode.

  • When change highlighting is turned on, High Contrast mode significantly lowers the visibility of the text in highlighted cells.

  • The rich text formatting buttons in the Task Notes, Resource Notes, and Assignment Notes dialog boxes do not display well in High Contrast mode.

  • Indicator icons do not display well in High Contrast mode. To access the information conveyed by the indicators, double-click the indicator to open the dialog box or view where the data is captured.

  • Graphs that display resource availability and allocation are not legible in High Contrast mode. To get this information, use the tables in the Resource Usage view.

  • User interface elements do not display correctly when you run the Accessibility Wizard in Windows XP or Windows Vista. To address this, turn on High Contrast mode in Control Panel (Accessibility Options in Windows XP or Ease of Access Center in Windows Vista).

In some dialog boxes in Project, text is cut off if you are using a very large font size.

Exposure of information

Project uses Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA) to expose information, with the following exceptions:

  • The following dialog boxes do not expose information according to MSAA guidelines: Change Working Time, Reports, COM Add-Ins, Rearrange Commands, Insert Hyperlink, and Service Options.

  • Some controls in the Progress Lines dialog box do not expose their names using the MSAA Name property.

  • Component Object Model (COM) add-ins do not expose information according to MSAA guidelines.

  • The status bar, displayed at the bottom of the Project window, does not expose information according to MSAA guidelines.

  • In the Page Setup dialog box, when switching tabs, the child objects do not get exposed correctly using the MSAA object hierarchy. However, screen readers can use alternate methods to get to these objects.

  • MSAA is not supported in graphical views, such as the chart portion of the Gantt Chart view. However, all of the information in the graphical views is also available in a table format (such as the left side of Gantt Chart view), which does support MSAA.

  • The MSAA method for selection (accSelect) does not work in combo boxes. Also, combo boxes expose the wrong value for the MSAA Role property.

  • The view bar does not expose its name correctly using the MSAA Name property.

  • Parts of the spell checker do not expose information according to MSAA guidelines.

  • Items are not verbalized in list boxes containing check boxes to the left of each list item.

  • In the Resource Substitution Wizard, selecting certain items causes focus to change automatically to another control in the dialog box.

Animation

Project uses animation when the animated Office Assistant is turned on. Animation can be turned off at your discretion, and all information is equally available in a non-animated mode.

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Learn about additional accessibility products and services from Microsoft

The following sections provide information about the features, products, and services that make Microsoft Windows more accessible for people with disabilities:

  • Accessibility Features of Windows

  • Documentation in Alternative Formats

  • Customer Service for People with Hearing Impairments

Note: This information may apply only to users who license Microsoft products in the United States. If you obtained this product outside of the United States, you can use the subsidiary information card that came with your software package or visit the Microsoft Accessibility Web site for a list of Microsoft support services telephone numbers and addresses. You can contact your subsidiary to find out whether the type of products and services described in this section are available in your area. Information about accessibility is available in other languages, including Japanese and French.

Accessibility features of Windows

The Windows operating system has many built-in accessibility features that are useful for people who have difficulty typing or using a mouse, are blind or have low vision, or who are deaf or hard of hearing. The features are installed during setup. For more information about these features, see Help in Windows and the Microsoft Accessibility Web site.

  • Free Step-by-Step Tutorials     Microsoft offers a series of step-by-step tutorials that provide detailed procedures for adjusting the accessibility options and settings on your computer. This information is presented in a side-by-side format so that you can learn how to use the mouse, the keyboard, or a combination of both.

    To find step-by-step tutorials for Microsoft products, see the Microsoft Accessibility Web site.

  • Assistive Technology Products for Windows     A wide variety of assistive technology products are available to make computers easier to use for people with disabilities. You can search a catalog of assistive technology products that run on Windows at the Microsoft Accessibility Web site.

    If you use assistive technology, contact your assistive technology vendor before you upgrade your software or hardware to check for possible compatibility issues.

Documentation in alternative formats

If you have difficulty reading or handling printed materials, you can obtain the documentation for many Microsoft products in more accessible formats. You can view an index of accessible product documentation on the Microsoft Accessibility Web site.

In addition, you can obtain additional Microsoft publications from Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic, Inc (RFB&D). RFB&D distributes these documents to registered, eligible members of their distribution service. For information about the availability of Microsoft product documentation and books from Microsoft Press, contact:

Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic, Inc.
20 Roszel Road
Princeton, NJ 08540

Telephone number from within the United States: (800) 221-4792
Telephone number from outside the United States and Canada: (609) 452-0606
Fax: (609) 987-8116

Customer service for people with hearing impairments

If you are deaf or hard-of-hearing, complete access to Microsoft product and customer services is available through a text telephone (TTY/TDD) service:

  • For customer service, contact the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 892-5234 between 6:30 AM and 5:30 PM Pacific Time, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

  • For technical assistance in the United States, contact Microsoft Product Support Services at (800) 892-5234 between 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM Pacific Time, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. In Canada, dial (905) 568-9641 between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

Microsoft Support Services are subject to the prices, terms, and conditions in place at the time the service is used.

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